Christmas is a magical time, and what makes it even better? Watching awesome movies! Have you ever wondered which Christmas films have earned the most money around the world? This page lists the movies that have made the biggest impact at the box office, bringing joy and holiday spirit to millions of people. These films have become favorites for families everywhere, earning huge amounts of money from ticket sales.
Top Christmas Movies of All Time
Here's a list of the Christmas-themed movies that have earned the most money globally. It's amazing to see how much people love these festive stories!
| Rank |
Title |
Money Earned |
Year |
| 1 |
The Grinch |
$538,920,602 |
2018 |
| 2 |
Home Alone |
$476,684,675 |
1990 |
| 3 |
Alvin And The Chipmunks |
$365,352,546 |
2007 |
| 4 |
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York |
$358,994,850 |
1992 |
| 5 |
Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! |
$345,823,032 |
2000 |
| 6 |
A Christmas Carol |
$325,286,646 |
2009 |
| 7 |
The Polar Express |
$315,249,768 |
2004 |
| 8 |
Batman Returns |
$266,831,698 |
1992 |
| 9 |
Love Actually |
$245,203,167 |
2003 |
| 10 |
Die Hard 2 |
$240,031,274 |
1990 |
| 11 |
Elf |
$225,097,437 |
2003 |
| 12 |
The Holiday |
$205,850,134 |
2006 |
| 13 |
The Santa Clause |
$190,539,357 |
1994 |
| 14 |
While You Were Sleeping |
$182,057,016 |
1995 |
| 15 |
Daddy's Home 2 |
$180,613,824 |
2017 |
| 16 |
The Nutcracker and the Four Realms |
$173,961,069 |
2018 |
| 17 |
The Santa Clause 2 |
$172,855,065 |
2002 |
| 18 |
Four Christmases |
$163,733,697 |
2008 |
| 19 |
Gremlins |
$153,898,890 |
1984 |
| 20 |
Arthur Christmas |
$147,419,472 |
2011 |
| 21 |
Die Hard |
$141,603,197 |
1988 |
| 22 |
A Bad Moms Christmas |
$130,560,428 |
2017 |
| 23 |
Jingle All the Way |
$129,832,389 |
1996 |
| 24 |
The Family Man |
$124,745,083 |
2000 |
| 25 |
Last Christmas |
$121,550,750 |
2019 |
| 26 |
Why Him? |
$118,102,725 |
2016 |
| 27 |
Office Christmas Party |
$114,501,299 |
2016 |
| 28 |
The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause |
$110,768,122 |
2006 |
| 29 |
Ghosts of Girlfriends Past |
$102,366,815 |
2009 |
| 30 |
Fred Claus |
$97,838,349 |
2007 |
| 31 |
Christmas with the Kranks |
$96,593,018 |
2004 |
| 32 |
The Nightmare Before Christmas |
$95,514,188 |
1993 |
| 33 |
The Family Stone |
$92,884,429 |
2005 |
| 34 |
Serendipity |
$77,516,304 |
2001 |
| 35 |
Violent Night |
$76,492,442 |
2022 |
| 36 |
Bad Santa |
$76,488,889 |
2003 |
| 37 |
The Best Man Holiday |
$72,835,710 |
2013 |
| 38 |
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation |
$71,319,526 |
1989 |
| 39 |
The Star |
$62,812,974 |
2017 |
| 40 |
Krampus |
$61,548,707 |
2015 |
| 41 |
Scrooged |
$60,328,558 |
1988 |
| 42 |
A Madea Christmas |
$53,396,354 |
2015 |
| 43 |
Just Friends |
$50,912,434 |
2005 |
| 44 |
This Christmas |
$49,778,552 |
2007 |
| 45 |
Deck the Halls |
$47,231,070 |
2006 |
| 46 |
Miracle on 34th Street |
$46,264,384 |
1994 |
| 47 |
Almost Christmas |
$42,580,920 |
2016 |
| 48 |
Love the Coopers |
$42,426,912 |
2016 |
| 49 |
The Holdovers |
$38,283,988 |
2023 |
| 50 |
A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas |
$36,192,775 |
2011 |
Most Popular Christmas Movie Series
Some Christmas movies are so popular that they become part of a series! Here are the Christmas film series that have earned the most money. The Home Alone movies have made the most money overall.
Top-Earning Christmas Movie Series
-
| Rank |
Series |
Total worldwide box office |
Number of films |
Average per film |
Highest-grossing film |
|
|
1
|
Home Alone |
$914,762,040 |
3 |
$304,920,680 |
Home Alone ($476,684,675) |
| 1 |
Home Alone (1990) |
$476,684,675
|
| 2 |
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992) |
$358,994,850
|
| 3 |
Home Alone 3 (1997) |
$79,082,515 |
|
|
2
|
How the Grinch Stole Christmas! |
$872,583,664 |
2 |
$436,291,832 |
The Grinch ($526,760,632) |
| 1 |
The Grinch (2018) |
$526,760,632
|
| 2 |
How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) |
$345,823,032 |
|
|
3
|
The Santa Clause |
$470,125,976 |
3 |
$156,708,659 |
The Santa Clause ($189,800,000) |
| 1 |
The Santa Clause (1994) |
$189,800,000
|
| 2 |
The Santa Clause 2 (2002) |
$172,825,854
|
| 3 |
The Escape Clause (2006) |
$107,500,122 |
|
|
4
|
Die Hard |
$381,634,471 |
2 |
$190,817,236 |
Die Hard 2 ($240,031,274) |
| 1 |
Die Hard 2 (1990) |
$240,031,274
|
| 2 |
Die Hard (1988) |
$141,603,197 |
|
|
5
|
Bad Santa |
$100,568,157 |
2 |
$50,284,079 |
Bad Santa ($76,488,889) |
| 1 |
Bad Santa (2003) |
$76,488,889
|
| 2 |
Bad Santa 2 (2016) |
$24,079,268 |
|
|
6
|
Nativity |
$38,341,737 |
4 |
$9,585,434 |
Danger in the Manger ($14,433,981) |
| 1 |
Danger in the Manger (2012) |
$14,433,981
|
| 2 |
Dude, Where's My Donkey? (2014) |
$11,283,866
|
| 3 |
Nativity! (2009) |
$8,494,434
|
| 4 |
Rocks! This Ain't No Silent Night (2018) |
$4,129,456 |
|
|
7
|
Silent Night, Deadly Night |
$2,745,848 |
3 |
$915,283 |
Silent Night, Deadly Night ($2,491,460) |
| 1 |
Silent Night, Deadly Night (1983) |
$2,491,460
|
| 2 |
Silent Night, Deadly Night Part 2 (1987) |
$154,323
|
| 3 |
Silent Night (2012) |
$100,065 |
|
Biggest Opening Weekends for Christmas Films
This list shows which Christmas films had the biggest start at the box office. The "opening" usually means how much money the movie made between its first day in theaters and the first Sunday after it opened. This helps show how excited people were to see the movie right away!
The money amounts are in United States dollars (USD).
| Rank |
Film |
Worldwide Opening Weekend |
Year |
| 1 |
How the Grinch Stole Christmas |
$55,082,330 |
2000 |
| 2 |
Elf |
$31,113,501 |
2003 |
| 3 |
The Grinch |
$67,752,855 |
2018 |
| 4 |
The Polar Express |
$24,341,868 |
2004 |
| 5 |
Love Actually |
$45,569,086 |
2003 |
| 6 |
Nativity! |
$2,443,493 |
2009 |
| 7 |
The Santa Clause 2 |
$29,008,696 |
2002 |
| 8 |
A Christmas Carol |
$30,051,075 |
2009 |
| 9 |
The Nutcracker and the Four Realms |
$20,352,491 |
2018 |
| 10 |
The Best Man Holiday |
$30,107,555 |
2013 |
| 11 |
Arthur Christmas |
$15,442,585 |
2011 |
See also
