7 Best Toys Under $20 This Holiday Season
Written by
Dawn Allcot
Edited by
Cory Dudak
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Stretching your holiday budget is easy if you’re shopping for little ones this year. You can pile the presents high under the tree with engaging toys under $20 each.
These top picks — recommended by parents, shopping pros and Amazon reviewers — promise to keep the kids busy through the long holiday break and beyond.
Scramboozle Puzzle Ball
- Price: $7.99 (orig. $9.99) on Amazon
The Scramboozle Puzzle Ball from Learning Resources puts brain teaser puzzles within a colorful fidget toy. Rated an Amazon’s Choice top pick with 4.5 stars, it makes the perfect stocking stuffer for ages six and up. The toy is fully self-contained within its plastic sphere, making it ideal for road trips, plane rides and anywhere you need a no-mess toy for on-the-go fun.
Cake-N-Bake Challenge by Hey Buddy Hey Pal
- Price: $19.99 on Amazon
The Cake-N-Bake Challenge will remind you of the games you used to play as kids — classics like Don’t Break the Ice and Ants in the Pants come to mind. Simple to learn, with colorful foam cake pieces perfect for little hands, this game offers three variations to play. The goal? Stack a cake that matches the game card drawn. No reading required — just family fun for hours!
Pom Pom Kit by Educational Insights
- Price: $11.99 (orig. $14.99) on Amazon
Crafty kids ages five and up will love this easy to use Pom Pom Kit by Educational Insights. A welcome change from magic markers and paint-by-number projects, the kit includes 16 easy-to-make designs and 1,000 pom poms, plus the tool required to stick the pom poms onto the animal dress-up card — no glue required.
Kinetic Sand SquishMotion Playset
- Price: $12.49 (orig. $19.99) on Amazon
Kinetic Sand remains a favorite toy for preschoolers and beyond. The SquishMotion Playset comes loaded with a pound of pink, yellow and blue sand, plus five plastic tools, including an innovative stamper that allows kids to carve out designs. The kit comes in its own carry case that doubles as a play space to keep the sand contained for hours of fun.
Fingerlings Interactive Baby Axolotl (Alix) with Inflatable Pool
- Price: $19.99 at Target
Voted a Good Housekeeping Toy of the Year for 2024, the Fingerlings Baby Axolotl with Inflatable Pool swims in its very own 18-inch round oasis, lights up and changes color when your child pets its head. Voted “best interactive pet,” this might just be the cutest thing you can put under the Christmas tree this year.
Snack-O-Saurus Rex from Spin Master Games
- Price: $17.19 (orig. $19.99) at Target
Promising to be one of the season’s hottest games, Snack-O-Saurus Rex is like Hungry Hungry Hippos for the prehistoric age. Roll the die, move your caveperson around the board, and see if you can grab a snack. Team up with the dinosaur to see if you can knock an opponent off the bored and collect their snack, too. It’s fun for the whole family, and it suitable for ages four and up.
Rubik’s Squish Cube
- Price: $14.88 at Walmart
This twist on the classic Rubik’s Cube puzzle is constructed from soft foam with a stickerless design for added durability. The 3×3 Rubik’s Squish Cube provides hours of puzzle-solving fun, and doubles as a stress ball. At under $15, it’s perfect for kids, grown-ups or an office Secret Santa gift.
Final Note
Even though nearly everything seems to have gone up in price this year, you can still find some of the best toys and games under $20 at top retailers like Target, Amazon and Walmart. Enjoy the smiles this holiday season (and hours of family fun into 2025) with old classics and new favorites alike.
Disclaimer: Prices accurate as of Nov. 15, 2024.
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