October was the month Christmas took over. On Playground, sellers started using more Christmas templates than Halloween ones in the second week of October, and by the third week it wasn't even close. If you're planning your November, that's your cue: finish your Christmas listings by November 20, and start the next wave (winter sweatshirts, Galentine's and Valentine's) in early December.
The short version: The print on demand design trends to make in November 2026 are funny Christmas animals, Christmas cookie club designs, personalized "crew" shirts for families and friend groups, Christmas wrapping paper patterns, and winter sweatshirts that sell past Christmas. Halloween, pumpkin-season fall designs and new Thanksgiving listings are done for the year.
Updated October 2026.
What happened in print on demand in October 2026?
October 2026 was a hard handoff from Halloween to Christmas. Christmas template use on Playground passed Halloween in the second week of October and more than tripled from mid-September. Halloween design searches had already peaked in September, and searches for wrapping paper jumped about 7x month over month.
Here's what stood out to us, looking at what thousands of sellers searched for and made on Playground this month:
- Halloween peaked earlier than most people think. Searches for Halloween designs were highest in September and dropped about 30% in October. The sellers who did best with Halloween were designing it in August.
- Christmas searches climbed about 75% from September, and Christmas tees, cards and ornaments all rose together.
- Wrapping paper came out of nowhere. Searches for wrapping paper and gift wrap designs were up about 7x, and there are still only a few dozen wrapping paper designs in our library.
- Thanksgiving got searched but not made. Thanksgiving searches went up, but almost nobody actually used Thanksgiving templates. We read that as sellers deciding the window was too short, and we agree.
Our two cents: if you only take one thing from October, make it this. Design 6 to 8 weeks before the holiday, not during it.
What are the top print on demand trends for November 2026?
The top print on demand trends for November 2026 are funny Christmas animals, Christmas cookie club designs, personalized crew and family shirts, Christmas wrapping paper patterns, and winter sweatshirts that keep selling into February. All five showed up in both our weekly trend scans and in what Playground sellers were actually making in October.
1. Christmas animals with attitude
Highland cows in Santa hats, chickens with a pun, geese in scarves. Farm animals with a little sass were some of the most-used Christmas templates on Playground this October, and they work on tees, sweatshirts and mugs alike. They're cute enough for gift buyers and funny enough for the person buying for themselves.
Try this: start from Deck the Stalls, Merry Little Chaos, Merry As A Mother Clucker or the Festive Little Crew geese. Then swap the animal for your audience's favorite. Dog breeds are an easy win (here's a pit bull with Christmas lights to start from), and there's a whole Christmas dog pack too.
2. The Christmas cookie club
Baking season, cookie swaps and "Santa's favorite cookie supplier." Cookie designs were one of the clearest clusters in October, and they're sweet in every sense: giftable, cozy and great for the person who hosts the cookie exchange every year.
Try this: Baking Season, The Cookie Committee, Sugar Cookie Club and Santa's Favorite Cookie Supplier. Pair the tee with a matching cookie swap invite from the Christmas invitation pack, or browse the full Christmas cookies pack.
3. Made for your people
Mamas, first Christmases, friend groups and whole families. Personalized group shirts are the strongest Christmas story we tracked all month: the top-selling Christmas shirts on Etsy right now are personalized family sets, and searches for personalized friend gifts on Etsy are up 1,400% from last year.
Try this: Our First Christmas (swap in the year and names), Mama Makes the Magic, Cozy Cup Crew and Mama's Cookie Crew. For friend groups, search Friendsmas templates. Our holiday personalization guide covers the formats that convert best.
4. Christmas wrapping paper patterns
Searches for wrapping paper designs on Playground jumped about 7x in October. Wrapping paper also has the longest runway of any holiday product, with searches peaking the week before Christmas, so you've got more time here than anywhere else. One pattern can live on wrapping paper, tissue paper, tote bags and pajama pants.
Try this: Vintage Santa wrapping paper, the pink and green checkered trees and the winter deer landscape. Browse the full Christmas wrapping paper pack and Christmas patterns pack. Pink Christmas palettes work beautifully here too (our pink Christmas guide has the colors).
5. Winter, not just Christmas
Ski lodges, cocoa and "cozy by nature." Searches for sweatshirts and winter designs kept creeping up through October, and mall brands just dropped ski club tees. Winter designs sell from Black Friday all the way into March, with a second bump in February, long after the Christmas listings go quiet.
Try this: Meet Me at the Lodge, Ski You Later and Cozy by Nature. Invent a ski club with a founding year, then change the town name five times and you've got a mini collection. More in the cozy Christmas pack.
What should you design now for December through February?
Print on demand sellers should list Christmas designs by November 20, then start Galentine's, Valentine's and Big Game designs in early December. That timing gives new listings the 6 to 8 weeks they need to get noticed. Winter and ski designs keep selling through February, so they're worth adding now.
- Now to November 20: finish and list your Christmas designs. Anything listed after that has very little time to get found.
- November 27: Black Friday weekend. Bundle your best designs into "gifts for her," "gifts for dog moms" and similar collections. Our holiday gift guide has 12 niches to build around.
- Early December: start Galentine's and Valentine's. Galentine's searches climb from early January to a sharp peak the week of February 13. And here's a fun one: for the first time ever, the big championship football game lands on Valentine's Day (February 14, 2027). Game day humor with hearts, no team names or logos, could be a sleeper hit. Browse the Valentine's Day pack to get a head start.
- Through February: winter, ski and cozy designs keep earning after Christmas wraps.
Which print on demand trends are fading?
Halloween, pumpkin-season fall designs and new Thanksgiving listings are fading for 2026. Halloween searches peaked in September, fall and pumpkin template use dropped about 40% from mid-September, and Thanksgiving on November 26 is too close for new listings to get found. Put that energy into Christmas and winter instead.
- Halloween: it's done for this year. Keep your best sellers live, note what worked, and plan to start next year's collection in August.
- "Hello fall" and pumpkin everything: use of fall and pumpkin templates fell about 40% from mid-September to late October. Cozy still sells, just in its winter coat now.
- New Thanksgiving designs: if you already have Thanksgiving listings, leave them up. If you don't, we'd skip it this year and put that time into Christmas.
For more on what to stop making, our list of trends to stop chasing still holds up.
Which Playground templates are trending for the holidays?
The most-used holiday templates on Playground this October were cute, illustrated Christmas tees with a little humor or a lot of cozy. Five worth starting from:
- 'Tis the Season: coffee cup, tree, gift and Santa hat in a row. A quiet bestseller.
- Festive Little Crew: geese in scarves. Our most-used new Christmas template of the month.
- Baking Season: one-color line art that prints cleanly on anything.
- Merry Little Chaos: coquette bows meet holiday chaos.
- Deck the Stalls: the highland cow everyone wants on a sweatshirt.
Want more? The Christmas t-shirt pack has hundreds to choose from.
How do you turn these trends into listings on Playground?
Turning a trend into a listing on Playground takes about ten minutes. Open a trend template in the design editor, change the words, names or colors to make it yours, clean up the background, and export a print-ready file for your print provider. Every step happens in the same editor.
- Click any template in this post to open it in the Playground design editor, or click New Design and describe your idea in the prompt bar.
- Make it yours: swap the animal, the name, the year or the colors.
- Use Remove Background in the editor's tool panel, then run it through Upscale (4x) so it prints crisp.
- Export and upload it to your print provider.
To sell what you make, you'll need Playground Pro, which includes the commercial license for $12 a month billed annually. With five trends worth listing before Black Friday, it pays for itself fast.
How we put this report together
This report combines two things. The first is our weekly trend scans, which track new launches at big retailers, rising searches and what's selling on Etsy. The second is what thousands of Playground sellers searched for and made in October 2026. We share percentages and directions rather than our raw counts, and we only include trends we saw in both places.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best print on demand designs to sell in November 2026?
The best print on demand designs for November 2026 are funny Christmas animals, Christmas cookie designs, personalized family and friend group shirts, Christmas wrapping paper patterns, and winter sweatshirts like ski club and cozy lodge designs.
When should I list Christmas print on demand designs?
List Christmas designs by November 20. That gives your listings about a week before Black Friday on November 27 and a full month before the December gift rush.
Is it too late to sell Thanksgiving designs in 2026?
For new listings, mostly yes. Thanksgiving is November 26, which doesn't leave enough time for a new listing to get found. Keep existing Thanksgiving listings up, and put new design time into Christmas and winter.
When should I start Valentine's and Galentine's designs?
Start Valentine's and Galentine's designs in early December. Galentine's searches climb from early January and peak the week of February 13, and the 2027 championship football game falls on Valentine's Day itself.
Are wrapping paper designs worth selling with print on demand?
Yes. Searches for wrapping paper designs on Playground jumped about 7x in October, the season runs right up to the week before Christmas, and one pattern can also sell as tissue paper, tote bags and pajama pants.
Ready for your best holiday season yet? Pick one trend from this list, open a template, and get it listed this week. We'll be back next month with what sold and what's next.