Christmas countdown widget for iPhone
Christmas 2026 is on Friday, December 25. Here is how to keep the countdown on your iPhone Lock Screen or Home Screen so you see it every time you pick up the phone. A number on a wallpaper image stays the same until you make a new one; a widget goes down by one every day on its own.
Christmas Day · Friday, December 25, 2026 · 10 weeks
Add it to your Home Screen — free
On the Lock Screen
- Install Countdown Widget: Any Event, tap + and pick Christmas from the ready-made events, or type a name and set the date to December 25, 2026.
- Touch and hold the Lock Screen until the Customize button appears at the bottom, then tap it.
- Tap Add Widgets under the clock, or tap the widgets that are already there.
- Choose Countdown, then tap Done.
On the Home Screen
- Touch and hold an empty area until the apps jiggle.
- Tap Edit → Add Widget (on iOS 17, tap +), search for Countdown and swipe through the sizes.
- Tap Add Widget, drag it into place, then tap Done.
You can also touch and hold the Countdown app icon and pick a size at the bottom of the menu. iOS 27 adds a bigger size: Apple says extra-large widgets “let you see more information from your favorite apps right on the Home Screen” (What’s new in iOS 27). Countdown offers that size too, and every size is free.
Wallpaper or widget?
| Number on a wallpaper | Widget | |
|---|---|---|
| The number | Stays as you made it | Goes down by one every day |
| Work | Make a new image each day | Set the date once |
| Where | Behind everything | Under the Lock Screen clock, or anywhere on the Home Screen |
Christmas setups that work well
- One big number: a single countdown to Christmas Day on the Lock Screen, set to repeat yearly so it is back on December 26.
- The whole season in a list: the first Sunday of Advent (Sunday, November 29, 2026), Christmas Eve (Thursday, December 24, 2026), Christmas Day and New Year's Eve, shown together in the list widget.
- The trip home: a countdown to the flight, with a reminder a week before and the booking written on the back of the event.
- For the kids: a countdown to Christmas Eve on a shared iPad, with a reminder the morning before.
Just want the number? How many days until Christmas 2026 has the live count and the dates for the next few years. Full Lock Screen and Home Screen steps for any event are in how to put a countdown on your iPhone Lock Screen, and if you are still choosing an app, see which countdown widget apps are free.