I’m generally of the opinion that real is always better. Diamonds, handbags, friends – but Christmas trees? That’s where I draw the line. The real ones are gorgeous – I love the pine-needle perfume as much as the next person – but the romance lasts, what, 72 hours? Then the branches start dropping like confetti, the water gets murky, and suddenly you’re vacuuming daily, nostalgic for the fir-free version of you from just a few days ago.
An artificial tree is the rare exception to my ‘real deal’ rule: it looks immaculate from day one to day twenty-one, sheds absolutely nothing, and reappears next year looking exactly as good as you left it.
But there are levels. A good one is indistinguishable from the real thing; a bad one is… tragic. You need to know how to spot the difference. Fortunately, I come armed with a pathological attention to detail, and years of exposure to every category of holiday greenery: real trees, questionable impostors, and fauxs so good they deserve an Oscar.
So, cheers to the art of faking it. Ahead, the nine best faux Christmas trees all on sale over the Black Friday weekend – spanning aesthetics, height, and budget – all vetted to fool your friends and keep your holiday spirit high and shed-free, year after year.
The Best Faux Christmas Tree Deals
When you want a sneaky spruce that doesn’t look like a sneaky spruce – and don’t want to spend an arm and a leg to get it – these are the retailers I trust for the best pre-holiday steals.
- Balsam Hill: Up to 50% off the industry’s gold standard, from 3.5-foot minis to 18-foot behemoths that could hold court in a hotel lobby.
- Crate & Barrel: Hundreds off their pre-potted, editorially perfect hemlocks, spruces, and alpines.
- Grandin Road: Reliable 40% to 60% cuts on pre-flocked, pre-lit styles that never read ‘pre’ anything.
- McGee & Co.: 50% off trees vetted by the inimitable eye of Shea McGee. If you want a tree that photographs like a lifestyle shot, start here.
- Pottery Barn: Winter whites, sculptural twig silhouettes, and a North Carolina Spruce for $163, which feels illegal.
- QVC: Major savings on cult-loved brands like Bethlehem Lights (the same ones Kathy Hilton uses, which tells you everything you need to know).
- Target: Wondershop’s well-reviewed, pre-lit styles hover around $100 without blowing their budget-buy cover.
- Terrain: 30% off Hallmark-style trees you could study up close, touch, and still assume they’re real.
- Walmart: $35 for a pre-lit 6.5-foot Madison pine. It shouldn’t be possible, and yet, they exist.
- Wayfair: Hundreds off across all heights, shapes, and aesthetics – plus, plenty of gems in the Open Box section, which routinely delivers.
For a budget-friendly tree that reads out of a Hallmark film, The Holiday Aisle's Latrae Nordic Spruce is the internet’s sweetheart. With 4.7 stars and 1,500+ reviews, it’s beloved for its lush, hyper-realistic branches that come together with relatively little effort. A quick fluff, maybe a skirt if you’re feeling fancy, and it suddenly presents like a tree that should cost quadruple.
This isn’t your average faux tree. And that’s by design. The Alpine Fir is modeled after a single unsheared specimen the Terrain team tracked down in the wild, which explains its sculptural branches, mixed needles, and editorial negative space. By day, it’s understated; by night, its integrated bulbs create a cinematic glow. The smaller sizes have already sold out, which tells you exactly where this one sits in the holiday hierarchy.
There’s no point in flocking a faux unless it’s exceptionally done – otherwise, you’re left with a tree that looks dipped in sidewalk chalk. But trust Shea McGee to deliver, coming in cool with a soft, convincing snowfall rather than a blizzard, ideal for flocking skeptics or anyone determined to fool houseguests into thinking it was sourced from a perfectly frosted hillside. It holds a 4.7-star rating and looks especially luminous against classic cherry-red ornaments.
Who said you only get one tree? This pre-flocked, pre-lit trio from Grandin Road – 2, 3, and 4 feet – is a ready-made vignette for tight corners, small spaces, or anyone craving a break from the single-tree tradition. They’re charming, easy to cluster, and hold their own as solo Christmas decor, too; reviewers keep complaining they couldn’t snag a second set before it sold out. Take that as a lesson to move quickly.
I interviewed Kathy Hilton recently about all things Christmas, and even with her Bel Air budget, she’s firmly Team Faux. She keeps twenty trees throughout her home – all from Bethlehem Lights – and swears by them. QVC carries some of the best deals, including this micro-LED-lined snowy fir with 1,650 lights. It’s classic, cinematic, and exactly the sort of 90210 glamour you’d expect in the home of a Hilton.
Balsam Hill isn’t reinventing the Christmas tree, but they’re absolutely perfecting it. Their exclusive True Needle foliage is so realistic it’s become an industry benchmark, and the customization options are almost too good: full, half (yes, that's a thing), or slim silhouettes; heights from 5.5 feet to a towering 18; unlit, incandescent, LED, or even color. Whatever your square footage – apartment, brownstone, or castle – there’s a version of this fir that fits.
Not everyone wants a pre-lit tree. Maybe you prefer to BYO-glow, or you simply like the minimalism of an unlit silhouette. In that case, there’s no hiding behind flocking or LEDs – the realism has to be airtight. That’s why I love National Tree Company’s Downswept Douglas Fir. Its hundreds of individually crafted, fire-resistant branch tips create a full, convincingly natural profile with plenty of ornament real estate. If this were a real lot tree, you’d drop $150 each year; at its current sale price, it practically pays for itself by year two.
You know you’ve found yourself a grade-A artificial tree when it stands out without relying on sparkle. Pottery Barn’s faux Hemlock is exactly that tree with its lacy, fine-needled boughs that fall in quiet, easy cascades. It’s a natural match for your most delicate, heirloom-y ornaments, which catch the glow of its 250 white LEDs beautifully. Reviewers are already doubling up.
Walmart has become an unlikely breeding ground for faux-tree unicorns, and this cypress might be the most shocking of the bunch. At this price, you generally steel yourself for something shiny, plasticky, and depressing – yet this one is everything but. With 730 pre-attached, memory-wired branch tips, it’s not masquerading as a four-figure designer fir, but it absolutely outperforms every tree in its weight class. Longtime reviewers swear it’s held up for years and still glows beautifully.
You’ve secured the tree – now for the fun part. Whether you’re leaning into the ever-internet viral ‘Ralph Lauren Christmas’ trend, the bow renaissance (thank you, Shea McGee), or Joanna Gaines’ luxuriously kitsch ’90s revival, there’s no shortage of styling direction this season.
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