What are good Christmas trivia questions for a party?

Mix difficulties. A few easy questions to warm the room up, a few medium ones to make people think, two or three hard ones to crown a winner, plus a round on traditions from other countries.

How many Christmas trivia questions should a quiz have?

Twenty to thirty for a family quiz, forty to fifty for a longer evening with rounds. The set below gives you forty grouped by difficulty and theme.

What's a classic Christmas trivia question?

“What was the first gift mentioned in The Twelve Days of Christmas?” The answer is a partridge in a pear tree — always a crowd warmer.

Trivia and quizzes

Christmas Trivia Questions and Answers

Cozy Christmas trivia setup with notebook, pens, mugs and pine garland

Quick answer

Forty Christmas trivia questions grouped by difficulty and theme. Tap “Show answer” on any question. Looking for a fuller game? Pair this with our interactive Christmas quiz or explore the Christmas Traditions Explorer.

Easy round (warm up)

Twelve gentle openers. Read the easy round first so every team gets points on the board. A confident quiz is a generous quiz.

What date is Christmas Day?
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December 25.
What colour is Santa's suit, traditionally?
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Red and white.
What do children leave out for Santa in many countries?
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Milk and cookies.
What is the night before Christmas called?
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Christmas Eve.
Which reindeer has a red nose?
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Rudolph.
What plant do people kiss under at Christmas?
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Mistletoe.
What's the name of the snowman who came to life with a magic hat?
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Frosty.
What's on top of a Christmas tree, traditionally?
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A star or an angel.
What is the day after Christmas called in the UK and Commonwealth?
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Boxing Day.
What colour are Santa's boots?
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Black.
How many reindeer pull Santa's sleigh in the classic poem (not counting Rudolph)?
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Eight.
What do you call the small chocolates with a foil wrapper hung on the tree?
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Chocolate baubles or chocolate ornaments.

Medium round (settle in)

Now everyone is warmed up. The medium round mixes carols, classic stories and a few film references. Most players should get six or seven out of eleven.

How many ghosts visit Scrooge in A Christmas Carol?
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Four — Marley plus the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come.
In what country did the gingerbread house tradition begin?
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Germany, popularised after the Brothers Grimm's Hansel and Gretel.
Who wrote The Night Before Christmas?
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It is most commonly attributed to Clement Clarke Moore (1823).
Which Christmas carol contains the line "let nothing you dismay"?
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God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen.
What was the first gift given in The Twelve Days of Christmas?
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A partridge in a pear tree.
Which country is credited with starting the Christmas tree tradition?
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Germany.
What spice is most associated with Christmas baking alongside cinnamon and nutmeg?
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Cloves.
In which decade did Coca-Cola's red-suited Santa adverts begin?
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The 1930s.
What is the German Advent calendar word for the small daily door?
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Türchen.
Which film features the line "Keep the change, ya filthy animal"?
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Home Alone (1990).
In the song Jingle Bells, what is the sleigh pulled by?
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A one-horse open sleigh — a single horse.

Hard round (crown a winner)

This is the round that decides the quiz. Dates, composers, lesser known folklore. Award two points per question to keep the leaderboard interesting.

What is the literal meaning of the word "Christmas"?
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"Christ's Mass" — from Old English Crīstesmæsse.
Which country sends the UK a giant Christmas tree to Trafalgar Square every year?
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Norway.
What is the most-streamed Christmas song of all time?
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Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You."
In Iceland, instead of one Santa, how many Yule Lads visit children?
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Thirteen.
What's the name of the cat from Icelandic folklore who eats children without new clothes for Christmas?
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The Yule Cat (Jólakötturinn).
Which monarch gave the first televised Christmas broadcast in the UK?
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Queen Elizabeth II, in 1957.
What does "Boxing Day" actually refer to?
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Boxes of gifts and money traditionally given to servants and the poor the day after Christmas.
Which composer wrote The Nutcracker?
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Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.
In what year was Silent Night first performed?
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1818, in Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Austria.
Which US president was the first to display the National Christmas Tree at the White House?
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Calvin Coolidge, in 1923.
What was the title of the 1843 book that helped reinvent the modern Christmas?
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A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens.

Christmas around the world round

The most fun round in any Christmas quiz. Most players have never heard of Las Posadas, the Caga Tió or the Yule Cat. Use it as the second round to keep things lively.

In which country do families traditionally eat KFC for Christmas dinner?
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Japan.
In Sweden, what is the central Advent celebration on December 13 called?
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St Lucia's Day.
In Italy, who delivers gifts to children on January 5?
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La Befana, a friendly witch.
What is the German Christmas market season known as?
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Weihnachtsmärkte (or Christkindlmarkt).
In the Philippines, what are the star-shaped Christmas lanterns called?
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Paról.
In Mexico, what is the nine-night re-enactment of Mary and Joseph seeking shelter called?
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Las Posadas.
In Norway, why do some families hide their brooms on Christmas Eve?
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Folklore says witches and evil spirits come out and might steal them.
Which country celebrates Christmas on January 7 (Orthodox calendar)?
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Russia, among others.
In Catalonia, what is the name of the smiling log children tap with a stick on Christmas Eve?
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The Caga Tió.
In Venezuela's capital, what unusual way do some people travel to early morning Christmas Mass?
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On roller skates.

For more, browse Christmas around the world or open the Traditions Explorer.

Festive food round

Comfort questions, mostly. Almost everyone gets panettone and Christmas pudding. The carp question is the curveball.

What's the traditional Christmas dessert in the UK, set alight at the table?
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Christmas pudding.
What is the Italian Christmas sweet bread with raisins and candied fruit?
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Panettone.
In France, what's the rolled chocolate Christmas log dessert called?
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Bûche de Noël.
What spice gives mulled wine its classic warm aroma?
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Cinnamon (with cloves and star anise).
What's the Polish Christmas Eve meatless soup made with fermented rye?
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Żurek (or sometimes red borscht with uszka).
What German Christmas bread is dusted heavily with icing sugar to symbolise the swaddled Christ child?
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Stollen.
What's the meat most commonly eaten for Christmas dinner in the United States?
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Roast turkey or ham.
What's the name of the Mexican Christmas drink made with rice, cinnamon and milk?
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Atole or champurrado (close cousins to horchata).
Which fish is the centrepiece of the traditional Czech and Slovak Christmas Eve dinner?
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Carp, often kept alive in the bathtub until cooking.
What sweet biscuit shaped like a half moon is baked across Austria and Germany at Christmas?
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Vanillekipferl.

Dig deeper in our guide to Christmas food around the world or compare regional menus in our traditional Christmas dinner guide.

How to run a Christmas quiz night

The format below works for six to thirty people. It runs about ninety minutes including breaks.

Split into teams of three or four. Teams that are too big stop participating. Teams that are too small get demoralised on the hard round.
Run five rounds, ten questions each. Easy, medium, around the world, food, hard. End on hard so the leaderboard moves at the end.
Score one point per correct answer, two for the hard round. Half points for partial answers. Generosity keeps the energy up.
Read all the answers at the end of each round, not after every question. This is the single biggest pacing trick a quiz host can use.
Have a tie breaker ready. A simple one: "Guess the year Coca-Cola launched their first red Santa advert." (Closest wins. The answer is 1931.)
Build in two breaks. One after round two, one after round four. Mince pies appear in the second break, never the first.

For more festive content to slip between rounds, browse our Christmas jokes page or share a few of the strangest entries from Christmas facts.

Printable scoring guide

Quick reference for the host. Copy this into your phone notes before the night.

Round 1 (easy): 12 questions, 1 point each, max 12.
Round 2 (around the world): 10 questions, 1 point each, max 10.
Round 3 (medium): 11 questions, 1 point each, max 11.
Round 4 (food): 10 questions, 1 point each, max 10.
Round 5 (hard): 11 questions, 2 points each, max 22.
Possible total: 65. Anything over 45 is a strong score.

Frequently asked questions

What are good Christmas trivia questions for a party?: Mix difficulties. A few easy questions to warm the room up, a few medium ones to make people think, two or three hard ones to crown a winner, plus a round on traditions from other countries.
How many Christmas trivia questions should a quiz have?: Twenty to thirty for a family quiz, forty to fifty for a longer evening with rounds. The set below gives you forty grouped by difficulty and theme.
What's a classic Christmas trivia question?: “What was the first gift mentioned in The Twelve Days of Christmas?” The answer is a partridge in a pear tree — always a crowd warmer.