The best Christmas apps for 2018

The holidays are upon us, and whether you’re donning a Christmas sweater and singing carols or just playing up Santa’s visit for your kids, we’ve got a bunch of Christmas apps to get you in the right spirit.

Going to a holiday party and need help? Follow our guide on the best white elephant gifts, and if you’re still not sure about what to get for your family and loved ones, we have some last-minute Christmas gift ideas that will help you out this holiday season.

Christmas Countdown 2018

Think of this fun app as an advent calendar for your phone. It shows the number of days, hours, minutes, and seconds until Christmas. You can chose the theme you want and there’s a new gift to unwrap every day, giving you a fresh Christmas-themed wallpaper to boost your seasonal spirit, along with a festive fac, and a link to a Christmas song. It’s free and there are no ads, but you have to buy the premium version to get high-quality wallpapers. The iOS link here is for a different app of the same name, which is a little more basic, but it also counts down to Christmas Day.

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Android iOS

Yasa Pets Christmas

Combining cats and Christmas brings a level of cute that your children won’t be able to resist. This delightful app is a digital dollhouse that allows your kids to tap and explore as the cat family on screen enjoys Christmas Day. You can open presents, dress the cats up, set the table for dinner, and lots more. It’s an ideal option for young kids and cat lovers looking to relax with a Christmassy app.

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Android iOS

Christmas Booth: Photo Fun

With this app, you can take a picture or just grab one from your camera roll and choose from a host of Christmas-themed stickers to turn anyone into a Christmas character. You can also send your photo via email, Twitter, or Facebook. It’s compatible with iMessage, too, so you can use the stickers there and message your friends.

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iOS

A Charlie Brown Christmas ($5)

Help Charlie Brown and his friends find the meaning of Christmas. Narrated by Peter Robbins, the original voice of Charlie Brown, and featuring the original soundtrack from the holiday special, this Christmas app transforms the classic story into an interactive storybook with animations that bring the charming illustrations to life. You can also use the app to create your own Charlie Brown Christmas Tree with over 150 ornaments and decorations. There’s an educational element, too, as you can tap individual words to hear them, and there’s support for word and note highlighting. This app also comes bundled with an iMessage sticker pack.

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Android iOS

Christmas Sweeper 3

Are you a fan of Candy Crush? Then you’ll love Christmas Sweeper 3. This game comes with over 1,000 challenging levels. You can play as long as you want, as there are no lives to lose. Make matches of four and five to create bombs and power-ups. The promise of rewards of cookies and soda will keep you busy for a long time after Christmas. Check out our picks of the best iPhone games and best Android games for alternatives.

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Android iOS

How the Grinch Stole Christmas ($4)

Dr. Seuss’ beloved How the Grinch Stole Christmas has been made into an interactive book for kids. If you need something to keep them occupied while waiting to open their presents, this $4 app lets them follow the Grinch as he attempts to keep Christmas from coming. Tap on pictures to show new words, enjoy the narration, and watch out for the custom sound effects.

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Android iOS

ElfYourself

This app is hilarious. You replace the Elf faces with the faces of up to five people. Maybe your family and friends? Once the faces are set, you select a dance theme, and the app creates a comical dance video. Once it’s done, you can share the video on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. You can also purchase additional videos featuring different themes.

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Android iOS

A Call From Santa!

If your kids are tech-savvy, they’ll love A Call From Santa! As the app says, you can call Santa, get video messages, record a wish list, and hear what Santa is doing. This app also has a Santa Chatbot that chats with you, just like you’re talking with the real Santa. You can also request a call from Santa, and you can let your children record a voice message for Santa. This app is free, though you can pay to unlock more options to better personalize the messages for your child.

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Android iOS

PNP Portable North Pole

This will bring a smile to any child’s face. Portable North Pole has been around for a very long time, and it’s as magical as it has always been. Input some information about your child and a personalized video from Santa will play. There are some activities included in the app, but the main idea is for the kids to find out from Santa if they’re on the naughty or nice list. This app has some in-app purchases that include a reaction recorder, and story time. The purchases are valid until September 30, 2019.

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Android iOS

The Christmas List ($3)

This app is great to keep track of your Christmas shopping. You can make a list of everyone you need to buy gifts for, and then you can set a budget for them. Let’s say that you add a friend. You’ll walk into the store, tap your friend’s name, and you’ll see the list of items you want to buy for this person, and, of course, the budget. You can then tap on the items as you buy them, and when you go back to the main screen, you can see how much you have left to spend on your gifts. This is a great way to keep track of what to buy, and most importantly not go over budget.

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iOS