How to Host a New Year's Eve Party at Home

New Year's Eve plans get made early, often before the December parties start. Send the invite by the first week of December, and ask for replies by mid-December so you can plan food and seats.

• The start time, and whether you're going past midnight.
• The address, parking, and which door to use.
• What you're providing, and what guests can bring.
• Whether partners, plus-ones and kids are welcome.
• The dress code, if there is one. Sequins optional is a fine answer.

On Joinue, you can set the date replies close, and after it nobody new can say yes.

A New Year's Eve party is long, and people graze the whole way through. Skip the sit-down dinner. Plan food that holds at room temperature or in a slow cooker, and bring it out in two waves.

• The first wave, as people arrive: a cheese board, crackers, chips and dips, a veggie tray.
• Something hot and filling around ten: sliders, meatballs, flatbreads, a pot of chili.
• Something a little special: shrimp cocktail, deviled eggs, stuffed mushrooms.
• Dessert bites near midnight: brownies, cookies, chocolate-dipped strawberries.
• Something late for the people still standing at 12:30: pizza in the freezer counts.

On Joinue, a New Year's Eve potluck starts with dishes like these as ideas the host taps onto the bring list.

Everyone should have something in a glass at midnight, whether or not they drink.

• Sparkling wine for the toast, about one bottle for every five or six people.
• Sparkling cider or sparkling juice, poured into the same glasses, so nobody stands out.
• Sparkling water, soda and mixers, plus water out all night.
• Plenty of ice, more than you think: a pound or two per person.
• Glasses set out by 11:45, with the bottles chilled and a towel for opening them.

On Joinue, a line like Sparkling wine can take several people and shows everyone who's already on it.

Most parties count down with a TV broadcast. If you're streaming, know that streams can run a few seconds to a minute behind, so the room may cheer before the screen does.

• Pick one clock and say so: the TV, or a phone's clock held up by whoever is loudest.
• Turn the music down at 11:55 and gather everyone in one room.
• Hand out noisemakers, hats or confetti while people find their glasses.
• After midnight, put the music back up and bring out the late food.

Games are optional. Plenty of groups are happy talking until midnight. If yours likes a game, pick ones that people can drop in and out of.

• Resolutions in a hat: everyone writes one anonymously, and the room guesses whose is whose.
• Year in review trivia: questions about the year, or about your group's year.
• A card game or a board game in a quieter corner.
• Predictions for next year, sealed in an envelope to open at next year's party.

On Joinue, party games like Imposter and Sync run in each player's own phone browser from a link or a short code, with no account needed to join.

Rides are harder on New Year's Eve than any other night: rideshare prices spike after midnight and waits get long. Plan it before the party, not at 1 a.m.

• Ask who's driving when people arrive, and keep good nonalcoholic drinks flowing for them.
• Stop serving alcohol well before people leave, and put out coffee and food.
• Suggest people book or share rides early, or agree on a designated driver.
• Have a couch, an air mattress or a spare bed ready, and say so out loud.

On Joinue, the invite can ask who needs a ride and who can give one, so you can pair people up before midnight; only hosts see the answers.