ICYMI: Hosting Friendsgiving is basically just an excuse to celebrate the best holiday (yes, you heard me) twice. Not only do you get to enjoy all that good Turkey Day food yet again, but you also get to eat those classic dishes—and drink perfectly crafted Thanksgiving cocktails!—with your ride-or-dies instead of your weird second cousins you’re forced to hang out with. Celebrations of this level deserve to be an All Out Shindig, and these pretty high stakes call for breaking out your tip-top event-planning skills.
Whether you’re hosting an intimate gathering, or working with a guest list of 40+, you gotta make sure that you go down as The Best Friendsgiving Host because, yes, life is a competition—and you deserve to win. Kidding, I know you and your friends love each other very much and would never fight over who hosted the better Friendsgiving.
Still, I take party hosting very seriously and want you to come out on top. And that means looking beyond the actual menu. From the food to the drinks to the gratitude and general love fest, there are endless ways to make your party A++. On this list, it's all about those tiny moments that upgrade the experience, from the ice cream bar (yes, you'll wanna do it) to the Thanksgiving Day-themed photo booth to the Thanksgiving drinking game (lol) and everything in between.
Read on for 31 Friendsgiving party ideas to show your friends how much you love and care for them. Cue the awws (and satisfied ooooohs).
1. Decorate with banners.
Hanging one of these babies (this one is orange!!) is super easy and gives the room a personal touch. Go with the pre-made “Give Thanks” or “Happy Friendsgiving” ones, or design your own to say whatever you want.
2. Everyone gets a special (non-plastic) straw.
It’s basically a fact that all drinks taste better through a straw and these turkey ones are so frickin’ cute I could scream. You could also write each guest’s initials on the turkey so they won’t mix up their vino!
3. Lay out place cards.
Is it an unnecessary touch? Meh, probably. But it feels fancy, Adult™, and something Martha Stewart would approve of. Also, these are so cute your guests will wanna take them home.
4. Make an ice cream bar.
Okay, so we can all agree that ice cream is the fan-favorite dessert, right? But instead of just eating it as a complement to pie this Friendsgiving, why don’t you just set up a whole seasonal spread? Replace hot fudge with caramel sauce, sprinkles with coffee cake crumbles, and cherries with diced cinnamon-sprinkled apples. You can also go super hard-core and buy a fall-themed flavor like sweet potato pie! (And take pity on your poor lactose-intolerant friends and maybe give them a lil sorbet or something, lol.)
5. Play Thanksgiving bingo.
You’re never too old to play some bingo, and this cute, very on-theme version allows you to get a little competitive while staying true to the holiday. Grab a set and play with your crew during the post-turkey stupor.
6. Send out actual invites.
Before you even get to the dinner, step up your party game by sending out real paper invites (side note: no Facebook Events, anymore—ever). Not only will your friends feel special, but you can also personalize the note. Design your own or grab a cute template from Etsy like the one above.
7. Gift everyone their own special wine glass.
Shall I list the reasons why these are perfect? I shall: 1) It’s a great little party gift; 2) your guests can just take them home, so you don’t even have to worry about doing dishes later; and 3) they come in everyone's favorite colors. Wins on wins on wins.
8. Turn it into a pajama party.
It can be fun to dress up, but throwing a full-blown pajama party for your Friendsgiving is more fun than wearing dresses and ties. The theme provides an opportunity for friends to show off some fun and festive jammies, and everyone will be comfy, which is all you can ask for while stuffing your faces.
9. Set the scent.
Light a candle that just straight up embodies fall, and your guests will be greeted with a welcoming aroma upon their arrival. Go for something that has hints of fir and earthy notes to really get in the spirit of the holiday.
10. Decorate your door.
Obviously, the first thing your guests see when they show up needs to be over-the-top decor, right? Go for something stylish and festive, like a beautiful fall wreath. Or! Go all out with a door cover that doubles as a step and repeat.
11. Create a foliage-inspired buffet.
Let’s be honest, there’s usually nothing better than a buffet, but with a gorgeous tablescape, your guests might not even notice all the pies sitting on the table. (Which means more for you!)
12. Make it virtual.
Friendsgiving can be tricky to coordinate, especially if some of your besties don’t live in the same city as you. This is why it’s almost better to do a virtual Friendsgiving, so you can all enjoy the holiday together! This is the trick that Destiney Green (aka @momcrushmonday) uses every year. “When we can’t make it to every place our loved ones reside, video chat is bae! It’s how we can always stay connected,” says Green.
13. Make an apple vodka cocktail.
Remember those perfectly crafted cocktails I mentioned? It's because nothing differentiates Thanksgiving with your family and Thanksgiving with your friends like the drinks! Put that apple cider to use to make an Apple Doesn’t Fall Far cocktail from Svedka. To stir one up, add 2 parts Svedka Citron, 2 parts apple juice, 1 part ginger beer, and ½ parts fresh lime juice to a Collins glass. Stir well, garnish with a slice of ginger, and drink up.
14. ...Or an apple cider mimosa
If you weren’t aware this was a thing, you’re welcome. It’s one of those super easy recipes (only two ingredients!) that’ll blow every guest away. Give it a spin.
15. Host a potluck.
If you have all your guests bring their fave dish, that is obvs less work for you, but it’s also the only way to do Friendsgiving. Like, are you really going to shell out approximately $1 million and 50,000 hours of kitchen labor for this thing? No way. If you’re hosting, make the turkey and gravy, then email your guests a spreadsheet so they can write down what they’re bringing. I’m not saying it’s bad to have four bowls of mashed potatoes, but then who’s gonna bring the desserts?! Or the mac and cheese?! Order is necessary, friends.
16. Or...have everyone bring a pie.
Extend the potluck vibes to your dessert buffet. Have everyone bring their favorite type of pie so you (okay, fine, and everyone else) can try them all. To make a game out of it, tell your guests to keep what they brought a secret. Then have everyone guess who brought which pie. The winner gets...more pie!
17. Decorate with butcher paper.
Everyone has probably gone around the table and said what they’re thankful for at Thanksgiving before, but if you swap a boring old tablecloth for butcher paper, everyone can write out what they’re thankful for right in front of them. Then you can read yours aloud throughout dinner.
18. Be a child and make turkey hands.
Remember the simple days when you were little and drew these in grade school? Who says we can’t do that now? Pull out some paper, some pencils, and get to tracing. Have your friends hang theirs on the wall then after everyone is sufficiently tipsy, tell them it was an art contest and then proceed to rank each one. Winner gets a little Thanksgiving-themed prezzie of your choice!
19. Deck out your photo booth.
I can’t remember the last ~good~ party I’ve been to that didn’t have a photo booth. These cute props will up your Insta game and make all your pictures super fun.
20. Have a holiday movie marathon.
After you’re done eating, nothing is more enjoyable than lounging around on the couch. Cuddle up with your pals and start watching your favorite Christmas movies (bc we all know the season really starts when Thanksgiving dinner is over, no matter what Mariah Carey says!). You can all write down your favorites and then draw from a bowl in order to pick what’s on deck.
21. Get some very on-brand cookware.
No matter what you make, you’re gonna wanna both cook AND serve it in something capital P Pretty. This pumpkin dutch oven is definitely, of course, one hundred percent something that you will use during every other holiday season, and generally whenever you wanna evoke some fall harvest vibes!
22. Play a drinking game.
Big Dot of Happiness Big Dot of Happiness Drinking Game
Pre-game the meal with these cute game cards, which tell you to sip based on all things Turkey Day. Need boozy inspo? Check out this list of the best cocktails and wines to pair with turkey (and stuffing and mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes).
23. Make it a Thanksgiving picnic.
If you live somewhere that isn’t miserably cold, have your Friendsgiving outside with a luxe picnic. Bring all the food and drinks you’d have indoors (or, ya know, have a spot cater!) and sprinkle in a few games on the itin, like touch football, cornhole or life-size Jenga.
24. Split the wishbone.
Draw two of your guests’ names from a hat and have those lucky people split the wishbone from the turkey. Obvi, they’ll get luck and good cheer and all that fun stuff, but if you’re feeling wild come up with a real gift to give the winner. A cute wishbone-shaped necklace, perhaps?
25. BYO storage containers.
Tell everyone to BYO fave take-home container, so you’re not stuck with six extra pounds of cranberry sauce at the end of the night.
26. Make homemade hot chocolate.
At the end of the meal, start makin’ hot chocolate for everyone. Be sure to set out some bourbon and rum so your peeps can add an extra kick.
27. Turn it into brunch.
Save all your sweet potato hash and pumpkin pancake recipes for a Friendsgiving brunch. If you’re the friend group that brunches religiously, why change that? Mimosas and Thanksgiving sound like a perfect combo to me.
28. Create a special fall playlist.
A solid party soundtrack can only be topped by a super specific party playlist, perfectly tailored to the day’s vibe. With that in mind, we suggest you enlist one of Spofity’s fall-themed setlists to DJ your festivities. This “Pumpkin Spice” one is perfection.
29. Set! A! Dress! Code!
Establishing an overall “look” will make your guests a part of the party decor, and we love that. ‘Fit cohesion will make your group pics look 10/10, plus making outfit mood boards on Pinterest = one of life’s simplest joys. Need inspo? Look no further.
30. Have a charcuterie board contest.
Let’s normalize making this classic appetizer the main event. “Board-offs” have taken over TikTok, with groups of friends competing to see which person’s themed board takes the cake. Might I suggest leaving the Thanksgiving theme behind for this one so the boards can be as chaotic and clever as ever? Say, a s’mores board, anyone? Or a deconstructed pizza one? This little friendly competition will really bring some life to the party and still have everyone thankful as hell.
31. Give out goodie bags.
These shouldn’t be reserved for childhood birthdays. A goodbye token is the sweetest note to end your evening on. You can add baked goods, cute jewelry, or a sappy personal thank you note to express your friendship gratitude. <3
