Here is a proposition: Rather than delight your kid once or twice a year with a big, expensive present that will eventually get put aside, why not surprise them with a small, delightful package once a month? I have two kids, a 5-year-old and a 7-year-old, and they love it when something arrives in the mail that aren’t bills, replacement chargers from Amazon, or Garnet Hill catalogs.
A more or less ongoing supply chain crisis may still make traditional holiday shopping challenging (or expensive). Subscription boxes can be useful supplements for remote learning and come in handy if you can’t send your sniffly kid back to daycare or to a big indoor birthday party. As a bonus, they’re usually affordable! I tested some of the subscriptions on this list, and I bought others for my kids and their friends. These became our favorites.
Be sure to check out all of our other buying guides for kids, including the Best STEM toys, Best Kids’ Headphones, Best Tablets for Kids, and Best Tech Gifts for Kids.
Updated October 2022: We’ve added new items, like the Keke Bag and Lovevery.
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