Not every home has the room, the time or the wish for a full-size tree: a small flat, a cat that climbs everything, a trip away over the holidays or simply no wish to sweep up needles until February. These 8 alternatives still give you the glow of a Christmas tree, and several of them can stay up until the New Year and beyond.
1. A lighted birch on the sideboard
A white birch with warm fairy lights along every branch has the outline of a tree without taking any floor space: it stands on a sideboard, a desk or a windowsill on its square base, and its branches bend. No needles, no water, and it suits the room from the first frost to the New Year. Put a few wrapped presents next to it and it reads as a Christmas tree straight away.
Shown: lighted birch tree, 24 LEDs and about 60 cm tall, or 144 LEDs and about 63.5 cm tall, warm white, USB or batteries.
2. A cone of light in the corner
Smart pixel lights don't need a tree at all. Hang the star from a hook in the ceiling and fan the strands out to the floor, and you have a tree made only of light, which takes up almost no space and packs away in a box. Every LED is controlled on its own, so the app turns it into a moving tree: ready-made animations, your own drawings, a message or lights that move to the music.
Shown: smart Christmas tree lights, 1.8 m or 2.4 m strands, 256 LEDs, with star topper, USB controller, remote and app; ceiling hook and USB adapter not included.
3. A ribbon tree on the wall
Draw a tree on the wall with ribbon lights: start at the top, zig-zag down and make each row a little wider than the one above, holding the ribbon with removable adhesive hooks. Instead of a star, finish with a velvet bow at the top. The ribbon runs on a battery box, so the wall doesn't need a socket nearby.
Shown: Christmas ribbon lights, 5 m or 10 m, gold or silver, with warm-white, cool-white or multicolor LEDs. On top: velvet Christmas bow, about 40 cm wide. Adhesive hooks not included.
4. Dress a big houseplant
A tall houseplant such as an olive tree, a fiddle-leaf fig or a yucca makes a lovely green Christmas tree. Wind firecracker lights through the leaves: the fine silver wire bends around any stem and holds its shape. Then hang a handful of mini mirror disco balls, which throw little sparkles around the room as soon as the lights come on. After the holidays, the lights move to a shelf and the plant is just a plant again.
Shown: firecracker fairy lights, 1.5 m with 50 LEDs or 6 m with 200 LEDs, warm white, USB with remote. Add: mini disco ball ornaments, 5 cm, packs of 10, 20 or 30.
5. A tabletop tree with a train
If the tree is mostly for the children, a small light-up tree may be all you need: coloured bulbs, a glowing star and a little train that runs round and round the base. It stands on a side table, a shelf or the mantel, runs on batteries with no cable and needs no decorating at all.
Shown: light-up Christmas tree with rotating train, about 19 cm tall and 11 cm wide at the base.
6. An animated tree in the window
No floor space at all? Put the tree in the window. Smart curtain lights hang inside the window or across a balcony railing, and 400 individually controlled LEDs show a Christmas tree, Santa, falling snow or a message you type in the app, so the tree can change every evening. The timer switches it on and off, and passers-by get to enjoy it too.
Shown: smart animated Christmas lights, 2 × 2 m or 3 × 3 m, 400 LEDs, with hooks, remote and app. For a Christmas built around faith, the Christian Christmas lights show the Nativity and the Star of Bethlehem.
7. A tree of light in the garden
If the tree belongs outside, star waterfall lights make one without cutting anything down: nine light strands fall from a glowing star over a garden tree, a pole or a porch post and spread out into a cone. The Solar version charges by day and needs no socket or extension cable, and 8 modes go from a steady glow to twinkle and chase.
Shown: star waterfall Christmas lights in Multicolor and Warm White; also in White, with 2 m or 3 m strands, solar or USB.
8. Branches in a vase with clip-on candles
For a Scandinavian look, stand a few bare branches, birch twigs or pine branches in a tall, heavy vase and clip on wireless LED candles. Each candle has its own battery and no cable, so the branches stay clean and simple, and the remote lights them all, dims them, switches between flicker and steady light and sets a 4- or 6-hour timer that repeats every day. The clips come off, so after Christmas the candles can stand in candlesticks.
Shown: wireless Christmas tree candles, sets of 10, 20, 30 or 40, each 10.8 cm tall, one remote per 10 candles.
Before you start: power and practical tips
- Sockets: the smart tree lights, the curtain lights and the firecracker lights plug into a USB adapter (not included); the firecracker lights also run from a power bank. The birch runs on USB or batteries, the star waterfall on solar or USB, and the ribbon lights, the train tree and the tree candles on batteries.
- Batteries: each tree candle takes one 1.5 V battery, the ribbon lights AA batteries in their battery box and the firecracker remote a CR2025 coin cell; none are included. Keep coin cells out of reach of small children.
- Glass: the mini disco balls have real glass mirror tiles, so hang them out of reach of toddlers and pets.
- Outdoors: only the star waterfall is made for the garden; the curtain lights are IP44 splash-resistant for a covered balcony or porch. Everything else here is for indoors.
- Delivery: free tracked shipping, dispatched in 1 to 3 business days and delivered in 7 to 12. Order by 10 December to have everything up before Christmas.
- Returns: unused items in their original packaging can be returned within 30 days of delivery.
More ideas
- Keeping a real tree after all? See how to put lights on a Christmas tree and our 8 Christmas tree decorating ideas. For the rest of the room: 8 Christmas living room decor ideas.
- Browse all our Christmas decorations or our 12 Christmas gift ideas under $30.
Decorating your desk too? Here are 8 office Christmas decoration ideas.
Short on space? Here are 8 Christmas decor ideas for a small apartment.
Making a tree of light outside? Here are 8 ideas for star waterfall lights.