Best Toys for Kids in 2024: Hottest Holiday Gift Ideas for All Ages

While lightsabers are (still) a thing of fantasy, a new toy comes close to replicating the real thing without costing a fortune. The $50 Power Saber not only lights up, but it extends on its own, giving the effect of firing up a real lightsaber to battle against a Sith Lord. The sound effects make the experience all the more immersive. You can choose from red or green, depending on what side of the Force your giftee is drawn to. It’s become a go-to gift for CNET’s Russel Holly.

Furby is back and better than ever. It comes with five voice modes, a bunch of dance moves and more than 600 unique responses, including phrases, jokes, songs and more. Plus, it can glow in the dark. It can communicate with other Furbies too and is quite huggable. Past concerns about the Furby can be kicked to the curb — there’s no Wi-Fi connectivity, no app and no LCD screen eyes. Basically, it’s more doll than robot, which is a huge plus.

This toy is a classic, and it offers endless possibilities of play, which is why our CNET editors love it and it’s one of our top picks. “My kids have used these magnetic construction tiles for building everything from princess castles to parking garages,” says CNET’s Desiree DeNunzio. “Kids can play with it for years, starting from age two up until five or six.”

CNET’s Bridget Carey says this won her over “both as a mom and as someone who delights in making my co-workers squirm.” By using a remote — that can be as far as 25 feet away — you can make it scale walls or perform spin tricks, she explains. To charge it, there’s a USB-C port and you’ll need two AAA batteries for the remote.

Read our review here.

If your little one has been begging for a dog and you’re apprehensive about all the responsibility, Dog-E may be the pet for you. Although WowWee’s Dog-E isn’t the first robot dog to hit the toy market, this pup has a bunch of unique features that make it stand out from the pack (no pun intended). Each Dog-E is unique in their colored light designs and personality traits — you won’t know which version you’ve got until it’s out of the box. There are over 200 sounds and reactions to expect with your new robot pup, including real dog sounds, tail wagging and a cute little run. An accompanying mobile app adds further interactive play, allowing you to teach it tricks and track its basic needs.

Read our WowWee Dog-E Robot Dog review.

Fingerlings are back, and these finger monkeys are more than meets the eye. Equipped with more sensors, these fuzzy cuties know when they’re on your finger and have more animated features than ever before. Each monkey in the set comes in a different color and personality, which means they’re programmed with a variety of different reactions. Might as well collect them all.

This isn’t just any old marble set. This version is more like a gecko, with suction cups that let the chutes and funnels climb up and down your walls. “Kids drop in the included marbles and watch gravity take its course as they roll down and drop from piece-to-piece,” explains CNET’s Bree Fowler. “Of course, it doesn’t work perfectly each time and marbles go flying, but that’s half the fun and how kids learn; they can adjust the pieces and try again.” Expansion sets are available too and include fun add-ons, like loops and trampolines. 

Bitzee is a screen-free interactive pet that kids can play with, care for and take with them anywhere. It loves treats and is reactive to touch, swipes and other movement. Each one begins as a baby and grows through three evolutionary stages, culminating in a final stage that unlocks a special game. Fifteen interactive animals — like a cat, unicorn and bunny — can be unlocked the more your kiddo plays with Bitzee.

This cool 3D printing pen lets kids create anything they could possibly imagine out of plastic filaments. It’s slim and light, making it easy for small hands to hold, and it’s great introduction to the world of 3D printing. The pen melts sticks of plastic so kids can draw them into any shape, and the nozzle and melted plastic aren’t hot, so it won’t burn little hands. CNET’s Bridget Carey confirms, “I’ve tested it; you can put the tip to your skin and draw on your finger. I had no worries giving it to my kids.”

If your child has expressed an interest in playing an instrument, this is a great starter instrument and teaches kids how to play songs via flashcards and video lessons. It’s a three-string guitar, has a built-in amp and speaker and comes in six fun colors, from light blue to red to pink. To make the gift complete, you can also get a strap ($19) and carrying case ($39).

Chess took off among kids a couple of years ago, and it’s still going strong. This chess set makes a great gift for Potterheads who are also chess fans — or aspiring chess fans. The keyboard has light and sound effects and players can choose from 64 levels of difficulty. There’s also a training mode, which lets a player know if the move they just made is a good one and lets them try again.

Bedtime stories get a huge boost with this Moonlite Storytime mini projector. It attaches to the flashlight on your cell phone so that you can project each “page” of a story onto the while while it plays sound effects as you read along to your child. The projector is easy to use and gets kids excited about reading and bedtime — win, win. This set includes four Eric Carle classics: The Very Hungry Caterpillar, The Very Busy Spider, Brown Bear Brown Bear  and Mister Seahorse.

Snap Circuits are the perfect gift for curious kids. There are over 100 electronic projects possible with this STEM set, which is best for ages eight and up. Build a flashlight, photo sensor, siren and more. The best part is, kids will learn about the fundamentals of electricity as they play.

All kids love slime. And this STEM kit from National Geographic comes with eight varieties of the substance. Magnetic putty, glow-in-the-dark putty, fluffy slime and color-changing slime are just some of what you can expect to find in this box. There’s education to be found here too, as an enclosed learning guide explores the science behind all this goo.

This is an award-winning STEM toy and for good reason. Aside from being a lot of fun, it also requires a lot of critical thinking. Players can choose from 60 different challenges at various difficulty levels, from beginner to expert.

Kids who enjoy building will love this DIY kit. They can put together a real pinball machine that uses gumballs as the pinballs. Bonus: This kit isn’t all fun and games — it’s a STEM project in disguise. Lessons in motion, gears, gravity, force and more are embedded in this cool gift.

Cowabunga! This Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Pizza Fire Delivery Van brings the Mutant Mayhem fun to life. The van has room for all four turtles and Master Splinter and it comes equipped with a fully functional pizza cannon. Eight pizzas can fit in this handy weapon, which will surely stop Super Fly and his minions in their tracks. And hey, after their battle is over, the gang can snag a pie for a well-earned snack. 

This baby monkey, Mango, is super soft and also interactive. His hands can even grip and hold onto things, like his bottle. But that’s not all — he has over 50 sounds and reactions as your child plays with him.

This is the mother of all dinosaur toys. At over three feet long, Super Colossal Giganotosaurus is an impressive play thing. He can gobble up action figures (and luckily, you can rescue them via his belly) and generally wreak havoc. Pro tip: He’s best for ages four and up.

This unique experiment-based set is here to save the world. No, seriously: The Beast Lab poses the idea that the only way to protect humanity is with Beasts. Shark Beasts, to be specific. Thankfully, your child will get two in this set — the Havoc Hammerhead and Mayhem Megashark. Adorned with over 80 lights and sounds, and a collection of important ingredients — like Roar Rocks and Fossil Fragments — your kid will mix these oddities together to create the ultimate Beast. Once that’s done, it’s world-saving time. Hey, no pressure.

This gift combines two of our favorite things: Monopoly and Harry Potter. It’s ideal for family game night and fun for all ages. It features a Hogwarts-themed gameboard and golden tokens to travel around with, like The Knight Bus and Hogwarts Express.

For more fun tabletop games for kids, be sure to check out our gift guide of our favorite board games to give for the holidays in 2024.

If your child is a foosball or air hockey fan, they’ll love this game, which is a combo of both. (And you’ll probably love it too.) Since it comes assembled, put it on any tabletop surface and you can start to play immediately. (When you’ll stop playing is the question.)

If your kids like high-energy card games like Uno, they’ll love this. Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza is highly addictive and great for game nights. Up to eight people can play at once and everyone takes turns flipping over a card, saying a word — Taco, Goat and so on — while flipping. If the spoken word matches whatever card is being flipped, everyone tries to slap their hand down. The last person to do so has to take the stack. Trust us, it’s fun. CNET contributor Oliver Haslam says, “It might be the most fun I’ve had with a card game since forever, and it made our recent vacation very memorable.”

It’s like Magic: The Gathering, but with everything Disney. This trading card game is easy to learn for kids ages eight and up. And kids who are a little younger can join in with help from an adult. CNET’s James Bricknell ranked it as one of the top family games of the year, saying, “It’s clearly been worked on for a long time, as it feels like a game that’s existed forever. It’s so well-polished.”

This is a pricey one, but it’s worth putting on your child’s toy list. You can give them hours of entertainment playing Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Mario Kart, Zelda, Just Dance or whatever games they’re into. The new OLED model has a sharper, larger screen than the original model. And the Switch is definitely a better console for younger kids than the more expensive Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5. We also love that the Switch can be played on a TV or hand-held.

Echo Dot Kids offers all the smarts of Amazon’s Alexa smart assistant, but with parental controls and a cute design. Choose from a dragon or an owl — kids can even customize Alexa’s voice to make it a dragon or owl character. Kids can use it for playing music, setting an alarm, playing interactive games and more. Bonus: The white noise is great for kids who need some extra help sleeping.

If you’ve always wanted to know how to complete a Rubik’s cube, but could never get the hang of it, now’s your chance, CNET’s James Bricknell says. The GoCube connects to your phone or tablet and takes you through the steps of solving a cube using “algorithms,” so to speak. “It’s the first time I’ve felt I had a handle on manipulating a puzzle cube without it being completely random,” he says. “Learning a new skill as a dad, especially one that can impress your kids, is always worthwhile — and the app even lets you play battle games with your kids to make it more family-oriented.”

Playing with Hot Wheels has never been so cool. The Hot Wheels id Smart Track brings speed, stunts and a variety of mini games to the iconic race car brand. The track’s booster can launch cars upwards of 900 mph (at scale), and thanks to the interactive gaming component, you can scan different cars, track speeds and race to your heart’s content. Two exclusive Hot Wheels id cars come with it.

This is a great beginner building set for kids who are obsessed with construction vehicles. It’s also a great add-on for kids who already have a Magna-Tiles set. It comes with two extendable cranes, a truck chassis, bricks, and pieces for building a road.

Inspired by Nintendo’s iconic video game characters, this toy brings Mario to life. He’s got color sensors, LCD screens in his eyes and his mouth and belly are programmed with over 100 different reactions and movements. Mario must collect virtual coins as he travels through the buildable course. A Goomba figure, Bowser Jr., and seven actionable bricks also come with the set. A mobile app offers further connectivity, giving more ways to play.

It’s a fact that kids love forts. And when they’re glow-in-the-dark, it’s’s next-level. With this kit, children can spend countless hours building a variety of structures with the 130 pieces included with it. Caves, tunnels, rockets and houses — the sky’s the limit for what can be constructed. Every parent knows their little one will eventually seek out their own safe space, and a fort is the perfect place for them to get some me-time. Plus, this thing is pretty darn cool.

Lilo & Stitch fans will love piecing together this Lego Stitch. Once he’s put together, he can move — his ears go up and down and his head can turn too. Some fun accessories also come with this kit, a buildable flower and ice cream cone for Stitch.

Sesame Street’s Elmo never goes out of style. This 14-inch tall interactive doll encourages movement and singing and will get your little one up and dancing. Like the Just Play Elmo Plush, your kiddo can press Elmo’s right hand to play a game of “Elmo Says” — a fun, preschool-friendly riff on “Simon Says.” He can also speak in Spanish, as well as in English, which is another bonus.

A great gift for pretend play that will keep little hands busy for hours. “My two-year-old loves ‘helping’ me in the kitchen, and she likes it even better when I help her bake goodies with her own KiwiCo stand mixer and accessories,” says CNET contributor Deena Shinn. “We pretend to crack eggs and pour in the sugar to whip up birthday cakes, much to her delight.”

If you’re not wanting to bring slime into your home, Playfoam Naturals offers a sensory-satisfying product that’s fun to play with. This kit is great for preschool learning and allows your little one to exercise their fine motor skills while learning to squish this plant-based substance into letters and numbers.

If you’re looking for a cool sensory toy, check out the Bumpas weighted plush doll. These wide-eyed stuffies come with weighted arms that can sit on your little one’s shoulders, be a pillow buddy or act as a weighted blanket for extra comfort and emotional support. Sometimes, a simple Bumpas hug is all someone needs to feel better.