Tip count, PE and PVC: how to judge how full a tree will look
Two trees of the same height and price can look completely different once they are up. The tip count and the branch material are why.
What a tip is
A tip is the end of a branch. The tip count is how many branch ends the tree has, and because every tip carries needles, more tips means more foliage and a denser silhouette. It is the only number on a listing that measures fullness, which is why it is on every tree card here.
Ranges by height
| Height | Sparse | Standard | Full |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4ft | under 250 | 250 to 500 | 500 and up |
| 5ft | under 400 | 400 to 700 | 700 and up |
| 6ft | under 500 | 500 to 1,000 | 1,000 to 1,500, very full past 2,000 |
| 7ft | under 700 | 700 to 1,400 | 1,400 and up |
| 8ft | under 900 | 900 to 1,500 | 1,500 to 2,500 and up |
Compare counts between trees of the same height only. A sparse tree is not a bad tree: it takes more decorations and lights, costs less, and weighs less. A full tree looks finished with fewer baubles and hides its trunk from every angle.
PE and PVC
PVC tips are cut from flat plastic sheet and twisted onto a wire. They are cheap, hold their shape, and make a dense silhouette from across the room, but up close they look like a bottle brush. PE (polyethylene) tips are moulded in a cast taken from a real branch, so each one has the three-dimensional shape of a needle cluster and a matt finish. A PE tree looks like a fir from a metre away. Most trees over about £130 mix them: PE tips on the outside of the branch where they are seen, PVC inside for bulk. The product page states the material where the maker publishes it, and some give the percentage.
Count versus material
A 1,200-tip PVC tree and an 800-tip mixed PE tree at 6ft can cost the same. The PVC tree is denser; the PE tree is more realistic. Which you want depends on whether the tree will be heavily decorated (then density matters and PVC is fine) or left fairly bare with lights (then the branches are on show and PE wins).
Hinged and hook-on
Not a fullness measure but worth knowing: hinged branches are fixed to the trunk and fold down, which is faster to assemble and means nothing gets lost. Hook-on branches slot into holes in the trunk by colour code, pack smaller, and take longer. Almost every tree over 5ft here hinges.
The price band pages are the place to compare counts, because within one band the higher count is the fuller tree.
Common questions
Is a higher tip count always better?
It is always denser. Whether that is better depends on how much you decorate: a dense tree needs fewer baubles, a lighter tree takes more.
Which looks more real, PE or PVC?
PE, because each tip is moulded from a real branch. PVC gives bulk at a lower price. Most mid-range trees mix the two.
Why do two 6ft trees weigh such different amounts?
Tip count. A 2,000-tip tree carries far more foliage and wire than a 600-tip tree and can weigh twice as much.