Christmas Messages for Text: 60 Short Lines to Send

A Christmas text is read in seconds, often in a stack of twenty others, on a phone held in one hand while the other stirs the gravy. The ones that stand out are short, use the person’s name or one small detail, and arrive at a sensible hour. The lines below are written for exactly that: a text, a WhatsApp message, a note in the family group chat. We’ve left out emoji so you can add your own, or not, the way you usually write.

Christmas messages for text: family

For parents, grandparents, brothers, sisters and cousins.

Merry Christmas, Mom. The gravy was almost as good as yours. Almost.
Merry Christmas to my favorite brother. You’re also my only brother, but still.
Merry Christmas, Dad. Thinking of you on the drive over. Save me a mince pie.
Happy Christmas, Nan. I’ll call after lunch, so keep the phone near your chair.
Merry Christmas to the best aunt in the state. Thank you for the socks. I’m wearing them.
Merry Christmas, sis. I’ve already eaten the chocolate orange you sent. No regrets.
Happy Christmas from the kids’ table, which I am still at, aged 36.
Merry Christmas, Grandpa. The tree you planted is all lit up in the yard tonight.
Thinking of you all at the table today. Merry Christmas, love you.
Merry Christmas, cousin. Same time next year, same argument over the board game.

Christmas texts for friends

Merry Christmas! Hope Santa brought you everything and the kids allowed you a lie-in.
Happy Christmas, you. A year of voice notes and you still pick up every time. Love you.
Merry Christmas from the couch. Hope yours is just as comfortable.
Thinking of you today. Merry Christmas, and let’s do New Year’s properly.
Merry Christmas! I’ve put on the album we wore out in college. Still a classic.
Happy Christmas, Liz. Coffee on the 27th? I’ll need to talk to someone outside my family.
You always text first on Christmas morning. Not this year. Merry Christmas!
Wishing you a lazy, happy Christmas full of leftovers.
Merry Christmas! Raising a glass to you from the in-laws’ living room.
Happy Christmas! Hope the turkey cooperated.

For the group chat

One message for everyone at once: the family thread, the old school friends, the book club.

Merry Christmas, everyone! Post your tree photos. Judging starts at noon.
Happy Christmas to the best group chat on the internet. See you all in January.
Merry Christmas, team! Phones down, everybody. That includes you, Mike.
Happy Christmas to the whole chat from our very noisy kitchen. Who’s hosting next year?
Merry Christmas all. A year of memes, bad advice and good company. Thank you.
Season’s greetings to the book club. We read eleven books and finished maybe six.

Christmas Eve and Christmas morning texts

It’s Christmas Eve and the stockings are up. Thinking of you tonight.
Merry Christmas! The kids were up at five. Send coffee.
Can’t sleep. Feels like being eight again. Merry Christmas Eve.
Christmas morning, snow outside, kettle on. Wish you were here.
The last present is wrapped. Merry Christmas Eve, and sleep well.
Just back from midnight Mass. The whole church smelled of pine. Merry Christmas.
First coffee of Christmas morning, raised in your direction.
Santa’s been. Hope he found your house too.

Texts for family far away

For when you’re in different countries, or just different time zones. There are longer notes for distance in our page of messages for family across the miles.

Merry Christmas from five hours behind. You’re probably on the pudding by now.
Happy Christmas from Sydney, where it is far too hot for a jumper. Missing the cold, and you.
It’s still Christmas Eve here, so I’m the first to wish you a merry Christmas for tomorrow.
Ringing you at your 6 p.m. Have everyone ready by the phone.
Merry Christmas across the ocean. Same moon, different weather.
Your stocking is up here too, just in case. Merry Christmas from home.

Funny Christmas texts

Merry Christmas! I regret nothing about the third helping.
Happy Christmas. I’ve been asked to say grace and I’ve forgotten every word.
Merry Christmas from the person you’ll be sending leftovers to tomorrow.
Just to confirm: the cat has opened all her presents and is now sitting in the box.
Happy Christmas! Status report: paper crown on, belt loosened.
Merry Christmas. Dad has fallen asleep in the armchair, so tradition is safe for another year.

Short texts for coworkers and people you know a little

For a colleague, your child’s teacher, a neighbor whose number you have for parcels.

Merry Christmas, Jon. Enjoy the break and see you after New Year’s.
Happy holidays! Hope you’re switched off and somewhere warm.
Wishing you and the family a happy Christmas. Thanks for all your help this year.
Happy holidays from all of us at the clinic. Rest up.
Merry Christmas, Mrs. Hughes. Thank you for everything you did for the twins this year.

When you can’t make it, or you’re running late

So sorry I can’t be there today. Keep my chair warm for next year, and eat my share of dessert now.
Running late, the roads are white. Start without me but leave me some stuffing.
Missing you all today. I’ll call when my shift ends. Merry Christmas.
Flight landed, I’m on my way. Merry Christmas, put the kettle on.

Replies to a Christmas text

Someone beat you to it. A quick, warm answer:

Merry Christmas to you too! Thank you for thinking of us.
You beat me to it! Happy Christmas, and give my love to everyone.
Thank you, that made my morning. Merry Christmas.
Same to you and yours. Let’s catch up properly in January.
Merry Christmas! Lovely to hear from you, it’s been too long.

Christmas messages for texting: a few habits that help

Send at a kind hour. Christmas morning between breakfast and lunch is ideal. A late-night text on Christmas Eve can wake a house full of light sleepers; if the person is in another time zone, work out their time first.

Write to one person, not to your contact list. A message copied to fifty people reads like one. Even a forwarded wish feels personal with a name at the start and one changed word.

Keep group-chat wishes short. One message from you is lovely. Twelve replies-to-all can bury the photos everyone actually wants to see.

Say it out loud, sometimes. For a grandparent or someone on their own, a voice note or a short call can mean more than any text.

Send a card through the same chat. If you’d like to send more than a line, a card can travel by text too. On Paper Lantern you can copy the link to your card and paste it into a message or a WhatsApp chat, where it opens in the phone’s browser with nothing to install. Our page on sending a card by email, text or WhatsApp shows how. For more wishes that fit a small space, there are our one-line Christmas wishes.

Questions

Is it OK to send a Christmas text instead of a card?

Yes, for most people. A text is quick and immediate, and many friends prefer it. For older relatives, or anyone who keeps cards on the mantel, a card or a call may still mean more.

What time should I send a Christmas text?

Mid-morning on Christmas Day, or early evening on Christmas Eve. Check the time zone for anyone abroad so the message doesn’t arrive at 3 a.m.

Should I send the same Christmas text to everyone?

You can use the same wish, but add the person’s name and one line of your own for the people closest to you. That small change makes a forwarded message feel written.

How long should a Christmas text be?

One to three short sentences. If you need more room than that, it’s probably a call, a letter or a card.