The holidays are a wonderful time of year when friends and family can get together to celebrate and create memories. For parents, they can also be a 24/7 minefield of temper tantrums. Routines are changed, stimulation is at a maximum, everyone is stressed, and there is pressure to get the perfect gift. All these things can often trickle down and leave kids feeling overwhelmed. One way to help reduce the focus placed on a single day is with an Advent calendar for kids.
Advent calendars are typically used as a countdown to Christmas, but many nondenominational Advent calendars are now available for kids and adults. For anyone that loves the holiday season — and who doesn’t? — Advent calendars also make great early Christmas gifts.
Using an Advent calendar to mark the passing of time until the holidays can help kids conceptualize dates. Getting to open one new item each day also spreads out the gift-giving instead of having all the focus on a single day.
Not only are kids Advent calendars great for the holidays, but we also find them beneficial for other major events. Nondenominational, non-winter-themed Advent calendars for kids can be used leading up to other celebratory milestones, such as birthdays or family vacations. Kid Advent calendars can also be used to help ease tension in children who are anxious about a major event, like traveling on an airplane for the first time, visiting the dentist, starting a new school, or moving.
Whether you’re counting down until Santa Claus visits or marking time until another major event, the best kids’ Advent calendars are designed to please little ones. Check out our favorites below.
BEST OVERALL
Kids will enjoy peeling open all 24 of these trinkets celebrating some of your favorite household brands, including Skippy, Dove, Warheads, Dum Dums, Pez, and Kikkoman. Each set comes with 24 5 Surprise Mini Brands capsules with unexpected mini or shopping accessories inside that your kids can open in the days leading up to the holiday
BEST LEGO
Help your little one have a super holiday season with the new LEGO Marvel Studio’s Guardians of the Galaxy Advent Calendar. It comes with 24 days of surprise gifts in which Star-Lord, Rocket, Groot, Mantis and more come together as minifigures along with mini builds and accessories so that kids can create drones, spaceships, and more. With it, kids can build their own unique sets or incorporate their new figurines with their LEGO collection.
Read More: Best LEGO Advent Calendars
BEST VIRTUAL
This 24-door Roblox Advent Calendar will help kids countdown the days to Christmas with excitement. They’ll be able to open a door each day and enjoy a new holiday-themed Roblox character or accessory. With it, they’ll be able to mix, match and build their own Roblox characters and it also comes with two redeemable codes to unlock exclusive virtual items on Roblox.
MARVEL FUNKO POP
This newly released Funko Pop! Marvel Advent Calendar is perfect for any youngster who loves the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It comes stocked with 24 Marvel characters like Spiderman and Captain America dressed in holiday ‘fits — each behind a tiny door that helps them count down the days of the 2022 holiday season.
Read More: Funko Pop Advent Calendars
BEST POKEMON
Your Pokémon-loving child will never forget the moment they laid eyes on this Advent calendar. It features 24 windows that can be opened daily to reveal a different Pokémon figurine leading up to the big holiday. With it, you’ll receive mini versions of Pickachu, Bulbasaur, Squirtle, Charmander, Eevee, and more.
DISNEY FUNKO POP
This Disney Funko Pop! Advent calendar will help any kid get into the holiday season. It features 24 tiny doors with super cute Christmas versions of characters like Micky Mouse, Donald Duck, and Pluto behind each.
BEST FOR LOL FANS
Fans of LOL dolls will love this year’s Advent calendar for kids, which comes with more than 25 surprises. The calendar includes cool winter looks and several accessories, letting budding fashionistas show off their style. Each of the 25 surprises is numbered and includes a new and unique addition, including shoes, bags, and more.
FOR YOUNG SUPERHERO FANS
Young fans of the DC world will have fun playing with the new Fisher-Price Imaginext DC Super Friends Advent Calendar for kids. The calendar is designed with 24 mystery toys inside and is perfect for superhero fans aged three to eight. The set includes 24 Imaginext toys, including six Super Friend characters, as well as several vehicles and accessories. The characters have movable arms and legs, helping kids entertain themselves by acting out superhero scenarios.
BEST FOR THOMAS FANS
For fans of Thomas the Tank Engine and his group of helpful friends, they will love the new Advent calendar for kids featuring their favorite locomotives. The calendar includes 24 individual windows with mini trains, including all the fan favorites. The set also includes a fold-down track that young fans can use to push their trains around while making deliveries and helping those in need.
BEST FOR BARBIE FANS
Barbie fans who love to experiment with fashion will have fun playing with the Barbie Color Reveal Advent Calendar. The calendar features one Barbie Color Reveal Doll, a pet husky, and several color-changing accessories. In total, there are 25 daily surprises that all take on a new look when dipped in water. Kids will enjoy outfitting their Barbie with different outfits and accessories and building their own charm bracelet they can proudly show off during the holidays and beyond.
FOR CARS FANS
Want your little one to take a break from watching all three Cars films on repeat this holiday season? Give them a non-screentime but still on-brand gift with the Disney Pixar Cars Mini Racers Advent Calendar. Cars fans will love racing around the winter-themed track with their Advent calendar that features 24 individual toys, including five vehicles straight from the Disney film.
HARRY POTTER FUNKO POP
Funk Pop! fans will absolutely love this Harry Potter Funko Pop! Advent calendar. In it, you’ll receive Funko Pop figurines of Harry, Ron, Hermione, and a slew of other characters from the beloved franchise, making it an amazing gift for Potterheads. This set can be preordered on Amazon with a ship date of October 24.
FOR ELF ON THE SHELF FANS
For exhausted parents who have run out of shelves (and bookcases, bathtubs, bedrooms, and just about every other spot in the home) to hide their child’s Elf on the Shelf, there is a new Advent calendar that takes the leg work out of the holiday toy known for keeping kids on the nice list. First released in 2020, we loved counting down the days to Christmas over the past two years with this popular Elf on the Shelf Advent Calendar, and it received glowing reviews from our young product testers. For 2022, the makers of Elf on the Shelf are continuing to expand their brand offerings of tiny tattletales who help keep kids in line during the holidays and are now making an Elf on the Shelf Advent calendar.
This Christmas calendar comes with 24 individual boxes, each of which holds toys that kids will enjoy playing with throughout the holiday season, including elves, pets, mini trees, presents, and several other fun surprises. The boxes can all be placed together to form a train with a spot in the front for the child’s full-sized Elf on the Shelf. Kids will look forward to opening a new toy every day, which is also an activity that will give parents a few minutes to find a new hiding place for their elves.
Read More: Best Adult Advent Calendars
BEST FOR OLDER KIDS
If you have a Pusheen fan in your home, they are going to love the Advent calendar from Gund. The calendar comes with a super cute plush Pusheen and several mini friends. Older kids will have fun building a holiday setting with these soft toys including a tree, a couch, a fireplace, and presents. SPY was provided with one of the calendars and got to see the quality of each plush toy up close. The 12 toys can be set up and displayed in front of the open box, which features a faux-wooden floor with a holiday-themed backdrop. Pusheen fans will love opening each new daily surprise and playing with the toys long after the holidays have ended.
BEST FOR TODDLERS
For an Advent calendar that kids can use year after year, we like the Melissa & Doug Countdown to Christmas Wooden Advent Calendar. The wooden Christmas tree sits on top of a holiday-themed box, which acts as storage for the magnetic numbered pieces. Children can match the corresponding magnet with its place on the tree in the days leading up to Christmas, which helps improve their fine motor skills and counting. The Melissa and Doug calendar provides an alternative for parents who don’t want to add more toys to the holiday season but still get kids in the festive mood.
BEST PLAYMOBIL FOR YOUNGER KIDS
It’s tough to be more popular than old Saint Nick around the holidays, so give younger kids an Advent calendar that lets them bring Santa’s workshop to life. The Advent calendar from Playmobil features 24 surprises, including presents, elves, reindeer, and more, which together help to create a whimsical village that will be bustling with activity on December 24. The calendar comes with a backdrop that features both the inside and outside of Santa’s workshop, giving kids plenty of opportunities to let their creativity flow.
BEST PLAYMOBIL FOR OLDER KIDS
For older kids who want a scene that is more in line with their interest, Playmobil just released their Battle for the Magic Stone Advent calendar. Recommended for kids ages 8 and up, the calendar includes 24 pieces that can be opened each day and added to the Magic Stone backdrop to create an engaging and exciting battle scene. Fans of the Novelmore Knights and Burnham Raiders will have fun acting out battles to see who will be victorious in winning the precious stone and becoming the most powerful army. Not only is the set fun for counting down the days until Christmas, but kids can also continue using the figures beyond the holiday season.
FOR THE SCIENCE FAN
Just because school is on break for the holidays doesn’t mean your little scientist has to way until January for their next experiment. With the Crazy Scientist Advent Calendar, little lab techs can have fun learning with daily science experiments. The Advent calendar comes with everything young learners will need to engage in experiments that focus on biology, chemistry, mechanics, and more. A full-color instruction manual provides the steps necessary for each experiment, which kids can follow alone or with some parental supervision.
BEST FOR BUILDERS
The D-FantiX Christmas Advent Calendar 2022 is a great option for young builders who love using their hands and for parents who want their kids to improve their fine motor skills. The calendar features 24 STEM building toys made from blocks that can be turned into helicopters, construction vehicles, fire trucks, and more. Each piece is made with 100 percent non-toxic ABS plastic. Although the D-FantiX may not boast the same quality of pieces as its more famous block competitor, it still provides hours of fun and at a much lower cost.
BEST FOR CRAFTY KIDS
For kids who love to create, the Crayola Christmas Countdown Advent Calendar has everything they need to put their own personal touch on this year’s Christmas décor. Each of the 24 boxes reveals a new tool kids can use to paint, color, and debut a holiday-themed masterpiece. Crayons, markers, glue, paint, and more supplies are included in this crafting kit, as well as several coloring pages and instructions on how to create new decorations. Crayola also offers a free app to help kids and parents develop ideas on fun projects they can create using their new Advent calendar.
BEST SQUEEZIE TOYS
This is one Advent calendar that toddlers and little kids will love playing with all year. The Christmas Gife Advent Calendar features 24 different squeezie toys that kids can open each day leading up to Christmas. An assortment of animals and holiday-themed characters will delight little ones who will enjoy squeezing the soft toys. The small items are the perfect pocket-sized present to bring to family and holiday events and keep kids entertained with their new toys.
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