The Elfi alternative: personalized Santa videos, compared
An honest, side-by-side look at Elfi's long, photo-rich Santa video and our instant one — including the cases where Elfi is genuinely the better pick.
Make a Santa videoThe short answer
Elfi makes a long, richly personalized Santa video — 18 personalization options, up to six photos woven in, a listed running time around nine minutes — at $12.99 per child ($15.99 for a group), with a subscription that cuts 40% forever but renews annually and charges your card each year. We make the greeting itself fast and light: Santa says your child's name, city and achievements in a 60–90 second film for $9.99 (audio $3.99, short video $5.99), generated in minutes, with a free preview before you pay and no subscription mechanics at all. If you want a long cinematic keepsake with the family photos inside, Elfi does that better. If you want Santa on your phone tonight, in any of 29 languages, without joining anything — that's us.
Side by side
Checked in August 2026 on Elfi's live US storefront. Both services deliver a personalized Santa video by email; the differences are length, speed, languages and the pricing mechanics.
| What matters | Santa here | Elfi |
|---|---|---|
| The video | 60–90 s film (or 15–30 s vertical Stories), name, city, achievements spoken aloud | Long template (listed at ~9 min) with 18 personalization options and up to 6 photos |
| How fast | Minutes from order to inbox | Email delivery; 2-hour Super Express (free with subscription), standard tiers up to 24 h |
| Price | $3.99 audio · $5.99 Stories · $9.99 full video; a family film naming up to 4 kids is $12.99 — their price for ONE child | $12.99 one child / $15.99 group one-time, or $7.79 / $9.59 with the −40% subscription |
| The subscription catch | None — there is no subscription | −40% forever, but it renews annually and auto-charges your card; cancel anytime |
| Languages | Santa speaks 29 languages | 7 storefronts: US, UK, Italy, Germany, Poland, France, Brazil — no Spanish |
| Photo of the child | Optional photo in Santa's hands for $2–3 | Up to 6 photos included in the video — a genuine strength |
| See before you pay | Free preview of your child's actual message | Sample videos on the site |
| Guarantee | 180-day money-back guarantee | 180 days for return — the same, and worth saying so |
| Start for free |
What a greeting costs here
One-off payments, no subscription, nothing to cancel or remember next November.
$3.99 — audio message
30–40 seconds of Santa speaking to your child by name
$5.99 — Stories video
15–30 second vertical video, made for phones
$9.99 — full video
The 60–90 second film, with an optional photo of your child in Santa's hands for a little more
Elfi's $7.79 subscription price beats our $9.99 only if you're happy with an annual auto-renewal charging your card every year. Their one-time price is $12.99. Checked August 2026 on their US storefront.
Santa can say their name tonight
Make a Santa videoWhen Elfi is the better pick
An honest list — some families are better served there:
- You want a long film, not a greeting: their template runs around nine minutes with the child's photos woven into the story — ours is a focused 60–90 seconds.
- You want many photos inside the video: Elfi takes up to six; we place one in Santa's hands.
- You also want a paper letter from Santa in the post — it's Elfi's second product, and we don't ship paper.
- You order every single year and don't mind the auto-renewing subscription — the permanent −40% then genuinely pays off.
How the video works here
Tell Santa about your child
Name, age, city, what they did well this year — one short form.
Preview for free
See your child's actual message before paying a cent.
Get it in minutes
The finished video lands in your email, ready to play tonight.
Santa can say their name tonight
No subscription to join, no renewal to remember — a personalized video from Santa in minutes, from $3.99.
Make a Santa videoMore honest comparisons
Examples
Stories video (15–30 sec)
Full video (60–90 sec)
Frequently Asked Questions
What exactly does Elfi sell?
Two flagship products: a richly personalized Santa video ($12.99 one child, $15.99 group, one-time — or −40% with an annually renewing subscription) and a paper letter from Santa by post. There's also a phone-call add-on where Santa 'calls' during the video — the child sees a recorded message in a video-call frame.
Is Elfi's video better than one here?
It's longer and holds more photos — around nine minutes with up to six photos, against our 60–90 seconds with one. Ours is faster (minutes, not hours), cheaper without subscription mechanics ($9.99 vs $12.99 one-time), shows you a free preview of the actual message, and speaks 29 languages. Which is 'better' depends on whether you're buying a keepsake film or a magic moment tonight.
How does Elfi's subscription work?
Per their site: subscribing gives a permanent −40% on purchases plus free 2-hour delivery, and the subscription renews automatically each year, charging your card and issuing a voucher for the season. It's cancellable anytime. If you'd rather not manage that, both their one-time price ($12.99) and ours ($3.99–9.99, no subscription at all) exist.
Does Elfi work in my language?
Elfi runs storefronts for the US, UK, Italy, Germany, Poland, France and Brazil. There is no Spanish version. Santa here speaks 29 languages, including Spanish and all of the above.
Is Elfi's phone call a real conversation?
No — their add-on plays a recorded message styled as a video call while the child watches the video (their page says the child 'will see the recorded message during the video call'). If you want a live two-way call where Santa hears and answers your child, that's a separate product here: Santa calls the child's phone, briefed with their name, city and achievements.
Elfi is a trademark of its respective owner. Facts and prices about Elfi were checked in August 2026 on their public US storefront; prices and terms may change — verify on their site before ordering.