Free Christmas quiz
Christmas quiz questions and answers
30 questions for the whole family, in three rounds of 10, with the answers underneath. Read them out over the turkey, print the free PDF, or play them as a live quiz on everyone’s phones with InstaQuiz.
Updated 6 November 2026 by Ashley at InstaQuiz
Host these as a live quiz
All 30 questions are a free pack, the Family Christmas quiz, with a wager finale. Open it on your phone and everyone joins in their phone’s browser with a code or QR. Free for up to 8 phones, £5 for the night for more.
Play it live, free
The three rounds
1
Traditions and food
10 questions: jump to them2
Films, music and Santa
10 questions: jump to them3
Around the world, and true or false
10 questions: jump to themRound 1: Traditions and food
1. In which country did the tradition of bringing a decorated fir tree indoors begin?
Answer: Germany
2. What was traditionally hidden in a Christmas pudding for luck?
Answer: A silver sixpence
3. Which plant do people traditionally kiss under at Christmas?
Answer: Mistletoe
4. How many days of Christmas are there in the traditional season?
Answer: 12
5. On which date do most Advent calendars start?
Answer: 1 December
6. Which spirit is traditionally poured over a Christmas pudding and set alight?
Answer: Brandy
7. What did mince pies originally contain?
Answer: Minced meat
8. In the UK, pigs in blankets are small sausages wrapped in what?
Answer: Bacon
9. Brussels sprouts are named after Brussels, the capital of which country?
Answer: Belgium
10. Eggnog is a festive drink made with milk, sugar and what?
Answer: Eggs
Round 2: Films, music and Santa
11. In Home Alone, where are the McCallisters flying when they leave Kevin behind?
Answer: Paris
12. What is the name of Will Ferrell’s character in Elf?
Answer: Buddy
13. In Love Actually, which actor plays the Prime Minister?
Answer: Hugh Grant
14. Which duo recorded “Last Christmas”?
Answer: Wham!
15. Who sings “All I Want for Christmas Is You”?
Answer: Mariah Carey
16. Which band released “Merry Xmas Everybody” in 1973?
Answer: Slade
17. Who sings “Driving Home for Christmas”?
Answer: Chris Rea
18. Which of Santa’s reindeer has a red nose?
Answer: Rudolph
19. Which vegetable do children traditionally leave out for Santa’s reindeer?
Answer: A carrot
20. Which postcode does Royal Mail use for letters to Santa?
Answer: XM4 5HQ (read it out loud: Xmas for Santa’s HQ)
Round 3: Around the world, and true or false
21. In Australia, Christmas falls in which season?
Answer: Summer
22. Which country gives London a Christmas tree for Trafalgar Square every year?
Answer: Norway
23. “Feliz Navidad” means Merry Christmas in which language?
Answer: Spanish
24. In which country is fried chicken a hugely popular Christmas Day meal?
Answer: Japan
25. What three things are traditionally inside a Christmas cracker?
Answer: A paper hat, a joke and a small gift
26. True or false: holly berries are safe to eat.
Answer: False. They are poisonous to people and pets.
27. True or false: female reindeer keep their antlers through winter, while males lose theirs.
Answer: True
28. True or false: Coca-Cola invented Santa’s red suit.
Answer: False. Santa was drawn in red long before the 1930s adverts.
29. True or false: Rudolph is one of the reindeer in the poem “A Visit from St Nicholas”.
Answer: False. Rudolph didn’t appear until 1939.
30. True or false: Boxing Day is named after boxing matches.
Answer: False. It’s linked to the boxes of gifts given to servants and tradespeople.
How to run it
On paper: split into teams, print one answer sheet per team from the PDF and read the questions out. On phones: tap Play it live, put instaquiz.app/tv on the telly if you like, and everyone joins with the code. The scores stay secret until you reveal the podium.
How an InstaQuiz night runsHow to put your quiz on the TVAlready played these? Christmas Cracker has 100 more festive questions in 10 rounds, none of them on this page.
Questions people ask
Can we play these Christmas quiz questions on our phones?
Yes. They are a free pack called the Family Christmas quiz. Open it on one phone and everyone else joins in their phone’s web browser with a 5-letter code or a QR code. Nobody downloads an app. It’s free for up to 8 players, and the scores stay secret until a podium reveal at the end.
Is there a printable Christmas quiz?
Yes. The free PDF has all 30 questions in three rounds, an answer sheet for each team and the answers on a separate page for the quiz master.
How many questions should a family Christmas quiz have?
About 30, in three rounds of 10, takes about 45 minutes with time for arguing about the answers. That fits nicely between the main course and the pudding.
Are these questions suitable for children?
Yes. They are family-friendly, and most are easy enough for older children. Mix ages in each team so everyone can help.
Can we show the quiz on the TV?
Yes. Open instaquiz.app/tv on a smart TV browser or a laptop and connect it from your phone. The TV shows each question, then the answer, and never the running scores.
How do you score a Christmas quiz?
On paper, give one point for each right answer. Played on InstaQuiz with the timer on, faster right answers score more, and the wager finale lets players stake some of their points on the last question.