It’s officially holiday season, because Oprah has spoken. Oprah Winfrey’s annual Favorite Things list is back for its 30th year, and this edition comes with celebrity cameos, an emotional surprise for caregivers and one very famous cake.
Here’s what’s on the 2026 list, the stories behind a few of the picks and why it has social media buzzing.
Thirty years of Favorite Things
Winfrey shared the 2026 list exclusively with USA Today, and she explained how the tradition started.
“Thirty years ago, I bought a pair of plaid pajamas that I loved so much, I got them for everyone on my staff. Then a brilliant producer said, ‘Why don’t you do this for the whole audience?’ And that was the start of Favorite Things,” she wrote.
This year’s list has 79 picks, a tighter selection than last year’s 112, according to USA Today. Prices range from a $26 lip gloss and a $32 puzzle all the way up to a $2,759 mattress.
The “Tom Cruise cake”
The pick getting the most attention is a dessert. Winfrey included a white chocolate coconut Bundt cake from Doan’s Bakery, sold through Goldbelly, that she calls the “Tom Cruise cake.”
“This is the ‘Tom Cruise cake’: a coconut Bundt covered in cream cheese frosting and topped with toasted coconut,” she wrote, as quoted by USA Today. “He sends it every December to hundreds of friends in Hollywood. I had no idea folks could order their own from a family-owned bakery in L.A.”
The cake has been a Hollywood legend for years, with celebrities regularly posting about receiving one, so learning that anyone can order it was always going to be a big moment online.
Meghan, Gayle and other famous friends
Winfrey also tapped her famous circle for this year’s list.
Duchess Meghan’s lifestyle brand, As Ever, made the list for the second year in a row with a picnic hamper filled with fruit spreads, chocolates, herbal teas and a candle, all curated by Meghan herself, Winfrey wrote.
Gayle King got a nod, too. Winfrey picked Rag & Bone jackets and pants printed to look like denim but made from stretchy fabric, and noted that “Gayle wears hers all the time.”
Even Roger Federer is represented. Winfrey included the On sneakers he co-designed, writing, “These are my sneakers, and I wear them a lot.”
The pick she “lives in”
Not everything on the list is flashy. Winfrey’s first pick of the year was a Uniball Zento pen, which a friend brought back from Japan. She also included a Smartwool merino base layer shirt and said, “To say I live in them would not be an exaggeration.”
Her love of hiking shows up as well, with a set of Leki walking poles that came with one of the best stories on the list. Winfrey recalled a stranger handing her his poles on a steep trail, and joked that she asked, “Are you Jesus?! Because I was just asking for this!”
A surprise for caregivers
The list launched with an emotional twist. USA Today reported that many of the items were gifted to more than 100 caregivers, including nurses, EMS workers and people caring for loved ones and animals, during a special holiday episode of “The Oprah Podcast.”
“I wanted to do something special for all of you who give yourselves in so many ways,” Winfrey told them. Grammy winner Jacob Collier performed, and the audience reportedly burst into applause and tears.
Why everyone’s talking about it
Oprah’s Favorite Things has always been part shopping guide, part pop-culture event. A celebrity-approved cake, a royal connection and a heartwarming reveal give fans plenty to share, debate and screenshot. Expect the “Tom Cruise cake” in particular to be all over holiday dessert tables, and social feeds, this year.
The takeaway
Thirty years after a pair of plaid pajamas started it all, Oprah’s Favorite Things is still one of the most anticipated lists of the season. This year’s edition proves the formula still works: personal stories, famous friends and at least one item everyone suddenly wants.
Image: Christmas Gifts by Pawel Kadysz via StockSnap, CC0 1.0
