You know what would have saved me Friendsgiving 2018? A Friendsgiving Potluck Signup Sheet.
Picture this: I had everything planned out in 15-minute increments. Every dish, every timing, every detail. But it’s only 1 hour until guests arrive, and I’m panicked because the turkey isn’t at the right temperature. Guests arrive, cocktails are flowing, and I recheck the turkey… It’s BARELY moved. After some frantic troubleshooting, I realized my oven was literally dying on me.
To make matters worse, I had told all my friends to “bring whatever they wanted,” and not one, not two, but three people thought it would be funny to bring their family’s heirloom Jell-O salad recipe.
I appreciate a joke, but not so much that night because now not only did we not have a main course to eat, but we also barely had any food that wasn’t pounds and pounds of sugar.
I love Friendsgiving – I always have, and I always will. I think this year marks my 13th year hosting, or possibly my 14th. Doesn’t matter. It’s been a long time. And those early years began with 20 people crammed into a 700 sqft apartment, eating at a mix of folding tables covered with a tablecloth, accompanied by a variety of chairs, including office chairs and laundry hampers. Some people even sat on the floor around the coffee table.
But here’s the thing – none of that actually mattered. Because the whole point of Friendsgiving isn’t perfect food or flawless timing, it’s about that moment when you welcome people before dinner, maybe give a little toast, and pause in that moment and think “Gosh darn it… I’m so lucky these people are in my life.”
Or maybe it’s for moments like this one – I always ask the same friend to carve the turkey every year. He’s not my closest or best friend, but we’ve been friends for over a decade, probably around 15 years now. I always ask him to carve the turkey, and he probably, 10 years into Friendsgiving, told me that he finds it really meaningful to get to carve the turkey at Friendsgiving. It was a reminder that you never know what small things are meaningful to everybody.
But after years of hosting disasters and magical moments, I learned one thing that changed everything…
Why Use a Friendsgiving Sign Up Sheet?
I happen to be really great at coordinating gatherings (my mom owned a catering company when I was a kid, I worked in catering jobs in High School, and then became an award-winning wedding and event planner for over 10 years). I’ve brought a lot of those skills to my personal entertaining. And one of those skills is asking people for help and keeping it organized.
In the case of Friendsgiving, the easiest way to do that is a potluck signup sheet. Here’s why you need to use a signup sheet:
- ▪️ Ensure you end up with a variety of dishes on the table and avoid duplication (ahem… You’d catch three jello salads before they arrive)
- ▪️ Accommodate dietary restrictions and allergies
- ▪️ Coordinate oven space and reheating needs
- ▪️ Delegate other responsibilities and involve guests in the planning process
Printable Potluck Sheets
My Friendsgiving Signup Sheet can be used in a variety of ways: You can definitely print out the spreadsheet if you are hosting Friendsgiving with a group who sees each other in person often—for example, a church group, an office Friendsgiving, or Friendsgiving with neighbors.
But the Friendsgiving signup sheet can also be used digitally. It’s a shareable Google Doc, so just update it with your information (start time, number of guests, known dietary restrictions) and email or text it out for people to fill in virtually.
Want My Free Friendsgiving Hosting Kit?
Before you go any further, make hosting a whole lot easier.
My Friendsgiving Hosting Kit includes the exact tools I used as a professional event planner:
- ✓ Friendsgiving Potluck Spreadsheet (easy Google Sheet to share)
- ✓ Copy-and-Paste Invitation Scripts for every scenario
- ✓ Hosting Checklist so nothing falls through the cracks
- ✓ Conversation Starters & Day-Of Tips to keep things flowing
[ Download it here and make Friendsgiving actually stress-free ]
Essential Foods and Categories
Before you send out or post the Friendsgiving Signup Sheet, take a few minutes to personalize it for your evening. Maybe you’re hosting a traditional Friendsgiving, so you keep all the categories I have prefilled for you, such as:
- Turkey and gravy
- Mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes
- Rolls
- Vegetable sides
- Hearty salads
- Cranberry sauce
- Appetizers
- Desserts
- Alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages
Or maybe you want to get creative with the categories. Some fun ideas: a Potato-Only Friendsgiving (everyone brings their favorite potato dish) or a dessert-only Friendsgiving. Or maybe you have a lot of guests with a specific allergy or dietary restriction and want to shift the meal to be heavier in one category of foods. Perhaps it’s a sober Friendsgiving, so you remove the alcoholic beverage category. Whatever you do… make it your own.
Communication Strategies
Whether you’re a texter, emailer, or face-to-face person… There is no right or wrong answer. I would say that effective communication is a key element of a successful Friendsgiving potluck, but you can customize it to suit your own preferences. Whether you text, email, or chat with your neighbor on the sidewalk, be clear about:
- The date, time, and location of the event
- How many people are expected to attend
- Any specific instructions for dishes (e.g., serving size, ingredients to avoid)
- Oven space availability and reheating guidelines
- Deadline for signing up and confirming dishes
And finally, be sure to let guests know who to direct any questions to.
Simplifying Friendsgiving
There are many ways to simplify Friendsgiving, so I can’t give you an exhaustive list, but I’ll give you some ideas:
- Skip food overall. Turn it into a craft night, a movie night, or a get-together where you go volunteer locally.
- Don’t host at home. Make it a park picnic potluck, host it in your backyard so you don’t have to clean (if you live somewhere warm enough), or manage the food and ask a friend to host it at their house.
- Skip the decorations. Really, people just want to be together. It’s ok not to make it look like a Pinterest image.
- Get your friends involved! Delegate. Ask someone to handle organizing while you handle the food. Host at your house, but ask a friend to coordinate who is bringing what dish.
Overall, I’d say that it can be easy to get caught in a cycle of just getting together to catch up with friends. So any creative and fun ideas for meaningful gathering beyond dinner and drinks… lean in! Please don’t put too much pressure on yourself to get it all right or host the perfect Friendsgiving! At the end of the night, all that matters is that you made a few new memories with your friends. For more tips on hosting a stress-free Friendsgiving and ways to simplify your planning, check out my Ultimate Guide to Hosting Friendsgiving.
Effortless Organization
If you still aren’t convinced that hosting Friendsgiving can be easy and stress-free, then I’ve got news for you. When you download the Friendsgiving Hosting Kit, I’ve actually given it a makeover this year. Say Hello to the Friendsgiving Hosting Kit – your complete guide to effortlessly organizing Friendsgiving this year. It includes copy-and-paste invitation scripts for every scenario, a comprehensive hosting checklist, conversation starters, and day-of hosting tips, as well as the Friendsgiving potluck signup sheet.
As I mentioned earlier, I’m really good at coordination – I used to be a professional event planner. This entire hosting kit is exactly what I would have given to my clients back in the day.
So What’s Holding You Back?
No, really… what’s stopping you? I want to know. Comment below, and I’ll put on my event planner hat to help you out with a plan for a workaround. At the end of the day, I want you to get together with your people. Those in-person moments really add up! They are so few and far between amidst the other stresses and responsibilities of life, so take the helping hand I’m offering with all the Friendsgiving Planning Resources and let it rip! It can be as straightforward or as complicated as you want, but just start the tradition.
Ready to Make Friendsgiving the Easiest One Yet?
If all of this feels like “a lot,” I promise—it doesn’t have to be.
I’ve already done the heavy lifting for you with my Friendsgiving Hosting Kit, which includes:
- ✓ A customizable Friendsgiving Potluck Spreadsheet
- ✓ Invitation scripts you can copy and send today
- ✓ My complete hosting checklist
- ✓ Conversation starters + day-of hosting tips
If you want to skip the chaos and focus on actually enjoying your people, grab the free kit here.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can I create a digital sign-up sheet for my Friendsgiving potluck?
No need to! We created one for you. Download your free Friendsgiving Potluck Signup Sheet. Copy this spreadsheet to your own Google Sheets and customize it with your details. Share the link with your friends for easy access and updates, and you’ll be ready to go.
What are essential food categories to include in a Friendsgiving potluck?
Like I mentioned above, you can go completely rogue with your Friendsgiving Menu – theme it around foods in a movie, Thanksgiving foods from everyone’s upbringing, or anything else you’d like (Drop your creative ideas below so others can get inspired!)
If you are going traditional when planning your Friendsgiving potluck, include the following essential food categories on your sign-up sheet: Turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, rolls, vegetables (aim for at least two different options), hearty salads, cranberry sauce, appetizers, desserts, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages.
How do I streamline the potluck sign-up process for my Friendsgiving event?
To streamline the potluck signup process, use the potluck planning template in my Friendsgiving Hosting Kit. All you need to do is customize a couple of fields, find the share link in the upper right-hand corner of Google Docs, and then share it via text or email with your team. The guests can fill in spaces for allergies and dietary restrictions, the dish they are bringing, and even oven requirements.
What communication strategies are most effective when organizing a Friendsgiving potluck?
It’s 2025 as I am writing this, but I’d love to petition to bring back Facebook event invites. Man… that was an easy way to communicate effectively.
Okay, but seriously, there are several options: an E-vite, a Partiful invite, a group text with the details, and a link to the potluck spreadsheet. Whatever you do:
- ▪️ Be clear about the event details, such as date, time, location, and the number of expected attendees.
- ▪️ Provide specific instructions for dishes, including serving sizes and any ingredients to avoid.
- ▪️ Inform guests about oven space availability and reheating guidelines.
- ▪️ Remind guests of dietary restrictions so they can take that into account when picking their exact dishes.
- ▪️ Set a deadline for signing up and confirming dishes, and encourage guests to reach out with any questions or concerns.
All of this can be done in whatever method of communication you prefer, but as long as you check off the five items on that list, you should be good to go! No more worrying about forgetting to mention something.
