Home

Christmas This or That: A Party Game Everyone Can Play

Christmas this or that asks one question at a time: which of two festive options would you pick? It needs no props, fits any group size, and gets a room talking in under a minute.

This or That Christmas Edition: How the Game Works

Christmas this or that is a forced-choice game. You read two options out loud, and each person picks one. There is no right answer, which is what makes it work: a room full of relatives, coworkers or classmates will disagree about hot cocoa versus eggnog within seconds, and the reasons people give are often funnier than the pick itself.

You only need a host, a list of pairs and a way to keep the group moving. The tool above draws pairs at random from more than eighty prompts across five categories, tracks how many are left, and can print the full set as cut-out cards. A round of ten prompts takes roughly five to eight minutes with a chatty group. Call that an estimate, because some pairs start long debates.

Playing at a House Party

Gather everyone where they can see or hear you. If the group is small, one person reads and the rest call out their pick. With a bigger crowd, split into two sides of the room and have people move to the side that matches their choice.

• Read one pair at a time and give people three seconds to decide.
• Ask one or two people to explain a pick, then move on. Do not let one pair eat five minutes.
• Keep score by side of the room, not by person, so nobody feels put on the spot.
• Run ten to twelve prompts, then take a food break and return for a second set.

For a mixed-age group, weight the draw toward Food, Traditions and Silly prompts. Those land with kids and grandparents alike.

Office and Team Versions

At work, keep it short and low-stakes. A lunch-and-learn slot of ten minutes is plenty. Print the cards from the tool above, cut them apart, and drop them in a bowl. Whoever pulls a card reads it and picks first, then the rest of the table answers.

1. Seat people in groups of four to six so the noise stays manageable.
2. Give each table a stack of cards and a sheet to tally which option the table chose.
3. After eight minutes, compare tallies across tables. The table with the most unusual collective answers gets first pick of the snack table.
4. Collect the cards at the end so they can be reused at the next gathering.

If the team is remote, put the prompt in the meeting chat and have people reply with A or B before anyone explains. It keeps quieter colleagues in the game.

Classroom Use

For a class, this works as a movement break. Designate one wall for option A and the opposite wall for option B. Read a pair, and students walk to the wall they choose. No talking needed, so it stays calm and quick. Ten pairs fit inside a five-minute break.

Teachers can also use the printed cards as writing prompts: each student takes one card and writes two sentences defending their pick. Alternatively, students can pair up and interview each other with six cards, which builds listening skills and gives everyone a turn to talk. Keep the Gifts category out of very young classrooms and lean on Food and Silly instead.

See options on Amazon

Family Video Calls

Over a video call, the host needs to control the pace. Share your screen so everyone sees the two options, or read them aloud slowly and repeat once. Ask people to raise a hand or type A or B in the chat before anyone speaks, so fast talkers do not drown out the rest.

• Start with light Silly pairs to get people laughing.
• Rotate who explains their choice first, so the same two people do not dominate.
• Use the printed cards in each household for a parallel game, then compare results between homes at the end.
• Cap the call at twenty minutes of play. Attention drops after that on video, which is a reasonable estimate rather than a rule.

Variations That Keep It Fresh

Stand Left, Stand Right

Mark two spots in the room, one for each option. Everyone moves to the spot matching their pick. This works in a living room, a classroom or a large meeting room, and it shows the split at a glance without anyone speaking.

Scoring

Give each player a point when they match the room majority. After ten prompts, the person with the most points wins. This rewards reading the group, which leads to entertaining debates about how well people know their own family.

Team Rounds

Two teams take turns. The reading team announces a pair, and the other team has to guess which option the reading team will pick as a group. A correct guess earns a point. It works well at office events where people do not know each other well.

Speed Round

Read ten pairs back to back with one second between them and no discussion. Save the explanations for a second pass. Quick rounds suit large groups and younger players.

Forty More Prompts to Add to the Pile

Write these on index cards or read them straight from this list. All are family-friendly.

1. Pine candle or cinnamon candle
2. Stocking hung on a mantel or stocking on a bedpost
3. Snow globe or snow shovel
4. Wrapping paper with stripes or with snowflakes
5. Ribbon bow or paper tag
6. Christmas Eve walk or Christmas Eve movie
7. Board game night or card game night
8. Roaring fire or glowing space heater
9. Frost on the window or frost in the yard
10. Handbell choir or school choir
11. Nutcracker decorations or snowman decorations
12. Red and green or blue and silver
13. Paper snowflakes or store-bought garland
14. Gingerbread cookies or shortbread cookies
15. Peppermint tea or spiced chai
16. Puzzle on the table or craft on the table
17. Write a letter to a relative or call a relative
18. Visit a light display or drive through town
19. Ice skating or sledding
20. Snow boots or slippers
21. Knitted mittens or leather gloves
22. Earmuffs or a wool hat
23. Fancy dinner or potluck dinner
24. Paper plates or the good china
25. Seated dinner or buffet line
26. One long table or several small tables
27. Party at home or party at a relative's house
28. Morning walk or afternoon walk
29. Photo by the tree or photo by the fire
30. Ornament swap or cookie swap
31. Reading a holiday book or listening to an audiobook
32. Advent calendar with chocolate or with tiny toys
33. Countdown with candles or with a paper chain
34. Wear a holiday sweater or a holiday scarf
35. Santa hat at dinner or no hat at dinner
36. Gingerbread house kit or build from scratch
37. Decorate the tree all at once or over a week
38. Tree lights on during the day or only at night
39. Host the gift exchange or host the meal
40. New Year's Eve at home or out with friends

See options on Amazon

Running a Smooth Game

Decide the number of prompts before you start and announce it. People settle in when they know the finish line. Keep a printed card stack as a backup so the game never depends on one screen being charged or one room being quiet.

Save the strongest pairs for the middle of the set, and close with a silly one. The last pick should be something nobody can answer seriously, so the room ends on a laugh rather than a debate about stuffing versus mashed potatoes.

More Christmas party games

Christmas party games · Christmas trivia · Christmas Jeopardy · Christmas party planning

Gift links are affiliate links: if you buy, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. It never changes which ideas we list. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Details.

Questions

Updated October 28, 2026