At one and two, everything within reach gets mouthed, dropped and stacked, so the best gifts are chunky, washable and safe: push toys, stacking cups, first board books. A small thing they can master on their own beats a big thing they cannot use yet.
*Paid link
A jungle animal puzzle with knobbed pieces that lift out of the board and slot back into their own matching spaces.
Ages 1+ (Melissa & Doug)
Why we like it
Big knobs on every piece make this jungle puzzle a fit for a girl still learning to lift and place shapes.
Each animal drops into its own cutout, usually with a roar or a squeak from her. A child already fitting jigsaw pieces together may find it too easy.
A set of stacking blocks for building towers, walls and a castle, then knocking them down and building again.
Ages 2+ (Fisher-Price)
Why we like it
Expect the first castle you build for her to come down in a single swipe before it is even finished.
With 28 wooden Fisher-Price pieces, there is plenty to put back up together on the rug, and soon she can try a lopsided tower all by herself while you work on the walls.
A plush bunny from the GUND Cozys line, made for hugging, carrying from room to room and tucking in beside the pillow at bedtime.
Why we like it
With no TV character attached, this bunny suits a girl who would rather have something soft to squeeze.
It is a sensory plush from GUND's Cozys line, sized to ride on her lap in the car seat and easy to hold onto for the length of any drive.
Triangular crayons for drawing and coloring on paper, a simple art supply for scribbling, making marks and filling a blank page.
Why we like it
Round crayons roll off the high chair tray the moment she lets go.
The ten in this Honeysticks pack are triangular and stay put, and their flat sides give a little fist an easy hold while she covers paper next to your shopping list.
Preschoolers want to do what the grown-ups do: play kitchens, doctor kits, figures to act out a day. First board games teach taking turns, and anything that gets built, knocked down and built again is a safe bet.
*Paid link
A Spider-Man picture memory game in which players turn over face-down pictures and recall where each matching pair sits.
Why we like it
Spider-Man pictures fill this Ravensburger memory game, which gives a young fan a reason to concentrate.
Each turn is two flips: a match goes on his pile, a miss goes back face down, and the trick is remembering where it was. The mini edition packs small enough for a visit to friends or a long car ride.
A freestanding magnetic art easel that gives an upright surface for drawing, sketching ideas and putting finished artwork on show.
Why we like it
Chalk on one side, a magnetic dry-erase board on the other and a paper roll for painting with its three paint pots: the wooden Hape all-in-one easel covers every kind of art day.
When the ideas come fast, he can switch sides instead of erasing, and the height adjusts as he grows.
A Hot Wheels City transporter shaped like a T-Rex, used for hauling toy cars around and staging chase games where dinosaur meets racer.
Ages 4+ (Hot Wheels)
Why we like it
This Hot Wheels City T-Rex hauler gives a four-year-old car collector a dinosaur to carry his fleet.
The maker rates it for ages 4 and up, right where he is now. He loads his loose cars inside and rolls the convoy to wherever the next chase begins.
A bingo-style game played around a table, where players race to spot matches for their cards and fill them to win.
Why we like it
No reading is needed for ThinkFun Zingo, a bingo-style game built for kids who are still learning their letters.
Each player races to spot matches for a card, and the first one to fill it takes the round. For a four-year-old, that makes it an easy first pick for family game night, with everyone at the table playing the same game.
School-age children can follow instructions, so building sets, craft kits, chapter books and simple science kits go down well. This is also the age when what their friends have starts to matter. For LEGO, the GiftExperts LEGO Finder filters every set by age and theme.
*Paid link
A picture guessing game in which the player whose turn it is sketches a secret word and everyone else races to name it.
Why we like it
Drawing in the air is the twist in Pictionary Air: she sketches with a light pen, and her picture appears on a connected phone or tablet for everyone to guess.
Keep a smart device handy, and the kids-versus-grown-ups setup gives her a fair shot at stumping the adults on game night.
A mermaid-themed craft set for putting together a small terrarium, planting it and arranging a decorated scene to keep on a shelf.
Why we like it
First come the plants: she sets greenery into the Mini Garden terrarium, then arranges the mermaid decorations around it however she pictures the sea.
The plants keep growing once the craft is done, so there is something new to check on each morning.
A LEGO Minecraft brick set for building Steve's Taiga Adventure, a game-inspired scene to assemble and then use for play and display.
Ages 6+ (Brickset) 79 pieces · set 21583
Why we like it
If Minecraft is her game, Steve's Taiga Adventure turns a familiar corner of it into real bricks.
Once the taiga scene is built, she can walk Steve through it on the floor the way she would on screen.
A bracelet-making kit for planning bead patterns, stringing stackable bracelets, and wearing them together or giving a few away to friends.
Why we like it
Heishi beads, the flat little discs that stack into bold stripes of color, are the heart of the Cool Maker Stack'd kit.
She plans a color pattern, strings a few bracelets to wear together on one wrist, and still has a spare to slip onto a friend's arm when they swap.
Tweens know what they like. A gift that fits one interest, a sport, a game, drawing, a book series or coding, beats a general toy, and a grown-up version of something they already use feels like a compliment.
*Paid link
An invention kit that connects to a Mac, Windows, Chromebook or Linux computer for hands-on tinkering and building projects that the computer responds to.
Why we like it
Plugged into a laptop, Makey Makey can turn a row of bananas into piano keys he plays with a tap.
That is one project out of thousands of activities, and each idea he picks gets built, checked and changed until the computer does what he planned.
A ball skill game in which the player keeps balls in motion and builds longer runs through practice, alone or taking turns with others.
Why we like it
Holiday visits with cousins get a quick contest from the pindaloo ball skill game, labeled Age 9+.
He keeps the balls moving as a cousin counts aloud, and whoever goes longest names the next challenger. Older cousins get no head start here, since each run comes down to his hands and timing.
A K'NEX construction kit for building several different amusement park rides, with pieces that come apart and go back together as the next ride.
Why we like it
On a free Saturday at the kitchen table, a fairground fan raises his own amusement park from a heap of K'NEX.
At fairs he hunts the wildest thrill, and here he decides how it gets put together. Its box holds several builds, so the finished machine comes down whenever he wants a different layout.
A STEM toy from CrunchLabs built around crunching everyday objects, letting someone watch simple mechanics at work while choosing what to squash next.
Why we like it
A boy who pulls things apart to see inside gets The Crunchinator, a CrunchLabs crusher toy.
He feeds it a grape from his lunch and sees exactly how it gives way. Then he and a friend compare notes on which snack held out longest.
Teenagers are the hardest to surprise. Gifts that fit how they already spend their time work best: music, gaming, sport, their room, their phone. Each pick says who it suits, so you can skip the ones that don't fit your teen.
*Paid link
Stud earrings from the Swarovski Una Angelic line, worn in pierced ears to finish an everyday outfit or a dressier look.
Why we like it
Simple enough for a choir concert dress code yet bright enough to catch the stage lights, these clear crystal studs from Swarovski's Una Angelic line make a polished last touch.
They look just as right with jeans and a sweater the next day.
A tinted balm that bridges skincare and makeup, smoothed onto the lips for a soft wash of color and reapplied throughout the day.
Why we like it
Halfway between lip care and makeup, LANEIGE's Lip Glowy Balm goes on as a sheer wash of color, a gentle step for a girl not ready for lipstick yet.
Tucked into a stocking beside a bigger gift, it suits school days and parties alike.
A wristwatch from Fossil, worn daily to keep track of the time and finish an outfit, from casual looks to dressier ones.
Why we like it
This Fossil watch hands a teen shaping her own style a grown-up accessory to wear on her wrist every day.
She already chooses her own earrings and bags, so a watch joins the pieces she picks out each morning. On a babysitting night, she can glance down to see when the parents are due back.
Camera that takes a photo and prints it as a physical snapshot on the spot, using instax mini instant film, sold separately.
Why we like it
Ready to shoot the moment the wrapping comes off, this Instax Mini 13 bundle packs 60 shots of film along with accessories.
Its opening shots on Christmas morning can be her family in pajamas around the tree.
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Organising the office or family swap? Draw names here for free, and everyone gets their match by link.
There is no right number. Many families settle on one bigger gift and a few small ones, and some follow the four-gift rule: something they want, something they need, something to wear and something to read.
Build on what they already love instead of starting something new: the next set in a series they collect, a better version of something they use every day, a book that goes with a game they play. The reason under each pick helps you find these quickly.
