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Top Christmas Movies by State: Mapping America’s favorite holiday movies

We analyzed Google search trends for more than 100 classic holiday films to find out which are the most popular in America and around the world.
Adam Volz

The winter season is upon us once more. To help usher in the spirit of the holidays, we wanted to find out which holiday movies are Americans’ favorites. This study goes state by state to determine what people love to watch when the holidays approach.

For this study, we analyzed search trends for keywords related to 115 of the highest-rated and highest-grossing holiday movies of all time, according to Rotten Tomatoes and Box Office Mojo. We then narrowed down the list to the top 25 most-searched-for films and evaluated how popular they were in each state.

Key findings

This study had several predictable results. However, we also uncovered some interesting findings. For instance:

  • America’s favorite holiday movies are Home Alone, The Grinch (2018), Elf, Edward Scissorhands, and Happiest Season.
  • Other beloved movies include classics like Frosty the Snowman and A Christmas Story, as well as darker movies like Krampus.
  • New movies, such as Happiest Season (2020) and Klaus (2019), also topped the list.

Let’s get started!

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What are the most popular Christmas movie in America?

Across the nation, there were clear favorites when it comes to holiday movies. From nostalgic favorites to recent hits, there are a handful of films that resonate in nearly every corner of the country.

America’s favorite holiday movies are Home Alone, The Grinch (2018), Elf, Edward Scissorhands, and Happiest Season. Although this list is an eclectic blend of old and new preferences, nearly all are distinctive takes on the traditional holiday story. Even stalwart holiday classics like The Grinch and Elf are modern takes on traditional holiday themes. 

he most popular holiday movies around the world

The top Christmas movies by state

As we look at the results by state, we see other interesting trends in the movie data. For example, Elf and The Polar Express were popular throughout many states. Elf returned ten results, and The Polar Express had nine.

most popular holiday movie in each state

Additionally, some states have multiple favorite Christmas movies! The list includes:

  • Michigan: Elf, Last Christmas, The Christmas Chronicles
  • North Dakota: The Santa Clause, Frosty the Snowman
  • Pennsylvania: Home Alone, Elf
  • South Dakota: The Christmas Chronicles, Miracle on 34th Street
  • Utah: The Polar Express, The Grinch, The Santa Clause, Klaus, Last Christmas
  • Vermont: Krampus, It’s a Wonderful Life, Frosty the Snowman
  • West Virginia: Elf, A Christmas Story, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation
  • Wyoming: The Christmas Chronicles, Edward Scissorhands

If we break down those results by region, we can see where specific favorites hold dominion. The favorite holiday movies by region are:

  • The west: Nightmare Before Christmas (#1 in three states)
  • The midwest: Elf (#1 in five states)
  • The south: Polar Express (#1 in seven states)
  • The northeast: Home Alone (#1 in three states)
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The most popular Christmas movies in other English-speaking countries

We also took a look outside of the United States to see if other countries had winter festivities centered around favorite seasonal movies. We analyzed the search volume for the same movies in 10 of the most English-speaking countries in the world. After studying the data, we found that two favorites rose to the top.

the most popular holiday movies around the world

Home Alone topped the list, taking the number one spot in six countries:

  • India
  • Pakistan
  • Nigeria
  • Philippines
  • Canada
  • Australia

Love Actually was the next most popular. It was the favorite holiday movie in three English-speaking countries:

  • United Kingdom (no surprise there)
  • Italy
  • France

It should come as no surprise that the hilarious hijinks of Kevin McCallister and the classic stories in Love Actually continue to usher in the holiday spirit across the world. In some cases, people have learned English from the repetitious watching of classic holiday films, but oftentimes they’re translated into other languages.

Naturally, this made us wonder how many languages each of the top holiday movies have been translated into. 

How many languages have some of the most popular holiday movies been translated into?

Many of the top 10 holiday movies have been dubbed into multiple languages. As such, these holiday classics can be seen across the world every year. Three of the most popular titles have been translated the most. Those three are:

  • Klaus: Translated into 30 languages, including Finnish, French, Hebrew, German, Malay, Polish, and Turkish.
  • The Christmas Chronicles: Translated into 24 languages, including Arabic, Czech, Japanese, Romanian, and Russian.
  • The Polar Express: Translated into seven languages, including French, Greek, Italian, Japanese, and Polish.

Aside from English, five languages were clearly more popular than others. Those five are French, Polish, Japanese, Italian, and German.

Taking French lessons online or another language class could help you enjoy your favorite holiday movie in a whole new way.

In conclusion, the classics are some of the world’s favorite holiday favorites. Across the United States, Home Alone, The Grinch (2018), Elf, Edward Scissorhands, and Happiest Season are the films that get everyone ready for the holidays. 

Worldwide, favorites such as Home Alone, The Polar Express, and Klaus reign supreme.

These results are in no way exhaustive. There are many superb holiday movies and several others that are great for personal reasons. Even if your favorite film isn’t on this list (come on, no Die Hard?), take heart in the arrival of the holiday season! Turn down the lights, grab some hot cocoa, and settle in for your favorite holiday films. 

“It is easy to get lost in the flurry of activity during the holiday season. May you get time to take in the beauty and true meaning of the season and have a Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays!

Methodology: Using Rotten Tomatoes and Box Office Mojo, we compiled a list of the 115 highest-grossing and most popular holiday movies of all time. Then, we analyzed the search data for each using Ahrefs Keyword Explorer; for the top 25 most searched for movies, we analyzed search trends for each state using Google Trends. To determine the most popular movie in each foreign country, we turned to Ahrefs Keyword Explorer and analyzed the search data for the top 25. To learn more about the number of languages that each movie was translated into, we used uNoGS, which provides data for all Netflix regions in one place.

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Adam Volz
Adam Volz
92 articles

Adam is a content marketing specialist with a passion for language. He's originally from Birmingham, England but now lives in Barcelona. He is currently learning Spanish on Preply with his tutor, Jordi.

Adam is a content marketing specialist with a passion for language. He's originally from Birmingham, England but now lives in Barcelona. He is currently learning Spanish on Preply with his tutor, Jordi.

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