Christmas Video Greeting Ideas, Plus Exactly What to Say in Them

You know you want to send something warmer than a forwarded snowman. You open your phone, press record, and say "Um. Hi. So. Merry Christmas, I guess?" and then delete it. This page is the fix: ideas that give your greeting a shape, and lines you can copy word for word or steal the rhythm of.

What should you say in a Christmas video greeting?

Use a three-part formula: who it is from, one warm wish, one true detail. "Merry Christmas from the three of us. We hope your house is warm and loud. We finally learned to make your gingerbread." That is ten seconds, it sounds like you, and it cannot go wrong.

The detail is what makes it personal. It can be tiny: the recipe you borrowed, the song you both hate, the snow that never came. Generic wishes are fine. Generic wishes plus one real thing are lovely.

From us. To you. One true thing. Merry Christmas.

What are good Christmas video greeting ideas?

The best ideas are small: a ten-second card, your voice turned into a drawn film, a tiny year review, or one inside joke. Pick the style first, then write the words for it. The style decides how long it runs and whether you need your voice, a script or just a line.

• The ten-second card Your name, one line, snow. The greeting you can send to forty people without anyone feeling like number thirty-nine.
• The voice note, drawn Record yourself saying the greeting, then turn it into a small animated film. Your voice is the soundtrack, which is the part people actually miss.
• The tiny year review Three short scenes: "We moved. We got a dog. The dog moved the couch." Then the wish.
• The inside joke A greeting built entirely around one shared memory. "Merry Christmas. Nobody is allowed to cook the turkey upside down this year."
• The letter to Santa, reversed Santa writes to your family instead: "Dear Hendersons, I saw the cookies. Very good. Less raisins next year."
• The countdown Sent on the 1st of December: "24 days until we see you." Sweet for someone flying home.
• The empty chair A gentle one for family you cannot be with: a drawn table, one seat saved, "We will set your place anyway."

What do you say to parents and grandparents in a Christmas video?

Parents and grandparents want to hear that you are well and that you are thinking of them. Say both, plainly. Skip irony; it does not travel well to people who will watch it three times looking for hidden meaning.

• "Merry Christmas, Mom and Dad. Thank you for every Christmas you made look easy. We now know it was not."
• "Merry Christmas, Grandma. The tree is up, the cookies are burned, it feels like your kitchen."
• "To the best grandparents on Earth, from the loudest grandkids on Earth. Merry Christmas!"
• "We cannot be there this year, so we sent a little film instead. It is shorter than us but it behaves better."
• "Merry Christmas, Dad. Your tree lights are still tangled in our garage. We think of you every time."

What is a funny Christmas video message for friends?

With friends you can be funny, specific and a bit ridiculous. The best friend greetings sound like the first line of a conversation you want to have in person.

• "Merry Christmas to my favorite person to complain about Christmas with."
• "May your relatives be kind, your gifts be returnable, and your leftovers last until the 30th."
• "Merry Christmas! This is legally binding proof that I remembered before the 24th."
• "Here is to another year of pretending we will do the secret gift thing properly. Merry Christmas."
• "Merry Christmas from me and the sweater you made me promise to wear. I kept my promise. Photographic evidence withheld."

What to say to a partner, and to family far away

For a partner, be quietly specific: a place, a habit, a first Christmas. For family far away, name the distance and then shrink it with a plan.

• "Our fifth Christmas. Still my favorite present, still hogging the blanket."
• "Merry Christmas to the person who taught me that the tree goes up in November. You were right. Do not tell anyone."
• "Eight hours of time difference and still the first person I wanted to say Merry Christmas to."
• "Merry Christmas from the other side of the ocean. We will video call during pudding, as tradition demands."
• "Different kitchen, same recipe. Merry Christmas, we miss you at the table."

What to say to coworkers and neighbors

Keep it light and inclusive. Many coworkers and neighbors celebrate differently, so a warm "happy holidays" line is often the kinder choice. For a whole-company greeting, see company Christmas video ideas.

• "Happy holidays from desk 14. Thank you for sharing the good chair."
• "Merry Christmas, neighbors! Sorry about the inflatable reindeer. He is staying."
• "Wishing you a restful break and an inbox that stays quiet until January."
• "Happy holidays to the team that answered my questions all year. I owe you cookies."

How do you make a Christmas video greeting that sounds like you?

Write it down, say it out loud, and cut whatever you would never say in real life. Then decide whether it is your face, your voice or a drawn little film. Here is the quick version:

1. Step 1

   Pick the person. One greeting for one type of person. Grandma and your college roommate do not get the same joke.

2. Step 2

   Fill the formula. From who, one wish, one true detail. Two sentences maximum.

3. Step 3

   Read it aloud twice. Anything you trip over, cut. Anything that sounds like a greeting card company wrote it, swap for your own words.

4. Step 4

   Choose the format. A drawn film for groups and far-away family, a selfie clip for your closest people, a voice note turned film when you want both.

5. Step 5

   Send it early. Mid-December gets watched. Christmas morning gets watched on the 27th.

Making it in Nine

If you would rather not be on camera, Nine turns your words into a short drawn film with a voice, music and sound effects. Type one line into a template and you get a greeting that holds still long enough to read. Paste a few lines as a script and each paragraph becomes a scene. Or record your greeting on your phone and upload it: the film runs as long as you talk, with your own voice as its sound.

You watch the crew make it, then ask for changes in plain words, like "cozier" or "less glitter". You get a video file in tall, wide and square, and you send it wherever you like. Plans start at $29 a month. See pricing or try it first. For the full family card walk-through, read the animated Christmas card for family guide, and for what comes after the 25th, a greeting for the holidays after Christmas and New Year video greeting ideas.