Best Artificial Christmas Trees of 2022 That Look Like the Real Deal
Put down the axe—this year, we’re going shopping for artificial Christmas trees. Listen, we know these faux Christmas trees can never replace the real deal. There’s no sumptuous woody aroma (may we suggest a candle instead?), there’s no fun in the pursuit of the “perfect” tree, and there’s no supporting your local Christmas tree salesperson. Still, artificial Christmas trees bring a lot to the table. With a faux tree, you’re reducing the risk of fire hazards, eliminating the need for constant maintenance, and avoiding having to dump the thing once January rolls around—which is all-around better for the environment.
Plus, artificial Christmas trees these days are better than ever. They look more lifelike than they have in the past, and in some cases, they’ve become a lot more affordable. Rather than heading out in the cold to scour for a real pine tree, we ventured out into the wilderness that is the world wide web to figure out which fake Christmas trees deserve to be home to all your holiday gifts. From space savers to massive behemoths, these are the best artificial Christmas trees to fast-track to your house in time for the holidays.
All products featured on GQ are independently selected by our editors. However, when you buy something through our retail links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
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Balsam Hill 6.5-foot premium pre-lit artificial blue spruce
Balsam Hill is known for its hyper-realistic Christmas trees, and its hyper-enthusiastic shoppers love to rave about their tree’s lifelike looks. This pre-lit blue spruce comes with 700 incandescent lights, and as one Amazon reviewer says, “Everything about this tree is wonderful from the packaging to the set up to the look and feel.”
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Terrain faux noble fir
Imagine the world’s most ideal noble fir, untrimmed and unsheared. Now imagine it in your home without having to head into the woods to fell one yourself. Terrain’s faux noble fir is based off of a real tree that the brand’s designers found in nature. Reviewers at Terrain keep raving about its realistic look, which can be attributed to the excellent mix of needles and branches, and you’ll enjoy this beaut year after year.
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Wayfair Basics slender green fir with lights
Small space dwellers can appreciate the super-slim build of this green fir from Wayfair. The three-foot tree with pre-installed lights is just the thing for low ceilings and weighs a breezy 18 pounds for easily getting in the door.
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Home Accents Holiday Wesley pine
This massive 9-footer is Home Depot’s best-rated Christmas tree, and it comes equipped with 650 lights—which are adjustable depending on if you’re jonesing for colored, white, or twinkling options—that are all controlled by a remote control or foot pedal. The limbs come preattached for ease of assembly, and the branches are certified by UL against fire hazards.
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Joss and Main faux spruce Christmas tree
Unless you’re looking at this Christmas tree from two inches away, you might not even know this is an artificial Christmas tree (though the lack of aroma might be a dead giveaway). The tree’s crush-resistant branches are molded from real tree branches, which contributes to its realistic look. It’s also not pre-lit so you can adorn it with your own set of string lights.
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Best Choice Products Douglas fir artificial Christmas tree
This faux Douglas fir—currently only available as a six-footer—takes a minute (OK, maybe a lot longer than a minute) to put together, but the end result is surprisingly lifelike. Arriving without lights, the tree doesn’t look completely realistic, but think of it as a blank canvas for all of your personal touches—ornaments, lights, etc. Almost every reviewer says the tree requires some “fluffing,” or readjusting the branches to make the tree look fuller, but they all agree the time it takes to do that is worth the hassle.
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Steelside Isenhour faux pine Christmas tree
This Steelside Isenhour is comprised of three pieces that snap together in a breeze, all housed in a metal stand. Reviewers mention that the tree needs to be fluffed to give it a better appearance, and many of those reviewers all tout its realistic look, thanks to the variety of branches that come with the 6.5-foot tree.
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Charlie Brown Christmas tree
The iconic Charlie Brown Christmas tree can be yours as if it jumped off the screen and into your home. Hailing from the 1965 classic Christmas movie A Charlie Brown Christmas, the iconic sapling becomes a character in its own right, and despite its look, is actually really cute. The single red ornament, included with the tree, won’t tip over the whole thing like it does in the film, and it’s all completed with a blue cloth meant to recreate Linus’ blanket.
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Northlight prelit artifical Warsaw twig Christmas tree
The Warsaw tree doesn’t have the same fullness as other varieties of Christmas trees, but it does have its fans. The tree’s sparse branches let your ornaments shine, and it also makes this six-foot tree more lightweight.
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Holiday Living Hayden pine artificial Christmas tree
The Holiday Living trees from Lowe’s are the retailer’s best-rated faux Christmas trees. Assembly of the tree should take about five minutes, and it ships pre-adorned with pine cones and 400 warm-white LED lights. As one reviewer writes: “This was well worth what I paid for it,” chalking it up to its realistic look, bountiful branches, and easy setup.
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Frontgate Starry Night microlight slim profile tree
Frontgate’s Starry Night trees—ranging in size from 7.5 to 10 feet—are decked out in literally thousands of lights (the smallest-sized tree has 4,320 LEDs). One owner of the Starry Night tree loved that it “made a dramatic statement,” while another reviewer said the tree is so well adorned that it’s perfect without the addition of any other decorations.
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Wondershop potted mini Douglas fir artificial Christmas tree
So you want to stay festive without actually getting a full-sized Christmas tree. Fine, this 2.5-foot potted Douglas fir is enough to put you in the holiday spirit without the need to do much else. For $20, it’s hard to beat, and you can still deck it out with ornaments, lights, and other festive trimmings.
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Puleo International pre-lit Aspen fir artificial Christmas tree
Puleo International is a family-owned artificial tree manufacturer that’s been around for four generations, carrying all kinds of Christmas trees and even palm trees if that’s more your vibe. For its Aspen fir, the tree features branches of varying sizes, giving it a more lifelike look. It’s more sparse than a typical spruce tree, but don’t mistake it for not looking full because the tree’s branches are thick enough to cover the center pole. People who own this tree love its value and look, but some have noted that it sheds needles quite a bi (much like a real one!).
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Birch Lane Jack 12-foot faux fir Christmas tree
The Jack is a lush artificial fir made from high-quality PVC that is both hypoallergenic and UL-certified. The branches come on hinges so that when you’re assembling the tree, all you have to do is pull down the branches (just note that the branches are not removable). With over 2,500 reviews to its credit, the tree is one Birch Lane’s best-selling and best-rated artificial Christmas trees. And if you want an outdoor Christmas tree like the Rockefeller Center tree, this one can even be displayed outside.
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National Tree Company 6-foot Dunhill fir artificial Christmas tree
This unlit Dunhill fir looks like your typical Christmas tree: thick, full, and lush. Rather than having to assemble each branch yourself, the tree comes with hinged branches so that it’s easy to put together. The six-foot option has a whopping 1,430, and if you want to see how well this tree looks all dressed up, enthusiastic reviewers put up pictures of their personal trees because they’re just so damn proud of it.
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