Although fall is just getting started, Starbucks is already looking ahead to the holiday season, unveiling its 2026 winter holiday menu and merchandise collections.
The company has revealed a lineup of new and returning seasonal beverages and food items, along with four new collections that will roll out next month.
The holiday launch also comes as Starbucks continues its broader turnaround effort, with the company reporting improving sales and traffic trends in North America during its latest quarter.
Starbucks reveals its 2026 holiday menu
Starbucks (SBUX) has unveiled its 2026 holiday menu, featuring several returning seasonal favorites alongside new beverages and food items.
The returning holiday beverages include:
- Peppermint Mocha: Available hot, iced, or as a Frappuccino.
- Caramel Brulée Latte: Available hot, iced, or as a Frappuccino.
- Sugar Cookie Latte: Available hot, iced, or as a Frappuccino.
- Gingerbread Chai: Available hot or iced.
The new holiday beverages include:
- Tiramisu Velvet Cold Brew: Topped with a velvet mascarpone cold foam and cocoa and coffee dusting.
- Tiramisu Velvet Latte: Available hot or iced.
- Apple Pomegranate Refresher: Apple flavors and popping pomegranate-flavored pearls.
- Snowy Apple: Apple Pomegranate Refresher with coconut milk.
Several holiday food items are returning, including:
- Cranberry Bliss Bar
- Snowman Cookie
- Sugar Plum Cheese Danish
New holiday food additions include:
- Bearista Cake Pop
- Braised Short Rib Grilled Cheese
- Turkey & Stuffing Sandwich with a new recipe
The Starbucks 2026 holiday menu will launch nationwide on Nov. 5 for a limited time, according to the company.
Starbucks unveils its new holiday merchandise collections
Starbucks is also rolling out four new merchandise collections for the 2026 holiday season.
Holiday Village – Pike Place edition draws inspiration from Starbucks’ roots at Seattle’s historic Pike Place Market. The collection includes:
- Mugs
- Ornaments
- A snow globe
- A ceramic Starbucks coffeehouse modeled after the original Pike Place store
The Holiday Bearista collection features the Starbucks Bearista, a plush bear first introduced in Starbucks coffeehouses in 1997. The collection includes:
- Bearista Glass Cold Cup
- Bearista-adorned mug
- Bearista-adorned tumbler with a Bearista straw topper
- Bearista-adorned water bottle
- Plush keychain and coordinated accessories
The Peppermint Mocha collection combines retro holiday styling with modern designs and includes:
- A glass holiday tree cold cup
- A handled travel tumbler
- A ceramic striped espresso cup
The Winter Wonderland collection features cool-toned drinkware inspired by snow and icy landscapes. Items include:
- A quilted light-blue cold cup
- Iridescent water bottles
- A white snowflake-adorned handled travel tumbler with a charm
- A snow globe mug
The Holiday Village, Holiday Bearista, and Peppermint Mocha collections will be available beginning Nov. 5 at Starbucks coffeehouses and online at the Starbucks Shop. Winter Wonderland will launch Nov. 17.
Starbucks also confirmed that its original Bearista Glass Cold Cup will return during the holiday season, although the company has not yet announced when it will be released. The date for the annual Red Cup Day has also not been revealed.
The coffee chain said it will provide additional details about the merchandise collections, including pricing, in the coming weeks.
Starbucks uses seasonal launches as part of its turnaround strategy
The holiday rollout comes as Starbucks continues its broader “Back to Starbucks” strategy, an effort focused on strengthening the brand, simplifying operations, and improving customer experience.
The company’s priorities include:
- Modernizing beverages and food
- Simplifying the menu to reduce friction and improve speed
- Enhancing store design and operational efficiency
- Prioritizing coffee quality
- Empowering baristas
Starbucks has already taken steps to simplify its menu and reduce customization complexity, including eliminating extra charges for nondairy milk alternatives.
In early 2025, the company discontinued nine Frappuccino options, along with other beverages and food items, as part of an effort to streamline its offerings.
Seasonal launches can provide another way for Starbucks to create urgency around limited-time products. The company has used holiday beverages, collectible merchandise, and other seasonal releases to generate customer interest around specific launch dates.
Here’s some of my previous coverage on more Starbucks menu launches:
- Starbucks launches 4 new fall items after Pumpkin Spice Latte debut
- Starbucks brings back two viral drinks not seen in nearly a decade
- Starbucks makes some surprising additions to its fall menu
One example came in November 2025, when the launch of Starbucks’ Bearista Glass Cold Cup generated a significant increase in customer visits.
According to Placer.ai, visits to Starbucks on Nov. 6, 2025, the day of the Bearista drop, jumped 37.8% above the chain’s average daily visits over the previous 12 months. Traffic also remained elevated for several days following the release.
The data does not establish that merchandise or seasonal launches alone drive Starbucks‘ overall performance. However, it does provide evidence that a highly sought-after seasonal product can generate a significant short-term increase in customer traffic.
Starbucks sees early signs of a business turnaround
The latest holiday launch comes as Starbucks reports improving performance in its North America business.
During the third quarter of fiscal 2026, Starbucks reported:
- North America revenue: Grew 7% year over year.
- Comparable store sales: Increased 8.1%.
- Comparable transactions: Climbed 4.5%.
- Average ticket: Rose 3.5%.
- Starbucks 90-day active U.S. members: Reached 35.8 million.
The company’s broader results have given management more confidence in the turnaround. Starbucks reported four consecutive quarters of comparable-store sales growth and raised its fiscal 2026 guidance in its third-quarter results.
While the company continues to pursue its “Back to Starbucks” strategy, the holiday menu and merchandise collections give Starbucks another opportunity to bring customers into its stores during one of the most important seasonal periods of the year.
The 2025 Bearista and other successful seasonal launches showed that limited-time offerings can drive a substantial short-term increase in traffic, but it remains too early to know whether this year’s holiday products will generate a similar response.
Related: Starbucks launches 4 new fall items after Pumpkin Spice Latte debut
