While last year appeared to set a record for the number of All-Christmas stations in the Upper Midwest, 2025 is off to a slower start.
Four Upper Midwest stations are known to have made the flip on Nov. 1, 2025, less than half as many as had flipped by that date last year. Those that went-Christmas on the first of November 2025 include:
- “Lite 96-3” (WHBS Houghton)
- “94.1 The Breeze” (WUPK Marquette)
- “106.1 The Sound” (W291CJ and WFXD-HD4 Marquette)
- “Star 104.5” (KSRZ Omaha)
The three stations had also made switch to Santa on Nov. 1, 2024. (This has been updated to reflect a different date for one of the stations, which says a previous report of a later flip last year was incorrect.)
However, six other Upper Midwest stations that had switched by Nov. 1 last year have not yet made the change this year.
One potential factor is a warm fall that has prevented most of the region from seeing any snow yet this season. Perhaps it’s no coincidence that three of the first stations to flip are in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, which — besides being home to a town called Christmas — is known for long winters and has already seen accumulating snow.
Two more flips came on Sunday, Nov. 2, when Magnum Communications’ WSJY/107.3 (Fort Atkinson) and “Mix 96.1 and 97.9” (WLXR Tomah and K250AZ La Crosse) made the switch.
The season is young and there are more flips to come. The format will launch in Sioux Falls on Monday, Nov. 3, as part of a move of the KELO-FM branding. Elsewhere, WBDK/96.7 (Algoma-Sturgeon Bay) is again running a contest for people to guess the day and time they will make the switch.
Follow all of the flips at the 2025 All-Christmas Stations page and please email jonellis@northpine.com with additions and updates!
This item was posted at 7 a.m. Nov. 2 and updated later in the day to reflect a change in the date that a station flipped in 2024, based on information from the station.