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The holiday release season is not one drop — it is week after week of decisions stacked on top of each other. From the Foamposite that opened the season to the Space Jam 11 two weeks before Christmas, Jordan Brand and Nike have filled nearly every Saturday between now and the end of the year. Nobody needs all of it. These are the ten releases worth planning for, in the order they arrive.
Dates and U.S. retail prices below were checked October 19, 2026 against release sources and our own drops calendar. Holiday calendars do shift — a date moving by a week is normal this time of year — so confirm on the calendar and the retailer's page before you set an alarm. Prices are adult retail before tax and shipping unless noted.
How to use this guide: pick your spots
Add the ten pairs up and the season costs $2,190 before tax. That number is the point. As we have written before, constant urgency is the business model now — every drop is framed like the one you cannot miss, and the calendar is designed so that feeling never lets up. The buyers who come out of the holidays happy are the ones who ranked the list before it started: one or two pairs they truly want, bought at retail, worn immediately.
So read this guide as a ranking exercise. The headliners — the Bred 4 and the Space Jam 11 — will take the most planning and move the fastest. The pairs in the middle are where the value hides: general releases with real history that sit a day or two longer because the spotlight is elsewhere. And if you are buying gifts, work backwards from December 25: the December 12 Space Jam is the last drop on this list with a comfortable shipping window.
The 10 holiday 2026 drops, in date order
DROP 01 / FIRST UP
Nike Air Foamposite One ‘Mummy’
$240 · Friday, October 16 · style IZ1476-001
The season opener. The Foamposite One gets a seasonal treatment in pale Phantom tones with glow-in-the-dark details in Barely Volt, built on the molded shell that has looked futuristic since 1997. At $240 it is premium retro money, and Foamposites are a love-it-or-leave-it silhouette — but as a calendar opener it sets the tone: this holiday stretch rewards people who decide early which pairs they actually want.
Track it on the drops calendarDROP 02 / THE FUN ONE
Air Jordan 5 ‘Halloween’
$215 · Saturday, October 17 · style HQ7978-001
Black suede across the upper, glow-in-the-dark green on the branding and the embroidered 23, and red across the midsole teeth. Themed pairs live or die on whether you would still wear them in March — the black base keeps this one in rotation long after October ends. If the Fireside 12 a week later is the sensible October buy, this is the fun one.
Track it on the drops calendarDROP 03 / BEST FALL COLORWAY
Air Jordan 12 ‘Fireside’
$215 · Saturday, October 24 · style CT8013-105
The most wearable new colorway of the season. Cream tumbled leather up top, a rich brown mudguard below, and small Team Red accents — a Jordan 12 dressed for the months it is actually releasing in. It lands a week after the Halloween 5, so if your budget only stretches to one October pair, this is the one that works with everything you already own. Full-family sizing is expected.
Track it on the drops calendarDROP 04 / THE PURIST PICK
Air Jordan 6 OG ‘White Infrared’
$215 · Saturday, November 7 · style CT8529-105
The headline detail is on the heel: Nike Air branding returns to the White Infrared for the first time since the original 1991 release — the 2010 and 2014 retros both carried a Jumpman instead. It is the shoe from Jordan's first championship season, back for the model's 35th anniversary year, in white leather with the Infrared accents the colorway is named for. If you collect one OG this season, the argument starts here.
Track it on the drops calendarDROP 05 / THE CONCEPT PAIR
Air Jordan 11 ‘Green Screen Monstars’ (W)
$255 · Saturday, November 14 · style IQ5700-900
The boldest swing on this list. Green suede replaces the Jordan 11's signature patent leather entirely, with a glow-in-the-dark outsole and details tied to the Monstars. At $255 it is the most expensive pair here — know that before release morning, and check the size run on the retailer's page, since concept releases do not always run the full range. Concept pairs like this are exactly what our drops calendar exists to track: you either plan for them or you miss them.
Track it on the drops calendarDROP 06 / THE HOLIDAY PAIR
Air Jordan 3 ‘Santa’
GS $155 · Saturday, November 21 · style IF4396-601
A Jordan 3 in University Red with white trim, metallic gold touches and Nike Air on the heel — the full holiday treatment on one of the most wearable silhouettes Jordan Brand makes. It lands the Saturday before Thanksgiving, a full month of gift-season runway. One caution: early looks at this pair are mock-up based, so check the final retail images before release day rather than falling for a rendering. And one catch that matters: there is no adult version — the Santa is kids-only, at $155 grade school, $95 preschool and $80 toddler, so plan it as a gift for a young sneakerhead, not a pickup for yourself.
Track it on the drops calendarDROP 07 / THE SLEEPER
Air Jordan 3 ‘Not Nice’
$215 · Saturday, November 21
The Santa's same-day counterpart takes the other side of the list: crackled Velvet Brown nubuck, black and dark red elephant print, and hidden details — lift the Nike Air heel tab and there is 'Not Nice' embroidery underneath, with 'Checked It Twice' printed on the insoles. Two Jordan 3s land the same Saturday — and this is the only one of the two in adult sizes, at $215. The Santa will get the attention; this is the pair people will wish they had picked a year from now.
Track it on the drops calendarDROP 08 / BLACK FRIDAY
Air Jordan 4 OG ‘Bred’
$230 · Friday, November 27 · style IX8180-001
The Black Friday anchor, and a course correction. The 2024 Bred Reimagined swapped the classic upper for leather; the 2026 OG goes back to black nubuck, brings Nike Air back to the heel, and sharpens the shape toward the 1989 original. It releases in full-family sizing, and early reports point to healthy stock — but 'healthy' for a Bred 4 still means planning your entries, not strolling in on Saturday. Our Jordan 4 buying guide covers what the older pairs cost if you miss.
Track it on the drops calendarDROP 09 / THE DEEP CUT
Air Jordan 10 OG ‘Sacramento’
$215 · Saturday, December 5 · style HJ6779-002
The quietest release on this list and, for longtime collectors, one of the most interesting. The Sacramento was the only all-black entry in the original 1995 City Series — black tumbled leather with Dark Concord purple accents — and it has never been retroed until now. No movie tie-in, no anniversary push, just a 31-year wait ending on December 5. Pairs like this are why the holiday calendar is worth reading past the headliners.
Track it on the drops calendarDROP 10 / THE HEADLINER
Air Jordan 11 ‘Space Jam’
$235 · Saturday, December 12 · style CT8012-900
The holiday Jordan 11 is a tradition on its own; this year it is the Space Jam, back for the film's 30th anniversary and its first release since 2016. The 2026 pair leans toward the 2000 retro's specs: lower-cut patent leather, 'Jumpman Jam' tongue branding, a royal Jumpman, and the 23 back on the heel. Black mesh, black patent, white midsole, icy outsole — the formula never needed changing. Expect full-family sizing and the fastest sell-through of anything on this list.
Track it on the drops calendarAfter the top 10: the last two dates of the year
The calendar does not quite end with the Space Jam. On Christmas Eve, December 24, the Air Jordan 8 ‘Knicks’ (style IX8479-010) puts Safety Orange and Racer Blue on black suede for $215 — a colorway nodding to the Bulls-Knicks playoff battles of the early 1990s, on the model Jordan wore through the 1993 Finals run. Two days later, December 26, the Air Jordan 4 ‘BIN 23’ closes the year at $355, the premium end of the Jordan 4 line. Both are on our drops calendar if either makes your list.
Buying for someone else? Jordan retros generally fit true to size in length, and the full-family pairs on this list — the Bred 4 and the Space Jam 11 among them — make matching gifts possible without guessing at grade-school conversions. Keep the receipt until the size is confirmed on feet, and if a size sells out at retail, check our picks page and the store before paying the first resale price you see.
THE QUICK ANSWERS
Holiday 2026 release FAQ
What is the biggest Jordan release of holiday 2026?
The Air Jordan 11 ‘Space Jam’ on Saturday, December 12 at $235 — the annual holiday Jordan 11, returning for the film's 30th anniversary with the 23 back on the heel. The Air Jordan 4 OG ‘Bred’ on Black Friday, November 27 at $230, is the close second.
Which Jordan drops on Black Friday 2026?
The Air Jordan 4 OG ‘Bred’ (style IX8180-001) releases Friday, November 27, 2026 at $230 in full-family sizing, with black nubuck and Nike Air heel branding restored.
What are the cheapest pairs on the holiday calendar?
Five of the ten pairs here sit at $215: the Air Jordan 5 ‘Halloween’ on October 17, the Air Jordan 12 ‘Fireside’ on October 24, the Air Jordan 6 ‘White Infrared’ on November 7, the Air Jordan 3 ‘Not Nice’ on November 21, and the Air Jordan 10 ‘Sacramento’ on December 5. Nothing in adult sizing comes in under that this year — the one cheaper entry, the Jordan 3 ‘Santa’ on November 21, is kids-only (GS $155 / PS $95 / TD $80).
Can release dates change?
Yes. Holiday dates are announced early and occasionally move by a week. Every pair in this guide is also listed on our drops page, which is where we post changes first — check it the week of any release you are targeting.
YOUR TURN