Holiday Movies 2022: A Guide For All Your Festive Binge Watching

(Image credit: Warner Bros.)

The holidays are here and it's time to curl up next to the ol' Yule log and stream your favorite winter classics. Now that all the arguing about whether Die Hard is a Christmas movie is finally settled, we've pulled together a list of some of the best Christmas and holiday movies, with some fun behind the scenes facts, interesting tidbits, and most importantly, where you can stream these classic tales. You can also check out what's streaming and airing on TV this holiday season.

A Charlie Brown Christmas

One of the most beloved holiday specials of all-time, A Charlie Brown Christmas has been warming the hearts of fans since 1965. Although the special has aired on various networks over the years, the current home of the Peanuts gang is on Apple TV+, which you can find below.

You can stream A Charlie Brown Christmas on Apple TV+:

A Christmas Story

No Christmas movie list is complete without the classic comedy, A Christmas Story. If you don't already catch this film on the TBS/TNT 24-hour marathon, you can witness Flick sticking his tongue to the flagpole on HBO Max. Just in case that isn't enough A Christmas Story for you, you can also watch Peter Billingsley in the 2022 sequel, A Christmas Story Christmas streaming on HBO Max.

I triple dog dare you to stream A Christmas Story on HBO Max.

It's A Wonderful Life

Even though it has been over 75 years since its original release, It’s A Wonderful Life is still considered one of the best holiday films. You can find all the good feels of this classic movie streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

You can stream It’s A Wonderful Life on Prime Video.

Chevy Chase in Christmas Vacation — (Image credit: Archive Photos / Stringer)

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation

Light up this Holiday season with a little Griswold Family Christmas spirit in National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. Stream this holiday film on HBO max to get the full comedy experience of expectations versus reality of anticipated holiday celebrations.

You can stream Christmas Vacation on HBO Max.

How The Grinch Stole Christmas

Over the years, several different adaptations of Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas have been released. Watch all three of them this season to see which one is your favorite!

You can stream How the Grinch Stole Christmas on HBO Max
You can stream Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas on Peacock
You can buy (or rent) Ilumination’s Presents: Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch

The Muppet Christmas Carol

In this 1992 film, our felted friends take on the retelling of Charles Dickens' holiday classic. Add in the brilliant Michael Caine as Scrooge and you have a magic in the making.

Sing along and stream The Muppet Christmas Carol on Disney+.

Will Ferrell as Buddy the Elf in Elf — (Image credit: New Line Cinema)

Elf

Considered a modern holiday comedy classic, Elf follows the naive but charming Buddy the Elf on his journey to New York City in search of his birth father. If you enjoy watching Will Ferrell in this film on HBO Max, you should also check out Spirited, his new holiday movie with Ryan Reynolds.

You can stream Elf on HBO Max.
You can also stream Spirited on AppleTV+.

Jack Skellington decked out in his new Santa suit in Nightmare Before Christmas — (Image credit: Getty Images / Handout)

The Nightmare Before Christmas

One of those few films that falls into both the Halloween and Christmas movie categories, this hauntingly fun tale by Tim Burton is the perfect way to add variety to your holiday movie viewing this season. The Nightmare Before Christmas classic stop motion film can be streamed on Disney+.

You can stream The Nightmare Before Christmas on Disney+.

A Christmas Carol

If you are looking for a bit more haunting, look no further than the A Christmas Carol TV Movie. Complete with the infamous creepy ghosts and an adorable Tiny Tim, you can stream this favorite Charles Dickens story on Tubi.

You can stream A Christmas Carol on Tubi.

The 6 Best A Christmas Carol Movie Adaptations Ever, Ranked

hallmark movies & mysteries christmas movie screenshot youtube — (Image credit: Hallmark Movies & Mysteries)

Even More Holiday Movies

If you're looking for more than just the fan-fave holiday classics, make sure to browse other streaming options like Hallmark and Plex, or check out our lists below of holiday movies by genre, like action, LGBTQ+, horror, and more!

Sarah is currently a professional child wrangler. When she is not running around on the playgrounds and slapping together PB&J sandwiches, she loves getting a good sweat in at the gym, singing, and going to see live theatre (while simultaneously dreaming about being a part of a stage creation again one day).