Skip to main content

Amazon sent me a Christmas tree. Did it leave me pining for more?

Amazon Christmas Tree
Parker Hall/Digital Trends

Every year, my family and I bundle up in warm rain gear and boots (we’re in Oregon, after all) and head to a local Christmas tree farm. There, we chase each other in the maze of noble firs, looking for that perfectly-sized, mostly symmetrical tree. When we find it, we get down in the mud to saw it off and haul it to the car in a wheelbarrow supplied by the farm. We carefully tie it to the top of our SUV, hoping that the sap won’t somehow infiltrate the sunroof.

Recommended Videos

It’s a fun family outing that has become tradition. But it isn’t without pains, namely: rain, mud, sap, pine needles, and general concern for the well-being of the top of our car.

So when I heard that Amazon, in its never-ending quest to bring everything we could possibly dream of to our doorstep, planned to sell real Christmas trees this year, we decided to try it out — and give ourselves a break from the rain and the sap. Here’s how things went.

Free shipping, but not two-day Prime

I went to Amazon’s website and typed “real Christmas trees” in the search field. A bunch of results popped up that were a mix of mini, potted live evergreens and artificial trees with the word “real” or “lifelike” in the description. It took quite a bit of scrolling to find what I was looking for: “Hallmark Real Christmas Tree, Black Hills Spruce, Six Foot to Seven Foot.” I clicked on it to take a closer look.

The description noted that, “the 6-7 foot Black Hills Spruce real Christmas tree ships fresh cut, boxed, and double baled with twine straight from a United State family-owned farm, direct to your doorstep so you can focus on the joys of holidays. Ships free on Prime.”

I guess Amazon’s two-day shipping doesn’t work for everything.

Then, I looked at the price tag: $100! Expensive, for sure, and much more than I’d pay at a tree lot or farm. But I guess that’s the price of convenience? I mean, it is coming to my front door, and if I lived in, say, Manhattan, and didn’t have a car, that would be pretty freakin’ convenient.

I clicked “add to cart,” and learned that Amazon’s Prime two-day shipping doesn’t apply to Christmas trees. Instead, I was given a three-day delivery window that started a full eight days from the order date. I guess Amazon’s two-day shipping doesn’t work for everything. But that’s something to note if you’re considering buying a tree on Amazon this season: better hop on it now or it will arrive after Christmas.

Oh Christmas tree, Oh Christmas tree

The tree actually arrived three days sooner than promised, which was both a pleasant surprise and a bummer, as I was out of town when it came, so it sat in a box for almost two full days after it was delivered. It was in a long box, and tied up — like how a tree from a lot would be. I thought, for sure, that it would be dried out after sitting in the box, but it actually looked reasonably fresh (no noticeable drying or brown spots) and smelled like pine when we pulled it out of the box.

Parker Hall/Digital Trends

I didn’t know what to expect symmetry-wise — would it look like a decent family holiday tree, or more of the Charlie Brown variety? Would they try to pull a fast one on me and give me a lopsided, ugly tree? Or worse, a skinny one with no meaty branches?

But I was pleasantly surprised to see that it was pretty evenly filled out and looked nice in our living room – almost as good as one I would have picked at a lot myself. It definitely was closer to 6 feet than 7 feet, though. We got it set up in our living room, put it in water, and of course, decorated it.

Verdict

So, was buying a tree from Amazon a good idea? For me, other than having to pay a bit more, the experience was largely positive. We got a decent tree that wasn’t too dry and looks nice in the living room. While I did miss traveling to the farm (they usually have hot apple cider and cocoa!), I didn’t miss the work of lifting the tree onto our roof and tying it to the car. For people without a means to transport a tree from a lot, or who want to spare wear-and-tear on their cars, Amazon is a great option.

Obviously, if you’re like Clark Griswold and enjoy jaunts to the forest to find that perfect tree, you will definitely find the experience of having a tree delivered via Amazon lacking. If the hunt for the tree is as important as the tree itself, buying on Amazon isn’t for you.

As for me? The purchase was a success. We have a nice tree in the living room, and I can now focus on other holiday activities.

Kim Wetzel
Former Smart Home Editor
Before joining Digital Trends as Home Editor, Kim was an adjunct journalism professor at Linfield College and high school…
Save up to 30% on this Joe Manganiello endorsed robot pool cleaner
man relaxing while beatbot cleans his pool

Summer is almost here and if your pool is still being cleaned like it’s 1995, it’s time for a change. Right now through May 31, Beatbot is offering up to $820 off the AquaSense 2 Series, along with a 3-year full replacement warranty that practically screams "peace of mind."

Whether you fancy spotless walls, leaf-free water, or just fewer hours holding a skimmer pole, the AquaSense 2 Series is an AI-powered lineup that will take on your deep end with ease. Super-Man actor, Joe Manganiello, mentioned the AquaSense 2 Ultra is, “sleek, quiet, and way better at cleaning than I ever was.”

Read more
Nanoleaf reveals two gorgeous new smart lights for your home and garden
Nanoleaf Rope Light above a couch

Nanoleaf is one of the biggest names in smart lights, offering a variety of bulbs, panels, and even a unique skylight with support for over 16 million colors. That lineup is expanding today with the launch of the Nanoleaf Rope Light and Nanoleaf Solar Garden Light -- two striking new products that look like an excellent way to bring a pop of color into your home.

The Nanoleaf Solar Garden Light is arguably the most exciting of the two, as the company hasn’t ventured into the outdoor space too often. Sold as a two-pack for $50, the Garden Light is Nanoleaf’s first-ever solar-powered lighting solution. Built with an IP65 weatherproof rating, eight LED branches that splay out from a central stem, a built-in daylight sensor to toggle the lights on and off, and support for a variety of RGB colors plus tunable whites, it should make a fun companion for most outdoor spaces.

Read more
Amazon Memorial Day sale 2025: The 35 best tech deals
Apple MacBook Air 13 M4 front angled view showing display and keyboard.

The Amazon Memorial Day sale is already up and running, which means there are some amazing discounts available for all kinds of tech products. Whether you're looking for upgrades to your home entertainment setup, additions to your arsenal of mobile gadgets, or devices that will simply make life easier, there's surely something for you from the retailer's Memorial Day deals this year.

There's a chance that you get overwhelmed with the sheer number of offers from Amazon though. To help you decide what to buy, we've gathered the 35 best tech deals that we've found below. Read on and see if anything catches your eye, but you shouldn't take up too much time because we're not sure how much longer stocks will last for these products. It won't be a good idea to wait until the final minutes of the holiday before you make your purchases -- proceed with your transactions from Amazon's Memorial Day sale as soon as you can.

Read more