10 Great Christmas Movies for Kids of All Ages
One of our favorite holiday traditions is watching Christmas movies together with the kids. Make a bowl of popcorn, grab a cozy blanket and snuggle together on the couch. This is a low stress way to connect as you cuddle together.
10 Great Christmas Movies for Kids with Recommended Ages
The ages recommended for these kids' Christmas movies are from Common Sense Media. You can find detailed reviews of each movie at their site. Links are Amazon links and if you purchase through them it helps support CWK – thanks for letting me keep writing!
- A Charlie Brown Christmas – 3+ – Our family's hands-down favorite. The soundtrack is lovely Christmas music as well from the Vince Guaraldi Trio. We made a Pandora Christmas Station based on this soundtrack.
- The Snowman – 3+ This wordless short film is based on the beautiful book The Snowman. I think kids even younger than the Common Sense Media recommendation could enjoy it.
- Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer – 3+ The old-school stop motion animation version of this story is a classic.
- How the Grinch Stole Christmas – 4+ Visit Whoville and grow your heart with the Grinch.
- The Muppet Christmas Carol – 5+ A goofy Muppet version of the Dickens tale. Fuzzier and gentler than the non-muppet version.
- Miracle on 34th Street – 6+ A court case in defense of Kris Kringle – the age recommended on Common Sense media is 6+…but I think it would be most interesting to kids older than that. (I could be wrong…just my feeling on it.)
- Home Alone – 7+ Total classic from my childhood.
- The Nightmare before Christmas – 7+ When this came out I thought it would be scarier than it is. The bumbling way Jack pulls off Christmas is funny and the soundtrack is good. This is a good stop motion animation film for kids who won't mind a few scary looking Halloween creatures.
- A Christmas Story – 8+ This is the Christmas movie I watched each year with my dad when I was a kid. I have such good memories of my Papa laughing. I also developed a healthy fear of touching my tongue to cold metal due to this film…
- It's a Wonderful Life – 9+ A sweet classic for older kids.
Alright, I know we all have our favorite Christmas movies for kids – is yours on this list? What would you add?
Remember the magic of Christmas isn’t about in doing every activity or getting things just right, its about genuinely connecting and letting the little moments count. We want you to have a holiday season that keeps you connected to your kids. If you’d like simple activities along with weekly inspiration during December that will help you keep Christmas cozy, connected and low stress make sure you take a look at the Keeping Christmas Cozy Printable Packet and Email Set. Get Your FREE Download here:
Alissa Zorn is an author, and founder of the website Overthought This. She's a coach and cartoonist passionate about helping people overcome perfectionism and shame to build authentic, joyful lives. Alissa is certified through the International Coach Federation and got her Trauma-Informed Coaching certification from Moving the Human Spirit. She wrote Bounceback Parenting: A Field Guide for Creating Connection, Not Perfection, and is always following curiosity to find her next creative endeavor.