Christmas Movies
Every film with its runtime, rating and where it's streaming — so you can pick by the evening you've actually got.
- Films reviewed
- 25
- Span
- 1946–2022
- Top rating
- 8.6
What is the best Christmas movie?
It's a Wonderful Life (1946) is the highest-rated Christmas film on our list at 8.6 on IMDb, and it is the usual answer to "the greatest Christmas movie ever made". The honest caveat is that Christmas films are judged on nostalgia more than craft — the one you watched every year as a child will beat a technically better film you met last December. Most run 90 to 105 minutes; the shortest here is A Charlie Brown Christmas at 25m.
- Highest rated
- It's a Wonderful Life (1946) — 8.6
- Oldest
- It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
- Shortest
- A Charlie Brown Christmas — 25m
- Typical runtime
- 90–105 minutes
It's a Wonderful Life
It's a Wonderful Life
Dir. Frank Capra
An angel is sent from Heaven to help a desperately frustrated businessman by showing what life would have been like if he had never existed.
Miracle on 34th Street
Miracle on 34th Street
Dir. George Seaton
When a nice old man who claims to be Santa Claus is institutionalized as insane, a young lawyer decides to defend him by arguing in court that he is the real Santa.
A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol
Dir. Brian Desmond Hurst
The miserly Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by three ghosts on Christmas Eve who show him the error of his selfish ways and give him a chance at redemption.
White Christmas
White Christmas
Dir. Michael Curtiz
A successful song-and-dance team join forces with a sister act to save their former commanding general's struggling Vermont inn by staging a spectacular Christmas show.
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Dir. Larry Roemer
A misfit reindeer with a glowing red nose and his friends embark on an adventure to the Island of Misfit Toys before saving Christmas for Santa.
A Charlie Brown Christmas
A Charlie Brown Christmas
Dir. Bill Melendez
Feeling down about the commercialism of Christmas, Charlie Brown tries to find the true meaning of the holiday by directing a school Christmas pageant.
A Christmas Story
A Christmas Story
Dir. Bob Clark
In 1940s Indiana, a young boy named Ralphie attempts to convince his parents, his teacher, and Santa that a Red Ryder BB gun is the perfect Christmas gift.
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
Dir. Jeremiah S. Chechik
Clark Griswold is determined to have the perfect family Christmas, but a series of disasters threaten to derail his plans as relatives descend on the household.
Scrooged
Scrooged
Dir. Richard Donner
A cynical, selfish television executive is haunted by three spirits on Christmas Eve who try to show him the true meaning of the holiday.
Die Hard
Die Hard
Dir. John McTiernan
A New York City police officer tries to save his estranged wife and other hostages taken by terrorists during a Christmas party at a Los Angeles skyscraper.
Home Alone
Home Alone
Dir. Chris Columbus
An eight-year-old boy is accidentally left behind when his family flies to Paris for the holidays, and he must defend his home against a pair of bungling burglars.
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
Dir. Chris Columbus
Kevin McCallister accidentally boards the wrong flight and ends up alone in New York City, where he must once again fend off the Wet Bandits.
The Muppet Christmas Carol
The Muppet Christmas Carol
Dir. Brian Henson
The Muppets perform Charles Dickens' classic tale of Ebenezer Scrooge with Kermit the Frog as Bob Cratchit and the Great Gonzo narrating as Charles Dickens himself.
The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Nightmare Before Christmas
Dir. Henry Selick
Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town, discovers Christmas Town and becomes obsessed with taking over the holiday.
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Dir. Ron Howard
A grumpy, cave-dwelling green creature plots to ruin Christmas for the cheerful citizens of Whoville, but a kind-hearted little girl may change his heart.
Elf
Elf
Dir. Jon Favreau
A human raised as an elf at the North Pole travels to New York City to find his biological father, spreading Christmas cheer in a world of cynics.
Love Actually
Love Actually
Dir. Richard Curtis
Nine intertwined stories explore the complexities of love in all its forms during the frantic weeks before Christmas in London.
The Polar Express
The Polar Express
Dir. Robert Zemeckis
A doubting young boy boards a magical train to the North Pole on Christmas Eve, embarking on a journey of self-discovery that teaches him the true spirit of Christmas.
Bad Santa
Bad Santa
Dir. Terry Zwigoff
A miserable, alcoholic con man poses as a department store Santa each year to rob shopping malls, but an unlikely friendship with a naive boy starts to change him.
A Christmas Prince
A Christmas Prince
Dir. Alex Zamm
An ambitious young journalist is sent to a fictional European kingdom to cover a royal press conference and ends up posing as a tutor to the prince's younger sister while uncovering a Christmas love story.
Klaus
Klaus
Dir. Sergio Pablos
A selfish postman stationed in a frozen, feuding town befriends a reclusive toymaker, and their unlikely partnership inadvertently creates the legend of Santa Claus.
Arthur Christmas
Arthur Christmas
Dir. Sarah Smith
When Santa's high-tech operation accidentally misses one child, his clumsy but warm-hearted son Arthur embarks on an urgent mission to deliver the last present before Christmas morning.
Last Christmas
Last Christmas
Dir. Paul Feig
A young woman working as a department store elf meets a mysterious man who challenges her to open her heart, set against the backdrop of London at Christmas and inspired by the music of George Michael.
The Christmas Chronicles
The Christmas Chronicles
Dir. Clay Kaytis
Two siblings hatch a plan to catch Santa Claus on Christmas Eve, but when their scheme causes his sleigh to crash, they must team up with a charismatic Santa to save Christmas.
Spirited
Spirited
Dir. Sean Anders
A musical reimagining of A Christmas Carol in which the Ghost of Christmas Present selects a dark soul to redeem each year, but this year's target proves to be his greatest challenge.