Christmas Central Review

Wednesday, January 20th

2021 Christmas Tree Store Reviews

Christmas Central

• Sample Pricing: 7.5' Northlight Pre-Lit Noble Fir with Multi-Color Lights - $500.99

Christmas Central keeps their shelves stocked year-round, offering not just winter holiday decorations but indoor and outdoor decor for every season. In business for nearly four decades, this retailer is based out of Buffalo, New York and has been featured in Elle Decor, HGTV, and Better Homes & Gardens.

Features:

• Over 1400 Christmas trees to choose from
• Free ground shipping in the lower 48 states for orders over $77, flat rate fee of $5 for all others
• Returns accepted within 30 days (or prior to December 25) for new and unused merchandise; no charge for return shipping fees when selecting a store credit instead of a refund
• "A+" rating from the BBB

More Than 1,400 Christmas Trees To Choose From

You'll find an ample inventory of more than 1,400 Christmas trees at this store, in addition to plenty of ornaments, decorations, lights and tree accessories. Strangely, there was no way to shop specifically by height on the main Christmas Trees page. You'll have to use a different filter, like Pre-Lit or Unlit trees, and then see what's available in the size you need. You can always sort through the options by color, needle type, light type and color, whether the tree is for indoor or outdoor use, and several other criteria.

Easy To See What's In Stock

You won't see as many customer reviews on individual products here: even when we sorted trees by popularity, most of them only had one or two ratings from shoppers. But, we appreciated that even the quick view of each tree told us how many were still in stock - especially for shoppers who are trying to buy during peak holiday season, it's helpful to know if you should be in a hurry if you've got a definite favorite.

Disappointing Shopping Experience

Shopping here wasn't as enjoyable of an experience as we had with many of Christmas Central's competitors. Maybe it was the text-heavy descriptions or somewhat utilitarian product photos (or the fact that we couldn't shop by tree height without choosing a tree style first?), but that's not a huge minus. Prices on Christmas Central were also slightly more expensive than some rival stores, which may have also dampened our holiday enthusiasm.

Onsite Discounts

If you'd like to save a little on your purchase, keep an eye out for a pop-up when visiting the Christmas Central site. We got a discount offer of 10% on our first purchase if we signed up for the retailer's email newsletter. The store also offers free shipping if your order is over $77; otherwise you'll pay a flat fee of just $5. In other words, unless you decide to just buy some lights, ornaments, or other small items, you'll probably get your order delivered for free - even on large items like Christmas trees.

Standard Return Policy

What about returns? The policy at this store is fairly standard: you have 30 days from the date of delivery (or before December 25, whichever comes first) to get your purchase back to the warehouse, and all products must be in unused condition. You'll be responsible for the return shipping fees, unless you choose a store credit over a refund.

Mixed Customer Feedback

Shopper feedback for Christmas Central is mixed. The most common complaint we found was that many items weren't shipped on time. More than a few customers said that even though they'd paid for expedited shipping, their Christmas items took longer than a week to arrive - or that the products had arrived damaged and they had a hard time getting a satisfactory response from Christmas Central reps. On the other hand, more than 1800 shoppers gave this store a 5-star rating, and the Better Business Bureau rates it as an "A+, with only a little over two dozen complaints filed in the three years leading up to our review.

Middle Of The Road

At the end of the day, there was nothing glaringly negative about buying a Christmas tree from this store - but there also wasn't anything that made us excited about shopping here. You might find the right tree at the right price, along with plenty of accessories for trimming it perfectly and decorating the rest of your home as well. We just wound up feeling like Christmas Central was missing some of the seasonal sizzle displayed by other stores.