Christmas TV wouldn’t be the same without the magical annual Christmas adverts brought to our screens each year. According to a recent statistic, a British household will watch a whopping 62 hours of TV on average over the Christmas period. Evidently, festive TV is one of the most important parts of the season for many of us, and this comes hand in hand with watching Christmas adverts. But which Christmas adverts have been the most popular with the British public over the last eight years?
With this in mind, Reboot Link Building Agency took to YouTube to find out which Christmas adverts have had the most views, as well as the potential earnings that each advert could be making.
Key findings from the data:
- Sainsbury’s Mog’s Christmas Calamity (2015) ranks first, as the most viewed Christmas advert, with a staggering 42,000,000 views.
- Sainsbury’s claimed the top three spots, with their 2014 advert, 1914 coming in second, and The Greatest Gift (2016), coming in at third.
- Sainsbury’s have the top three highest estimated earnings from their adverts, with Apple and Selfridges following closely behind.
The top 10 most viewed Christmas adverts on YouTube
| Ranking | Christmas Advert | Estimated Average YouTube Earnings(£) | Views |
| 1 | Sainsbury’s- Mog’s Christmas Calamity (2015) | 64,681 | 42,000,000 |
| 2 | Sainsbury’s- 1914 (2014) | 36,602 | 23,000,000 |
| 3 | Sainsbury’s- The Greatest Gift (2016) | 30,973 | 20,000,000 |
| 4 | Apple- Saving Simon (2021) | 28,366 | 18,000,000 |
| 5 | Selfridges- A Christmas for Modern Times (2019) | 15,819 | 10,324,519 |
| 6 | M&S – With love from Mrs Claus (2016) | 15,306 | 9,900,000 |
| 7 | very.co.uk- Get More Out of Giving (2017) | 12,689 | 8,200,000 |
| 8 | M&S – Paddington & The Christmas Visitor (#lovethebear) (2017) | 11,014 | 7,100,000 |
| 9 | Sainsbury’s- The Big Night (2018) | 10,754 | 7,000,000 |
| 10 | Argos- An evening with Abracadaisy and the Incredible Lucy (2020) | 9,401 | 6,100,000 |
Reboot Link Building Agency can reveal that the top Christmas advert is Sainsbury’s Mog’s Christmas Calamity (2015), with an astounding 42,000,000 views on YouTube. The advert shows the story of Mog, who accidentally destroys a kitchen on Christmas Eve, but ends up being celebrated after accidentally calling the fire brigade. Sainsbury’s invests heavily in their Christmas campaigns, which evidently pays off, with this advert having estimated earnings of around £64,681 from YouTube streams.
Sainsburys also claimed second place with their First World War themed advert from 2014, 1914, which boasts an impressive 23,000,000 views. This advert raised money for the Royal British Legion, and depicts the moment British and German troops held a game of football on Christmas Day. The earrings for this advert reflect its success, with an estimated £36,602 potentially earned from YouTube.
Their third advert to grab Brits attention, and take third place in the ranking is The Greatest Gift (2016), achieving 20,000,000 views on YouTube, with the potential to have earned £30,973. It tells the story of a Dad who cannot spend enough time with his family, which gives him the idea to clone himself, allowing him to be with his family for Christmas!
Following closely behind in fourth place is Apple’s Saving Simon (2021) advert, with an amazing 18,000,000 views. This follows the story of a young girl who tries to preserve her beloved snowman Simon, throughout the whole year. This advert could have earned approximately £28,366 on YouTube.
Fifth spot goes to Selfridges’ A Christmas for Modern Times (2019), with the potential to earn £15,819, and having 10,324,519 views on YouTube. The campaign stars numerous personalities from across the creative industries, and tells the story of leading a party of friends through their Christmas celebrations.
The top 5 brands with most loved Christmas adverts
| Rank | Brand | Total Views |
| 1 | Sainsbury’s | 94,988,744 |
| 2 | M&S | 19,578,798 |
| 3 | Apple | 18,000,000 |
| 4 | Argos | 12,339,186 |
| 5 | Selfridges | 10,324,519 |
Sainsbury’s have taken the top spot for the highest total views on YouTube, with an astonishing 94,988,744 total views.
In second place, retailers M&S have approximately 19,578,798 views for their Christmas adverts on YouTube.
Third place is American tech manufacturer Apple, with 18,000,000, coming from their successful advert, Saving Simon.
Interestingly, John Lewis doesn’t make the top five despite claims that it’s not Christmas until their advert is released each year. In fact, John Lewis only makes its first appearance in this data, with its 2022 advert ranking 16th.
Please find the full data set, with all 50 Christmas adverts here, as well as images for your use here.
Credit to https://www.rebootonline.com/, who commissioned the data.
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