Can You Believe This Gorgeous Flocked Christmas Tree Is a Fake?

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If you're wondering what inspired our search for the best artificial Christmas trees, allow us to explain. Every year, we come face-to-face with our physical strength (or lack thereof) as we lug a massive pine or fir from the farm and into the living room. As much as we love stringing its naturally scented branches with storied ornaments, tinsel, and more, there's something so sad about undressing them come the new year and leaving the tree, quite literally, out in the cold. Enter fake Christmas trees!

Not only do they ship directly to your door, but there's no need to discard them once the holidays come to a close. Rather, just disassemble them, pack them up, and store them away until next year. Plus, unlike the real ones, faux trees require zero maintenance. Gone are the days of sweeping up the fallen needles and re-filling the base with fresh water. When your faux fir arrives in the mail, simply open the box (or boxes, depending on the size you chose), pop the pieces into place, et voilà. Most of our favorite finds come pre-lit, pre-flocked, or both. So, if you want to skip the ornaments altogether, your tree won't look too bare.

That said, even the most decorated trees ahead still boast plenty of room for baubles, so feel free to load up or make them yourself. With December nearing, some of the best holiday decorations are already starting to sell out. Don't miss your chance to score something festive! Take a peek at the options below and snag your favorite before they're gone for good.

Freshly Fallen Snowcrest Full Profile Tree

We don't like to play favorites—especially when it comes to the most decorative element of all time, a Christmas tree—but this one is at the top of the list for a reason. Whether you opt for the seven-and-a-half-foot option or the nine-foot one, this Frontgate find that's dusted with realistic-looking faux snow will make a regal and sophisticated statement in your living room. Best of all, it arrives draped with thousands of warm-toned white LED lights.

Setup: Easy

Special Features: Faux snow and pre-lit

Height: 7.5 feet and nine feet

Pre-Lit Artificial Christmas Tree

What this lacks in fluff it makes up for in height. Standing at exactly six feet tall, this pre-lit tree is ideal for small spaces. Whether you stick it in a corner or right next to the sofa, it will take up just the right amount of space. Sadly, the sweet ornaments, gold sash, and charming words aren't included, but the lights certainly are! Plus, if you have the ceiling height, you can even opt for the seven-and-a-half foot option.

Setup: Easy

Special Features: Pre-lit

Height: Six and 7.5 feet

Pre-Lit Potted Flocked Artificial Christmas Tree

If the previous tree is still too big for your small space, this one will definitely work. Not only is it just four-and-a-half feet tall, but it's also no wider than your typical lawn shrub. It's also flocked, pre-lit, and comes in the cutest rustic pot. One reviewer even says, "I set my tree up as soon as I got it to make sure I liked it. This tree is perfect! It’s easy to set up. There’s so many branches to fill it in. (I still have some fluffing left to do). I love the base, looks like a birch log. I’m very happy with my purchase and can’t wait to decorate it!"

Setup: Easy

Special Features: Pre-lit and flocked

Height: 4.5 feet

Lit North Carolina Spruce Faux Christmas Tree

If you, like us, are zooming in on the photo for clues that this tree is in fact artificial, you won't find many. It's so real-looking that no one will think twice about where you got it. The stand and extra lightbulbs are included, plus you can choose between three different tree heights: four, seven, or nine feet tall.

Setup: Moderate (branches require some posing)

Special Features: Pre-lit

Height: Four, seven, and nine feet

Alpine Balsam Fir Tree

No, this isn't a sad and barren tree that could use a few more branches. Rather, it's meant to look like a traditional German feather tree, which dates back to the mid-19th century. As their name implies, feather trees are constructed as feathers because, from afar, they look like whimsical tree branches. They're said to to be the first artificial Christmas trees to ever hit the market.

Setup: Moderate (branches require some posing)

Special Features: Pre-lit

Height: 4.5, 6.5, 7.5, nine, and 10 feet

Pre-Lit Christmas Tree

This nine-foot flocked pine looks like it was taken right out of the ground after a night of heavy snowfall. Luckily, it's fake, so you don't have to worry about covering your floor in sharp pine needles or water with this one. You may not be able to detect them in the thick flocking, but this tree is also dotted with more than 500 tiny warm-toned LED lights that fill your space with a much-welcomed cheeriness.

Setup: Difficult

Special Features: Pre-lit and flocked

Height: Nine feet

Pocono Pine Tree

No, the perfectly coordinated ornaments aren't included, but this classic evergreen find is constructed of sturdy wire branches that give it an effortlessly fluffed look. That said, they do require some tweaking once you take the tree out of the box. Because it's so tall, the separate parts need to be attached, so you may need help assembling it.

Setup: Moderate (branches require some posing)

Special Features: Pre-lit

Height: 7.5 feet

Artificial Full Downswept Christmas Tree

If you live in a small space or want to keep the decor simple this year, opt for a little tree like this one. At under four feet tall, it's perfect for an apartment. However, what it lacks in height it makes up in detail. The hundreds of super real-looking, individually crafted branch tips make this tiny tree look full bodied.

Setup: Easy

Special Features: Pre-lit

Height: 4.5 and seven feet

Natural-Cut Monaco Pine

Suitable for indoor or outdoor use, this faux pine tree is just as magical as it looks courtesy of thousands of micro LED lights. In case you were wondering, micro lights are even smaller than typical twinkle lights, so your tree will look like it's glittering.

Setup: Easy

Special Features: Pre-lit

Height: 7.5 feet

Classic Blue Spruce

Available in five heights, this failproof tree looks and feels just like a blue spruce. The only difference? It won't drop needles or start to smell after a few days. Did we mention that it includes a tree stand? All you need is a beautiful tree skirt.

Setup: Difficult (for taller trees)

Special Features: Pre-lit

Height: 4.5, 5.5, six, 6.5, and 7.5 feet

Frosted Christmas Tree With Lights

This one is an easy favorite. Just look at the frosted branches dusted in "snow." There are also lights strewn across them, so if you don't have many ornaments, feel free to skip extra decorations because this tree looks perfectly done up as is. As for assembly, it comes in three parts that simply stack and lock into place.

Setup: Moderate

Special Features: Pre-lit and frosted with fake snow

Height: 6.5, 7.5, and nine feet

Extra Full Fir Christmas Tree With Lights

Have you ever seen a fluffier Christmas tree? This unique option is well lit with color-changing LED bulbs and 10 "light shows," if you will, to infuse some holiday spirit into your home. Plus, with 3,260 individually crafted branch tips, it doesn't get more realistic than this.

Setup: Moderate (depending on the size)

Special Features: Pre-lit

Height: 4.5, six, 6.5, seven, 7.5, and nine feet

Snowy Grand Fir Tree

This faux fir looks as if it were plucked from a snowy landscape in an undiscovered part of the world. It's finished with 550 warm-toned LED microlights, which can perform an impressive show on command. Plus, as grand as it may be, you can assemble it in under three minutes. Yes, it's truly that easy!

Setup: Easy

Special Features: Pre-lit and frosted with fake snow

Height: Seven feet

Slender Pine Flocked Christmas Tree

Here's another skinny tree for anyone living in tight quarters. A small living space is no excuse to opt out of proudly displaying a Christmas tree, so if you want to go big, feel free. This one comes with a stand that elevates it to exactly six feet, which is just high enough if you ask us. It's also lightly flocked, giving it that cozy wintery feel.

Setup: Easy

Special Features: Frosted with fake snow

Height: Six feet

Grand Fir Tree

Not only is this hyper-realistic fir already on sale, but you can also score free shipping with the code "FSHOL1123." The seven-foot masterpiece is decorated with more than 500 LED bulbs that can stay lit for up to 10,000 hours, so if you want to leave your lights on for the whole month of December, this tree is a good option.

Setup: Easy

Special Features: Pre-lit

Height: Seven feet

Down Swept Slim Pine Tree, Set of 3

What's better than one big Christmas tree? Three smaller ones that cost under $500 total. They may be on the narrow side, but that's why we like them. If you arrange them in a line or in a little group, you can create a miniature forest right in your living room. Like a few others on our list, these come pre-lit with warm-white lights that will twinkle in the night.

Setup: Easy

Special Features: Pre-lit

Height: Four, 5.5, and seven feet

Faux Pre-Lit Norway Spruce

If this Norway spruce looks extremely realistic, that's because the artisans at Terrain modeled it after a real, live tree. From the perfectly imperfect protruding branches to the overabundance of glimmering lights, this will make for a good addition to any Christmas setup.

Setup: Easy

Special Features: Pre-lit

Height: Five, seven, and nine feet

Pre-Lit Artificial Mini Christmas Tree

Short and stout never looked so good. This charming tree is just four feet tall (and nearly three feet wide), making it the perfect find for a smaller area of the home. It's also just as easy to store as it is to assemble courtesy of the preattached, hinged branches that drop down at the press of a button.

Setup: Easy

Special Features: Pre-lit

Height: Four feet

Dunhill Fir Slim Artificial Christmas Tree

There's something appealing about a classic tree adorned in colorful twinkle lights that makes us want to snatch it up ASAP. For apartment dwellers, it's available in a five-foot size; anyone living in a larger home should opt for the seven footer. Both come pre-lit with colored LEDs, which make for a bright and gleaming display.

Setup: Easy

Special Features: Pre-lit

Height: 6.5 and 7.5

Flocked Down-Swept Christmas Tree

We don't want to admit that we saved the best for last because we love all of these trees equally, but there's something beautiful about this down-swept one that makes us want to add it to our carts right now. Perhaps it's because it really does appear so real or because it's minimalist the right ways. In any case, it's definitely worthy of a stylish living room—as long as there's a power outlet nearby.

Setup: Easy

Special Features: Pre-lit and flocked

Height: Three, five, 7.5, and nine feet

What to look for in an artificial Christmas tree

It's our personal opinion that buying an artificial Christmas tree is easier and more cost-effective than the real thing, so if you're looking to save, you've come to the right place. Here are a few things to consider before making your purchase.

Height: When it comes to a fake Christmas tree, the bigger, the better is often a good mantra to follow, but giant options won't always fit in your home. Luckily, most of our top picks come in a variety of sizes, starting at just three-and-a-half feet tall. Others stand a whopping nine feet tall. If you're looking for something standard, the average Christmas tree stands between seven and seven-and-a-half feet tall.

Assembly: Another benefit of artificial Christmas trees is that they come with a metal stand, so assembly is pretty easy. The taller ones, though, typically ship in several parts. If you want a sky-scraping tree, you may need another person to help you put it together. Most of them, though, features parts that snap into place, so you likely won't need any tools. That said, the faux needles may still be sharp, so consider wearing gardening gloves when assembling your taller tree.

Lighting and features: It's not a real Christmas tree without lights, right? That's why all of our favorite come pre-lit with LED bulbs. Some of our favorite pre-lit trees on the list utilize lights that can run for thousands of hours while other simply plug into the wall in order to turn on. As for special features, if you want to opt out of ornaments, go for a tree with fake snow or add on a mossy tree skirt to give it more of a nature-esque look.

How do you store an artificial Christmas tree?

The best way to store an artificial Christmas tree is to take it apart and pack all the pieces into a storage bag. They're specially designed to fit and maintain a tree, so as long as you have a large closet or a garage to put the bag in, you're good to go. One important thing to remember: Even though your tree is fake and won't suffer the same damage as real trees, exposure to humidity is not a good idea. Not only can it cause mildew to the branches, but it can also break the bulbs. If possible, store your Christmas tree indoors, in a dry and less humid area.

Why trust us?

When it comes to decorating for the holidays, the House Beautiful shopping editors know what we're doing thanks to all of our e-commerce backgrounds. Not only do we make it our annual mission to find an array of stylish pieces for all occasions, but we also make sure to include a wide range of prices so that everyone can find something that suits them and their space. This year, we took the time to browse through all the major retailers in order to curate the best artificial Christmas trees. Narrowing down the picks was tough, but we weighed the pros and cons together, as you'll notice, to give you the most pertinent info as you decide which tree you want to buy.

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