Secret Santa T-Shirts Under $30: Funny Gifts for Coworkers and Gift Swaps
The quick answer
Every shirt in this guide costs $23.95 to $25.95 before shipping, so it fits under a $30 Secret Santa limit. The safest picks for a coworker or a gift swap are the ones that joke about the season rather than about the person: Nice List Pending Review, Officially Not Festive Yet, Merry Grumpmas To All, and Dad Joke Loading. Shipping is $4.99 per order and free over $60, so if you are the organizer buying three shirts at once, they ship free.
By the Listentee studio. Every pick is from our own catalog. Updated .
- Pick 1
Nice List Pending Review
$24.95The easiest office pick in the catalog. NICE LIST PENDING REVIEW sits inside a tilted stamp border, so it reads like a form that got stuck in someone's inbox. The joke is about the holiday verdict, not the person, which makes it safe for a coworker you only know from meetings. $24.95, in black, heather charcoal, or red.
Shop this design - Pick 2
Officially Not Festive Yet
$25.95For the colleague who sighs when the first carol plays in the break room. OFFICIALLY NOT FESTIVE YET says it politely, and it lands well in a gift swap because the feeling is familiar to anyone who has heard the same carol on repeat. $25.95, in forest green, black, or heather charcoal.
Shop this design - Pick 3
Merry Grumpmas To All
$24.95Reads like a holiday card until the last line: TO ALL, AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT... FINALLY. It suits the introvert who leaves the party early and the friend who hosts but secretly counts down to the quiet. $24.95, in black, maroon, navy, or heather forest.
Shop this design - Pick 4
Dad Joke Loading
$23.95A loading bar stuck at 99 percent and PLEASE WAIT FOR THE GROAN underneath. It is a good fit for the coworker who answers every question with a pun, and at $23.95 it is one of the lowest-priced shirts in the store. Black, heather gray, or navy.
Shop this design - Pick 5
Snacks, Blanket, and the Big Screen
$24.95The no-risk pick when all you know about the person is that they own a couch. SNACKS, BLANKET, AND THE BIG SCREEN is warm rather than sarcastic, so it works for a mixed group where you cannot predict who will open it. $24.95.
Shop this design - Pick 6
But First, Water My Plants
$23.95If your Secret Santa has a desk covered in pothos cuttings, this one shows you paid attention. BUT FIRST, WATER MY PLANTS is $23.95, and it comes in natural, forest green, or dusty blue, which suits the plant person's palette better than a holiday red.
Shop this design
How to pick a shirt for someone you barely know
Secret Santa is a small test of tact. A shirt that jokes about the holidays is safe; a shirt that jokes about the person is a gamble. Every design in this guide aims its humor at December itself: the paperwork of the nice list, the reluctant festive spirit, the joy of staying home. Nothing here comments on anyone's age, body, job, or habits beyond a love of puns or plants.
If you know one thing about the person, use it. A plant on their desk points to BUT FIRST, WATER MY PLANTS. A reputation for terrible jokes points to DAD JOKE LOADING. If you know nothing, choose between NICE LIST PENDING REVIEW and SNACKS, BLANKET, AND THE BIG SCREEN, which work for almost any adult with a sense of humor.
Color matters more than people expect. Black, navy, and heather charcoal are easy to wear with anything, and every design on this list comes in at least one of them.
Getting the size right without asking
The shirts are unisex with a regular fit, in sizes S to 3XL. Measured flat across the chest, they run from 18 inches for an S to 28 inches for a 3XL, two inches per size. Body length runs from 28 to 33 inches.
The best way to guess is to ask the organizer, who often collects sizes or wish lists anyway. The second best is to think about the shirts the person wears on a casual day and whether they look loose or close-fitting. If you are torn between two sizes, choose the larger one: a slightly roomy tee gets worn, a tight one does not. Because every shirt is printed to order, we cannot exchange sizes later, so this minute of thought is worth it.
For a white elephant or steal game, where you cannot know who will take your gift home, a size from the middle of the range, M or L, gives the most people a chance that it fits.
Budget math, including shipping
The shirts above cost $23.95, $24.95, or $25.95. Shipping is $4.99 per order, so a single shirt shipped to you costs between $28.94 and $30.94 in total. If your group's $30 limit includes shipping, pick one of the $23.95 or $24.95 designs.
Organizers buying for several people can save the shipping entirely: orders over $60 ship free, which means three shirts in one order. You can send the whole order to one address and hand the shirts out at the party.
If you want the gift to arrive at the recipient's door instead, enter their address at checkout and add an optional gift message, which is printed on the packing slip.
Order early enough
Each shirt is printed after you order, which takes 2 to 5 business days, and then spends 3 to 7 business days in transit to US addresses. For delivery by December 24, the last day to order is Tuesday, December 8. Office gift exchanges usually happen earlier than that, so count back from the date of your party: allow the full production and transit window, and add a couple of days for the package to reach whoever is bringing it.
Questions
- Are these shirts under $30 with shipping?
- The $23.95 and $24.95 designs are, at $28.94 and $29.94 delivered. The $25.95 designs come to $30.94 with shipping. Orders over $60 ship free.
- Can I ship the gift straight to the recipient?
- Yes. Enter their address at checkout and add an optional gift message, which is printed on the packing slip. We ship to US addresses only.
- What if it does not fit?
- Shirts are printed to order, so we cannot take returns or exchanges for size. If a shirt arrives misprinted, damaged, or wrong, email us within 30 days of delivery and we replace it free or refund it.
A good Secret Santa gift gets a laugh when it is opened and gets worn after the party. Pick the joke that fits the person, check the size, and order early enough for printing and shipping.