Every Little Debbie Christmas Snack Cake, Ranked

Little Debbie Christmas snacks aren't just tasty treats; they're cellophane-wrapped time capsules of holidays past. Generations of families have grown up with the brand's seasonal selection of baked goods since the first pack of Chocolate Party Cakes arrived in 1968. For us '80s and '90s kids, Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cakes may forever be the most beloved lunchbox dessert of December. And this year, the OG triangular treats celebrate their 40th anniversary. May you be lucky enough to bring home a box or two. When it comes to Christmas and Little Debbie, part of the magic is sweet nostalgia, the other part is pure thrill of the find. 

It's well-known that devoted LD fans stalk and stockpile these limited-edition holiday treats as soon as they hit store shelves. You're not the only one who's left Dollar General, Walmart, or Albertson's empty-handed, as a result. But nope, not this year. At the very end of pumpkin spice season, I triumphantly tracked down the Christmas Tree Cakes, Christmas Tree Brownies, and Christmas Donuts at my neighborhood supermarket. As for the rest of the winter lineup, I went straight to Little Debbie herself (the famous food mascot is a real person, after all). Turns out the official online store offers a Santa's sack full of (in-stock!) Christmas cakes, cookies, brownies, bars, muffins, and donuts all dressed up in their holiday best. When the boxed-up bundle of joy arrived at my door, we unwrapped and ranked every single offering — nine in all. Did your favorite treat make it to the top of our Nice List?

Little Debbie Christmas Tree Brownies are less iconic than the Christmas Tree Cakes, but they're quietly adored by fans who like fudge more than fluff. Introduced in 1999, these festive firs feature Little Debbie's year-round Cosmic Brownie formula at the base. The tree cutouts are then dressed up with a chunky layer of bright green frosting and a multicolored sprinkle of candy-coated chocolate chip ornaments. Appearance-wise, we can all agree they're homespun and absolutely adorable. And there's real appeal in the texture. Overall, these brownies are soft, dense, and wonderfully chewy. And yet ... something's changed.

I remember really enjoying these brownies in my younger years, but this time the green icing hit me with a Play-Doh-like quality that was nostalgic in an inedible sort of way. The online reviews for Little Debbie Christmas Tree Brownies are generally positive, but you'll also find comments about the "artificial," chemical," or "kinda fake" flavor. Others lament that the brownies are yet another example of snack-product shrinkflation. "The Christmas Tree Brownies this year look like they have fewer growth rings," said one Redditor. "They're both skinnier and smaller." While we can usually count on Little Debbie for consistency, it seems these "Littler Debbie" Christmas Tree Brownies are not what they used to be.

Little Debbie brings a morning treat to the holiday table with these striped and sprinkled mini donuts. Introduced in 2024 and inspired by the brand's cult-classic Christmas Tree Cakes, I went into tasting them with all good will. I ended up with mixed feelings and a waxy film on the roof of my mouth. 

On the one hand, these yellow cake rings are perfectly portioned and sized for dunking into coffee, milk, or hot cocoa. The airy texture is a bit dry, but the white frosting does a good job of covering for it. On the other hand, it was streaked and stained with red icing. Unlike most other Little Debbie snacks, the Mini Christmas Tree Cake Donuts are not individually wrapped. So, the decorations come out of the bag somewhat smeared and melty. Maybe refrigeration would help? 

You should expect fun when serving these mini donuts to your mischievous little elves, but don't expect them to look or taste as tree-mendous as their creme-filled namesakes. The imperfect leftovers from my bag are getting blended into a festive shake with peppermint-flavored milk.

When Chocolate Christmas Tree Cakes were absent from last year's lineup, fans feared for the worst. Had they suffered the same fate as the discontinued red velvet variety? According to a Little Debbie post on Facebook, the chocolate trees were not produced in 2024 due to a global cocoa shortage. Well, chocolate lovers, rejoice and be glad. The chocolate tree cakes are officially back.

With the announcement, excited followers took to Instagram to celebrate and declare the chocolate-flavored treats to be even better than the original. My take on the Chocolate Christmas Tree Cake is less enthusiastic. Three of the five snack cakes in my box (delivered directly from parent company McKee Foods) were smashed and broken around the edges. So first impressions were less than stellar. As for the overall eating experience, the cake's texture was crumbly and dry instead of moist, and its flavor was meek and mild instead of decadent. I wanted more from that chocolate creme filling than basic Hostess vibes. 

In-tact and fresh, I'm guessing one of these red-and-green sprinkled Christmas cakes could go a long way toward lifting your holiday spirits. One Redditor on r/junkfoodfinds recommends "warming them in the microwave for 10 seconds and eating with a small scoop of vanilla ice cream." With that in mind, I'd be willing to give the Chocolate Tree Cakes a second chance.

Little Debbie Christmas Cherry Cordials present themselves most like a gift. The outer carton features an old-timey Santa along with cheerful red cherries, and a stout rectangular shape reminiscent of Queen Anne or Cella's chocolate candies. That's an honest hint at what's inside. I opened the box to find eight individually wrapped, and formidably sized sandwich cookies veiled in a thin chocolate coating. The vanilla discs underneath were soft, but a little too dry for my liking. Thankfully, the subtly sweet cherry creme filling helped smooth things over with legit bakery-cake frosting flavor. These would be even better with a glass of milk.

Little Debbie Cherry Cordials get extra points for daring to be a little different. I'm pretty fond of boxed chocolate-covered cherries (even the cheap drugstore variety), and this snack-cake spinoff captures the experience without being too cloying or artificial. However, cherry cordials turn up on America's worst Christmas candy lists all the time. If you're one of the haters, hold onto your $3 for a holiday snack further up on our list. As it is, some LD fans have had trouble locating these Cherry Cordials for years. You can try the Little Debbie online snack finder, but they weren't available anywhere within a 50-mile radius of my ZIP code.

In a season overflowing with caramel, peppermint, and Dubai chocolate everything, Little Debbie's North Pole Nutty Buddy treats offer a delicious diversion for fans of peanut butter. This festive spin on the brand's bestselling Nutty Buddy features the same iconic crisscross build, but the chocolate coating is replaced with milky white fudge and a red ribbon drizzle. 

Flavor-wise, these limited-time treats are mostly what you'd expect — and that's a wonderful thing. The wafers inside shatter to a delightfully light crisp with each bite. The peanut butter filling holds the layers together with a creamy, salty goodness. Compared to the bold, roasty original Nutty Buddy duos of the 1960s, the newfangled North Pole version is delicately sweet, bordering on (dare I say?) elegant. In Walmart.com reviews, some Little Debbie faithfuls are disappointed with the bar's slimmer, solo profile. But others appreciate that "it's easier not to eat too many" and "they're only 120 calories, so less guilt." Priced at around $3 for a box of 10, these bars deserve high praise for their picture-perfect, candy-striped looks. They'd really shine as a nostalgic stocking stuffer or filler on your holiday cookie tray. 

Everyone loves a Christmas surprise, and these cheerful mini muffins stand out as an unexpected Little Debbie delight. The family-friendly carton comes with five perfectly portioned pouches, each holding four bite-sized treats. They're easy to open, and even easier to love. With one tear of the corner, you get fresh-baked notes of butter and vanilla. And when you take a bite, you might actually forget about the million things on your holiday to-do list for a moment.

Little Debbie Christmas Mini Muffins joined the holiday lineup in 2024, and they may be flying under your radar. In my area, they were the most widely available and well-stocked indulgence on our list. Sure, fast-food muffins can help get you through a season of hustle and bustle, but these cuties are even more convenient. Toss the pouches into work bags and school lunches (crumble-free), or unwrap and pile them onto a breakfast buffet. No, they're not gourmet. But for around $3, they're softly sweet and comforting, and I swear I caught hints of maraschino cherry. As one happy customer on Walmart.com put it: "These are so yummy!! [They] taste like mini pound cakes!! Well done, Little Debbie, well done!!"

I'm generally more into gingerbread for the decorating than the eating, but these little guys changed my bah-humbug perspective. Compared to other packaged gingerbread cookies, the Little Debbie variety is chewy, soft, mildly spicy (yay), and deliciously versatile. There's just enough sweet white icing and festive razzle-dazzle to enjoy them right out of the package. But you could also gather your family and friends around the table to spruce them up. Offer candy eyes, mini M&Ms, and icing to create sweet gingerbread guy and gal faces. Or, flip the cookies upside down, and you've got the makings of gingerbread reindeer. I love that they're individually wrapped and just the right size for little hands (or smaller portions). 

Unwrapped and lined up on a party tray, I don't think anyone would guess — or care — these darlings come out of a $3 carton from the corner market. (Truth be told, you can even find them at Menards.) If you have no time to bake this December, no problem. Little Debbie Christmas Gingerbread Cookies hit all the nostalgic notes of storied gingerbread without the hassle of making them yourself. 

Little Debbie Vanilla Christmas Tree Cakes are just like those animated holiday reruns that never get old. It just wouldn't be Christmas without them. Each snack cake is a snowy-white frosted evergreen made with two layers of squishy, yellow sponge cake and a thick ribbon of vanilla creme in between. Yes, the icing is waxy-sweet, but that's the taste of unadulterated, retro joy. 

Now celebrating their 40th anniversary, Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cakes have really only changed in shape over the years. They started out as straight, basic triangles, but got a scalloped branch upgrade in 2012. The classic flavor — with its red garland stripes and crunchy green sugar lights — remains a predictable annual eating ritual for families across the country. And it's no exaggeration to say these OG treats have graduated from simple 1980s-era treat to full-blown holiday mascot, complete with themed non-edible merch. The Little Debbie website is loaded with Christmas collectibles (neckties, earrings, Hawaiian shirts, dog toys), as well as festive recipe ideas.

It would have been easy to put the beloved vanilla Christmas Tree Cakes in the top spot based on pure nostalgia alone. However, these newer Snowflake Brownies are by far the most beautiful and best-tasting holiday treat of the bunch. It all begins with Little Debbie's classic fudge brownie base, in a unique, hexagonal shape. On top, you get a decent layer of snow-white icing, a sparkle of blue sugar crystals, and a splendid stamped snowflake. The box of five brownies includes a variety of snowflake designs — they're not all the same!

Comparing the snowflake brownies to the tree brownies in flavor, the snowflakes are exceedingly more enjoyable. The distinction definitely stems from the different color icings and decorations. While the green trees tasted artificial, the white snowflakes were fudgy-rich and semi-homemade-level delicious. Unwrapped and with the box tossed to recycling, you could easily pass these brownies off as bakery-bought at your next holiday party. I also love that their wintry looks are not just for celebrating Christmas. I'm thinking of stashing a box in the freezer for that surprise late-season snow that always hits in March or April.

Little Debbie Christmas snacks are wrapped up with memories that take you back to a simpler time. For this ranking, we set aside sweet sentiments to objectively compare nine festive treats based on flavor, texture, aroma, visual appeal, and overall holiday enjoyment. We also considered what Little Debbie fans were saying on forums, social media platforms, and review sites. The pre-packaged goodies at the top of our list would make anyone extra merry in this season of hustle and bustle. We'd even serve them to Santa. Hey Santa, anything you can do about those discontinued Christmas Spice Cookie Wreaths?