The best Christmas movies on the Hallmark Channel right now typically follow the same holiday tropes: a big city executive travels to a small town and learns the real meaning of Christmas; a local girl falls for a stranger visiting her community; two complete opposites are forced to work together, but soon realize they have more in common than they thought. These proven formulas work in Hallmark Christmas movies and put the audience in the holiday spirit.
Similar to Lifetime Channel’s Christmas movies, the Hallmark Channel has shown no signs of slowing down its holiday content. In 2023, Hallmark will release over 40 Christmas movies. The influx of new films and the network’s older Christmas tales provide viewers with endless hours of feel-good movies. In honor of the holiday season, we selected the best Christmas movies on the Hallmark Channel to watch, featuring a mix of classic films and recent hits.
Looking for more holiday movies? Check out our lists of the best Christmas movies on Netflix, the best Christmas movies on Hulu, the best Christmas movies on Amazon Prime, and the best Christmas movies on Disney+.
An Unexpected Christmas (2021)
6.9/10Ex-couples always seem to reunite around Christmastime in Hallmark movies. An Unexpected Christmas is no different. Ad agency employee Emily (Bethany Joy Lenz) is sent to a small town for a job before Christmas. That town is the hometown of her ex-boyfriend, Jamie (Tyler Hynes). When Emily arrives at the town’s train station, she runs into Jamie and his family. However, the family still believes Emily and Jamie are still an item.
Desperate to keep the spirit of Christmas alive, Jamie convinces Emily to pretend to be his girlfriend again for the week to save the holiday for his family. During their time together, the duo confronts old feelings that resurface. Will these lost emotions be enough to start again as a couple?
Lights, Camera, Christmas! (2022)
6.6/10Tell me if you’ve heard this before: a small-town girl falls for a stranger from the big city. It’s a tried-and-true formula that continues to work in Hallmark movies, as evidenced by a recent addition to the genre called Lights, Camera, Christmas! Kerry Devine (Kimberley Sustad) owns a clothing boutique in her hometown of Twelve Oaks, Colorado. Kerry’s business is struggling financially and needs divine intervention to stay open.
Kerry gets her miracle when she’s hired as a costume designer for a holiday rom-com shooting in her town. Kerry works on the costumes for the film’s leading man, Brad Baxter (John Brotherton). Kerry and John fall for each other because they push each other to take chances and chase their real passions in life. They’ll have to choose if their relationship is worth pursuing despite coming from two different worlds.
A Bride for Christmas (2012)
6.5/10A Bride for Christmas is a hybrid between Julia Roberts’ rom-com, Runaway Bride, and How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days with a holiday twist. Aiden MacTiernan (Andrew Walker) is a personal investment advisor whose cockiness and smooth-talking translate to his womanizing attitude toward women. Despite his fear of commitment, Aiden accepts a bet from his boss that he can find a fiancée in the four weeks leading up to Christmas.
Aiden’s boss, Matt Harper (Peter Benson), gets to select the girl. Matt’s pick is Jessie Patterson (Arielle Kebbel), a young woman who has called off three engagements. Jessie is not looking for another relationship, but Aiden convinces her to give love another chance. However, is Aiden in it for love, or does he want to win the bet?
Write Before Christmas (2019)
6.9/10Hallmark made its version of Love Actually in 2019 with Write Before Christmas. After being dumped by her boyfriend, Jessica (Torrey DeVitto) decides to take a “holiday from dating.” Because she still loves Christmas, Jessica writes letters to the five people who impacted her life the most.
These individuals include Mimi (Kimberley Shoniker), Jessica’s best friend and business partner; Carter (Madison Smith), Jessica’s younger brother who is stationed overseas in the military; Lila (Lolita Davidovich), Jessica’s aunt who acted as a motherly figure after her parents died; Jax (Drew Seeley), Jessica’s favorite pop star growing up; and Mrs. Miller, Jessica’s cello teacher that inspired her love for music. However, Mrs. Miller’s letter winds up in the hands of her adopted son, Luke (Chad Michael Murray). Jessica and Luke fall in love, but the trauma from past breakups threatens to end their relationship.
A Christmas Treasure (2021)
5.7/10Love on Iceland (2020)
6.3/10Setting a Christmas film in Iceland, one of the most beautiful locations in the world, is a good recipe for success. In Love on Iceland, Kaitlin Doubleday stars as Chloe, a hardworking producer for a Chicago podcast network. In search of inspiration, Chloe books a trip to Iceland for the holidays with her college friends. To combat her micromanaging personality, Chloe cedes control as the planner to her tour guide, Johann (Jóel Sæmundsson), a charming and sweet local.
Chloe’s efforts to bond with Johann change with the arrival of Charlie (Colin Donnell), her college boyfriend, who works as a travel photographer. Though skeptical at first, Chloe and Charlie slowly rekindle their relationship as they collaborate on a new project for work. By the end of the trip, Chloe must decide on her career and, more importantly, choose between Johann and Charlie.
On the 12th Date of Christmas (2020)
7.2/10You have heard the song The Twelve Days of Christmas, where each day brings a new gift, like five golden rings or three French hens. Now, swap out the presents for dates, which is the premise for On the 12th Date of Christmas. Jennifer Holloway (Mallory Jansen) and Aidan Walsh (Tyler Hynes) are two incompatible game designers battling for a promotion within their company. The duo is forced to create a Christmas scavenger hunt based on The Twelve Days of Christmas.
The scavenger hunt contains a new romantic activity, like ice skating and cooking class, that must be completed each day. As Jennifer and Aidan test out each task, they slowly fall for each other, realizing they are not so different after all. With the promotion waiting at the end of the 12 days, will the co-workers choose love or business?
My Christmas Family Tree (2021)
7.7/10In My Family Christmas Tree, Vanessa Hall (Aimee Teegarden) is a social worker who works for child care services, assigning kids to foster homes. With no relationship to her parents, Vanessa takes an ancestry test, discovering the identity of her biological father, Richard (James Tupper), who lives in Connecticut with his wife and three children.
Richard invites Vanessa to spend Christmas with his family and offers the services of his friend, Kris (Andrew Walker), to pick her up in New York City and bring her to Connecticut, which Vanessa accepts. Despite a rough introduction, Vanessa slowly bonds with the family she never knew while getting closer to Kris. However, a shocking revelation may put an end to Vanessa’s homecoming.
Christmas Sail (2021)
6.2/10You, Me and the Christmas Trees (2021)
6.4/10A Christmas Together With You (2021)
6.5/10Next Stop, Christmas (2021)
7.1/10A Christmas Visitor (2002)
6.8/10Silent Night (2002)
5.7/10A Gingerbread Romance (2018)
5.5/10Memories of Christmas (2018)
6.1/10The Christmas Note (2015)
6.7/10The Christmas Card (2006)
6.9/10The Christmas Ornament (2013)
6.8/10Crown for Christmas (2015)
6.9/10The Christmas House (2020)
6.0/10A Grandpa for Christmas (2007)
6.8/10
