89 Holiday Movies You Can Stream This Winter

Reviews.com Staff
Reviews.com Staff
8

If you subscribe to one or more of the Best On-Demand Streaming Services, you can have a holiday movie marathon whenever you want. There’s no shortage of options, from the classics (like “It’s a Wonderful Life” and “How the Grinch Stole Christmas”) to titles that make the list on a technicality (“Die Hard” and “Gremlins” come to mind). Whatever your tastes, we’ve done some digging to find out where you can stream your favorites this holiday season.

Note: Though our research was current at time of posting, titles premiere on and depart streaming services constantly, so your mileage may vary. Also, our list doesn’t include all holiday movies available on each platform. Which brings us to our next point!

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How We Chose Which Films to Feature

Anyone can browse each of the major streaming platforms’ “holiday” sections. But here at Reviews.com, we’re dedicated to helping you find the best of everything — including movies for your marathon lineup. We cross-referenced best-of lists from cinema experts like Flixster, Metacritic, IMDb, and Reelgood to identify popular titles, then did the legwork to find out where each title was streamable this year. Consider it our gift to you! Click here to browse the full list.

Holiday Movies On Netflix – 2018

Netflix-Results-for-Holiday-Streaming

We found 14 popular titles on Netflix. The selection changes often — but if you’re so inclined, you can follow the streaming giant on Facebook or Twitter. December 2018 releases include five holiday-themed Netflix originals.

This year’s titles include:

  • A Christmas Prince
  • Bad Santa
  • Bad Santa 2
  • Carol
  • Christmas Inheritance
  • Get Santa
  • How the Grinch Stole Christmas
  • In Bruges
  • Love Actually
  • Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmas
  • The Christmas Candle
  • The Nutcracker
  • Tree Man
  • White Christmas

How membership works

All titles are free to stream with any Netflix plan. The plan you choose will determine how many devices can use your account simultaneously and whether or not you can stream in HD.

Holiday Movies On Hulu – 2018

Hulu-Results-for-Holiday-Streaming

Our research surfaced 14 popular titles on Hulu this year — five that are included with a standard Hulu plan, plus 9 more that are streamable via Starz, Cinemax, or HBO (available with your Hulu subscription for an additional monthly charge.) You’ll have even more options with a Hulu With Live TV plan, which includes On Demand titles as well as live TV streaming.

This year’s titles include:

  • Arthur Christmas (with STARZ)
  • Big
  • Edward Scissorhands (with STARZ)
  • Four Christmases (with HBO)
  • Home Alone (with STARZ)
  • Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (with STARZ)
  • Home for the Holidays (with STARZ)
  • It’s Christmas Time Again, Charlie Brown
  • Jack Frost (with HBO)
  • La La Land (with CINEMAX)
  • Miracle on 34th Street
  • Prancer
  • Scrooged (with STARZ)
  • The Nightmare Before Christmas

How membership works

All titles are free to stream with any Hulu plan. The more expensive Hulu With Live TV plan offers limited commercials, plus access to 50+ live TV channels. Available add-ons include premium channels (HBO, SHOWTIME, CINEMAX, and Starz), No Commercials, and Unlimited Screens.

Holiday Movies On Amazon – 2018

Amazon-Results-for-Holiday-Streaming

Amazon boasts the most popular holiday movies — we found 87. (That’s all but three of the movies on our full list!) Of those, some are free with Amazon Prime, and some are included with HBO, CINEMAX, or Starz membership. Most, however, are available for rent or purchase.

How Membership Works

Amazon Prime members can stream select titles for free. (These are available in the “Included With Prime” tab on Amazon Video and denoted with a Prime label.) Other titles are available for rent or purchase. You can also subscribe to premium channels such as HBO and Starz via Amazon Video if you’d like to “bundle” multiple streaming services within one membership.

Holiday Movies on Fios on Demand – 2018

If you’re a Verizon Fios TV customer, it’s worth checking out the huge selection of holiday movies available for rent and purchase via Fios On Demand. This library includes 71 popular holiday titles — almost as many as are available on Amazon.

How membership works

Verizon Fios customers can browse movies for rent or purchase via Fios On Demand — and stream hundreds of live TV channels via the Fios TV App.

Holiday Movies on DIRECTV – 2018

DIRECTV-Results-for-Holiday-Streaming

Last but not least: DIRECTV and DIRECTV Now customers can stream 62 of the films on our shortlist via DIRECTV On Demand. Many are free; the majority are available for rent or purchase.

How membership works

DIRECTV customers can stream some movie titles for free (denoted in the “Free Movies” lineup on DIRECTV.com/movies.) Additional titles are available for purchase and/or rent.

Holiday Movies You Can Stream This Winter: Summed Up

MoviesNetflixHuluAmazonHBOFiosDIRECTV
Alvin & The Chipmunks: The SqueakquelxxRent/OwnxRent/Own
Alvin & The ChipmunksxxRent/OwnxRent/Own
All I Want for Christmas (1991)xxRent/OwnxRent/Ownx
A Very Harold & Kumar ChristmasxxRent/OwnxRent/OwnRent/Own
A Christmas Princexxxxx
A Christmas StoryxxRent/OwnxRent/OwnRent/Own
A Christmas Horror StoryxxRent/OwnxRent/Ownx
A Christmas Carol (2009 Animated)xxRent/OwnxRent/OwnRent/Own
A Christmas Carol (1984)xxRent/OwnRent/OwnRent/Own
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973 TV Special)xxRent/Ownxxx
A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965 TV Special)xxRent/Ownxxx
You’ve Got MailxxRent/OwnRent/Own
Willy Wonka & The Chocolate FactoryxxRent/OwnxRent/OwnRent/Own
White Christmas (1954)xRent/OwnxRent/OwnRent/Own
Trading PlacesxxRent/OwnxRent/OwnOwn
Tree Man*xxxxx
The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974 TV Special)xxOwnxxx
The Shop Around the Corner (1940)xxRent/Ownxx
The Santa Clause 3: The Escape ClausexxRent/OwnxRent/Ownx
The Santa Clause 2x✔ (Starz Add-on)Rent/OwnxRent/Own

About the Authors

The Reviews.com staff is dedicated to providing you with all the deep-dive details. Our writers, researchers, and editors came together from Charlotte, Seattle, San Juan, Fort Worth, Fort Lauderdale, San Diego, and Chicago to put this review together.