Christmas Letter
What to write in a Christmas card when "Merry Christmas, love from all of us" is not quite enough.
Almost every Christmas card in circulation says the same eleven words, and the person opening it knows it. That is not a failure of effort — it is a failure of prompt. Nobody has ever been given anything useful to write in the space under the printed greeting.
The fix is one specific sentence about this particular year. Not a summary of the year, and definitely not a round-robin newsletter about the extension and the exam results — one moment involving the two of you, written in a way that could not be copied into anyone else's card.
And if you are here on behalf of a six-year-old: the letter to Santa is below, printable, with blanks in it. It is genuinely the best writing exercise a small child gets all year, and it is the one they will find in a box in twenty years.
Write your christmas letter — freeNo account needed • Free • Encrypted
Prefer paper? Print the fill-in-the-blank template and write it by hand.
What to say in a christmas letter
- 1One moment from this specific year that involved both of you — dated, if you can manage it.
- 2Something you noticed them do this year that they would not expect anyone to have noticed.
- 3The honest state of your year, in one line, including the difficult part if there was one.
- 4What you actually hope for them in the year ahead, phrased as something concrete rather than "all the best".
- 5For family far away: one piece of ordinary detail about your daily life. It is what they are missing most.
- 6For a child's letter to Santa: their name, their age, the good thing they did that nobody told them to do, and one realistic wish.
One thing to skip: Avoid the family newsletter voice — the third-person round-up of achievements. Write to one person, about one year, in the voice you use on the phone.
The difference one specific line makes
Same sentiment, two ways of saying it in a christmas letter.
Most people write
“Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Wishing you all the best for 2027. Love from all of us.”
Write this instead
“Merry Christmas. This is the year you drove over on a Sunday without being asked, sat in my kitchen and did not once suggest I cheer up. I have thought about that more than you would believe.”
Why it works: A Christmas card that could be posted to anyone gets read once and stood on a shelf. A card that names one thing the recipient did this year gets kept in a drawer, and often gets mentioned back to you years later.
Three ways to open a christmas letter
The first line is the hard part. Steal one of these and fill in the brackets.
“Before the day itself swallows everything, I wanted to write you something that is not shouted across a kitchen.”
“The thing I keep thinking about from this year is [moment], and it is not the one you would guess.”
“Merry Christmas. Here is the part I would never say out loud with everyone in the room.”
Christmas letter templates
Start from one of these and make it yours — they open straight into the editor.
Christmas Letter to Family
“Before the day itself swallows everything, I wanted to write you something...”
Use this template →What to Write in a Christmas Card
“A short, warm Christmas message that still sounds like a real person...”
Use this template →Letter to Santa
“Dear Santa, my name is... — a letter a child can fill in and send...”
Use this template →Printable christmas letter template
Two ways to print it. Fill in the blanks and the page itself becomes the letter, or take the prompt sheet and write your own version by hand.
Print it, fill the blanks in pen, and give it as it is — no copying out.
🎄 Christmas letter
Write in the blanks. The small words under each line tell you what to reach for — cross out any line that is not true of the two of you.
Dear their name,
Merry Christmas from where you are / who is here.
The moment from this year I keep coming back to is the moment.
Something I noticed you do this year that you would not expect anyone to notice: what.
Honestly, my year has been one true line about your year.
What I actually hope for you next year is something concrete.
Save me a seat / see you when. Your name
shareloveletters.com — free letter templates. Write it online and they open a sealed envelope with their name on it.
Need a different one? Browse all free printable letter templates.
How it arrives
Write it
Edit a template, pick a theme, add photos or a song.
Share a private link
Password-protect it, or set the date it unlocks.
They open an envelope
Sealed, with their name on it, opening into your christmas letter.
Questions people ask
What should I write in a Christmas card?
One specific thing from this year involving the person you are writing to, one line about how your own year actually went, and one concrete hope for theirs. Three sentences beats a paragraph of general good wishes, and it takes about ninety seconds.
What do you write in a Christmas card to family you rarely see?
Ordinary detail. What your week looks like, what is in the flat, the name of the person you sit next to at work. Relatives who see you once a year are given headlines by everybody; the daily texture is the thing they are actually short of.
How do I write a Christmas letter to my family?
Write to one person at a time rather than to the household. Name a moment from this year, say what you noticed about them, and be honest about your own year including the hard parts. Families can tell instantly when a letter is about them rather than about Christmas.
How do you write a letter to Santa?
Start with the child's name, age and where they live, add the good thing they did this year that nobody made them do, then one main wish and one smaller one. Finish with what they will leave out on Christmas Eve. Print the fill-in-the-blank version on this page and let them write it themselves — the handwriting is the whole point.
When should I send a Christmas letter?
Earlier than you think. Mid-December beats Christmas Eve, because a letter that arrives in the quiet week before gets read properly rather than in the middle of the unwrapping. If you write it now, you can schedule the link to unlock on Christmas morning.
Can I send a Christmas letter online for free?
Yes. Write it here, share a private link, and they open a sealed envelope with their name on it — free, encrypted, no account needed. You can also add photos of the year and set it to open on Christmas Day itself.
Other occasions
Need words to borrow? Browse our 700+ quote library or read our letter-writing guides.
Ready to write your christmas letter?
Write it in the second week of December, schedule it to unlock on Christmas morning, and let it be the one thing that day that nobody has to tidy up afterwards.
Start your christmas letter