A letter to Santa online, where the grown-ups can read it too
Updated for Christmas 2026
The letter to Santa is a child’s first wish list, and the people who actually read it are the grown-ups. Write it online as well and Grandma, the aunts and the godparents can see it, take one wish each, and stop buying the same dinosaur twice.
Mila's list 🎄
6 gift ideas ·Christmas ·1 already reserved
Building bricks, the big box
She has the small set already and has run out of bricks.
A dinosaur, the roaring kind
T. rex specifically. She was very clear about this.
Proper paints and brushes
A bike, when she outgrows this one
Not yet — next spring. Here so nobody buys one twice.
The letter goes up the chimney; the list goes to Grandma
First, what this is not. Nothing here posts a letter to the North Pole, and nobody here writes back. If you want a reply, several national post offices run a Santa letter service every December, Royal Mail among them, and that envelope is well worth the stamp.
What this is: the place a child’s wishes live once the letter has gone, so that the people who will do the buying can see them. A grandparent opens the link, presses "I’ll get this" on the roaring T. rex and types "Grandma". From then on every aunt, uncle and godparent who opens the list sees that the dinosaur is taken and picks something else.
The child gets to write to Santa, the grown-ups get a list they can coordinate on, and the one thing that would break the spell, a child seeing "reserved by Grandad" next to the bike, is kept off the screen the child looks at. The rest of this page is how to make that work.
Paper first, link second
Keep the letter the way your family has always done it. The online list sits behind it, and takes a parent about ten minutes on the evening the letter is written.
- The child writes or draws the letter. At the kitchen table, in felt tip, with as many crossings-out as it needs. Drawings count: a five-year-old’s picture of a bike is a perfectly clear wish.
- A grown-up types it into the list. Paste a shop link and the title, photo and price come across, or type the wish in the child’s own words: "a dinosaur, the roaring kind". The size, the set number or "any brand" go in the same line.
- Photograph the drawing. The camera button under the add box turns a photo into a wish, named after the day until you rename it. The drawing of the bike can sit on the bike wish, which is the version Grandma wants to see anyway.
- The link goes to the family; the letter goes to Santa. Share the link in the family chat, by email or as a QR code on the fridge. Post the letter, leave it by the fireplace or send it up the chimney, whichever your house does.
For a family that likes paper as well, the printable Christmas list is a sheet for the fridge, and the list page itself prints clean, without buttons, small enough to fold into the envelope beside the drawing.
What to put on a child’s list, by age
A useful list changes every couple of years, but the division of labour does not: the child supplies the wanting and a grown-up supplies the detail that lets a relative buy the right one. The example on this page is Mila’s. She is seven, she dictates, her dad types, and that is the whole system.
| Age | Who holds the pen | Wishes that work | How to word it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Three and four | They draw; you write underneath | A wooden train set, a ride-on toy, picture books, a doll or a cuddly animal, chunky building bricks | "Big bricks for small hands, the tub she can tip out" |
| Five to seven | They dictate; you type (Mila’s list is this one) | A particular building set, a roaring dinosaur, proper paints, a scooter, a board game for the family | "T. rex, the roaring kind, about 30 cm" |
| Eight to ten | They write it; you check the prices | The next book in the series, a science kit, football boots, a first watch, a day out | "Book four of the series; she has one to three" |
| Eleven and up | They write it; you read it before it is shared | Headphones, clothes in their size, a share of one big thing, tickets | "Towards the bike, any amount" |
Whatever the age, put the size, the colour and "only one of these, please" into the wish itself. An uncle standing in a toy shop reads that line and acts on it; what is only in your head never reaches him.
Short of ideas, or of the child’s attention span? The guide to what to put on a Christmas list has more by age, and what to leave off.
How many wishes, and the one big one
Five to ten is plenty for a child. Fewer and the aunts are all after the same two; many more and the letter turns into a catalogue, and the child gets eleven things they half wanted. Some families use the old four: something they want, something they need, something to wear, something to read. Mark the one that matters most as the top wish, so the grandparent who asks "but what does she really want?" gets a straight answer.
Then there is the big wish, the bike or the bricks in the big box, which costs more than any one relative would spend. Put it on the list with a note that people are welcome to club together. One person reserves it, the first name on it tells the others who to talk to, and the group gift page covers how that usually goes.
Mila’s list does both. The big box of bricks is the top wish; the bike is on there for next spring, secondhand is fine, so that nobody buys one twice. The money for a shared present passes between the grown-ups however they already settle up, a bank transfer or cash over Christmas lunch. The site handles no payments, which is also why nothing on it costs anything.
What Santa brings and what the grown-ups bring
Most families have an unwritten rule about which presents come from Santa and which come from people, and the list should follow it. Settle it before you share the link, so that Grandma does not reserve the very thing the child is going to find under the tree with a tag from the North Pole.
The simplest version is two lists: the one the child wrote, and a second, private one for whatever Santa is bringing, which you never share. Otherwise keep one list and divide it plainly:
- Santa. The stocking, and often the one big wish. If relatives would otherwise ask, leave it on the list with "Santa has this one" in the note.
- Parents. Whatever you are buying yourselves. Take it off the list or write "from Mum and Dad" in the note, so that nobody else reserves it.
- Grandparents, aunts, uncles and godparents. Everything else, one wish each. They see each other’s first names, so the godmother can tell from the list that Grandad already has the bike covered.
Keeping the magic: the child never sees who is bringing what
The rule the whole site rests on helps here more than anywhere. Whoever owns a list never sees which wishes are reserved, only how many. The server removes every reservation from your view before the page is built, so when the child climbs onto your lap to look at their letter on your phone, there is nothing on the screen to give Grandma away. It also means you do not know either, which on balance is part of the fun.
The shared link is different. Anyone who opens it sees which wishes are taken and the first name of whoever took them, because that is what stops the duplicates. So the link belongs with the grown-ups.
- Show the child the list from your account. Signed in, you see their wishes and how many are taken, and not a single name.
- Do not send the link to the child’s tablet. Or to the family chat the eight-year-old reads over your shoulder. A relative who wants extra cover can reserve as "an elf"; any first name will do.
- Keep their name small. A first name or a nickname is enough, lists are hidden from search engines, and no photo of the child is needed. A drawing, yes; a face, no.
Brothers and sisters: one list each, one family link
Siblings write separate letters, and they get separate lists. One grown-up signs up once, then makes a list for each child, "Mila’s list", "Leo’s list", all under the same family profile. The family gets one address that shows every child’s list, and each list hides its reservations from you on its own.
It also heads off the quiet unfairness no grandparent wants: with the lists side by side, anyone can see at a glance that the youngest has nothing reserved yet. The wishlist for kids page has more on keeping a list on a child’s behalf, privacy included.
An older sibling who has stopped believing can be promoted to elf. Ask them to help the little one dictate; it is the surest way to keep a ten-year-old from saying the quiet part out loud.
When to write the letter and send the link
Three dates cover most families:
- Late November, or the first weekend of Advent. Write the letter. Early enough for the relatives who plan ahead, late enough that the wishes are this year’s and not September’s.
- By 1 December 2026. Send the link to anyone who posts presents, abroad above all. In December a parcel can take a couple of weeks.
- Around 20 December. Roughly when online shops stop promising delivery before Christmas, and when the relatives who shop on the 23rd finally look. Keep adding until then; the link does not change.
Give the list the date of Christmas Day and it counts down, then rolls on to next year rather than expiring, so the same link works every December until the child takes the list over. For the rest of the family, adults included, the Christmas wishlist page covers the grown-up version.
Does this send the letter to Santa?
No. Nothing here posts a letter to the North Pole or writes a reply. The child’s letter goes wherever your family sends it; the list is where the wishes live, so the family can see them and reserve one each. For a reply, look for your post office’s Santa letter service, which in the UK is Royal Mail’s.
Is it free?
Yes. Making the list, adding wishes and sharing the link cost nothing, there are no ads or affiliate links, and nothing on the site asks relatives to pay or install anything.
Do grandparents need an account?
No. They open the link, press "I’ll get this" on a wish and type a first name. Only the parent who keeps the list has an account, and the child never needs one.
Can my child see who is bringing what?
Not if they look at the list from your account, where every reservation is removed before the page is built. The shared link does show first names beside reserved wishes, so keep it with the grown-ups.
Can I see what Grandma has reserved?
No, only how many wishes are taken. That is enforced on the server, for parents too. The relatives see each other’s names and can sort out between them who brings what; if you need to know, you will have to ask them.
Can I put my child’s drawing on the list?
Yes. Photograph it with the camera button under the add box and it becomes a wish you can rename, or add the photo to an existing wish from that wish’s own page. The photo is made small and its location data stripped before it is stored.
I have three children. One list or three?
Three, under one family profile. Each child gets a list of their own, relatives reach all of them from one address, and each list hides its reservations from you separately. The wishlist for kids page has the detail.
Can several relatives club together for the big wish?
Yes. Put it on the list with a note that people are welcome to go in together. One person reserves it and the others join them; the money passes between you directly, because the site handles no payments. The group gift page explains the usual way round it.
