Christmas Movies Tier List: Every Holiday Classic Ranked
Thirty movies, one tree, a lot of arguments. This list covers the classics your family argues about every December, the animated ones the kids love, and the few that only count as "Christmas movies" if you're trying to start a fight at a party (looking at you, Die Hard).
We ranked all 30 based on how fans and critics actually talk about them, pulled from forums, review aggregates and the kind of debates that happen every single holiday season. Where everyone agrees, we agree. Where it's split down the middle, we picked a side and told you why. Disagree? That's half the fun of a tier list.
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SS Tier: The ones everyone rewatches
It's a Wonderful Life
Black and white, over 70 years old, and it still wrecks people every single time George Bardo Falls stands on that bridge. The ending at the Bailey house with Zuzu's petals is as good as American film gets, holiday or otherwise.
About It's a Wonderful Life
A 1946 drama about a man who gets to see what his town would look like if he'd never been born, directed by Frank Capra. Now considered one of the greatest American films ever made.
- Released
- 1946
- Director
- Frank Capra
Home Alone
Kevin McCallister booby-trapping a house is one of the most purely rewatchable premises in comedy history. Joe Pesci getting a blowtorch to the scalp never stops being funny, and the John Williams score does half the emotional work.
About Home Alone
A 1990 comedy about an eight-year-old accidentally left behind when his family flies to Paris for Christmas, forcing him to defend the house from two burglars. Directed by Chris Columbus and written by John Hughes.
- Released
- 1990
- Director
- Chris Columbus
A Christmas Story
A leg lamp, a tongue stuck to a pole, and "you'll shoot your eye out" have become actual Christmas shorthand. TBS runs it for 24 hours straight every year because people genuinely want to watch it that many times.
About A Christmas Story
A 1983 comedy following young Ralphie Parker's quest for a Red Ryder BB gun one Christmas in 1940s Indiana. Directed by Bob Clark and narrated by Jean Shepherd.
- Released
- 1983
- Director
- Bob Clark
The Muppet Christmas Carol
Michael Caine plays Scrooge completely straight while Gonzo narrates as Charles Dickens, and somehow it's the most faithful Christmas Carol adaptation on this list. "One More Sleep Till Christmas" is a legitimately great song.
About The Muppet Christmas Carol
A musical adaptation of Dickens's 'A Christmas Carol' featuring the Muppets, with Michael Caine as Ebenezer Scrooge alongside Kermit, Miss Piggy and the rest of the cast.
- Released
- 1992
- Director
- Brian Henson
- Starring
- Michael Caine
AA Tier: Bona fide classics
Elf
Will Ferrell eating spaghetti with maple syrup and screaming about Santa in the mailroom turned this into a modern staple fast. It's silly on purpose and never winks at the camera about it.
About Elf
A 2003 comedy starring Will Ferrell as a human raised by Santa's elves who travels to New York to find his birth father. Directed by Jon Favreau.
- Released
- 2003
- Director
- Jon Favreau
Die Hard
Yes, it's a Christmas movie. It's set at a Christmas party, Argyle's blasting Christmas music in the limo, and Hans Gruber drops Takagi right as "Ode to Joy" plays under the credits. Fight about it elsewhere.
About Die Hard
A 1988 action film starring Bruce Willis as an NYPD officer trapped in a Los Angeles skyscraper during a Christmas Eve office party turned hostage situation. Directed by John McTiernan.
- Released
- 1988
- Director
- John McTiernan
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
Clark Griswold's quest for the perfect family Christmas goes wrong in every way imaginable, including a squirrel in the tree and a cat that gets electrocuted. Still the sharpest family-holiday-disaster comedy there is.
About National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
A comedy film following Clark Griswold as he attempts to host a perfect family Christmas, only for chaos to ensue. It is part of the National Lampoon's Vacation film series.
- Released
- 1989
- Lead actor
- Chevy Chase
- Director
- Jeremiah S. Chechik
- Series
- National Lampoon's Vacation
The Nightmare Before Christmas
Technically more Halloween than Christmas, but Jack Skellington's attempt to hijack the holiday is too good, and too visually inventive, to leave off. "This Is Halloween" and "What's This?" are both stuck in your head now, you're welcome.
About The Nightmare Before Christmas
A stop-motion musical fantasy about Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town, who discovers Christmas Town and attempts to take over the holiday.
- Released
- 1993
- Director
- Henry Selick
- Produced by
- Tim Burton
White Christmas
Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye in matching outfits singing the title song is the whole reason the phrase "White Christmas" means what it means culturally. A little slow by modern pacing standards, but the finale still lands.
About White Christmas
A musical about two song-and-dance men who team up with a sister act to save a Vermont inn owned by their former army general, culminating in a famous title song performance.
- Released
- 1954
- Director
- Michael Curtiz
- Starring
- Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney
- Notable song
- "White Christmas" by Irving Berlin
Miracle on 34th Street
The original courtroom-proves-Santa-is-real premise is still charming decades later, and Edmund Gwenn's Kris Kringle is warm without being saccharine. A genuine classic that doesn't need the 1994 remake's help.
About Miracle on 34th Street
A classic film about a department store Santa who claims to be the real Kris Kringle, leading to a court case over whether he is telling the truth.
- Released
- 1947
- Starring
- Maureen O'Hara, John Payne, Natalie Wood, Edmund Gwenn
- Notable
- Edmund Gwenn won an Academy Award for his role as Kris Kringle
Gremlins
Gizmo is adorable, Stripe and the gang are legitimately unsettling, and the whole thing is a weird, gleeful mashup of horror and holiday cheer that shouldn't work as well as it does. Don't feed them after midnight, and don't skip this one.
About Gremlins
A horror comedy about a young man who receives a strange creature called a Mogwai as a Christmas gift, which spawns dangerous, mischievous gremlins when the rules for its care are broken.
- Released
- 1984
- Director
- Joe Dante
- Starring
- Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates
How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)
Jim Carrey under that much prosthetic makeup is a genuine feat, and he commits completely to the physical comedy. It stretches a 26-page book into a full movie by padding out Whoville, but the Grinch himself carries it.
About How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)
A live-action film adaptation of Dr. Seuss's classic story, starring Jim Carrey as the Grinch in heavy makeup and prosthetics. The film expands on the original short book with additional backstory and characters.
- Released
- 2000
- Director
- Ron Howard
- Grinch played by
- Jim Carrey
- Based on
- Dr. Seuss book
BB Tier: Solid holiday comfort
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
Basically the same movie as the first one but in Manhattan with a bigger hotel and a bigger pigeon lady subplot. Still funny, still has the Wet Bandits, just noticeably more of a victory lap than an original idea.
About Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
A comedy sequel to 'Home Alone' in which young Kevin McCallister is separated from his family during the Christmas holidays and ends up alone in New York City, where he again encounters the bumbling burglars from the first film.
- Released
- 1992
- Lead actor
- Macaulay Culkin
- Director
- Chris Columbus
- Setting
- New York City
Scrooged
Bill Murray as a cynical, modern TV executive version of Scrooge is a genuinely clever update, with Carol Kane's terrifying Ghost of Christmas Present stealing every scene she's in. Darker and weirder than most studio Christmas comedies from this era.
About Scrooged
A modern comedic take on Charles Dickens's 'A Christmas Carol', starring a cynical, greedy television executive who is visited by three ghosts on Christmas Eve.
- Released
- 1988
- Director
- Richard Donner
- Starring
- Bill Murray
The Santa Clause
Tim Allen accidentally kills Santa, puts on the suit, and slowly turns into him, gaining weight and a beard along the way. A solid 90s family comedy premise that holds up better than its two sequels.
About The Santa Clause
A comedy in which a divorced father accidentally causes Santa Claus to fall off his roof and, by taking on the suit, finds himself magically transforming into the new Santa.
- Released
- 1994
- Director
- John Pasquin
- Starring
- Tim Allen
Klaus
A genuinely beautiful looking animated film with an origin story for Santa that's more clever than it has any right to be. Underseen compared to the Illumination and Disney stuff, and deserves more of a following.
About Klaus
An animated film reimagining the origin of Santa Claus, following a spoiled postman exiled to a frozen town who forms an unlikely friendship with a reclusive toymaker named Klaus.
- Released
- 2019
- Director
- Sergio Pablos
- Studio
- Netflix / SPA Studios
Love Actually
Nine storylines tangled together, some genuinely moving (Liam Neeson and the stepson), some deeply questionable in hindsight (the cue cards, basically all of Andrew Lincoln's plot). People either love this one unconditionally or can't stand it, and both reactions are fair.
About Love Actually
A romantic comedy weaving together multiple interconnected love stories in London in the weeks leading up to Christmas.
- Released
- 2003
- Director
- Richard Curtis
- Starring
- Hugh Grant, Liam Neeson, Emma Thompson, Colin Firth, Keira Knightley
Arthur Christmas
A clever, underrated premise: Santa's actual delivery operation is a massive high tech logistics company, and his awkward second son has to save Christmas by hand. Smarter and funnier than its box office numbers suggested.
About Arthur Christmas
An animated comedy about Santa's awkward but good-hearted son Arthur, who sets off on a race against time to deliver a forgotten present after the family's high-tech Christmas Eve operation misses one child.
- Released
- 2011
- Studio
- Aardman Animations
- Starring
- James McAvoy (voice), Hugh Laurie (voice), Bill Nighy (voice)
The Grinch (2018)
Benedict Cumberbatch voices a gentler, more plush Grinch for the Illumination animation style. Perfectly pleasant for a family movie night, but it doesn't have much on Jim Carrey's version.
About The Grinch (2018)
An animated film based on Dr. Seuss's book 'How the Grinch Stole Christmas!'. It follows the grouchy, green Grinch as he plots to steal Christmas from the cheerful residents of Whoville. The film was produced by Illumination.
- Released
- 2018
- Studio
- Illumination
- Grinch voiced by
- Benedict Cumberbatch
- Based on
- Dr. Seuss book
A Christmas Carol (2009)
Jim Carrey again, this time as Scrooge via motion capture, in a version that leans hard into genuinely spooky imagery for a PG movie. Visually ambitious, though the uncanny valley animation style hasn't aged gracefully for everyone.
About A Christmas Carol (2009)
A motion-capture animated adaptation of Charles Dickens's classic story of Ebenezer Scrooge, visited by three ghosts on Christmas Eve who show him the error of his miserly ways.
- Released
- 2009
- Director
- Robert Zemeckis
- Starring
- Jim Carrey (voice, multiple roles)
- Technique
- Performance capture animation
Bad Santa
Billy Bob Thornton as a foul mouthed, alcoholic mall Santa running a heist scheme is about as far from Hallmark as Christmas movies get. Genuinely funny if you're in on the joke, genuinely off putting if you're not.
About Bad Santa
A dark comedy about a foul-mouthed, alcoholic con artist who poses as a department store Santa Claus each year to rob stores, until a lonely boy starts to change him.
- Released
- 2003
- Director
- Terry Zwigoff
- Starring
- Billy Bob Thornton
CC Tier: Fine, if it's already on
The Holiday
Kate Winslet and Cameron Diaz swap houses across an ocean and both find romance, in a movie that's comfort food more than anything memorable. Jack Black is a nice surprise in a more grounded role than usual.
About The Holiday
A romantic comedy in which two women from opposite sides of the world, one in England and one in California, swap homes for the holidays to escape heartbreak and end up finding new romance.
- Released
- 2006
- Director
- Nancy Meyers
- Starring
- Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Jack Black
Four Christmases
Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon bounce between four sets of divorced and blended family holidays in a single day. Has a few solid laughs, mostly from the supporting cast, but it's forgettable next to the comedies above it.
About Four Christmases
A comedy about a couple who, after years of avoiding their families during the holidays, are forced to visit all four of their divorced parents' homes in a single Christmas Day.
- Released
- 2008
- Director
- Seth Gordon
- Starring
- Vince Vaughn, Reese Witherspoon
Fred Claus
Vince Vaughn again, this time as Santa's resentful brother working off community service at the North Pole. Paul Giamatti is good as Santa, but the movie around him never quite finds its tone.
About Fred Claus
A comedy about Santa Claus's resentful older brother, Fred, who must help out at the North Pole workshop and confront his sibling rivalry.
- Released
- 2007
- Director
- David Dobkin
- Starring
- Vince Vaughn, Paul Giamatti
Jingle All the Way
Arnold Schwarzenegger fighting Sinbad over the last action figure on Christmas Eve is a premise that's funnier to describe than to actually sit through for 90 minutes. A certain kind of 90s nostalgia carries it further than the jokes do.
About Jingle All the Way
A comedy about a father who, on Christmas Eve, goes to extreme lengths across the city to find the year's hottest sold-out toy for his son.
- Released
- 1996
- Director
- Brian Levant
- Starring
- Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sinbad
Krampus
A horror comedy about the anti-Santa folklore figure punishing a dysfunctional family, with genuinely good practical creature effects. Works better as a horror movie with Christmas trimmings than as an actual Christmas movie.
About Krampus
A horror comedy in which a family's Christmas is upended when their lack of holiday spirit summons Krampus, a demonic anti-Santa figure from folklore, along with his evil helpers.
- Released
- 2015
- Director
- Michael Dougherty
- Genre
- Horror comedy
The Night Before
Seth Rogen, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Anthony Mackie spend one last Christmas Eve together searching for a legendary party. Funny in stretches, but it leans hard on raunchy comedy tropes that feel more generic than festive.
About The Night Before
A comedy following three lifelong friends who reunite each Christmas Eve for a night of debauchery in New York City, which takes on added meaning as adulthood approaches.
- Released
- 2015
- Director
- Jonathan Levine
- Starring
- Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen, Anthony Mackie
DD Tier: Skip it this year
Christmas with the Kranks
Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis try to skip Christmas entirely and their neighborhood punishes them for it, which is a mean spirited premise dressed up as a feel good one. The tone never settles on whether the Kranks are right or the villains.
About Christmas with the Kranks
A comedy about a suburban couple who decide to skip Christmas entirely and go on a cruise, only to face backlash from their tradition-obsessed neighbors. Based on John Grisham's novel 'Skipping Christmas'.
- Released
- 2004
- Director
- Joe Roth
- Starring
- Tim Allen, Jamie Lee Curtis
- Based on
- Skipping Christmas by John Grisham
The Polar Express
Visually impressive for its time, with that train ride still looking good, but the early motion capture animation lands firmly in uncanny valley territory for a lot of viewers. Tom Hanks voicing five different characters is a fun trivia fact more than a reason to watch.
About The Polar Express
An animated film about a young boy who boards a magical train on Christmas Eve bound for the North Pole. The film is known for its motion capture animation technology and is based on the children's book by Chris Van Allsburg.
- Released
- 2004
- Director
- Robert Zemeckis
- Lead actor
- Tom Hanks
- Based on
- Chris Van Allsburg book
FF Tier: Lump of coal
Red One
A big budget action movie built around Dwayne Johnson protecting Santa Claus, with none of the charm that makes the smaller movies on this list work. All spectacle, very little actual Christmas spirit underneath it.
About Red One
An action comedy in which Santa Claus is kidnapped and a security chief teams up with a tracker to save Christmas.
- Released
- 2024
- Director
- Jake Kasdan
- Starring
- Dwayne Johnson, Chris Evans
How we ranked them
We weighed rewatchability, cultural footprint, and how well each movie actually holds up when you watch it again at 32 instead of 12. Consensus from fan forums and critic reviews drove most placements. Where the internet is genuinely split (hello, Die Hard discourse), we made a call and explained our reasoning rather than dodging it.
Think we got it wrong?
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Rank these yourselfFAQ
Is Die Hard actually a Christmas movie?
It's set at a Christmas party on Christmas Eve and ends with a Christmas song, so yes, by any reasonable definition it counts, whatever the annual debate says.
What is the best Christmas movie of all time?
By consensus across fans and critics, It's a Wonderful Life, A Christmas Story and Home Alone sit at the very top, with It's a Wonderful Life usually edging out as the most critically acclaimed.
What is the most underrated Christmas movie?
Klaus and Arthur Christmas both get far less attention than the big studio names but are genuinely well made animated films worth a watch.
Is The Nightmare Before Christmas a Halloween or Christmas movie?
It's genuinely both, and people have argued about it for decades. We counted it here since Jack Skellington's whole plot is about taking over Christmas.
What's the worst Christmas movie on this list?
Red One lands at the bottom for us, a big budget action movie that has almost none of the warmth or charm that makes the genre work.
More rankings
Image credits
- It's a Wonderful LifePhoto: "Copyright 1946 RKO Radio Pictures Inc.", Public domain (Wikimedia Commons) · Source
- Home AloneCover: Wikipedia · Source
- A Christmas StoryCover: Wikipedia · Source
- The Muppet Christmas CarolCover: Wikipedia · Source
- ElfCover: Wikipedia · Source
- Die HardCover: Wikipedia · Source
- National Lampoon's Christmas VacationCover: Wikipedia · Source
- The Nightmare Before ChristmasCover: Wikipedia · Source
- White ChristmasCover: Wikipedia · Source
- Miracle on 34th StreetPhoto: "Copyright 1947 by Twentieth Century–Fox Film Corp.", Public domain (Wikimedia Commons) · Source
- GremlinsCover: Wikipedia · Source
- How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)Cover: Wikipedia · Source
- Home Alone 2: Lost in New YorkCover: Wikipedia · Source
- ScroogedCover: Wikipedia · Source
- The Santa ClauseCover: Wikipedia · Source
- KlausCover: Wikipedia · Source
- Love ActuallyCover: Wikipedia · Source
- Arthur ChristmasCover: Wikipedia · Source
- The Grinch (2018)Cover: Wikipedia · Source
- A Christmas Carol (2009)Cover: Wikipedia · Source
- Bad SantaCover: Wikipedia · Source
- The HolidayCover: Wikipedia · Source
- Four ChristmasesCover: Wikipedia · Source
- Fred ClausCover: Wikipedia · Source
- Jingle All the WayCover: Wikipedia · Source
- KrampusCover: Wikipedia · Source
- The Night BeforeCover: Wikipedia · Source
- Christmas with the KranksCover: Wikipedia · Source
- The Polar ExpressCover: Wikipedia · Source
- Red OneCover: Wikipedia · Source