Building & Playsets

36 Best Gifts and Toys for 3-Year-Olds

36 Best Gifts and Toys for 3-Year-Olds

The best gifts for 3-year-olds provide plenty of opportunities to explore as toddlers grow and develop into more imaginative play. So if you’re on the hunt for the perfect gift idea, we’ve got you covered.

Finally out of the “terrible twos,” many 3-year-olds are entering school for the first time and interacting with friends. They’re becoming increasingly verbal and able to answer questions and follow directions. (Or not: There’s a reason people call them “threenagers.”)

However, the clock is ticking on holiday shopping so now is the time to buy any last-minute additions. Lucky for you, many of these options will still arrive in time! Just make sure to double check the shipping and in-store pickup options.

Shopping tips | Holiday toy deals | Best building toys | Educational toys | Arts and crafts and music toys | Pretend play toys | Stuffed animals, dolls and figures | Cars, trains and vehicles | Play sets | Books | Meet the experts | How we chose

Our top picks

Bestselling gifts for 3-year-olds

What should I look for in a gift for 3-year-olds?

“Three-year-olds are getting to be more social and have ideas of their own,” says Tovah Klein, director of the Barnard College Center for Toddler Development and author of “How Toddlers Thrive.” According to Klein, “Open-ended toys such as blocks and building toys allow them to explore, discover and carry out their ideas.”

They are deep in the “I’ll do it myself” phase, so they enjoy things that help them master the fine motor skills that might help them dress themselves, says Marie Conti, head of The Wetherill School in Gladwyne, Pennsylvania, and a board member of the American Montessori Society.

From stuffed animals and dolls to books and educational toys, we found tons of giftable options for 3-year-olds.

Best holiday toy deals for 3-year-olds

Melissa & Doug Super Smile Dentist Kit

Kids may hate going to the dentist, but they won’t mind playing dentist! Landing on Walmart’s Top Toys list in 2023, the Melissa & Doug pretend play set comes with plenty of accessories to teach them about good oral hygiene.

Crayola Scribble Scrubbies Bath Set

For a more artsy bath experience, your 3-year-old can color in these little pets, then wash them off and start all over again. Plus, they’re easy to clean off of other surfaces if your little one decides to get creative outside of tub time.

Melissa & Doug 100-Piece Wood Blocks Set

With 100 pieces, this wooden block building set is meant for fun and play. They’ll get to use the colorful blocks and shapes to build their own architectural creations.

Melissa & Doug Let’s Play House Set

Whether your 3-year-old wants to run the house or help you around the house, this cleaning tools set is the perfect set. With a broom, mop, duster, dustpan and hand brush, the set has all the tools to keep an (imaginative!) house clean and your toddler running around. Shop TODAY editor Rebecca Brown watched her daughter spend countless nights using this set. “This became part of our bedtime routine. My daughter would get the mop or broom out and ‘help clean’ before bed by mopping the carpet. It was fantastic.”

Kinderific Gardening Set

For the 3-year-old with a budding green thumb, this gardening set is perfect for encouraging independent play outside. It comes with a watering can, gloves, a rake, a shovel and a fork all stored in a tote bag for easy cleanup after they’re done tending to their — real or imaginary — plants.

Montessori Mama Wooden Toddler Puzzles

Between the vibrant colors and cute animals (dinosaurs, dolphins, rabbits and bears, oh my!), these puzzles will keep your toddler entertained for hours. Not to mention, they will help them count numbers and refine hand-eye coordination while they play, according to the brand.

Cadson Miniature Dyson Ball Toy

Get them loving chores while they’re still young. With a working suction and twisting and turning capabilities, this mini Dyson vacuum replica works just like Mom’s and Dad’s!

Learning Resources Gears! Gears! Gears! Building Toy Gear Set

Encourage early STEM development and fine motor skills with this interactive gear set that really works. According to the brand, this set will help them start learning about sorting, grouping, counting — and even putting physics into play with the spinning gears!

Best building toys for 3-year-olds

Melissa & Doug Pattern Blocks and Boards

The options are endless when it comes to the patterns and designs your child could make with these vibrant geometric blocks, but they can also build the patterns that are already included with the set. Their problem-solving skills and natural curiosity will also be tested by shapes like hexagons, trapezoids, rhombuses and more.

Magna-Tiles Clear Colors

These magnetic tiles allow kids to create their own masterpieces and will captivate them for years to come. “Kids will play with those for hours,” Conti says. They’re also a favorite of commerce vice president Jen Birkhofer.

Staplestein Rainbow Set

This stacking set will help 3-year-olds learn, build and grow as they can use the pieces to create a chair, stool and more. Shop TODAY associate editor Kamari Stewart shares: “I gave this set to my 3-year-old nephew. My sister set it up as a tower in their apartment and, without any prompting from her, he immediately took the stones apart and laid them out in a path to create walkable stepping stones (like the name of the brand!).”

Stewart adds that she was “surprised and impressed at how intuitive it was for him to play with these and love that he was able to figure it out on his own. It really speaks to the thoughtful design. Plus, my sister likes that they neatly stack in one place and aren’t an eyesore!”

Best educational toys for 3-year-olds

LeapFrog 2-in-1 LeapTop Touch

Now they can work on their very own laptop just like Mom and Dad! This LeapFrog LeapTop has five different modes — ABCs, numbers, games, music and messages. It can also be customized with their name so they can practice spelling it!

Creativity for Kids “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” Sensory Bin

Most little ones are familiar with the classic tale, “The Very Hungry Caterpillar.” Now they can get a hands-on experience with the story! This sensory bin is loaded with 2.5 pounds of sensory sand, a Hungry Caterpillar toy, foam accessories, shovel, sand stamp and colorful clings, among other things.

Spin ‘N’ Sprinkle Water Lab Bath Toy

Every 3-year-old has a little scientist in them. Allow them to channel their scientific urges with this water lab bath toy that creates double-chain reactions and effects.

Educational Insights Design & Drill Patterns & Shapes

They’ll develop fine motor skills alongside shape and pattern recognition with this toy drill board. Each set comes with five reversible board cards that they can follow, or they can use their imagination to get creative.

Playskool A to Z Magnatab

With a magnetic stylus, reinforcing the ABCs and their handwriting becomes an easy task. It’s perfect for the young learner who is still practicing their penmanship.

Best arts and crafts and music toys for 3-year-olds

Crayola Bluey Color Wonder Coloring Set

These mess-free coloring pages are perfect for travel (and for avoiding stains on every surface in the house). If they’re not into Bluey (but let’s be honest — what kid isn’t?), there’s also a Barbie option.

Play-Doh Fun Factory Deluxe Set

Little ones are unleashing their inner artist at this age, and this set lets them explore through touch and feel. It comes with 31 tools and six cans of Play-Doh to create animals, shapes and anything else they can dream up.

Kids Acoustic Guitar

Prepare for hours of music play with this mini guitar that’s just right for little fingers. “Musical toys can form a big part of a 3-year-old’s day,” says educational toy expert Lauren Leisk.

Best pretend play toys for 3-year-olds

Unicorn Princess Toy Bubble Wand

This automated bubble wand will keep any little princess entertained. It also has colored lights and plays music, making it the perfect party item.

Melissa & Doug Let’s Explore Light & Sound Camping Lantern Play Set

This toy was designed to inspire hours of screen-free fun. They can change the color of the light in the lantern. Plus, it plays soothing noises like bird chirps, campfire sounds, ocean waves and more to help them feel like they’re on a real adventure.

Melissa & Doug Sushi Slicing Set

If Japanese fare is more your child chef’s speed, they can now “cut” sushi and then pick them up using (helpfully velcroed) chopsticks, thanks to this sushi “slicing” set.

Magna-Tiles Safari Animals 25-Piece Magnetic Construction Set

Their imagination and motor skills will be developed simultaneously with this magnetic construction set. It comes with four animal figurines, nine squares, ten triangles, an arch and a pentagon, so they can practice shapes while reigning over their imaginary jungle.

Skip Hop Zoo Bark-Ista Coffee Set

Why should tea sets get all the fun? Baby can make their first “cappuccino” with this coffee set. With its 20 play pieces that include a “fill and drop” filter, as well as signal lights and realistic coffeeshop sounds, your tyke will have fun playing barista while potentially developing their fine motor skills. The drawer below opens to reveal doughnuts and other treats.

Best stuffed animals, dolls and figures for 3-year-olds

Paw Patrol Plush Character Set

If your little one was a fan of the new “Paw Patrol” movie, they’ll love having Marshall, Chase, Rubble and Skye to hang out with at home. They’re all in uniform and ready for their next rescue adventure!

Manhattan Toy Playdate Friends

This doll is huggable, machine-washable and dryer-safe, and comes with its own pet for extra fun. For instance, Harper, the little playdate friend featured on the bottom left, not only includes a white built-in onesie and adorable bow, but she also sports a cute removable dress and shoes!

Slumberkins Alpaca Snuggler

As they start school, toddlers may become more interested in cozy friends who give comfort. These therapist-designed snugglers come with a story to help with stress management. According to Slumberkins, “Alpaca teaches children to articulate their feelings, manage their anxiety and share their worries with others.”

Best cars, trains and vehicles for 3-year-olds

Lego Duplo Disney Mickey & Minnie Mouse Birthday Train

Let their favorite characters celebrate alongside them this year with this Lego Duplo set. This birthday train set includes a three-part train, birthday cake, number bricks and accessories.

Green Toys Car Carrier

This bestselling car carrier helps with fine motor skills and imaginative play. According to the brand, it’s made from recycled plastic and is even dishwasher-safe!

Best play sets for 3-year-olds

Bluey Hammerbarn Shopping Playset

“Bluey is everyone’s favorite show, from preschoolers to grade schoolers to parents,” The Toy Insider’s editor-in-chief Marissa Silva says about this popular TV show about the titular Australian Blue Heeler and their equally beloved family. This four-story Hammerbarn shopping center allows the characters (and kids) to explore the environment and curb their curiosity.

Haba Little Friends Townhouse Villa

A dollhouse gives toddlers room for creative play, as well as a space to work through issues around separation as they head to school. This one has an open design that lets kids play on all sides, so there’s no elbowing for a spot.

Best books for 3-year-olds

“Go Back to Sleep,” by Zoe Foster Blake and Mike Jacobsen

Finn’s parents just won’t stay in bed at night, so he’ll have to enforce their bedtime routine in this funny role reversal.

“Brown Is Warm, Black Is Bright,” by Sarah L. Thomson and Keith Mallett

Brown is the color of leaves and black a dark puddle in this lyrical exploration of positive associations of black and brown. Paired with these verses are illustrations that are called “soft, rich and warm, evoking feelings of safety and calm.”

“The Pigeon Will Ride the Roller Coaster,” by Mo Willems

The pigeon first tried to ride the bus nearly 20 years ago. Now he’s ready for a roller coaster and can barely stand the excitement.

“Sylvie,” by Jean Reidy and Lucy Ruth Cummins

Sylvie the spider watches over the tenants where she lives beneath a fire escape. Not since “Charlotte’s Web” has a spider been such a kind friend.

“The Sun Is Late and So Is the Farmer,” by Philip C. Stead and Erin E. Stead

As farm animals wait for the sun to rise, it seems to take a little too long. So they set off on a journey to the edge of the world to summon the sunrise. If your little one loves animals great and small, they’ll love this tale, which, according to Publisher’s Weekly, “appreciates creatures’ gentle ways and offers a quiet reminder about perceptions’ ability to mislead.”

How we chose the best gifts for 3-year-olds

The Shop TODAY team works hard to find the best products and coolest gifts out there. We use our own personal experiences with brands and shopping to find the most unique gifts on the market that are sure to be a hit.

Meet the experts

  • Marie Conti is Director of Regional Community Relations for American Montessori Society. She was the former head of The Wetherill School in Gladwyne, Pennsylvania.
  • Tovah P. Klein, Ph.D., is Director of the Barnard College Center for Toddler Development in New York, as well as the author of “How Toddlers Thrive.” She focuses on young children’s social emotional development as well as parents’ experiences raising them.

Don’t forget to check out Shop TODAY’s other gift guides to find the perfect present for every kid on your list including babies, 1-year-olds2-year-olds4-year-olds5-year-olds6-year-olds7-year-olds8-year-olds9-year-olds and 10-year-olds.

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