Ugly Sweater Contest Categories, Awards and Voting Tips

Ugly sweater contest categories in 30 seconds

Pick 6 to 8 award categories, mix a few serious ones (Ugliest, Most Creative, Best DIY) with a few silly ones (Tackiest, Best Lights and Sparkle, Best Matching Pair or Group), and decide up front whether guests or a small judging panel choose the winners. Give every contestant a number, hold one runway walk, collect ballots, and announce the winners with printed certificates.

• Core eight: Ugliest Sweater, Most Creative, Best DIY Sweater, Most Festive, Tackiest Sweater, Best Lights and Sparkle, Best Matching Pair or Group, People's Choice
• Add Funniest Sweater or Best Couple or Team if your crowd is big on jokes or matching outfits
• Keep the number of awards close to the number of guests who might win one: 8 awards fits 12 to 25 entrants well
• Decide the voting method before the party, not during it

The 8 categories almost every contest uses

These eight cover the main ways a sweater can win, so nearly every entrant has a category that fits. They are the same eight on the award ballots and certificates in the Ugly Sweater Contest printable kit.

• Ugliest Sweater: the loudest colors and the most clashing patterns in the room
• Most Creative: an original idea, a surprising add-on, or a theme nobody else thought of
• Best DIY Sweater: the one with the most hand-added decorations, sewing, gluing and clever crafting
• Most Festive: bells, tinsel, ornaments and plain holiday cheer
• Tackiest Sweater: the one that is a little too much, on purpose
• Best Lights and Sparkle: anything that blinks, glows or glitters
• Best Matching Pair or Group: couples, friends or a whole team in coordinated sweaters
• People's Choice: the sweater every guest loves to hate

8 more ugly sweater award ideas for a bigger or sillier crowd

If you have 25 or more entrants, or your group likes a joke, add a few extra awards so more people go home with a certificate. These are ideas to adapt, not requirements:

• Funniest Sweater: the one that gets the biggest laugh, usually a pun or a joke built into the knit
• Most Lights: reserved for sweaters that plug in or blink, separate from general sparkle
• Best Couple or Team: a split of the matching award for pairs versus bigger groups
• Most Over the Top: more is more, and then a little more
• Best 3D Add-ons: pom-poms, tinsel, stuffed toys and anything that sticks out
• Best Thrifted Find: an actual vintage sweater, not a modified new one
• Most Wearable: the sweater that is ugly but you would honestly wear again
• Best Entrance: awarded for the runway walk instead of the sweater

Guest voting or judges: how to pick winners

There are two clean ways to choose winners, and either one works as long as you tell people the rule before the first sweater walks out. For a casual family or friends party, guest voting is fastest. For an office party where you want the result to feel fair and a little formal, use two or three judges and score every sweater on the same criteria.

A judging panel works best with five simple criteria, each scored from 1 to 10 for a top score of 50 points: Ugliness (loud colors, clashing patterns), Creativity (original ideas and a theme nobody else thought of), Holiday Spirit (bells, tinsel, ornaments), DIY Effort (hand-added decorations and clever crafting) and Runway Walk (confidence, poses and showmanship). Add the scores for a total, and break ties with the Runway Walk score.

You can also combine both: judges score the main categories while guests vote for People's Choice. That gives every guest a say without making every award a popularity contest.

• Guest voting: one ballot per guest, one vote per category, and no voting for yourself
• Judges: two or three people who are not entering, each with their own score sheet
• Combined: judges decide the main awards, guests decide People's Choice
• Tell everyone the method in the invitation so nobody feels surprised

What you need for the contest

The contest only needs a few printed pieces and about 30 to 45 minutes of the party, but it runs much smoother when everything is ready before the first guest arrives.

• Number bibs or tags so voters can refer to each sweater by number (the full kit has bibs for 18 contestants, the ballot kit has 20 number tags)
• A sign-up or entry list with each contestant's name and sweater name or theme
• Ballots for every guest, and a ballot box or bowl
• Score sheets for judges, if you use a panel
• A tally sheet to count votes
• Certificates for each award, with a couple of blanks for surprise categories
• Pens, tape or safety pins, and a clear spot for the runway

How to run the contest, step by step

Here is a simple flow that fits inside a normal party hour. The order matters: numbers first, then the walk, then voting, then results.

• 1. Before the party, tell guests to wear their ugliest holiday sweater. Homemade, thrifted and borrowed sweaters all count.
• 2. As guests arrive, have each contestant sign up and pin on a number so they can be found later.
• 3. Hand every guest a ballot, or give judges their score sheets, and explain the rules in a sentence or two.
• 4. Hold a runway walk in sign-up order. Let each person pose, spin, or show off a hidden feature, and have an emcee read a one-line intro.
• 5. Give people 5 to 10 minutes to vote, then collect ballots in the box.
• 6. Count votes on a tally sheet and write the winner for each category.
• 7. Fill in certificates, announce winners from the least to the most important award, and snap photos.

Ugly sweater contest ideas by setting

The same categories work almost anywhere, but a few small changes make them fit the room.

• Office party: keep awards friendly and work-safe, use judges or guest voting by number, and skip anything that makes a person the target of a joke. Pair it with office Christmas party games so the contest is one part of the party, not all of it.
• Family gathering: add a kids' category such as Best Kid Sweater, let children vote with stickers, and consider a pet or grandparent award so everyone is included.
• Friends' night or ugly sweater party: lean into Tackiest, Funniest and Best Matching Pair or Group, and let People's Choice carry the final trophy.
• Remote or hybrid team: ask people to post a photo in a shared channel, number the photos, and run a poll for each category. Judges can still score by the same five criteria.
• Large group of 30 or more: start the runway in two groups, pick finalists from each, and run the final categories only for finalists.

Common mistakes and how to avoid them

Most ugly sweater contests go wrong in the same few ways, and every one of them is easy to fix before the party.

• Too many categories: if you have 12 awards and 10 entrants, everyone wins and no award means anything
• Voting by name: use numbers so votes are about the sweater and not about who is popular
• Letting people vote for themselves: a one-line rule on the ballot prevents it
• Forgetting a tie-break: decide ahead, for example highest runway score or a cheer-off where the loudest applause wins
• No time limit: tell guests when ballots are due so the party does not stall
• Making the runway too long: 30 seconds per contestant is plenty

Printable ugly sweater contest kits

If you would rather not build the sign-up sheets, ballots and certificates from scratch, SteadyStack Studio has two printable kits. Both come as ready-to-print files and use similar award sets, so you can pick the one that matches the size of your party.

The Ugly Sweater Contest printable kit is a 19-page host kit. It includes a host guide with the judging criteria, a contestant sign-up sheet, number bibs for 18 contestants, a judge score sheet, detailed scorecards, People's Choice ballots, award category ballots, a vote tally, 10 award certificates (8 awards plus 2 blank), three signs (welcome, vote here and photo booth) and a runway walk order with an emcee script. Typing fields on the sign-up sheet, score sheets, tally, certificates and runway order let you fill them in on screen. See it on Etsy.

The Ugly Sweater Contest ballot and awards kit is a lighter set for casual parties: a cover plus 16 printable pages with contest rules, an entry list, 20 number tags, voting ballots at 4 per page, a vote tally sheet, a contest sign and 8 fillable award certificates. Its ballots cover Ugliest Sweater, Most Creative, Best DIY Sweater, Most Lights, Funniest Sweater, Best Couple or Team, Most Festive and People's Choice. See it on Etsy.

Hosting more than a sweater contest? The office Christmas party games printable bundles 8 office-friendly games with a host guide, and the holiday party games guide compares options by group size.

More party ideas

A sweater contest pairs well with a gift swap or a quick game while the votes are counted. Try the Left Right Christmas game for a gift exchange with a story, or use a Secret Santa questionnaire so everyone arrives with a gift that fits. For a longer, story-driven night, a Christmas murder mystery party also works for a group that likes to dress up. For more ideas, browse the Christmas and New Year section.