30 Best Holiday Movies of All Time

Holiday movies have a special way of capturing the season’s magic, bringing families together, and sparking timeless traditions. In my house, the holiday season officially begins with a Home Alone screening— a chaotic, laugh-filled kickoff that never gets old. While everyone has their personal favorites, there’s always room to explore a few new gems to make your movie nights even cozier.

From the snowy charm of White Christmas to the quirky romance of Love Actually, and even the hilarious mischief of The Grinch, holiday movies come in all styles and flavors. Whether you’re drawn to heartwarming classics, side-splitting comedies, or festive animations, there’s a story waiting to become your next holiday tradition.

This list rounds up the best holiday movies of all time—perfect for a season filled with warmth, joy, and a little bit of cinematic magic. Ready to press play?

A Christmas Story (1983)

Director: Bob Clark
Starring: Peter Billingsley, W. Lyle Richardson, Melinda Dillon, Ian Petrella
Storyline: In the 1940s, a young boy named Ralphie Parker attempts to convince his parents, teacher, and Santa Claus that a Red Ryder Range 200 Shot BB gun really is the perfect Christmas gift.
Watch On: Max

Falling for Christmas (2022)

Director: Janeen Damian
Starring: Lindsay Lohan, Chord Overstreet, George Young, Jack Wagner, Olivia Perez
Storyline: A young, newly engaged heiress has a skiing accident in the days before Christmas. After she is diagnosed with amnesia, she finds herself in the care of the handsome cabin owner and his daughter.
Watch On: Netflix

Four Christmases (2008)

Director: Seth Gordon
Starring: Vince Vaughn, Reese Witherspoon, Robert Duvall, Jon Favreau, Mary Steenburgen, Dwight Yoakam, Tim McGraw, Kristin Chenoweth, Jon Voight, Sissy Spacek
Storyline: Brad and Kate have made something of an art form out of avoiding their families during the holidays, but this year their foolproof plan is about go bust — big time. Stuck at the city airport after all departing flights are canceled, the couple is embarrassed to see their ruse exposed to the world by an overzealous television reporter. Now, Brad and Kate are left with precious little choice other than to swallow their pride and suffer the rounds.
Watch On: Hulu, Max, Max Amazon Channel

Klaus (2019)

Director: Sergio Pablos
Starring: Jason Schwartzman, J. K. Simmons, Rashida Jones, Will Sasso, Neda Margrethe Labba, Sergio Pablos, Norm Macdonald, Joan Cusack
Storyline: A selfish postman and a reclusive toymaker form an unlikely friendship, delivering joy to a cold, dark town that desperately needs it.
Watch On: Netflix

Elf (2003)

Director: Jon Favreau
Starring: Will Ferrell, James Caan, Zooey Deschanel, Mary Steenburgen, Ed Asner, Bob Newhart
Storyline: Raised as an oversized elf, Buddy travels from the North Pole to New York City to meet his biological father, Walter Hobbs, who doesn’t know he exists and is in desperate need of some Christmas spirit.
Watch On: Hulu, Max, Max Amazon Channel

Our Little Secret (2024)

Director: Stephen Herek
Starring: Lindsay Lohan, Ian Harding, Tim Meadows, Jon Rudnitsky, Henry Czerny, Judy Reyes, Chris Parnell, Kristin Chenoweth
Storyline: After discovering their significant others are siblings, two resentful exes must spend Christmas under one roof while hiding their romantic history.
Watch On: Netflix

The Polar Express (2004)

Director: Robert Zemeckis
Starring: Tom Hanks, Michael Jeter, Nona Gaye, Peter Scolari
Storyline: Set on Christmas Eve, it tells the story of a young boy who sees a mysterious train bound for the North Pole stop outside his window and is invited aboard by its conductor. He joins other children as they embark on a journey to visit Santa Claus, who is preparing for Christmas.
Watch On: Hulu, Max, Max Amazon Channel

Krampus (2015)

Director: Michael Dougherty
Starring: Adam Scott, Toni Collette, David Koechner, Allison Tolman, Conchata Ferrell, Emjay Anthony, Stefania LaVie Owen, Krista Stadler, Lolo Owen, Queenie Samuel, Maverick Flack, Sage Hunefeld
Storyline: In the film, a dysfunctional family squabbling causes a young boy (Max) to lose his festive spirit. Doing so unleashes the wrath of Krampus, a fearsome, horned demonic beast in ancient European folklore who punishes naughty children at Christmas time. As Krampus lays siege to the neighborhood, the family must band together to save one another from a monstrous fate.
Watch On: Max, Max Amazon Channel, Peacock Premium

Home Alone (1990)

Director: Chris Columbus
Starring: Macaulay Culkin, Joe Pesci, Daniel Stern, John Heard, Catherine O’Hara
Storyline: An eight-year-old troublemaker, mistakenly left home alone, must defend his home against a pair of burglars on Christmas Eve.
Watch On: Disney Plus

It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)

Director: Frank Capra
Starring: James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, Thomas Mitchell, Henry Travers, Beulah Bondi, Ward Bond, Frank Faylen, Gloria Grahame
Storyline: An angel visits a frustrated businessman to show him what life would look like if he never existed.The classic Christmas film is based on the short story The Greatest Gift by Philip Van Doren Stern, which was inspired by Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. It is helmed by Frank Capra and stars James Stewart.
Watch On: Amazon Prime Video, The Roku Channel, Freevee, Xumo Play

Last Christmas (2019)

Director: Paul Feig
Starring: Emilia Clarke, Henry Golding, Michelle Yeoh, Emma Thompson
Storyline: Kate is a young woman who has a habit of making bad decisions, and her last date with disaster occurs after she accepts work as Santa’s elf for a department store. However, after she meets Tom there, her life takes a new turn.
Watch On: Max, Max Amazon Channel

Love Actually (2003)

Director: Richard Curtis
Starring: Hugh Grant, Liam Neeson, Colin Firth, Laura Linney, Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, Keira Knightley, Martine McCutcheon, Bill Nighy, Rowan Atkinson
Storyline: The film delves into different aspects of love as shown through 10 separate stories involving a variety of individuals, many of whom are interlinked as the plot progresses. The story begins five weeks before Christmas and is played out in a weekly countdown until the holiday, followed by an epilogue that takes place in the New Year.
Watch On: Amazon Prime Video, Starz Apple TV

Hot Frosty (2024)

Director: Jerry Ciccoritti
Starring: Lacey Chabert, Dustin Milligan, Katy Mixon Greer, Lauren Holly, Chrishell Stause, Joe Lo Truglio, Craig Robinson
Storyline: When a young widow’s magic scarf brings a dashing snowman to life, can he help her rediscover romance, laughter and holiday cheer before he melts away?
Watch On: Netflix

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)

Director: Maury Laws, Larry Roemer
Starring: Burl Ives, Larry D. Mann, Billie Mae Richards, Paul Soles
Storyline: A young reindeer Rudolph lives at the North Pole. His father is one of Santa’s reindeer and it is expected that Rudolph will eventually be one too. However, he has a feature which is a setback and causes him to be ostracized: his red nose.
Watch On: Apple TV, Amazon Prime Video

Something From Tiffany’s (2022)

Director: Daryl Wein
Starring: Zoey Deutch, Kendrick Sampson, Ray Nicholson, Shay Mitchell
Storyline: Follows a woman as her life gets upended when she receives a very special blue box that was intended for someone else. The “someone else” receives the misdirected blue box, and very unexpected things begin to happen. Love’s often-mysterious magic brings unsuspecting people together.
Watch On: Amazon Prime Video

The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

The Nightmare Before Christmas Movie Photo

Director: Henry Selick
Starring: Danny Elfman, Chris Sarandon, Catherine O’Hara, William Hickey, Glenn Shadix, Paul Reubens, Ken Page, Ed Ivory
Storyline: The film follows the misadventures of Jack Skellington, Halloweentown’s beloved pumpkin king, who has become bored with the same annual routine of frightening people in the “real world.” When Jack accidentally stumbles on Christmastown, all bright colors and warm spirits, he gets a new lease on life — he plots to bring Christmas under his control by kidnapping Santa Claus and taking over the role. But Jack soon discovers even the best-laid plans of mice and skeleton men can go seriously awry.
Watch On: Amazon Prime Video, Disney+

Die Hard (1988)

Director: John McTiernan
Starring: Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman, Bonnie Bedelia, Reginald VelJohnson
Storyline: A New York City police officer tries to save his estranged wife and several others taken hostage by terrorists during a Christmas party at the Nakatomi Plaza in Los Angeles.
Watch On: Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, FuboTV, AMC Plus Apple TV Channel, AMC+ Amazon Channel, AMC+, TNT, TBS, tru TV, Tubi TV

The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)

Director: Brian Henson
Starring: Michael Caine, Dave Goelz, Steve Whitmire, Jerry Nelson
Storyline: A retelling of the classic Dickens tale of Ebenezer Scrooge, miser extraordinaire. He is held accountable for his dastardly ways during night-time visitations by the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future.
Watch On: Disney Plus

The Family Man (2000)

Director: Brett Ratner
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Téa Leoni, Don Cheadle, Jeremy Piven
Storyline: A fast-lane investment broker, offered the opportunity to see how the other half lives, wakes up to find that his sports car and girlfriend have become a mini-van and wife.
Watch On: Netflix, Peacock Premium, Starz Apple TV Channel

Arthur Christmas (2011)

Director: Sarah Smith
Starring: James McAvoy, Hugh Laurie, Bill Nighy, Jim Broadbent, Imelda Staunton, and Ashley Jensen
Storyline: The film centres on Arthur, the youngest son of Santa Claus, who discovers that his father’s high-tech ship has failed to deliver one girl’s present. Accompanied only by his grandfather, a Christmas elf and a team of reindeer, he embarks on a mission to deliver the girl’s present personally in the early morning hours of Christmas Day before sunrise.
Watch On: fuboTV, Paramount Plus, Paramount+ Amazon Channel, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel, Tubi TV

The Holiday (2006)

Director: Nancy Meyers
Starring: Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Jack Black, Eli Wallach, Edward Burns, Rufus Sewell
Storyline: Two women, one from the United States and one from the United Kingdom, swap homes at Christmas time after bad breakups with their boyfriends. Each woman finds romance with a local man but realizes that the imminent return home may end the relationship.
Watch On: Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, NBC

Bad Santa (2003)

Director: Terry Zwigoff
Starring: Billy Bob Thornton, Tony Cox, Lauren Graham, Brett Kelly, Lauren Tom, John Ritter, Bernie Mac
Storyline: A miserable conman and his partner pose as Santa and his Little Helper to rob department stores on Christmas Eve. But they run into problems when the conman befriends a troubled kid.
Watch On: Paramount Plus, Paramount Plus Apple TV Channel , Paramount+ Amazon Channel, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel, Pluto TV

The Grinch (2018)

Director: Scott Mosier, Yarrow Cheney
Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Rashida Jones, Kenan Thompson, Angela Lansbury, Pharrell Williams
Storyline: The plot follows the Grinch and his pet dog Max who plan to stop Whoville’s Christmas celebration by stealing all the town’s decorations and gifts.
Watch On: Amazon Prime Video

White Christmas (1954)

Director: Michael Curtiz
Starring: Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney, Vera-Ellen, Dean Jagger
Storyline: Two talented song-and-dance men team up after the war to become one of the hottest acts in show business. In time they befriend and become romantically involved with the beautiful Haynes sisters who comprise a sister act.
Watch On: Amazon Prime Video, AMC Plus Apple TV Channel, AMC+ Amazon Channel

Love Hard (2021)

Director: Hernán Jiménez
Starring: Nina Dobrev, Jimmy O. Yang, Darren Barnet
Storyline: Hopeless romantic but eternally single LA journalist Natalie (Nina Dobrev) thinks things are beginning to look up when she swipes right on a dreamy guy from the East Coast, Tag (Darren Barnet). Taking a leap of faith, she jumps on a flight to surprise her crush for the holidays, only to discover that she’s been catfished by Tag’s childhood friend who is equally unlucky in love, Josh (Jimmy O. Yang). This lighthearted romantic comedy chronicles her attempt to reel in love.
Watch On: Netflix

Single All The Way (2021)

Director: Michael Mayer
Starring: Michael Urie, Philemon Chambers, Luke Macfarlane, Barry Bostwick, Jennifer Robertson, Jennifer Coolidge, Kathy Najimy
Storyline: The plot follows a man (Michael Urie) who convinces his best friend (Philemon Chambers) to pretend to be his boyfriend when he goes home for Christmas, only to be set up on a blind date by his mother (Kathy Najimy).
Watch On: Netflix

The Night Before (2015)

Director: Jonathan Levine
Starring: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen, Anthony Mackie, Jillian Bell, Lizzy Caplan, Jillian Bell, Mindy Kaling, Michael Shannon
Storyline: Ethan (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), Isaac (Seth Rogen), and Chris (Anthony Mackie) have been friends since childhood, and for a decade, their yearly Christmas Eve reunion has been an annual night of debauchery and hilarity. Now that they’re entering adulthood, the tradition is ending, and to make it as memorable as possible, they set out to find the Nutcracka Ball–the Holy Grail of Christmas parties.
Watch On: Amazon Prime Video, Amazon, Starz Apple TV Channel, Starz Roku Premium Channel, Starz, Starz Amazon Channel, Xumo Play

Carol (2015)

Director: Todd Haynes
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, Sarah Paulson, Jake Lacy, Kyle Chandler
Storyline: Aspiring photographer Therese spots the beautiful, elegant Carol perusing the doll displays in a 1950s Manhattan department store. The two women develop a fast bond that becomes a love with complicated consequences.
Watch On: Netflix, fuboTV, Paramount+ with Showtime, Paramount Plus Apple TV Channel , Paramount+ Amazon Channel, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel

Better Watch Out (2016)

Director: Chris Peckover
Starring: Olivia DeJonge, Levi Miller, Ed Oxenbould, Aleks Mikic, Dacre Montgomery, Patrick Warburton, Virginia Madsen
Storyline: Ashley travels to the suburban home of the Lerners to baby-sit their 12-year-old son Luke at Christmastime. She must soon defend herself and the young boy when unwelcome intruders announce their arrival.
Watch On: Peacock Premium, The Roku Channel, Tubi TV, Crackle, Pluto TV

A Bad Moms Christmas (2017)

Director: Scott Moore, Jon Lucas
Starring: Mila Kunis, Kristen Bell, Kathryn Hahn, Cheryl Hines, Christine Baranski, Susan Sarandon
Storyline: Amy, Kiki and Carla – three under-appreciated and over-burdened women – rebel against the challenges and expectations of the Super Bowl for mothers: Christmas. And if creating a more perfect holiday for their families wasn’t hard enough, they have to do all of that while hosting and entertaining their own mothers.
Watch On: Netflix

[Also Read: 100 Best Christmas Movies of All Time]