The 8 Best Holiday Coffee Mugs of 2022

Best Overall

Rifle Paper Co. Holiday Porcelain Mug in Holiday Village

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With its gold or silver accents, bright hues, and illustrated designs, this porcelain mug from Rifle Paper Co. is the perfect vessel for your holiday drinks. Rifle Paper Co. is known for its vibrant, hand-painted images that highlight attention to detail and whimsical characters, and this mug is no exception. The image of a scenic holiday town features a skating rink and snow-capped farmhouses centered around a tiny Christmas tree farm, while the metallic rim adds a touch of elegance.

Although the 16-ounce mug is handwash-only and isn't microwave safe, we're willing to overlook that fact since you'll probably only bring it out for special occasions. If you have other kitchen pieces from the company, such as serving trays, aprons, or tea towels, this coffee mug will match the overall aesthetic—which certainly comes in handy during holiday entertaining. For those not interested in the holiday village scene, Rifle Paper Co. offers a couple of different holiday styles, including nutcrackers and mistletoe with metallic handles.

Price at time of publish: $22

Material: Porcelain | Capacity: 16 ounces | Dishwasher Safe: No

Best Budget

Pottery Barn Gnome Shaped Ceramic Mug

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This friendly little gnome mug is sure to add some personality to your space. It has the signature long beard, prominent nose, holiday sweater, and classic oversized cap. Serve up some hot cocoa, whipped cream, and even a marshmallow or two, or enjoy your morning coffee with this lucky—and affordable—gnome mug.

Made of ceramic earthenware from Pottery Barn, the gnome mug is both dishwasher and microwave safe, thanks to the glazed finish. However, the material does warm quickly, so handle it with caution while unloading the dishwasher or taking the mug out of the microwave while it is still hot. The mug holds 13 ounces of liquid and is lead-, latex-, BPA-, and phthalate-free. Pottery Barn offers three other holiday gnome designs in its mug collection, meaning they are easy to mix-and-match and will look great displayed on your kitchen counter. Each mug style comes in single or four-piece sets.

Price at time of publish: $10 for single mug, $40 for four-piece set

Material: Earthenware | Capacity: 13 ounces | Dishwasher Safe: Yes

Best Handmade

Ceramic Connoisseur Christmas Tree Mug

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Ceramic Connoisseur's handmade mugs are created using 24-karat gold sourced from Italy and high-quality ceramic. Sure, you can grab a set for a special occasion like a holiday party or Christmas morning brunch, but they'll also add a magical touch of winter cheer when it comes to your everyday cup of coffee. Choose between a single mug adorned with hand-painted, delicate scenes of fir tree branches or serene Christmas trees accented with real gold.

Since these mugs are handcrafted with pottery wheels, each one is unique with its own color variations and imperfections. This personal quality (no two mugs are exactly alike) makes them fantastic gifts for your loved ones. The beautiful craftsmanship speaks for itself, but the ceramic is incredibly strong as well. It's fired three times at high temperatures—around the 1240°C / 2264°F mark—for extra strength and durability. A single piece will hold about 14 ounces of liquid, and they are all dishwasher safe.

Although the mugs ship from Poland where they're made, reviewers from the United States and worldwide were impressed with "surprisingly fast" shipping times and safe packaging. Another reviewer even called these mugs one of their favorite all-time Etsy purchases.

Price at time of publish: $36 for single mug or $160 for four-piece set

Material: Ceramic | Capacity: 14 ounces | Dishwasher Safe: Yes

Best Gift

Ember Temperature Control Smart Mug 2, Metallic

4.7

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When the colder months start to roll around, this self-warming Ember mug will keep drinks like coffee and tea at the optimum temperature without extra trips to the microwave. The Ember Temperature Control Smart Mug 2 holds 10 or 14 ounces and comes in several brilliant-finish, metallic colors—gold, rose gold, copper, and stainless steel—that are absolutely ideal for the holidays.

This second-generation model has a longer-lasting battery than its predecessor, keeping drinks hot for up to 1.5 hours on a single charge. Paired with the charging coaster, however, the temperature-control mug will last all day. The Ember App lets you choose the exact temperature for a beverage between 120°F and 145°F, customize presets, and even receive notifications when your drink reaches the preferred temperature—right from your smartphone. The LED light color on the mug's charging base is customizable, as well. 

For safety, the mug has a built-in auto sleep function that senses when it's time to turn the heat on and off, entering sleep mode when the mug becomes empty and waking itself up when it senses liquid. Thanks to the stainless steel construction and scratch-resistant ceramic coating, the Ember mug is also safe to hand wash and is fully submersible at up to 3.28 feet deep.

Price at time of publish: $144 for 10-ounce mug or $180 for 14-ounce mug

Material: Stainless steel | Capacity: 10 ounces or 14 ounces | Dishwasher Safe: No

Best Glass

ZWILLING Sorrento Glass Coffee Mug

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The advantage of using a glass mug is the easy-to-see drink inside, making them great for parties with special holiday drinks like hot toddies, spiked cider, or creamy cocoa. Speaking of parties, these Sorrento mugs come in sets of four with a winter-themed flurry of snowflakes etched onto the glass. 

Double-walled borosilicate glass helps maintain drink temperatures, whether hot or cold, and matching handles will feel sturdy in hand. They're also microwave and freezer safe. ZWILLING Glassware has been around since the 1700s, known for its mouth-blown borosilicate glass made by skilled artisans in Italy and Germany. Another perk of the long-lasting borosilicate material is that cold drinks stay cold without any condensation.

Reviewers were torn about the weight of the glass mugs—some preferred how lightweight they were, while others favored a heftier feel to their cups—so that feature may come down to preference. Most agreed that the glasses themselves are beautiful in design and easy to wash by hand or in the dishwasher, which is certainly a plus when the holidays already have dirty dishes piling up.

Price at time of publish: $45 for four-piece set

Material: Borosilicate glass | Capacity: 12 ounces | Dishwasher Safe: Yes

Best Set

Pottery Barn Rustic Reindeer Terracotta Mugs

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For those who want to take a break from brightly-colored holiday decor, the Pottery Barn Rustic Reindeer Terracotta Mugs offer a minimalist, organic design—without sacrificing style. Each one of the mugs in this four-piece set is embossed with a dainty, hand-painted reindeer and coated with a reactive glaze. The glaze is restricted to the inner section of the mug, giving it a speckled effect on the inside while maintaining a rougher, more rustic texture on the exterior. Due to the hand-painted artisanal process and speckled effect, each mug has variation with its own distinct design and character.

Part of Pottery Barn's Rustic Reindeer collection, these mugs can be paired with matching tableware that shares the same hand-painted reindeer design and speckled glaze, so it's easy to plan an entire holiday dinner party around them. The whole collection consists of a serving bowl, serving platters, soup bowls, salad plates, and dinner plates. Pottery Barn also offers a 16-piece dinnerware set that includes four of the Rustic Reindeer mugs. Each piece is also dishwasher safe and phthalate-, BPA-, lead-, and latex-free.

Price at time of publish: $47 for four-piece set

Material: Terracotta | Capacity: 12.75 ounces | Dishwasher Safe: Yes

Best Ceramic

Simonds Creative Co. Hanukkah Mug

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Sip your coffee or tea from this Simonds Creative Co. mug through the Hanukkah season, and enjoy cheery doodles with custom colors. The art is hand-drawn using Procreate (no clip art or mass-produced fonts) and digitally printed onto the ceramic mug to create a truly special piece. 

The backstory with the artist, who works from Royse City in Texas, goes back to an injury that left them stuck in bed for an extended period of time. They started creating art and lettering to help pass the time, and the hobby turned into a successful Etsy shop selling everything from shirts and stickers to prints and mugs—all drawn by hand. Today, the shop as a whole boasts over 2,000 sales and an average review rating of 4.8 or higher.

Reviewers love the bright, colorful doodles and the quality of the ceramic in this mug. Likewise, they praise the artist for their quick response time to inquiries. While this particular mug's illustrations come with a white background, the artist offers the same design with a yellow or blue background and handle. They're also dishwasher and microwave safe

Price at time of publish: $16 for 11-ounce mug or $18 for 15-ounce mug

Material: Ceramic | Capacity: 11 ounces or 15 ounces | Dishwasher Safe: Yes