Friendsgiving Ideas: Activities, Themes and a Toast Everyone Records
The best Friendsgiving ideas give a group of friends something to do together beyond eating: thankful place cards, a toast everyone records ahead of time, a pajama or around-the-world theme, a blind pie tasting and a superlatives round after dinner. Pick one theme, two activities and a small host gift, and the night runs itself.
A note before the list: we make Tribute, the group video maker, and it's one of the 13 ideas.
| Idea | Type | Best for | Time needed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Friendsgiving superlatives | Activity | Groups with inside jokes | 20 minutes |
| Thankful place cards | Activity | Groups with a few new faces | 10 minutes |
| The toast everyone records | Activity | Friends spread across cities | 10 minutes at the table |
| A signed gratitude tablecloth | Tradition | Groups who meet every year | All night |
| Pajama Friendsgiving | Theme | Low-key groups | No extra time |
| Around-the-world potluck | Theme | Groups from different places | No extra time |
| A 1970s dinner party | Theme | Groups who like to dress up | An hour of thrifting |
| Friendsgiving brunch | Theme | Parents and early risers | A morning |
| Blind pie tasting | Activity | Competitive bakers | 30 minutes |
| Backyard touch football | Activity | Groups who need to move | 45 minutes |
| The timer group photo | Activity | Every group | 10 minutes |
| A Secret Santa draw | Activity | Groups who exchange gifts | 10 minutes |
| Small host and guest gifts | Gifts | Hosts and guests | A store run |
What are fun Friendsgiving ideas for this year?
The fun Friendsgiving ideas that last are the ones that get friends talking about each other. Food fills the table; these fill the time between the courses. Start with these four.
1. Friendsgiving superlatives
Before dinner, pass around a list of awards: The One Who Cries at Commercials, Best Group Chat Reply of the Year, Person Who Still Owes Someone $20. Everyone votes on slips of paper, and the host reads the winners with dessert. Print a few paper crowns if you want to go all in.
- Time needed: 20 minutes
- Cost: Paper and pens
Best for: Friend groups with years of inside jokes.
Why it works: Everyone gets roasted and celebrated in the same breath.
2. Thankful place cards
Write each guest's name on a folded card and set it at someone else's seat. Before eating, every guest writes one thing they're grateful for about the person whose name they got, then hands it over. People take these home and keep them on the fridge.
- Time needed: 10 minutes
- Cost: A pack of index cards
Best for: Groups where not everyone knows each other well.
Why it works: It skips the small talk and gets straight to something kind.
3. The toast everyone records (a Tribute group video)
A live toast at Friendsgiving lands on whoever is holding a glass. A recorded one includes everyone, even the friends who can't come. Two to three weeks ahead, start a Tribute and send the link to the whole group chat with one prompt: "Raise a glass and tell us what this group means to you this year."
Tribute is a group video maker that turns messages from friends and family into one surprise video. It works by inviting everyone to record a short clip from their phone; Tribute compiles the clips, music and photos into a finished video you share or play together. Play it on the TV when dessert comes out and toast along with each clip. Over 8 million videos have been sent on Tribute, and it holds 4.9 stars from 7,000+ reviews.
- Time needed: 10 minutes at the table; open it 2 to 3 weeks ahead so people have time to record
- Cost: Free to start a draft; you pay from $35 when you publish and start collecting videos
Best for: Friend groups spread across cities and time zones.
Why it works: Unlike a live toast, nobody freezes on the spot, and the friend in Denver gets the same airtime as the friend in the next chair.
4. A signed gratitude tablecloth
Cover the table with a plain white cloth and put out fabric markers. Through the night, guests write what they're thankful for and sign it with the year. Bring the same cloth back next November and watch it fill up.
- Time needed: All night, in the background
- Cost: A cotton tablecloth and markers, about $25
Best for: Friend groups who host every year.
Why it works: It turns one dinner into a tradition with a record of who was there.
Which Friendsgiving themes are worth trying?
A theme makes invites, food and decor easier, because every choice has a rule. These Friendsgiving themes work for groups of 6 to 20 and cost little beyond what you'd spend anyway.
5. Pajama Friendsgiving
Everyone arrives in pajamas, the couch is the main seating, and dinner is served buffet style. Add a stack of blankets and a movie for later. It's the theme for groups who are tired from a long fall.
- Time needed: No extra prep
- Cost: Nothing beyond the food
Best for: Low-key groups and hosts with small apartments.
Why it works: Comfortable people stay longer.
6. Around-the-world potluck
Ask each guest to bring a dish from their family or a place they've traveled. Label each one with a flag or a card. Our guide to Friendsgiving food ideas has a sign-up list you can adapt for it.
- Time needed: No extra prep
- Cost: Each guest covers their own dish
Best for: Groups with friends from different places.
Why it works: Every dish comes with a story, and guests learn something new about friends they've known for years.
7. A 1970s dinner party
Fondue, a gelatin mold nobody eats, a record player and a dress code of turtlenecks and wide collars. It's one of the cute Friendsgiving ideas that photographs well, and thrift stores make the outfits cheap. Ask everyone to bring one retro dish.
- Time needed: An hour of thrifting
- Cost: $10 to $20 per outfit
Best for: Groups who like costumes.
Why it works: The theme does the work of breaking the ice.
8. Friendsgiving brunch
Move the whole thing to 11 a.m. Serve a turkey and stuffing strata, a pie, coffee and a mimosa bar. Friends with kids can come, and everyone is home by four.
- Time needed: A morning
- Cost: Less than a dinner, since breakfast foods are cheap
Best for: Parents and friends with evening plans.
Why it works: Compared to a late dinner, nobody has to choose between Friendsgiving and bedtime.
What Friendsgiving activities work for adults?
Once the plates are cleared, adults want something with a bit of competition and a lot of talking. These Friendsgiving activities fit a living room and a few drinks.
9. Blind pie tasting
Ask three or four guests to bring a pie, cover the labels and number them. Everyone scores each slice on taste, crust and presentation. The winner gets a wooden spoon trophy and bragging rights until next year.
- Time needed: 30 minutes
- Cost: Pies the guests bring
Best for: Bakers who think they're the best in the group.
Why it works: Dessert becomes the main event.
10. Backyard touch football
Pick teams between dinner and dessert, play for 30 minutes, and come back inside hungry for pie. Use flags or a two-hand-touch rule to keep it friendly. Anyone who won't play becomes the commentator.
- Time needed: 45 minutes
- Cost: A football
Best for: Groups who need to move after a big meal.
Why it works: It burns off the food coma and makes room for dessert.
11. The timer group photo
Prop a phone on a stack of books, set a ten-second timer, and take one photo with everyone in it before anyone leaves. Take a funny one second. Drop both into the group chat that night.
- Time needed: 10 minutes
- Cost: Nothing
Best for: Every Friendsgiving.
Why it works: It's the photo you'll look for next year, and someone always forgets to take it.
12. A Secret Santa draw for December
With everyone in one room, draw names for a December gift swap. Set a budget and a date before people head home. For more ideas once the season turns, see our holiday season guide.
- Time needed: 10 minutes
- Cost: Whatever budget you agree on
Best for: Groups who exchange gifts.
Why it works: It saves a week of group chat back-and-forth in December.
What are good Friendsgiving gift ideas?
Nobody expects presents at Friendsgiving, which is what makes a small one land. Keep it under $20 and practical.
13. Small gifts for the host and guests
For the host: a bottle of wine or cider, a nice dish towel, a candle, or a pie so they don't have to make one. For guests: a mini jar of jam, a printed recipe card from the night, or a stack of takeout containers labeled with their name for leftovers.
- Time needed: A store run
- Cost: $5 to $20
Best for: Hosts and guests who want to say thanks.
Why it works: These Friendsgiving gift ideas are useful the next day, not just on the night.
How do you start hosting Friendsgiving?
Send the invite three weeks out with a date, a theme and a sign-up for dishes. A Saturday the week before Thanksgiving works for most groups, since people travel on the holiday itself. Keep the main dish for yourself and assign the rest.
Friendships need hours to grow. University of Kansas research found it takes about 50 hours of time together to go from acquaintance to casual friend, 90 hours to become friends and more than 200 hours for a close friendship. Hosting Friendsgiving puts five or six of those hours on the calendar every year.
Plan one activity before dinner and one after, plus the recorded toast with dessert. Need more ideas for the long weekend itself? Our list of Thanksgiving activities covers adults, kids and everyone in between.
What if half your friends are traveling for Thanksgiving?
Getting the whole group in one city in November is hard. AAA projected 81.8 million people would travel at least 50 miles from home over Thanksgiving 2025, a record. Hold Friendsgiving the weekend before, so friends can come before they leave.
For the ones who still can't make it, the recorded toast is their seat at the table. Picture the friend who moved to London last spring appearing on the TV, glass raised, at 2 a.m. her time without having to stay up. The same idea works on December 31; see our New Year's Eve activities for the next party.
Frequently Asked Questions
What do you do at a Friendsgiving?
Friends share a potluck dinner, then play games, give a toast and spend time together before the holidays. Popular Friendsgiving activities include thankful place cards, a blind pie tasting, superlatives and a group photo.
When should you host Friendsgiving?
Most groups host the weekend before Thanksgiving, since many friends travel to family for the holiday itself. Send the invite about three weeks ahead.
What are good Friendsgiving theme ideas?
Pajama Friendsgiving, an around-the-world potluck, a 1970s dinner party and a Friendsgiving brunch are easy themes. Each one sets rules for the food and dress code, which makes planning simpler.
What should you bring to Friendsgiving as a guest?
Bring the dish you signed up for, ready to serve, plus a small host gift such as a bottle, a candle or a dish towel. Ask the host what's missing if you weren't assigned anything.
What are Friendsgiving games and activities for teens?
Superlatives, the blind pie tasting, touch football and the timer group photo all work for teens. Let them run the superlatives round; they'll write better categories than the adults.
How can friends who can't attend join Friendsgiving?
Ask them to record a short toast ahead of time and play the clips with dessert. A group video lets them join from anywhere, on their own schedule.
👉 Start a thank-you Tribute and raise a glass with every friend, near or far.
