Free Printable Red Money Envelopes – Chinese New Year Snake
Home » CREATE » Free Printables » Chinese New Year Printables »These free printable Red Money Envelopes are perfect for the Chinese New Year!
The little red envelopes are filled with money and are a traditional gift given to wish a healthy and happy new year.
The printable has been updated to reflect the Year of the Snake, which begins on 29th January 2025!
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Where are the Red Money Envelope Downloads?
• Find them at the bottom of this post, surrounded by a purple dashed box.
• Tap the purple download link buttons to save the PDF file(s) to your device.
• You can open this type of file with Adobe Reader.
• Printables are available in two sizes—A4 and US Letter (8.5″ x 11″).
• Download the paper size for your printer or print shop.
• Please read our full Terms and Conditions.
What Are Red Money Envelopes?
On New Year’s Eve, the Chinese red envelope is filled with money and given to friends and family to wish them good luck for the year ahead.
Our take on traditional red envelopes (red packets) is a nod to rich Chinese culture and a way to participate in a beloved tradition.
The designs include a gold version of our Free Printable Build A Snake, as well as the Chinese characters 恭禧發財 that says Gōng xǐ fā cái, or in English, means to wish prosperity and fortune.
The envelopes (or “hong bao”) are not just an ornate red pocket of paper; they carry good luck and ward off evil spirits. They are adorned with auspicious symbols and phrases deeply rooted in tradition.
Lucky Red
The red paper is actually more important than the lucky money inside! The color red symbolizes happiness and good luck.
The tradition of red envelopes is one of the oldest stories of Chinese New Year, where the demon Sui haunted sleeping children.
On Chinese New Year’s Eve, the parents gave their son eight coins to protect him. Although he fell asleep, the coins, which were the Eight Immortals in disguise, emitted a bright light that repelled the huge demon.
These envelopes symbolize those protective coins, are sometimes called ‘yasui qian’, meaning “suppressing Sui money.”
In recent years, digital red envelopes have become popular, but the money given is still very real—a modern tradition for the digital age! They are a great way to still give a red packet when you cannot give a traditional one.
Year of the Snake
The Chinese New Year and the Year of the Snake begin on 29 January 2025 and end on 12 February 2025 with the Lantern Festival.
Your Chinese zodiac is Snake if you were born in one of these years: 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013, and 2025.
We have shared Chinese New Year Printables since the Year of the Monkey in 2016. These printables are updated annually to reflect that year’s zodiac animal.
They include Chinese New Year Firecrackers, a fun (and safe) paper craft, Paper Hand Fans, which make lovely decorations, and Chinese New Year Bingo to play with friends and family.
If you are planning a party or Chinese Banquet, be sure to take a look at these 50+ Delicious Recipes for Chinese New Year!
Legend of the Snake
One day, the Jade Emperor said the zodiac order would be decided by the order in which the animals arrived at his party.

In the race, the snake showcased its cleverness. It hid on the horse’s hoof without being noticed and waited until they were near the finish line.
At the last moment, the snake startled the horse, causing it to lose balance, and slithered ahead to claim sixth place.
This act highlighted the snake’s resourcefulness and strategic thinking.
The snake holds a special place in the Chinese zodiac and mythology. As the sixth sign of the zodiac, it symbolizes intelligence, wisdom, and mystery.
Who Do You Give A Red Packet To?
While the ancient story of the red envelope tradition is focused on young children, the envelopes can be given to anyone you know, from immediate and extended family and friends to acquaintances, work colleagues, and employees.
What differs is the amount of money that goes into the red pockets for each person.
Children and non-working young adults give good wishes to their parents and grandparents, and in return, they gift the red money envelopes to the younger generation, wishing them good fortune and good luck.
How Much Money Do I Put In?
Giving old money is considered bad taste, so it is customary to include new bills. In the run-up to the new year, you will see long lines at banks where people exchange their crumpled old bills for crisp bills.
The amount of money should reflect your relationship with the recipient and your financial ability. Remember, it’s more about the sentiment than giving a lot of money!
Traditionally, you always add 100CN¥ / $20 / £10 for your children (up to any amount you like). For other children, like friends and colleagues, it would be 20-50CN¥ / $5-10 / £2-5.
For older relatives, you always add 500-2000CN¥ / $100-300 / £55-220, while for young adult children in your family who aren’t working/still in school, you would always give 50-200CN¥ / $10-30 / £5-20
Stick to Even Numbers
Per Chinese beliefs, the money you put in should end with an even digit. Even numbers, except four, are better than odd.
However, the number four should not appear in the amount of money, such as 40, 400, and 444—the word “four” in Chinese sounds like “death” and is considered very bad luck.
Instead, place amounts that start or end with the number eight for enhanced luck.
When Do You Give Red Money Envelopes?
Red packets are handed out during the 16 days of the Spring Festival of Chinese New Year (or Lunar New Year, as celebrated in other Asian communities). This can be on New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day.
They are given and received with both hands—it is impolite to do so otherwise. You should always thank the giver and greet them with auspicious phrases; the most common is Gong hei fat choy (Cantonese), which wishes prosperity and happiness.
Open Privately
It is also worth noting that you should never open the envelope in front of the person who gave it to you. You should do so privately at home or in private.
The Chinese tradition of giving red envelopes is not only for the new year but for other special occasions such as a baby shower or birthday party and, of course, at Chinese weddings.
Money envelopes can also be given at funerals, but they are white (the color for mourning and death and worn at Chinese funerals) and are offerings to the spirits of the deceased.
How To Make Red Money Envelopes
- Print as many red envelope templates as you need onto good quality (120gsm/30lbs) thick paper or thin card and cut them out.
- Score along the lines and fold the flaps towards the back, as shown in the image below.
- Fix with a little bit of roller glue or double-sided tape.
- Add some paper money, fold the final flap down, seal it with some tape, or just slot it into place.
We will update all of our free printables for the Chinese New Year. Ensure you are a member of The Pumpkin Patch to ensure you don’t miss out!
Download Red Money Envelopes For Chinese New Year
We hope you enjoyed reading about this beautiful Chinese tradition and wish you success and good fortune this Year of the Snake!
The downloads are in the purple box below. Click the purple download button link to save the printable file(s) to your computer.
Download Red Money Envelopes Here:
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The free printables are in PDF format and can be opened with the free-to-use Adobe Acrobat Reader (or other PDF Readers). If the download is a Zip File, it can be opened with WinZip, WinRar, or other software typically bundled on computers. Printables designed and created by The Purple Pumpkin Blog and its Designers are for PERSONAL USE ONLY and NOT FOR RESALE under any circumstances. Please read our full Terms and Conditions. You are welcome to print these free printables at an online print shop or print shop in-store if you don’t have access to a printer; however, some print shops may not print licensed characters. Colors may vary when printing due to different screen and printer settings. You may share this free printable blog post on social media, including Pinterest, and on your blog/website with a link to this blog post. Please DO NOT share the PDF on social media or your blog/website. If you use any of our printables, it would be awesome to know about it! Post a picture on the social media platform you hang out on, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest. Use the hashtag #TPPBprintables so we can find you!
LauraM
February 2, 2022 @ 1:47 am
Thanks so much for these! My grandkids and I have tea together every week, and this week’s theme is Lunar New Year. These envelopes are perfect and easy to print out and fold. I didn’t think the gold would come out on my printer, but it sure did!
Michelle
February 2, 2022 @ 12:05 pm
I’m so glad to hear that they printed beautifully for you! Enjoy tea with your grandkids!
Laura
January 25, 2020 @ 4:12 pm
Thank you for sharing these!
Michelle
January 25, 2020 @ 4:52 pm
You’re very welcome!
Michelle
January 2, 2021 @ 12:20 pm
Hi Michelle
I am just preparing this term’s Rainbow session packs to provide to the parents ahead of our virtual meetings. When do you think you will be updating the Chinese New Year Red envelopes to Year of the Ox for this year please as I would love to be able to print some off for my Rainbows.
Many thanks
Michelle
January 2, 2021 @ 1:59 pm
Hi Michelle
Yes! I am totally updating all of my CNY printables, and as it happens, I’m updating the Red Envelopes today!
Katie
January 20, 2020 @ 5:09 pm
Thank you for the envelopes, your work is amazing! Can’t wait to show my Rainbows these and teach them about Chinese New Year!
I was just wondering, what does it say on the envelopes?
Michelle Ordever
January 20, 2020 @ 5:31 pm
You’re very welcome Katie! I hope your Rainbows have fun learning about the Chinese New Year.
My understanding is that the symbols say Happy New Year (Gong Hei Fat Choy in Cantonese) – at least that is what the site I copied over the symbols from said!
Carissa
January 20, 2019 @ 10:18 pm
Thank you for these! I’ve been downloading them for three years and wanted to let you know how I much I appreciate them!
Michelle Ordever
January 21, 2019 @ 12:45 pm
You’re very welcome! I’m so glad to hear that you have been downloading them for so many years!
Rosie Corriette
January 20, 2017 @ 2:53 pm
These look amazing – last year our local museum put on a craft day for the children and my daughter was fascinated with the culture – may just have to print one off for her, thanks!
JuggleMum, Nadine Hill
January 20, 2017 @ 2:32 pm
I love reading about the beliefs of other cultures and this post was interesting. The red envelopes in your photo are really pretty.
Ness
January 19, 2017 @ 8:47 pm
I didn’t realise about how unlucky the number 4 was in Chinese culture. To think as well if you double it and 8 is so lucky!
Michelle Ordever
January 19, 2017 @ 9:05 pm
I learned about it many years ago when I did a Feng Shui course – and that the number 8 is so lucky! Now you’ve said that, it’s got me thinking!!