Advent Wreaths and Candles: Colors, Order and What to Buy

A traditional Advent wreath is an evergreen circle with four candles, one lit on each Sunday of Advent. Catholic wreaths use three violet candles and one rose for the third Sunday. Many Lutheran churches use blue. In 2026 the Sundays fall on November 29 and December 6, 13 and 20. Keep real flames a foot from greenery.

What is an Advent wreath?

The Catholic Book of Blessings describes it as “a circle of evergreen branches into which are inserted four candles.” One candle is lit on the first Sunday of Advent, then one more each week, so the light grows as Christmas gets closer. The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod explains that the evergreen circle represents eternal life.

The wreath is a home custom as much as a church one. Many families light it at the dinner table on Sundays and add a short prayer or reading.

Advent candle colors by tradition

Colors follow the liturgical colors each church uses for Advent, so they differ more than most people expect.

Blue has a meaning of its own. Living Lutheran, the ELCA magazine, says blue candles point to “hope and expectation” as the church waits for Christmas.

What do the four candles stand for?

The best-known naming is hope, peace, joy and love, in that order. Some churches use prophecy, Bethlehem, shepherds and angels instead, and the second candle is sometimes called faith or preparation. The Book of Blessings does not name the candles, so treat these names as a popular custom that varies from church to church.

What order do you light Advent candles?

You light one new candle each Sunday and relight the ones from earlier weeks. Here is the Catholic pattern from the USCCB’s Advent calendar, with the 2026 dates:

The dates come from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) church calendar for 2026. Christmas Day falls on a Friday, so the fourth week of Advent is only five days long. The USCCB suggests blessing the wreath on the first Sunday before lighting the first candle. The Book of Blessings allows a priest, deacon or lay minister to bless it, on that Sunday or the evening before.

Wondering how the wreath fits with a 24-door calendar that starts on December 1? Our guide to when to start an Advent calendar explains the difference between Advent Sunday and December 1.

Where did the Advent wreath come from?

It started in Hamburg, Germany. In 1839 Johann Hinrich Wichern, a Lutheran pastor who ran the Rauhes Haus home for boys, hung a large wooden ring from an old cartwheel in the home’s prayer hall. According to Wikipedia and the German Protestant portal evangelisch.de, it held small red candles for weekdays and four large white candles for Sundays, so the children could count the days to Christmas. Hamburg’s tourism office notes the number of red candles changed from year to year with the length of Advent.

The evergreen came later. Evangelisch.de says fir branches and white ribbons were added from 1860. Over time the wreath shrank to the four Sunday candles most homes use today. For the paper calendar that grew up alongside it, see our history of the Advent calendar.

How to choose an Advent wreath and candles

Decide on three things before you buy: the ring, the candle type and the size.

The ring. Fresh evergreen smells good but dries out indoors. Artificial greenery, metal rings and wooden bases last for years. Some metal and wooden rings hold the candles upright with no greenery at all, which suits a small table.

The candles. Check the colors your church uses. Pillar candles stand steadily in wide cups; taper candles need tight sockets. Buy a set that includes a spare, because the first-week candle burns for four Sundays and runs down fastest.

Real flame or flameless. Flameless LED candles avoid open flames near greenery. If a set comes with a remote, check how the battery compartment closes (see the safety section below).

Size. Measure the table. A wreath needs clear space around it for the candles to burn safely.

Advent candle safety

Candles and dried greenery are a risky mix, and December is when candle fires peak.

• December is the peak month for home candle fires, according to NFPA. Its research on 2014 to 2018 data found almost three times as many candle fires on Christmas Day as on an average day.
• Keep candles at least 1 foot (30 centimeters) from anything that can burn. NFPA found that 60 percent of home candle fires started when something that could burn was too close.
• Blow out every candle when you leave the room or go to bed, and never leave a child alone with a lit candle, NFPA advises.
• Use sturdy holders on a sturdy, uncluttered surface, and do not burn candles all the way down.
• Watch the greenery. The U.S. Fire Administration warns that a dry Christmas tree “can burn very hot and very fast.” Wreath greens dry out indoors in the same way, so trim branches back from the candle cups and replace brittle greens.
• Consider flameless candles. Both NFPA and the U.S. Fire Administration suggest them as an alternative.

More Advent guides

For countdown gifts to go with the wreath, start with our best Advent calendars of 2026. Families who want something to fill each week can use a reusable Advent calendar, and our Advent calendars for adults include candle and home fragrance calendars.