What an Office Christmas Party Costs in Ottawa, Per Person
The Short Answer
Short answer: an office Christmas party in Ottawa costs from about $42.82 a guest for a catered holiday lunch in your own office to about $162.72 a guest for a private restaurant lounge at its minimum spend, once the service charge and 13% HST are on the bill. Both ends are prices the businesses publish, read on September 30, 2026: Bytown Catering’s holiday hot lunch at $32.95, and Mati’s $3,000 lounge minimum shared by 25 guests. A hotel dinner sits between them. The Lord Elgin’s plated holiday dinner is $69 on its menu and $92.00 on the bill.
Plan around $150. The Canada Revenue Agency does not treat a party open to all employees as a taxable benefit when it costs $150 or less per person, taxes included. Over that, the full cost becomes taxable to each employee, not only the part above the line.
The one line below that we quote ourselves is the decor, and we quote it per event rather than per head. What we build for an office Christmas party, from the entrance to the photo wall, is on our service page.
Written by Heba Alfarra, Owner & Lead Designer at Sparkle Events · Last updated
The Average
What is the average cost of a company Christmas party?
We looked for a Canadian or Ottawa survey of what employers spend on a holiday party and found none. The averages that turn up in a search come from the United States and Britain.
The American one has no survey behind it. Nav, a small-business finance site, wrote on August 21, 2025 that you will often see about $75 to $200 per employee suggested, and called it a very rough guideline. The British figure is research by Togather in 2022, quoted by the events company UKCube: £70 to £150 per person, covering the venue, food, drink and decorations.
Most of the Ottawa prices on this page land inside the American range, and the two catered menus fall below it. With the service charge and HST, food comes to $42.82 a guest for a catered lunch in the office, $92.00 for a hotel dinner, $118.67 for a restaurant package with canapés, one drink and four courses, and $162.72 for a private lounge at its minimum. A DJ, decor and more drinks come on top.
Venue and Food
The per-guest prices Ottawa venues publish
Food is the biggest line in each of the budgets further down, and at a hotel or a restaurant it usually carries the room with it. NeXT in Stittsville puts it plainly in its festive guide: room rental free always. The Infinity Convention Centre’s FAQ says its room charge depends on the food and beverage spend, the day of the week and the time of year.
Each row is what the business publishes, read on September 30, 2026. The last column adds the service charge and the HST, the way the bill will.
| Who | What the price buys | Published price per guest | Added on top | On the bill, per guest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bytown Catering, delivered to your office | Holiday hot lunch buffet: turkey, stuffing, meat pies, salad, pie. Minimum 10 | $32.95 | 15% labour charge, HST | $42.82 |
| Bytown Catering, full service | Holiday sit-down dinner: soup, salad, turkey plate, dessert. Minimum 50 | $49.95 | 20% labour charge, HST | $67.73 |
| Lord Elgin Hotel, downtown | Buffet holiday dinner. Minimum 10 (its 2025 menu) | $63 | 18% service, 13% HST | $84.00 |
| Lord Elgin Hotel | Plated holiday dinner, three courses. Minimum 10 (its 2025 menu) | $69 | 18% service, 13% HST | $92.00 |
| NeXT, Stittsville | Holiday party package: three canapés, one drink, four-course plated dinner, room included. Minimum 25 | $89 | 13% tax, 18% gratuity (the rate on its festive page) | $118.67 |
| NeXT | Festive tasting menu, eight shared dishes, for 7 to 24 guests on Fridays and Saturdays, November 20 to December 27, 2026 | $93 | 13% tax, 18% automatic gratuity | $124.01 |
| Mati, Preston Street | Private cocktail lounge, 25 seated: a $3,000 food and drink minimum | $3,000 minimum, so $120 a guest at 25 | 13% tax, 20% minimum gratuity | $162.72 |
| Domaine de l’Ange-Gardien, L’Ange-Gardien, Quebec | Shared public Christmas party for businesses, Friday November 27, 2026: welcome punch, Christmas buffet, DJ | $60.88 | Service, ticketing fee and taxes | $78, as published |
The Lord Elgin rows come from the menu titled Holiday Parties 2025, which is the one its festive season page links as we write. Its lunches run $60 for a buffet and $64 plated, so the evening costs little more than the afternoon there.
Of the seven rooms in our guide to Christmas party venues in Ottawa, two link priced menus from their holiday party pages. Brookstreet in Kanata links its 2026 events menu, valid until December 31, 2026: a dinner buffet at $75 a guest, a grill dinner buffet at $70, and plated dinners priced by the main course, from $61 for chicken to $78 for short rib, all for 25 guests or more. The menu text does not give its service charge, so ask for the rate before you compare it with the rows above.
ONŌ at the Château Cartier in Gatineau links a Christmas menu at $65 a guest for four courses, before taxes and an 18% service charge, and $59 for a three-course dinner or $55 for lunch, before taxes. The file sits in a 2023 folder on its website, so ask whether those prices still stand, and remember that Gatineau is in Quebec, where the sales taxes are not Ontario’s HST.
A blank room costs rent instead
Where the room does not come with a kitchen, you pay for the room and bring the rest. Fieldhouse Event Space on Richmond Road charges $85 an hour, or $500 at most, on a weekday, and $95 an hour, or $600 at most, on a weekend, and says cleaning fees may be added. The Royal Canadian Legion’s Kanata branch rents a hall for up to 140 people at $625 on a Friday or $750 on a Saturday, 5 pm to 1 am, plus HST. For 100 guests, that Friday rate is about $7 a guest. The food, the drink and the staff are then yours to arrange, within the hall’s rules.
Service and Tax
Why the bill is a third higher than the menu
Two charges go on top of the menu prices on this page: a service charge, 18% at most of them, and 13% HST. The HST is charged on the service charge as well. The Canada Revenue Agency’s own example is a $1,000 banquet with a $150 gratuity on the invoice, taxed on $1,150, and the Infinity Convention Centre’s FAQ says the same of its 18% administration fee.
So an 18% charge and the HST together add 33.3%. Multiply any menu price by 1.3334 to see the bill: the Lord Elgin’s $69 dinner is $92.00, a $9 glass of its house wine is $12.00, and a $10 upgrade to the menu costs $13.33.
The rates differ. The Lord Elgin and ONŌ print 18%, NeXT’s festive page an automatic 18% gratuity, Mati a minimum of 20%, and the Infinity Convention Centre an 18% administration fee. Bytown Catering adds a labour charge instead: 15% on its delivered holiday lunch and 20% at a full-service event.
Drinks
Drinks: the line that moves on the night
Most lines are settled when you sign. Drinks on a host bar are billed on how the evening goes. Per glass, before the service charge and HST, from each business’s own list:
- Lord Elgin Hotel (2025 menu): domestic beer $8, house wine $9, rail spirits $9, premium spirits $11, sparkling wine $14.
- NeXT: bottled beer $6 to $7, draft $12, wine by the glass $16 to $17, spirits $15 for 1.5 oz, and bottles of wine from $55.
- Bytown Catering: a glass of wine $8.50, rail spirits and mix $9.10, a local craft tall boy $9.75. It runs a bar only at events it caters.
The Lord Elgin’s menu sets out three ways to pay for drinks: a host bar billed on consumption to your account, a cash bar where guests pay for their own, and a combination where you cover a set number of drinks by ticket or a dollar amount. A host bar is the only open-ended line in the whole budget. With tickets, you know the figure before the night starts. NeXT’s holiday package already includes one drink a guest.
In a room without a liquor licence
You serve under a special occasion permit from the AGCO. For a private event, invite-only and not advertised, the no-sale permit, for drinks poured free, is $50 a day, and the sale permit is $150 a day. The AGCO asks for the application at least 10 days before the party.
Somebody also has to pour. Bytown Catering charges $33 an hour per bartender, four hours minimum, plus $300 to set up each bar, or $35 an hour when you supply the bar and the alcohol.
Entertainment
A DJ costs the same for 20 guests as for 100
Entertainment is priced by the night, so it is cheap per head for a big company and dear for a small team. NeXT’s festive guide prices seven hours of DJ, with a sound system, a wireless microphone and two dance-floor lights, at $1,300, and a three-hour photo booth with on-site printing at $1,200. Ottawa DJ Events lists private events from $900. At $1,300 the DJ is $13 a guest for 100 people and $65 a guest for 20, before HST.
Two music licence fees, SOCAN and Re:Sound, can also appear on a venue’s bill, and some venues list them openly. The Infinity Convention Centre publishes its schedule: $187.55 and $78.66 for its full ballroom with dancing, and $22.06 and $9.25 for a meeting room without. Ask your venue whether they are in its price.
A staged production is a different budget. The Idea Hunter, a Toronto event company, wrote on August 28, 2026 that adding entertainment starts at $5,000 in the December season, and that full multi-category production runs $30,000 and up.
Decor
Decor: what the room includes, and what it leaves out
Most banquet rooms include the basics. The Infinity Convention Centre’s standard setup covers tables, chairs, linens, cutlery, glassware, a dance floor and a head table, and anything decorative beyond that comes from an outside supplier at an extra charge.
Some venues sell a decor add-on of their own. NeXT’s linen package is $21 a guest, 12 guests minimum: a floor-length tablecloth, a pedestal vase centrepiece with a flower, three tea lights a table and ten LED uplights. It also lists a sheer white backdrop at $400 and lounge furniture at $500. That dresses the tables and colours the light.
A room kit does not build the places people photograph: the entrance, a photo wall, the stage behind the speeches. That is a decorator’s part, and we quote it per event, itemized, because four built zones for 100 guests and one sign for 20 are different jobs.
Single pieces have published prices and are delivered, set up and collected, with delivery quoted alongside them: marquee numbers at $80 each, so $320 for 2026 across the front of a stage, a sweet cart at $130, a round display table at $150 and a swing table at $230. Spread over a team of 20, the year in lights is $16 a guest. Which piece suits which room is in our office Christmas party ideas guide.
Worked Budgets
Three budgets, from a team of 20 to a company of 100
Every line is a published price from the table and lists above. Only the headcounts and the choices are ours.
A team of 20: a hotel dinner
| Plated holiday dinner, Lord Elgin Hotel20 guests at $69 | $1,380.00 |
| Two glasses of house wine each40 glasses at $9 | $360.00 |
| 18% service charge18% of $1,740.00 | $313.20 |
| 13% HSTon $2,053.20, service charge included | $266.92 |
| Total | $2,320.12 |
| Per guest | $116.01 |
Add the year in marquee numbers at $320, if the room allows it, and the evening comes to $132.01 a guest before delivery: under the $150 line with room to spare. No DJ, because at this size one would cost more a head than the wine.
The same 20 in Mati’s private lounge pay its $3,000 minimum whatever they order, which with the 20% gratuity and HST is $4,068.00, or $203.40 a guest. A minimum does not shrink with the group. Or they join Domaine de l’Ange-Gardien’s shared party on November 27 at $78 a head, buffet and DJ included, alongside other companies.
A company of 100: a restaurant package and a DJ
| Holiday party package, NeXT100 guests at $89: three canapés, one drink, four courses, room included | $8,900.00 |
| A second drink each100 glasses of house Pinot Grigio at $16 | $1,600.00 |
| 18% gratuity, the rate NeXT’s festive page states18% of $10,500.00 | $1,890.00 |
| 13% HSTon $12,390.00, gratuity included | $1,610.70 |
| DJ, seven hours, NeXT$1,300 plus HST | $1,469.00 |
| Total | $15,469.70 |
| Per guest | $154.70 |
$154.70 a guest is over the $150 line, so by the Canada Revenue Agency’s rule the whole amount becomes a taxable benefit to each employee, not the $4.70 above it. The gratuity here is applied to the food and drink only; ask NeXT whether it applies to the DJ.
Two changes each bring it under. Make the second drink a cash bar and it is $133.36 a guest. Keep the drink and drop the DJ and it is $140.01. Add NeXT’s $1,200 photo booth instead and it climbs to $168.26.
Lunch in the office for 40
| Holiday hot lunch, Bytown Catering40 guests at $32.95 | $1,318.00 |
| 15% labour charge15% of $1,318.00 | $197.70 |
| 13% HSTon $1,515.70, labour charge included | $197.04 |
| Total | $1,712.74 |
| Per guest | $42.82 |
The cheapest way to have everyone there. The room is yours, so there is no rent, and Bytown’s price includes biodegradable plates and cutlery and red and green cloths for the buffet tables. A sweet cart at $130 for dessert adds $3.25 a guest.
Where It Counts
Where the money makes the most difference
The $150 line is a cliff
The Canada Revenue Agency’s test is $150 or less per person, including taxes, for a party available to all employees at a place of business, up to six social events a year. It counts a spouse or partner as a person. It leaves transportation home, taxis and overnight rooms out of the total. And if the cost goes over, the full amount is taxable, so a party at $155 a head costs your staff more than one at $148. Decide which side of the line you are on before you choose the menu.
A small team should cut the per-night costs
For 20 people, anything priced by the night dominates. A $1,300 DJ is $65 a head, which is almost the price of the dinner. Pick a room with music already playing, rent one piece of decor rather than a build, or look at a shared party, where the DJ is split across several companies.
A big company should trim the per-guest costs
For 100 people, the plate and the glass dominate. One extra glass of wine at NeXT is $21.33 a guest with the gratuity and HST, which is $2,133 across the room. A DJ is $13 a head before tax. So one drink fewer a guest saves more than cutting the DJ, and drink tickets or a shorter host bar are where a large budget comes back under the line.
The night you pick has a price
The Kanata Legion’s hall is $125 less on a Friday than on a Saturday, Fieldhouse’s daily cap is $100 lower on a weekday, and the Infinity Convention Centre sets its room charge partly by the day of the week and the time of year. Which December 2026 nights are still realistic is in our guide on when to book an office Christmas party.
Invite everyone at the location
Both Canada Revenue Agency rules on this page want the party open to everyone. The $150 benefit rule needs it, and so does the deduction: the agency’s guidance on meals and entertainment lifts the usual 50% limit for an office party to which you invite all your employees from a location, up to six such events a year. A dinner for managers only gets neither. Ask your accountant how both apply to your company.
Put the decor where the camera is
Most of the photographs from the night are taken in one or two places. One finished photo wall or entrance does more than a little decor on every surface, and it takes less time to put up and take down.
Questions
Office Christmas party cost, answered
How much does an office Christmas party cost per person in Ottawa?
From about $42.82 a guest for a catered holiday lunch in your own office to about $162.72 for a private restaurant lounge at its minimum spend, with the service charge and 13% HST included. A hotel dinner sits between: the Lord Elgin’s plated holiday dinner is $69 on its menu and $92.00 on the bill. A DJ, more drinks and decor come on top. The number to plan around is $150 a person, the Canada Revenue Agency’s line for a staff party to stay a non-taxable benefit.
What is the average cost of a company Christmas party?
We found no published Canadian average. The figures that circulate are a US rule of thumb of $75 to $200 per employee, which the small-business site Nav calls a very rough guideline, and UK research by Togather in 2022 putting a holiday party at £70 to £150 per person. The published prices of Ottawa venues and caterers put the food, or food and drink, at roughly $43 to $163 a guest once the service charge and HST are added.
Is an office Christmas party a taxable benefit in Canada?
Not if it is open to all employees at a place of business and costs $150 or less per person, taxes included, according to the Canada Revenue Agency. Spouses and partners count as persons, taxis and hotel rooms are left out of the test, and the rule covers up to six social events a year. Above $150, the full cost is taxable to each employee, not only the part over the line.
Why is the bill a third higher than the menu price?
Because two charges go on top and the second is charged on the first. Venues add a service charge, 18% at the Lord Elgin, NeXT and ONŌ and at least 20% at Mati, and HST at 13% applies to the food and to that service charge, which the Canada Revenue Agency confirms for a gratuity on a banquet invoice. An 18% charge and the HST together add 33.3%, so the Lord Elgin’s $69 holiday dinner comes to $92.
How much does a DJ cost for an office Christmas party in Ottawa?
NeXT in Stittsville prices seven hours of DJ with a sound system, a wireless microphone and dance-floor lights at $1,300 in its 2026 to 2027 festive guide, and Ottawa DJ Events lists private events from $900. The price is per night, so $1,300 is $13 a guest for a company of 100 and $65 a guest for a team of 20, before HST.
How much should we budget for decor at an office Christmas party?
It depends on what you build. Venue add-ons are priced per guest: NeXT’s linen package, with a tablecloth, centrepiece, tea lights and uplighting, is $21 a guest. Single rental pieces have published prices, such as marquee numbers at $80 each and a sweet cart at $130. A built entrance, photo wall or stage is quoted per event, itemized, because the job changes with the room far more than with the headcount.
Where This Came From
Every price, from its own publisher
Each figure was read on September 30, 2026 on the publisher’s own page or price list. Venues and caterers change their menus every season, so confirm the current version before you book. The tax points are the Canada Revenue Agency’s published guidance, not advice for your company.
- Lord Elgin Hotel: Holiday Parties 2025 menu (PDF), linked from its festive season page
- NeXT: Corporate festive parties
- NeXT: Festive event guide 2026 to 2027 (PDF)
- Bytown Catering: Christmas and holidays
- Bytown Catering: Bar services
- Mati: Private dining
- Brookstreet Hotel: 2026 events menu (PDF), linked from its holiday parties page
- Domaine de l’Ange-Gardien: Christmas parties
- ONŌ at the Château Cartier: Christmas menu (PDF)
- Infinity Convention Centre: FAQs
- Fieldhouse Event Space: Rates, on the home page
- Royal Canadian Legion Branch 638, Kanata: Hall rentals
- Ottawa DJ Events: DJ services, on the home page
- Canada Revenue Agency: Social events and hospitality functions (modified 2025-08-27)
- Canada Revenue Agency: Line 8523, meals and entertainment (modified 2026-08-31)
- Canada Revenue Agency: GST/HST information for the travel and convention industry, on gratuities
- AGCO: Apply to sell or serve alcohol at a private event
- Nav: How to budget for an office holiday party
- UKCube: Planning an office Christmas party: budget breakdown (quoting Togather, 2022)
- The Idea Hunter: Office Christmas party in Toronto: the 2026 planning guide
Send us the headcount and the room
Sparkle Events works from a studio at 99 Ralph Erfle Wy in Nepean and installs across Ottawa, Kanata, Barrhaven, Orleans, Gloucester and Gatineau. Tell us the date, the venue and how many people are coming, and the decor comes back as an itemized quote you can fit around the rest of the budget.
Sparkle Events was named a Winner of the 2026 Canadian Choice Award in the Event Planning Services category for Ottawa.