The 14 Best Kids' Christmas Movies Ever, Officially Ranked

The most wonderful time of the year comes with all of its staples: lights, trees, cookies, presents, and movies — lots of movies. There are so many Christmas movies out there that it's hard to know where to start your holiday binge. This is especially true if you're looking for kid-friendly viewing options. We've pulled together a list of the top kids' Christmas movies to help shorten that decision-making process. Even if you don't have kids, this is a great way to figure out which nostalgia-laced holiday entries are worth a re-watch (because the potential for repeat viewing is one of the core credentials of any great kids' Christmas movie).

When ranking these films, we considered key factors like longevity, current popularity, kid- and family-friendliness, and quantity of secondary media, remakes, and spin-offs. None of these individually is enough to help a movie rank high on its own. For instance, just because a movie like "Miracle on 34th Street" was released in 1947 and has been around for three-quarters of a century doesn't automatically mean it makes the list. In the same vein, a movie that was topping the charts in 2022 doesn't instantly make it a candidate, either. Each movie that made the list managed to tick several boxes (or exceptionally stand out in one or two categories). And, just for clarification: We are counting made-for-TV holiday specials as movies as long as they aren't part of a serialized show.

So, without further ado, these are the 14 best kids' Christmas movies ever, officially ranked.

Our list starts with a modern classic. The live-action version of "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" takes the original animated Dr. Seuss staple and blows the story up into a quirky extravaganza. Comedy icon Jim Carrey provides an utterly unique performance as the Green villain-turned-softy, forging heart-warming comedic gold out of a story and character that few others could bring to life so well.

This one has endless quotes and a lasting radio hit in the form of "Where Are You Christmas?" performed by Mariah Carey. It's also worth pointing out that this is the only Christmas story that makes this list more than once (we'll get to that in a bit). While the Carrey iteration is memorable, oft-quoted, and maintains an enduring legacy, though, it ultimately just made the cut, such is the depth of the competition.

• Cast: Jim Carrey, Taylor Momsen, Jeffrey Tambor

• Director: Ron Howard

• Runtime: 1h 45m

• Rating: PG

"A Christmas Story" depicts a down-to-Earth and, at times, disturbing version of the holiday season through the eyes of Ralphie Parker, a Christmas kid whose story was forged in the heart of the 20th century. Parker's pre-computer-age existence and obsession with ocular-averse weaponry made him an instant hit with his real-life peers from the moment the movie aired in the early 80s.

The fact that the movie is told from Ralphie's perspective is enough justification for this to make the "kids' Christmas movies" list. Really, though, it's the movie's enduring persistence into the modern era that makes this a "you have to see it at least once in your life" children's holiday experience. Besides, how many other movies have regularly gotten a 24-hour marathon that soaked up the airwaves on Christmas Eve? However, while this film met our criteria, it didn't have enough kid-friendly oomph to take it too far up the rankings.

• Cast: Peter Billingsley, Melinda Dillon, Darren McGavin

• Director: Bob Clark

• Runtime: 1h 33m

• Rating: PG

Our first truly old Christmas movie is "The Year Without a Santa Claus." Coming nearly a decade before "A Christmas Story," this stop-motion classic had its golden jubilee in 2024. This was also one of the first times we saw a movie address Santa's workaholic side (the guy just doesn't stop), as the story follows a tired and despondent Old Saint Nick trying to take a year off.

Some movies on this list attract modern audiences due to flashy modern cinematography and storytelling. Others maintain a sense of past wonderment and popularity through the unique experience of the medium in which they're told — and "The Year Without a Santa Claus" falls into that latter category. Its true stop-motion storytelling makes it a special treat for youngsters routinely inundated with splashy special effects and computer-generated characters. The movie's enduring aesthetics are a primary reason it made the list.

• Cast: Mickey Rooney, Shirley Booth, George S. Irving

• Directors: Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass

• Runtime: 51m

• Rating: U

"Klaus" is a relatively new movie that somehow manages to find a genuinely unique approach to the Santa myth. The fact that the filmmakers were able to give us a brand new take on the big guy's origin story (let alone in a way this entertaining) is award-worthy. The best part about "Klaus" is that it's actually a really fun movie all on its own.

The energy that the cast brings to their performances, along with a bold-yet-beautiful animation style and some unexpectedly heart-wrenching beats, make this a fun watch at any time of the year. The only reason it isn't higher on the list is because it's so new at this point. It's hard to tell if it will have the same runway as other bonafide classics — but we wouldn't be surprised if it's still entertaining kids of all ages decades from now.

• Cast: Jason Schwartzman, J.K. Simons, Rashida Jones

• Directors: Sergio Pablos and Carlos Martínez López

• Runtime: 1h 36m

• Rating: PG

Another instant modern classic, "Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey" is a star-studded, eye-popping holiday adventure that is the definition of whimsy. The movie itself is executed with a clean, precise, and confident vision despite its scope and complexities. Like "Klaus," it also brings a genuinely fresh take on the holiday experience.

Did we mention the music? The writing quality and choreography in this one are spectacular, keeping children and parents alike engaged from beginning to end. Again, the movie is still pretty fresh off the press, which hurts its ranking on a "best ever" list, but it earns a spot in spades, nevertheless.

• Cast: Forest Whitaker, Keegan-Michael Key, Madalen Mills

• Director: David E. Talbert

• Runtime: 2h 2m

• Rating: PG

Now we're starting to get into the truly top-tier kids' Christmas classics, entering our single-digit countdown with another movie as old as time (or, at least, as old as the modern, commercialized, screen-happy holiday experience). "Frosty the Snowman" is another Rankin and Bass TV special that features everyone's favorite talking snowman.

Despite its brevity, this is an animation that parents still trot out to entertain kids over half a century after it first aired. The hand-drawn animation style is a fun throwback, and the song remains a childhood staple, making it a foundational element of any kid's Christmas experience.

• Cast: Jackie Vernon, Billy De Wolfe, Jimmy Durante

• Directors: Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass

• Runtime: 25m

• Rating: U

There are plenty of great '90s movies that still hold up today, and this festive classic starring Tim Allen is one of them. "The Santa Clause" is one of the best Christmas comedies out there, steering into its lead actors' humor (it was the "Home Improvement" star's first role as a lead in a movie). Allen delivers a memorable performance as Scott Calvin, an unsuspecting divorcee and checked-out dad who accidentally inherits the mantle of Santa due to the titular clause.

While there are other movies on a similar level production-wise, the thing that pushes "The Santa Clause" so far up our list of the best kids' Christmas movies is the sheer size of the franchise it has created since its release. As of this writing, The "Santa Clause" timeline includes three movies and a spin-off TV show, though the original film is still the cream of the crop.

• Cast: Tim Allen, Eric Lloyd, Wendy Crewson

• Director: John Pasquin

• Runtime: 1h 37m

• Rating: U

It's hard to believe that Elf is just a month older than "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" (which happens to be a non-Christmas holiday favorite — just not one for kids). Due to its "old but not that old" status, the movie lives in rare air, hovering between a quotable classic and a pop-culture favorite.

The story also perfectly walks the line between kid-friendly humor (think innocently immature behavior and syrup on spaghetti) and parent-friendly jokes (like getting hit by an aggressive taxi in the Big Apple or the parenting struggles of both of Buddy's fathers). Toss in the fact that this came from a blossoming Jon Favreau just a few years before he helped launch the Marvel Cinematic Universe with "Iron Man," and this one has managed to carve out a nostalgic place in the hearts of generations of kids since its release.

• Cast: Will Ferrell, James Caan, Zooey Deschanel

• Director: Jon Favreau

• Runtime: 1h 37m

• Rating: PG

The second movie on this list to come out in 1983, there's no doubt that "Mickey's Christmas Carol" beats "A Christmas Story" for the better kids' holiday experience. The 26-minute special is a masterful retelling of Charles Dickens' holiday story through the eyes of some of childhood's most recognizable characters.

While Scrooge McDuck may be more recognizable to an older generation of kids who lived through the original "Duck Tales" run in the late '80s and its related comic book source material, others, including Mickey, Minnie, Daisy, and Goofy, are well-established characters in modern Disney canon. The efficiency of the special event to tell the entire three-act story of Scrooge's salvation, all while balancing heavy beats with the franchise's trademark animated humor, is a wonder to behold — and it remains required December viewing to this day.

• Cast: Alan Young, Wayne Allwine, Hal Smith

• Director: Burny Mattinson

• Runtime: 26m

• Rating: U

A kid is left behind by his family when they go on vacation during the holidays, rules the roost, and defeats the bad guys in epic fashion using a series of incredibly painful booby traps. Need we say more? "Home Alone" is a bonafide Christmas classic and uniquely fills the role of allowing kids to vicariously be the heroes. Another way to put it? The allure Kevin McCallister has for kids is similar to the allure John McClane has for all those adults who passionately classify "Die Hard" as a Christmas movie.

Much like "The Santa Clause" franchise, the enduring fame of "Home Alone" has also led to an entire line of not one, not two, but five sequels and spin-offs. While the later films don't come close in terms of quality and veer away from the McCallister clan, "Home Alone 2: Lost in New York" also follows Kevin and takes place during the Christmas season. While the plot outlines of both the first and the second movie don't scream holiday cheer, they've both become firmly entrenched as kid-focused, family-friendly holiday classics.

• Cast: Macaulay Culkin, Joe Pesci, Daniel Stern

• Director: Chris Columbus

• Runtime: 1h 43m

• Rating: PG

This list contains movies and specials that stand on their own merit. It also has classics that are must-watch experiences for every child, regardless of individual interest. The latter category includes "A Charlie Brown Christmas" — the first of three classic holiday-watching experiences that reach the top of this list. The 1965 classic is one of the most iconic Peanuts holiday movies of all time and one that all kids should watch at some point in their childhoods.

It showcases the enduring message that commercialism at Christmas is something worth resisting as we all try to focus on what matters most (even if it's a tad ironic that Coca-Cola sponsored the special animated event). The Peanuts holiday special also contains Linus' famous, envelope-pushing reading from the Bible, which remains one of the most direct encapsulations of the Christmas story (sans actual Nativity films) ever to reach the silver screen. This one may be old, but the messages are timeless, and its trademark relaxed, humorous presentation continues to resonate with young audiences in the modern era.

• Cast: Peter Robbins, Christopher Shea, Tracy Stratford

• Director: Bill Melendez

• Runtime: 25m

• Rating: U

There are four movies on this list that were made in the 1960s, which goes to show how big a deal kids' Christmas entertainment was during this decade. "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" is the oldest of the quartet. Technically, you can trace its origins back to a quarter of a century prior, too: The Montgomery Ward department store created a "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" booklet as a promotional gimmick in 1939. A decade later, the story was turned into Gene Autry's classic radio hit by the same name. Fifteen years after that, it graced the tiny screens of the '60s as a television special put on, once again, by Rankin and Bass.

This delightful short movie truly is special. Not only is it one of the oldest kids' Christmas films still in regular circulation, but it is related to a Christmas song that pretty much everybody in the English-speaking world knows — in this case, the movie comes from the song and not the other way around. Tack on the enduring story of the underdog overcoming the odds to help save the day, and "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" should remain firmly entrenched in the upper echelons of Christmas classics for decades to come.

• Cast: Billie Mae Richards, Burl Ives, Stan Francis

• Director: Larry Roemer

• Runtime: 47m

• Rating: U

The penultimate entry on our list of the best kids' Christmas movies is also the only one to use the puppet medium. "The Muppet Christmas Carol" is an iconic classic from the early '90s that tells Charles Dickens' classic tale through the eyes of the beloved cloth cast from Jim Henson Productions. Sadly, Henson passed away a couple of years prior to the film's release, and Richard Hunt, who voiced many muppets in his day, died earlier in the same year as the movie came out. Henson's son, Brian, directed the film, carrying on his father's legacy with a breakout holiday success that was dedicated to both Muppet legends.

Along with its heartwarming backstory, the movie itself is another elite example of the seamless amalgamation of kid-friendly antics and serious subject matter. Michael Caine's performance as the serious Scrooge (even whilst surrounded by the absurdity of his fellow cast members) creates perfect tension as his character is shown the error of his ways and brought to his redemptive ending. The all-around execution, nostalgia value, catchy songs, and still-enduring modern feel of the puppets (as opposed to other more dated animation styles) has kept this one in the "classic yet modern" category for decades.

• Cast: Michael Caine, Dave Goelz, Frank Oz

• Director: Brian Henson

• Runtime: 1h 25m

• Rating: U

"How the Grinch Stole Christmas!" is one of the oldest, most iconic, and enduring Christmas experiences of all time. The special is 26 minutes of timeless holiday gold. It's based on the book by Dr. Seuss, who also helped with the screenplay. There are just four voice actors for the entire special (Boris Karloff is both the narrator and the Grinch), which follows the classic heartwarming adventure of a grumpy, bitter, green-haired hermit as he antagonizes, hoodwinks, and ultimately joins the lovable Whos living in Whoville below his lofty mountain home.

The original animation contains all of the quiet subcontext that has been expounded on in longer recreations of the story in the 21st century — the fight against commercialism, the struggle of rejection, the true spirit of Christmas, the priority of community over materialism. Recent adaptations of the story (which came out in 2018 and 2023, respectively) prove that interest in The Grinch and the moral of his story is still very much alive. This animated short film remains a must-watch Christmas experience that captivates the collective consciousness each and every year.

• Cast: Boris Karloff, Thurl Ravenscroft, June Foray

• Directors: Chuck Jones and Ben Washam

• Runtime: 26m

• Rating: U