Office holiday party attendance rose from 70% to 82% year over year according to recent workplace data, with roughly 85% of U.S. companies holding some form of holiday party and more than half increasing their budgets. Employees consistently favor casual dress codes, daytime timing, and interactive formats over formal sit-down events, a shift attributed to wanting genuine connection rather than passive entertainment.
After a few years of muted, "bah humbug" office holiday parties, the numbers are swinging the other way. According to a compilation of workplace holiday data, 82% of employees said they planned to attend their company's holiday party in the most recent season, up sharply from 70% the year before — and companies are responding by loosening both the format and the budget.
What's trending
The data, compiled by Pro Holiday Cheers from sources including a 2025 ezCater workplace report and the Bureau of Labor Statistics, paints a clear before-and-after picture. Roughly 85% of U.S. companies hold some kind of office holiday party, and more than half said they were increasing their party budgets this past season, with another sizable share keeping spending flat rather than cutting it. Food and beverage spend per person rose sharply year over year, reflecting a broader push to make these events feel less like an obligation and more like something worth showing up for.
The format is shifting too. The research points to a clear preference among employees for casual dress codes over formal ones, and for events held during the workday rather than stretching into the evening. Interactive formats — hands-on activities and stations rather than a sit-down dinner and a speech — are consistently cited as what employees actually want, with passive, watch-from-your-seat programming named as one of the more common reasons office parties fall flat.
Why it's resonating
Part of the shift looks like a course correction. The same data shows the vast majority of employees look forward to holiday celebrations and say they help them bond with coworkers, particularly in hybrid workplaces where in-person time is scarcer than it used to be. At the same time, a meaningful share of employees — Gen Z workers especially — report feeling some stress about attending, whether that's worrying about standing around alone or not knowing what to expect from the format.
Put those two things together and the appeal of a clear, low-stakes theme makes sense: a defined activity gives people something to do and talk about, rather than leaving them to make small talk in a ballroom. That's a big part of why casual, interactive themes are outperforming traditional formal ones in what planners say actually works.
Where a theme like this fits
An ugly sweater theme is about as low-stakes and interactive as a corporate party format gets — everyone has an easy way to participate, there's a built-in conversation starter the moment people walk in, and it costs the company nothing beyond whatever small prize it wants to offer for the best (or worst) sweater. For teams organizing something informal on top of the main company event, an editable Ugly Sweater Party Invitation Template is a quick way to get a clear, casual invite out without it looking like an afterthought.
The bottom line
The data suggests the corporate holiday party is having a real moment again, and the formats winning are the casual, participatory ones rather than the formal galas of years past. That's good news for anyone organizing a lower-key gathering alongside the official company event — the trend is moving in that exact direction.