Courtney Warren is a Texas-based interior designer whose work has been featured in Real Simple, Better Homes & Gardens, Good Housekeeping, Apartment Therapy, and Today.com. She is a frequent consultant on Fox 4 TV’s Good Day program in Dallas, was ranked in the top 3 percent of interior designers in the US by Houzz.com, and starred in the Dallas episode of TLC’sFour Houses. She delights in helping overwhelmed clients create beautiful spaces—and will never turn down a warm chocolate chip cookie or Diet Dr Pepper.

I'm Courtney Waren

Shop the projects

My Go-To design accessories

The Ultimate Resource Guide to Christmas Tree Quantities

How many ornaments do I need for my tree? How much ribbon?

This is the question I ask myself every time I plan out my Christmas decor.

I don’t want to recreate the Charlie Brown Christmas tree, after all.

That one lonely ornament is so sweet, but also, so sad.

No Sad Christmas Trees. Not on my watch.

You might be thinking….”My tree is ‘insert height here” ft tall- so how many ornaments do I need?”

Some years I decorate a 7 ft tree.

Some years I decorate a 9 ft tree.

But every year, I need to know how many ornaments and how much ribbon to prepare for on my tree.

So, I created this sheet to give me a general rule of thumb.

And figured it might be helpful for you, too.

Save this or Pin it

Some trees may need a little more, some may need a little less.
The quantity of ornaments and ribbon based on tree size largely comes down to personal preference.
So this chart will give you a great starting place, then you can eyeball it from here.

How much ribbon for my tree size?

Based on ribbons of 10 yards, follow this chart:

7.5′ tree = Two to three/ 1 roll for accent
9′ tree = Three to four / 1-2 rolls for accent
10′ tree = Four to five rolls/2 rolls for accent
12′ tree = Five to six rolls/ 2-3 rolls for accent

Now that the ribbon is covered, the recommended ornament quantities are pretty simple:

How many ornaments should I put on a tree?

a 6 ft tree…..60

For a 7 ft tree…..70

For a 8 ft tree…..80

For a 9 ft tree….90

For Christmas tree larger than 9 ft, use this rule of thumb:

10 ft Christmas tree-120-160 ornaments

12 ft Christmas tree-144-192 ornament

14 ft Christmas tree- 168-244 ornaments

Can you put too many ornaments on a tree?

I think the best part of Christmas decor is allowing your personality to shine through.

So, I am going to say that as long as YOU love your Christmas tree, how many ornaments it has really doesn’t matter.

Some people love a fuller tree, and some prefer only fewer ornaments.

Some might think one is overdecorated, and some may think it’s the other is under decorated.

If you are not sure which camp you prefer, then aim for a middle ground.

Now, let’s talk 2023 Christmas tree how-to: decorating basics

How do you fluff a Christmas tree?

There is something therapeutic about fluffing a tree. It is sorta mindless work, it doesn’t take too much effort.

What is fluffing a Christmas tree? Simply taking each branch and spreading them out evenly so they are even and there are not large holes in the tree.

Fluffing a Christmas tree is It basically like the Christmas answer to a bald combover.

How long should you fluff?

It’s one of those jobs, maybe like painting, where you could work on it forever. If you don’t see any large, gaping holes, then you have sufficiently fluffed!

It can be a bit scratchy on your hands, so it can be more enjoyable if you wear gloves.

You can see in this photo, the Christmas tree on the left has gone through the initial fluffing

(although I do see some wonky branches towards the bottom. Oof!

The tree on the right is straight from storage)

In What Order Should You Decorate A Christmas Tree?

Fluff first. (You are toally an expert now)
Add lights.
Ribbon *Yes, I put the ribbon on before I add the ornaments*
Flower Picks and Tree topper. (I usually do these around the same time.)
First, I like to put in the Large ornaments and space them evenly through out. I don’t put large ornaments towards the top or the bottom necesarily. I space them all around the tree.
Once I see how the large ones look, I pepper in medium Ornaments
Finally, I place the smaller Ornaments to fill any holes.

What size ornaments do I need?

I range my smaller to medium ornaments anywhere from 4-8 inches.

I think a tree looks best with a few oversized ornaments.

Like 16-22 inches big!

Shop Christmas decor

While we are talking about great values and making things easier this holiday season, I have just the thing that may help you.

I have been helping people with the holidays for the past 11 years, and I find that we all (myself included) can tend to make them overly complicated and miss out on the magic they can bring.

So, I put together some all my best holiday decor tips and hacks for both Autumn and Christmas so we can make holiday decor simpler, yet beautiful, and instead, can enjoy what really matters this holiday season.

Do you need that kind of help?