Fun Peppermint Payout Candy Cane Dollar Game For Christmas

Peppermint Payout Candy Cane Dollar Game is a fun Christmas group game for teens / youth group game, kids Christmas party activities, and even fun for work games for Christmas or adult holiday party games. Also, this works great as an ice breaker game for a Jingle Mingle party or fun New Year’s Eve party game! (PLUS, you get $1 bills for playing the game!)

Hilarious Peppermint Payout Candy Cane Dollar Game For Christmas Money Games

What is the Peppermint Payout Dollar Bill Game for Christmas?

This hilarious $1 game is a holiday game I made up after thinking about what would be good for a teen Christmas party game or adult Christmas party game (or a game kids and adults can play together).

I realized that candy and money are both motivators for group games, so I came with this word swap candy cane game idea.

 
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(Credit to my teenager for coming up with the clever Christmas game name!)

It’s a fun Christmas word game where you try to get other players to say one of your assigned words.

If they do, you get to steal one of their dollar bill wrapped candy canes.

At the end of the game, players get to keep all (or none) of the money on their candy canes.

How to Play The Peppermint Payout Candy Cane Dollar Bill Game

*Keep scrolling all the way through for important game tips and also alternate ways to play this fun holiday game!

Object of the Peppermint Payout Candy Cane Dollar Game

Get other players to say your “taboo words” to steal their dollar candy canes while trying not to say other people’s secret words.

You will need at least 4 players — the more players the better for this group party game.

Easy Christmas Game Supplies

Regular size candy canes
Dollar bills
3×5 cards or paper to print (or write) words on
List of holiday words and everyday words (see our suggested Christmas words list below)

CHRISTMAS GAME TIP: If you need supplies for a large group game, you may want to have each player bring their own dollar-wrapped candy canes (that way you don’t have to foot the bill for all the money). We’ve asked party guests to bring stuff like this before and no one complained about it. Just be sure to describe how to wrap the candy canes and how many to bring (we play with three, but if you want a longer game you can play with five).

FAIR WARNING: Make some extras because there WILL be people who want to play the game but forget to bring their candy canes.

Christmas Game Instructions and Rules

1. GAME PREPARATION: If you’re making all the candy canes, wrap a dollar bill around the “stem” of the candy cane and place a small piece of tape on the seam. You may have to also tape the top or bottom of the rolled bill to keep it from sliding off of the candy cane.

Write (or print) the game words – three words for each player. (Make some extras!)

I got these word bubble notes and stuck them on 3×5 cards and they made super cute game cards.

2. In this dollar bill swap holiday game, party players start with three candy canes with dollar bills wrapped around them and three secret words.

Tell players not to share the words with anyone and to keep them hidden as they talk to other players!

3. Players mingle around the holiday party and try to get other players to say one (or more) of the secret words on their list.

GAME PLAY TIP: The best way to do it is to just start casual conversations with people and not be too obvious. For example, if your word is tree and you point to the Christmas tree and say “What’s that called again?” people most likely aren’t going to fall for that. However, if you say something like “When do you usually put Christmas decorations up?” they might say “Oh we put our outside lights up in November but our Christmas tree on December 1st.”

4. Once a player gets another player to say one of their secret words, they get to steal a dollar candy cane from the player who said the word.

If a player runs out of candy canes at any time during the party, they can either not play any longer -OR- continue to play the game because they still have their list of secret words and still have a chance to win dollars on candy canes!

5. Game ends when… you decide!

You can set a timer for 1 hour and let people try to get as much money from candy canes as they can in that hour or you can play as a game that lasts until the end of the party.

The only problem with having no set end time is that some people may leave before the party is over, so they will miss out on the final tally.

Whatever dollar bills on candy canes players have when the game ends, they get to keep (and the candy canes, unless you’re playing other candy cane games, then reuse them for your Candy Cane Olympics or Minute To Win It Christmas games).

Example Game Play

Player A has the word “tree” and gets Player B to say “tree” during conversation.
Player A gets one of Player B’s dollar candy canes.
Player A can then continue to talk to Player B to get them to say another one of their secret words, or they can mingle with others in the party to try and get others to say their words.

GAME NOTE: If a Player B says two of Player A’s secret words, Player A gets to take two candy canes from Player B.

MORE FUN PARTY GAMES FOR HOLIDAYS:

Alternate Game Play Ideas For Peppermint Pay Out $1 Candy Cane Game

ALTERNATE WAY TO PLAY THE GAME #1

When you attach dollar bills to candy canes, also attach one secret word to the candy cane. When a player steals the candy cane and dollar, they also add a new word to their secret word list.

The more words you have the more chances you have to get a player to say one of them.

ALTERNATE WAY TO PLAY THE GAME #2

For a kids game, tween party game or Christmas game for teenagers, you can use different colored candy canes. Each color has a word with a different degree of difficulty.

For example, regular candy canes are easy words for 1 point, green candy canes are medium words for 2 points, and gold (yellow) candy canes are harder words for 3 points.

At the end of the game, players total points and get to pick from a prize basket based on different point ranges. For example 1-5 points could be pieces of candy or coins, 6-10 points are trinkets, etc.

ALTERNATE WAY TO PLAY THE GAME #3

Play this easy $1 game as a guessing game.

Players get to ask other players three questions to guess one of their words.

For example, if Player A’s word is SANTA then Player B may ask “Do you deliver gifts on Christmas Eve?”

If Player B answers yes, Player A gets to take one of Player B’s dollar candy canes.

MORE FUN CHRISTMAS GAME IDEAS: 9 Best DIY Christmas Games for Family Christmas Party

50 Ideas For The Candy Cane Christmas Game

If you want to print your own words and have everything ready for your game night when guests arrive, you can steal our list of words for the Christmas Candy Cane Payout Game!

GAME PARTY TIP: Remember to mix in a few “regular” (non holiday themed) words. People will be on the look out for Christmas based words but will be thrown off on typical words (like bathroom, day, party, etc.).

Creative and Fun Ideas For Holiday Fish Bowl Game:

Santa
Bells
Night
Frosty
Snowman
Jolly
Winter
Sleigh
Candy
Cookies
Naughty
Nice
Decorations
Coal
Christmas
Stockings
Reindeer
Games
Rudolph
Gingerbread
Carols
Snowflakes
Red
Green
Tree
Snow
Books
Present
Mistletoe
Giving
Gifts
Snowball
Poinsettia
Eve
Candles
Dip
Drink
Joy
Christmas
Nuts
Elves
Toys
Ornaments
Candles
Money
Dollar
Chocolate
Cup
Fireplace
Chimney
Plate
Napkin
Grinch
Gold
Silver
Sweater
Party
Bows

ALSO TRY THIS HILARIOUS GIFT EXCHANGE GAME (BAD SANTA GAME)

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year!

I hope you enjoy this hilarious Peppermint Payout Candy Cane Dollar Game for Christmas!

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