12 wonderful facts about Christmas

The wrapping paper used would circle the world 22 times

Christmas fireplace
Author: Anna Sky MagliolaPublished 20th Nov 2024

Christmas is here, so we thought we'd take a look at the big day in numbers. From the number of Christmas cards which are bought every year, to the amount of time the average person spends decorating their house, we have the results!

Check out these 12 facts about Christmas:

Christmas cards

1) The UK donates around £50 million a year by purchasing charity Christmas cards.

Christmas cards

2) 100 million individual cards are sold and an additional 900 million are sold in multipacks and by online providers, bringing in around £1.5 billion!

Christmas Presents

3) A massive 910,000,000 metres of wrapping paper is used each year which is 565,447 miles and would go around the world 22 times.

Decorating your house

4) UK adults admit to spending on average 25 hours perfecting their Christmas style, whether it is lights, tinsel, baubles, or a combination of all of them.

Santa traditions

5) On Christmas Eve an estimated 16.2 million mince pies and 16.2 million carrots will be left out as snacks for Santa and his reindeer.

Santa traditions

6) 13 million Brits will also be leaving a whisky for the big man, and 10.4 million will leave a beer.

Christmas Food

7) The average person spends £228 on food over Christmas.

Christmas Food

8) On average we also eat eight chocolates each, equating to a massive 520,800,000 nationwide.

Christmas Food

9) When it comes to Christmas dinner, the average number of sprouts eaten is six, equating to 390,600,000 Brussels sprouts eaten across the nation.

Christmas Food

10) Five mince pies are eaten each, totalling 325,500,000 nationwide.

Christmas Food

11) And four pigs in blankets are eaten per person, which totals 260,400,000 cooked nationwide.

Christmas Food

12) Amazingly each person will also eat three Christmas puddings over the Christmas period, amounting to 195,300,000 consumed nationwide! Feeling full yet?

This research was provided by UK sofa and flooring specialist ScS.

Now read:

Things you'll only understand if your birthday is around Christmas

The best Christmas films to get you in the festive spirit

11 things that always happen when the family get together at Christmas

How to listen to Hits Radio:

Turn it up with Hits Radio! Home of Fleur East, Sam Thompson and Gemma Atkinson playing the biggest hits and the biggest throwbacks, alongside the biggest laughs and life-changing competitions. Tune in on FM, DAB, online, ask your Smart Speaker to 'Play Hits Radio' and download the Rayo app.