A Toy Reviewer’s Guide to the Best Holiday Gifts for 8-Year-Olds

Crazy Aaron’s biscuit-size tins of putty fall somewhere between a toy, afidget, and anart supplyand come in a huge assortment of styles includingmagnetic putty,color-changing glitter putty, and evenputty that looks like boba. Strategist contributorYoungna Parktold me that her daughter discovered the brand around age 8 and loved it so much that she saved her allowance to buy it.

Kids who are now getting the hang of homework might also be due for their owndesk. This real spinning disco ball is a clever way to make that desk more fun.

This remote-control housefly, which is also featured in theStrategist’s 2025 print holiday gift guide, is one of my favorite toys of the year.New Yorkfeatures editor Julia Edelstein says her 8-year-old son promptly circled it for his wish list when he saw it in the magazine.

I first playedTaco Cat Goat Cheese Pizzawith my niece and nephew when they were 8 and 13 years old; I ended up getting so into it that my palms actually started sweating. The game accommodates groups of two to eight people and isn’t too tricky to master: Everyone takes turns saying a word from the phrase “Taco, Cat, Goat, Cheese, Pizza” while laying down a card from their hand. If there’s a match between the spoken word and the card played, the race is on to slap the pile. The last person to slap picks up the pile — a major setback, because the first player to get rid of their cards wins the game.

Though they are growing up fast, many 8-year-olds still get a kick out of playing with action figures. That is especially true if the action figures are characters from their favorite TV shows, movies, and video games like this set of four characters from theMinecraftmovie, Chicken Jockey included.

Austin, Texas–based dad Bryan Camphire loves playingAdsumudiwith his 8-year-old daughter, Myrna, who is very into math and discovered the game at school. Each player starts the game by choosing their own level of difficulty, so kids (and adults) of different ages can play together, and then everyone races to make equations that result in the answers shown on each card.

Art supplieslike printer paper, colorful painter’s tape, paint sticks, and colored pencils make wonderful gifts for kids this age. But it can also be nice to balance out the freedom of open-ended materials with books and magazines that provide guided activities and help young readers practice their comprehension skills. Thisactivity bookby Mike Lowery is full of prompts for everything from creating a personalized spaceship to writing a song for a cat rock band.

Magshuto is pretty much what it sounds like: magnetic pods that kids shoot through air to perform a series of trick shots and challenges. This set comes with five pods, a launcher, a landing pad, hex rings for jumps, a tunnel ramp, and a rebounder.

Park’s daughter is into all kinds of art-making andcrafts, from drawing and sculpting to making her own jewelry. She has a polymer bead set similar to this one that Park says has been a big hit. It has lots of interesting bead choices that will fit on the included elastic, to keep things simple and fun.

Elementary-school kids love anything that’s miniature — hence the success of toys likeFive Surprise Mini Brands. But if that miniature toy is also a working pottery wheel, then you’ve got a toy that’ll blow their minds, says Toy Insider senior editor James Zahn. The box includes ten mini pottery projects kids can complete to progress from total beginner to pottery master.

This modular marble run uses flexible tracks and special suction pads that stick to windows, walls, cupboards, or any other smooth, flat surface. Because it doesn’t need traditional supports, kids can create tracks that span whole rooms and turn corners, send metal marbles flying around a loop, and tons of other tricks and stunts.

This notebook-size synthesizer is the same as one that David Bowie used, and comes recommended by Milkteeth co-founders Rebecca Calavan and Catherine Newell-Hanson. “My brother bought it for my kids and I was like, this is such a silly uncle gift, but actually they’re obsessed with it and they haven’t broken it yet,” says Newell-Hanson.

Labubusare stillhighly covetable toysamong elementary-school kids. Just remember that stock fluctuates constantly, so it’s best to buy early.

Read more:The Confused Aunt’s Guide to Labubu

These blind-bag squishy professional-sports guys have become another kind of playground currency in elementary schools. They are just a few inches tall and come with clips so they can be worn on kids’ backpacks. The 2026 NFL Series 8 has a total of 32 possible NFL team figures you could get. That variety makes them especially fun to trade among friends.

Calico Critters have, like Labubu and Sonny Angel, become trendy across generations thanks to social media. But they’re also popular with kids who’ve never seen Instagram or TikTok because of how irresistibly cute they are. This hamburger stand with a cat and a delivery Vespa is one of my favorite sets.

This 12-inch-tall anatomical model of the human body is gross in the best way. It’s filled with squishy versions of vital organs, each of which can be removed with forceps and tweezers, along with the rib cage and other skeletal and muscular systems.

LEGOs are usually a crowd-pleaser, and once this 647-piece space set is complete, it can provide out-of-this-world room décor or lots of pretend fun. Because it’s a three-in-one model, there are instructions for assembling an astronaut, a space viper jet, or a cute space dog from the same set of bricks, and the build even includes a display stand. If your particular 8-year-old isn’t into space, though, there are also lots of licensed LEGO sets, includingWicked,Animal Crossing, andSuper Mario Bros.to indulge their specific pop-culture obsessions.

Mom of two Misko Beaudrie recommends Prism Designs kites like this one, which she and her family like to take on camping and beach trips, and which she has often given as gifts. She says they are durable, easy to pack, and fly really well.

If you refuse to allow even one more Squishmallow into your house, this crochet kit and matching caboodle make for a good alternative.

There is an entire cottage industry of toys designed to promote stress and anxiety relief. Among them is this weighted (and microwaveable) turtle with long arms that hug you back. It’s also featured in theStrategist’s 2025 print holiday gift guideand is a lovely present for an overstimulated 8-year-old.

Inside this tin, you’ll find ingredients and supplies for a dozen rainbow-cake push pops with rainbow sprinkles. It’s a great gift for baking enthusiasts that could also be used as a sleepover or birthday-party activity.

As with the Squishmallow crochet kit above, if your favorite 8-year-old already has a bedroom full of Squishmallows — but still wants more — you can diversify their collection with a variety of other products, like this beanbag chair in the shape of a cat. It also comes inaxolotl,frog,koala,cow, anddragondesigns.

Beaudrie also recommendsJellycat stuffiesbecause they’re so soft and come in so many fun designs. In addition to bears, frogs, and other animals, the brand sells a collection of sports balls and other equipment, like this smiling soccer ball wearing cleats. It, or any of Jellycat’s other large-scale options, would make a stylish addition to any 8-year-old’s bedroom.

Clixo is a mostly open-ended magneticbuilding toywith flexible pieces that kids can make into almost anything. I have a basic set at home that is honestly more of a toy for me than for my almost-3-year-old son. But by 8 years old, children are primed to get the most out Clixo, especially the newest themed sets like this Dino Adventure pack that includes pieces and instructions for five different dinosaurs.

Park also recommends this magnetic building toy kids, like her son, who are in theirMinecrafteras. Key materials from the game like brick, grass, water, ore, and avatars of main characters are rendered as pixel-like one-inch cubes;there are multiple themes to choose from, likepumpkin,glacier, orpanda, which come with different sets of resources within the 100-piece packs and can all be used interchangeably. As a bonus, Park says that talking to her son aboutMinecraftwhile he plays with the physical blocks has helped her understand the game by translating the digital elements into into connectable, 3-D toys.

Both Park and Strategist senior editor Jen Trolio have mentioned their daughters’ longstanding fascination with treasures and trinkets; nice-looking storage solutions for those treasures and trinkets make excellent gifts for not only the young collectors themselves but their parents. A lot of jewelry boxes for kids look the same, but this one from DJECO has a unique secret-garden theme and interesting spots to organize baubles.

The Chromatic portable game console is perfect for pretween gamers and nostalgic parents alike — it’s essentially a modern Game Boy that comes in seven poppy colors. It is compatible with original Game Boy and Game Boy Color cartridges, but it also has a bunch of new games you can buy (including my personal favorite,Sabrina the Teenage Witch). This bundle comes withTetris.

For kids who want a vanity or art space of their own, the Ikea ALEX desk was recommended in our guide tothe best desks for kidsby Stony Pak, a mom and professor of education. She likes its small footprint and two slim drawers that provide plenty of storage. Another nifty feature is the built-in cable-management system, which allows kids to easily store and access the chargers for devices likesmartwatchesand tablets.

Deb Vilas, director of the Child Life program at Bank Street Graduate School of Education, recommends classic games that kids can play with their friends, like Jenga and Connect Four, as well as more specialized ones like Nok Hockey. The fast-paced game is durable, uncomplicated, and a great antidote to too much screen time, she says.

This Swiss marble run is definitely a splurge, but the quality is superb and the blocks can be rearranged to create countless different tracks. This 50-piece set is made of beech wood and comes with five marbles; you can also buy add-on sets that make marblesjump,flip, andrun in parallel tracks.