Merry Christmas From Our Family to Yours: Card Lines and Captions

A note before the list: we make Tribute, the group video maker, and one of the eight groups shows how to send the greeting on video.

How do you use "merry Christmas from our family to yours" on a card?

Think of the phrase as the closing line, not the whole card. Open with something only your household could write, such as "We survived a kitchen remodel and a new puppy," then end with the classic greeting and every name. The formula is simple: one wish, one piece of news, one sign-off.

Cards are still how a lot of families stay in touch at this time of year. The Greeting Card Association reports that 75% of people who send holiday cards do it because they know how good it feels to get one. Give your reader that feeling with a line that sounds like you.

1. Classic card lines

These pair with the sign-off and work for almost anyone on your list: neighbors, coworkers, the cousins you see once a year.

• Wishing you a season of warm kitchens and full tables. Merry Christmas from our family to yours.
• May your home be loud with laughter and light with joy this Christmas.
• From our house to yours: peace, cocoa and a long winter nap.
• Thinking of you as we trim the tree and count our blessings. You're one of them.
• Here's to good food, old friends and a new year worth celebrating.
• Our family wishes your family every good thing this December.
• May this Christmas bring you rest, and the new year bring you reasons to dance.
• Wishing you a merry Christmas and a happy new year, with love from all of us.

Best for: A mixed card list where one message has to work for everyone.

Why it works: Classic lines feel familiar, and the sign-off makes it clear the whole household is sending love.

2. Merry Christmas from our little family to yours

First Christmas as a couple, first baby, first house: smaller families get to celebrate the beginnings. These lines lean into it.

• Merry Christmas from our little family to yours. We're one stocking bigger this year.
• Two of us, one tree and a lot of borrowed ornaments. Merry Christmas.
• Our first Christmas in the new house. Come see the crooked tree.
• Small family, big wishes: merry Christmas to you and yours.
• Baby's first Christmas, parents' first full night of sleep since June. Wish us luck.
• From our tiny apartment to your home: love, light and too many cookies.

Best for: Newlyweds, new parents and anyone celebrating their first Christmas in a new home.

Why it works: The reader gets the news and the greeting in one line, which is what a photo card needs.

3. Say it on video: a Tribute from the whole family

Sometimes the card isn't enough, such as when Grandma is spending Christmas alone or your brother is deployed overseas. A Tribute lets your whole family say "merry Christmas from our family to yours" on camera, one face at a time. Tribute is a group video maker that turns messages from friends and family into one surprise video. It works by inviting everyone to record a short clip from their phone; Tribute compiles the clips, music and photos into a finished video you share or play together.

Send the link two or three weeks ahead and set the deadline a few days before Christmas, since collecting videos takes time. Unlike a card everyone signs, a Tribute has everyone's voice and face, plus the toddler who grabs the phone mid-sentence. Over 8 million videos have been sent on Tribute, and it holds 4.9 stars from 7,000+ reviews.

• "Merry Christmas, Grandma! This is everybody. Yes, even Uncle Ray."
• "We couldn't fly home this year, so we brought the whole family to your screen."
• "From the six of us in Phoenix to the four of you in Chicago: merry Christmas."

Best for: Grandparents, relatives abroad and anyone who can't make the trip this year.

Why it works: Nobody has to be online at the same time, and the people watching can play it again on New Year's Day.

👉 Start your holiday Tribute

4. Funny lines

Every family has a story from this year that everyone else already knows. Put it on the card. These work for friends and cousins who'll laugh at the right part.

• Merry Christmas from our family to yours. Please don't ask about the Thanksgiving turkey.
• We took 200 photos for this card. This is the one where nobody blinked.
• Our dog ate two ornaments and a candy cane this year. He sends his best.
• Wishing you a Christmas with fewer tangled lights than ours.
• The kids are taller, the parents are tired and the cat still runs the house.
• Merry Christmas! We put the holiday letter in the recycling so you wouldn't have to.
• From the family that still hasn't returned your casserole dish: merry Christmas.

Best for: Close friends, cousins and anyone with a sense of humor.

Why it works: A joke tells the reader you know them well enough to be silly.

5. Religious lines

For families who celebrate the birth of Jesus, "merry Christmas from our family to yours" can carry a blessing too. These are original lines that sit well on a nativity card.

• May the peace of the Christ child rest on your home. Merry Christmas from our family to yours.
• Wishing you the hope of the manger and the joy of the angels this Christmas.
• We pray the light of Bethlehem shines on every room of your house.
• Rejoicing with you in the gift of a Savior. God bless your family this season.
• May you find the wonder the shepherds found, and keep it all year.
• From our family to yours, may the Prince of Peace fill your new year with grace.

Best for: Church friends, Christian relatives and religious card designs.

Why it works: It keeps the familiar sign-off and adds the meaning that matters most to the reader.

How do you wish merry Christmas to you and your family?

Sometimes you're writing to a whole household, not one person: the neighbors, your kid's best friend's parents, the family that hosted you last summer. Address them all and name the kids if you can.

6. Lines for another family

• Merry Christmas to you and your family. Thank you for being the best neighbors on the block.
• Wishing a merry Christmas to a family that always has the porch light on for us.
• To the Garcias: thanks for the carpool, the cookies and the borrowed ladder. Merry Christmas.
• Wishing you and the kids a December full of snow days and sledding.
• We're grateful our families found each other. Merry Christmas to all four of you.
• Merry Christmas to you and your family, and here's to more backyard dinners next summer.

For a merry Christmas to you and your family message by text, cut it to one line and add a photo of your tree.

Best for: Neighbors, friends' families and your kids' friends.

Why it works: A specific thank-you shows you noticed what they did for you this year.

7. Lines for in-laws

In-laws are family, but the card can feel trickier to write. Keep it warm and give them a clear place in yours.

• Merry Christmas to our daughter and son-in-law. Our table is better with you both at it.
• To our son and daughter-in-law: we can't wait to see you and hear about the new house.
• Merry Christmas to my brother and sister-in-law, the best hosts in the family.
• To my sister and brother-in-law: thanks for taking the kids sledding so we could nap.
• From our family to yours, and yours is ours too. Merry Christmas.
• Glad you're part of the family. Even more glad you brought the pie.

Best for: Married children, siblings-in-law and their families.

Why it works: Naming both people and a shared plan makes the card feel personal, not polite.

What should you write on a family photo card or caption?

Photo cards and social posts need fewer words, because the picture is doing most of the talking. One line plus the names is plenty.

8. Photo card captions

• Merry Christmas, family! Same faces, new sweaters.
• Merry Christmas to my family, near and far. Wish you were all in this photo.
• Four of us, one dog, zero matching outfits. Merry Christmas.
• Home for the holidays and loving every loud minute.
• The best thing under our tree: these people.
• Merry Christmas from our family to yours, from the coldest porch in Minnesota.
• Wishing a merry Christmas to all my family and friends. Thanks for another good year.

Best for: Printed photo cards, Instagram and Facebook posts.

Why it works: Short captions don't compete with the photo, and they read well on a phone screen.

How do you sign a family Christmas card?

List the adults first, then the kids from oldest to youngest, then the pets if they're part of the joke. "Love, Maria, Sam, Ava, Leo and Biscuit" reads better than "The Smith Family" on a card going to close relatives. Save the family name for cards to coworkers and neighbors.

Not everyone on your list celebrates Christmas. Most Americans do: Pew Research Center found that 90% of U.S. adults celebrate the holiday, including 85% of people with no religion. For friends who mark Hanukkah or just the new year, "Warm wishes from our family to yours this holiday season" keeps everyone in.

Want more words for the inside of the card? See our full list of Christmas card messages for family and our holiday card messages for family and friends.

What if your family can't send cards in time this year?

Say December gets away from you, as it does. Picture this: it's the 15th, the cards are still in the box and half the family lives two time zones away. Compared to a late card, a group video can be ready on Christmas morning, as long as you send the link early enough for everyone to record.

Start planning in November, when the Thanksgiving card rush is over and the season is ahead. Our holiday season guide lays out what to do each week from Thanksgiving to New Year's.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it "from our family to yours" or "from our family to your family"?

"From our family to yours" is the standard phrase and reads best on a card. "Yours" already means "your family," so repeating it is unnecessary.

What do you write before "merry Christmas from our family to yours"?

Add one personal line: a short wish, a piece of news or a joke from this year. Then close with the phrase and sign every name in your household.

How do you say merry Christmas to a whole family?

Address the card to the whole household, such as "Dear Garcia family" or "Dear Ana, Luis and kids." Then write "Merry Christmas to you and your family" with one specific thank-you or wish.

Is "merry Christmas from our family to yours" religious?

No, the phrase works for any family that celebrates Christmas. Add a blessing, such as "May the peace of the Christ child rest on your home," if you want a religious card.

What can you write instead of merry Christmas for friends who don't celebrate it?

Use "Warm wishes from our family to yours this holiday season" or "Happy holidays and a happy new year." Both keep the warmth without assuming a religion.

How can far-away family send a Christmas greeting together?

Ask everyone to record a short video message and put the clips together into one group video. Each person records when it suits them, and the family watches it on Christmas Day.

👉 Start your holiday Tribute and send this year's greeting with every face in the family.