The 22 Best Christmas Movies on Netflix (2022)

Christmas cheer is needed throughout the year, so when you are in need, look for Jolly Ol' St. Nick. As our Christmas gift to you, we've pulled together this list of the 22 best Christmas movies on Netflix.

Don't have Netflix? Here are the 20 best Christmas movies on other sites, plus 19 great Christmas movies on YouTube and Hallmark Channel Christmas movies.

1. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989): Top Xmas Comedy

• IMDb rating: 7.5/10
• Genre: Comedy
• Starring: Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Juliette Lewis, Randy Quaid, Julia Louis-Dreyfuss
• Director: Jeremiah S. Chechik
• Motion Picture Rating: PG-13
• Running Time: 1 hour, 47 minutes

The Griswold family, headed by the hapless Clark (Chevy Chase), are back for a second holiday misadventure (after 1983's "National Lampoon's Vacation"). Things don't go any better for them here, as they're bested by problems with family, neighbors, Clark's plan to put up 25,000 Christmas lights on their house, and much worse (and funnier). A true Christmas classic, whether you first saw it in the '80s or are watching it for the first time.

Watch National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation,

2. White Christmas (1954): Best Christmas Classic

• IMDb rating: 7.5/10
• Genre: Musical
• Starring: Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney, Vera-Ellen
• Director: Michael Curtiz
• Motion Picture Rating: NR
• Running Time: 2 hours

This Christmas classic has it all—Bing Crosby, music by Irving Berlin, the famous title song, George Clooney's aunt Rosemary, and hijinx. In this tale, Army buddies Crosby and Kaye fall for sisters with a song and dance act and follow them to Vermont. When they find that the Vermont inn where the sisters are performing is owned by their old Army commander, the group teams up to help save his inn.

Watch White Christmas

3. Love Actually (2003): Best Christmas Romance

• IMDb rating: 7.6/10
• Genre: Romantic comedy
• Starring: Hugh Grant, Laura Linney, Liam Neeson, Keira Knightley
• Director: Richard Curtis
• Motion Picture Rating: R
• Running Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes

This ensemble piece combines ten interconnected storylines that mix comedy and drama into a box-office hit that's become a modern Christmas classic. Packed with romance and drama, the cast is studded with (largely British) stars—Elton John, Hugh Grant, Keira Knightley, Colin Firth, Alan Rickman, Emma Thompson, Liam Neeson, Martin Freeman, Rowan Atkinson—who will warm your heart like a good fire.

Watch Love Actually

4. A Very Murray Christmas (2015): Best Christmas Variety Show

• IMDb rating: 5.5/10
• Genre: Musical comedy
• Starring: Bill Murray, Paul Shaffer, Miley Cyrus
• Director: Sofia Coppola
• Motion Picture Rating: TV-MA
• Running Time: 56 minutes

This special breaks the fourth wall, with Bill Murray playing himself. His about-to-be-filmed Christmas special is disrupted by a snowstorm that prevents most of his guests from arriving. Murray ventures into the snowy night and happens upon a cast of famous people—from Chris Rock to Miley Cyrus, Jenny Lewis to George Clooney to Amy Poehler—who help him sing and dance his way to the Christmas morning.

Watch A Very Murray Christmas

5. A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas (2011): Best Chemically Enhanced Holiday

• IMDb rating: 6.2/10
• Genre: Comedy
• Starring: Kal Penn, John Cho, Neil Patrick Harris
• Director: Todd Strauss-Schulson
• Motion Picture Rating: R
• Running Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Harold and Kumar—lovable stoners whose antics take them into all kinds of hilarious antics and unlikely situations (this is the third film in the series; in the last one, the pair ended up at Guantanamo Bay)—rekindle their friendship to seek out just the right Christmas tree. Watch for cameos from a host of recognizable faces, including Patton Oswalt, Danny Trejo, Jake Johnson, Brett Gelman, Tom Lennon, and RZA, of the Wu-Tang Clan.

Watch A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas

6. Klaus (2019): Best Alternative Santa Story

• IMDb rating: 8.1/10
• Genre: Animated comedy
• Starring: Jason Schwartzman, J.K. Simmons, Rashida Jones
• Director: Sergio Pablos and Carlos Martínez López
• Motion Picture Rating: PG
• Running Time: 1 hour, 36 minutes

This alternate take on Santa's origin story is maybe the most award-wining movie on this list. Not only was it nominated for an Oscar (the first Netflix animated movie to get that recognition), it won seven Annie awards for animation and a British Academy Film Award. In it, the spoiled son of a Norwegian postmaster and a reclusive backwoodsman named Klaus team up to deliver presents and create the figure of Santa Claus.

Watch Klaus

7. Deck the Halls (2006): Best Neighbor vs. Neighbor Romp

• IMDb rating: 5.0/10
• Genre: Comedy
• Starring: Matthew Broderick, Danny DeVito, Kristin Chenoweth, Kristin Davis
• Director: John Whitesell
• Motion Picture Rating: PG
• Running Time: 1 hour, 33 minutes

Talk about a modern take on Christmas. The plot of this neighbor-vs-neighbor comedy builds on the classic suburban rivalry plot but makes a key point of disagreement regarding whether one neighbor's house can be seen or not on a stand-in for Google Earth. When DeVito's character finds that his house isn't shown on the app, he plans to decorate it with lights that make it unmissable. Combine that with a workplace rivalry and laughs are bound to ensue.

Watch Deck the Halls

8. Christmas with the Kranks (2004): Best Last-Minute Christmas

• IMDb rating: 5.4/10
• Genre: Comedy
• Starring: Tim Allen, Jamie Lee Curtis, Dan Aykroyd
• Director: Joe Roth
• Motion Picture Rating: PG
• Running Time: 1 hour, 39 minutes

This star-studded outing—actors Allen, Curtis, Aykroyd, and Cheech Marin are joined by writer Chris Columbus ("Home Alone", some Harry Potter movies), who based his work on a novel by John Grisham ("The Firm")—starts with a bah-humbug premise and ends on rediscovering the meaning of the season. Empty-nesters Allen and Curtis decide to save money by not celebrating Christmas and instead put the savings into a cruise. For this, they run afoul of their neighbors, have to scramble when their daughter unexpectedly returns home and expects a normal holiday, and learn some deep truths about their neighbors, all culminating in a kind gesture of holiday spirit.

Watch Christmas with the Kranks

9.Dolly Parton's Christmas on the Square (2020): Best Dolly-day Movie

• IMDb rating: 5.3/10
• Genre: Musical
• Starring: Dolly Parton, Christine Baranski, Treat Williams
• Director: Debbie Allen
• Motion Picture Rating: PG
• Running Time: 1 hour, 38 minutes

This movie will bring to mind a countrified version of "A Christmas Carol," with Christine Baranski starring as a Scrooge-like villain returning to her hometown to take the land and sell it to a mall developer. An angel—played by Parton, who also wrote all the music—shows her the potential consequences of her actions, leading to a change of heart.

Watch Dolly Parton's Christmas on the Square

10. Arthur Christmas (2011): Best Kid's Christmas Movie

• IMDb rating: 7.1/10
• Genre: Animated comedy
• Starring: James McAvoy, Jim Broadbent, Bill Nighy
• Director: Sarah Smith, Barry Cook
• Motion Picture Rating: PG
• Running Time: 1 hour, 37 minutes

The titular Arthur Christmas is Santa's goofy but good-hearted son who, after realizing his dad has accidentally forgotten to deliver a present to one girl, sets out on a mission to get the gift to its rightful destination. A mix of adventure, comedy, tender-heartedness, and high-tech gadgetry makes this a fun and past-paced romp for the whole family.

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