Christmas card list template (printable or online)

A card list is a small table you reuse every December: who gets a card, where it goes, and whether one came back. Kept for a few years, it saves the yearly hunt through old envelopes and phone contacts. Below is what to put in it, how to keep it current, and a blank version to print.

What to track

Name as it goes on the envelope

"The Garcia Family" or "Mr. and Mrs. Lee" is what you write, so store that, separate from the first names you use in the card itself. The addressing guide has the line for each kind of household.

Postal address

The full mailing address on 2 to 4 lines: street with apartment or unit number, then city, state and ZIP code, and the country for anyone abroad.

Sent

A checkbox for this year. Tick it the moment the envelope is sealed and stamped, so a second evening of writing doesn't produce a duplicate.

Received

A checkbox for cards that arrive. It tells you who you missed (someone sent you one and you didn't send back) and, over a few years, who has stopped sending.

Notes (optional)

A new baby, a move, a loss in the family. A word or two here keeps the card's message right.

If you keep the list on paper for several years, add one Sent and one Received column per year. Five years fit across a landscape page.

How to keep it current

• Update an address the day a card comes back with a new return address on the envelope. That is the most reliable source you will get.
• Before you start writing, ask the people you are unsure about for their address. One message to everyone is less work than ten separate ones, see how to collect addresses for Christmas cards.
• After the holidays, look at the Received column. Someone who sent you a card but isn't on your list yet goes on it now, while you still have their envelope.
• Check your postal service's holiday mailing dates in November. Cards abroad need more time than cards within the country.

Paper, spreadsheet or a shared link

A printed list is quick and works well for 20 or 30 cards. A spreadsheet sorts and prints labels through a mail merge, but you still type every address yourself. The card list on this site adds one step: you send a single link and people type in their own address. Then you tick off sent and received cards and print address labels (Avery 5160, or A4 3 x 8 with 70 x 37 mm labels) straight from the list. It is free and needs no account.