60 Best Gift Ideas for Boys of All Ages, According to Experts and Boys Themselves
From toddlers to tweens and young adults, we have birthday, holiday and other great gift ideas.
Tested by Rachel Rothman
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What are boys asking for when it comes to birthday, holiday and any-other-gift-giving-day this year? As usual, when it comes time to shop for gifts for kids, the Good Housekeeping Institute sets to find out scientifically, by collecting data. First, it keeps track of the toys and gifts that come out year-round, looking into different trends and best-sellers. Then the experts call in their favorites and test them in the Good Housekeeping Institute labs, making sure they're safe, well constructed and worth the price tag. But the most important feedback comes next: The toys get shipped to testers across the country, who give honest feedback about whether they'd actually play with something like that in real life. (The favorites go on to win Good Housekeeping Best Toy Awards.) Experts also looks for toys that offer some kind of developmental value, be it through fostering imaginative play, helping with fine or gross motor coordination, teaching things like STEM concepts or inspiring creativity. When the results came back, these are the items that were the biggest hits with boys, including new picks and perennial favorites. As you can see, fidget toys, brain puzzles and other toys that surprise and delight are at the top of their lists this year — along with the rest of the list below.
Kanoodle Pyramid
Kids can't get enough of Kanoodle, and Good Housekeeping Institute testers liked the extra bit of challenge that Kanoodle Pyramid gives. To play, challengers draw a card that offers the beginnings of a shape, and players have to figure out how the remaining pieces fit. It's a brain workout that anyone can pick up whenever they have a spare moment. Ages 7+
Chronicle Books Search for a Giant Squid
First, kids pick their pilot. Then, they pick a sub. Then they choose their own path through the book, which has them hunting for a giant squid (and learning about marine life along the way). Good Housekeeping testers reported that once this one was over, kids wanted to re-start it immediately. Ages 6 – 9
Good Housekeeping testers were taken in by this Bowser. He's large, standing at 7" tall, and he's even more impressive when he blows actual smoke (well, cool mist) from his mouth, which glows a fiery red. It's the perfect fog effect for when you want to sing the "Peaches" song. Parent testers were also impressed by how much fog was made on just 10 drops of water. Ages 3+
They can get a feel for 3D printing with this pen, which melts a special plastic filament that they can layer to make shapes in three dimensions. This comes with the pen, which has controls that let users adjust the speed of the flow, plus three colors of filament. If they like it, you can also get them more colors or a mat and pad set that help them design and make different geometric shapes.
Smithsonian Planetarium Projector
Bring the nighttime sky indoors with this projector, which blasts HD images of stars, planets, nebula, moons and more onto his ceiling and rotates them 360 degrees. There are 24 HD space images that make more than 50 different image combinations. There's also an automatic shut-off timer if he wants to use it as a nightlight. Ages 8+
Zombie Dice
This game is perfect for family gatherings and vacations: It's small, portable, can be learned quickly and can be played in 15 to 20 minutes. The players are the zombies, and when they roll the dice, they're looking for brains to earn points. Footprints means the prey has gotten away, and three shotgun blasts means the turn is over. Ages 10+
Sky Viper Vector Stunt Plane
They'll love making this plane fly in loops, do barrel rolls and fly at speeds up to 35 mph! And yet, Sky Viper prides itself on how easy this one is to control with an auto-stabilization system that even can control for winds. Ages 12+
Miles Morales Zip-Up Hoodie
If Across the Spider-Verse has him longing to be the hero of Earth-1610, help him live out his Spider-Man dreams with this hoodie. It also comes in Peter Parker and Venom designs. Sizes 2T – 16
Kids can get sucked into this TMNT-themed Bop It game without realizing that they're actually partaking in two different kinds of '90s nostalgia. In this version, you swing Leo's sword to twist, pull his leg or bop a part of his shell. Testers found it extremely engrossing — they couldn't put it down! Ages 8+
Interactive Glow-in-the-Dark T-Shirt
It's something to wear and an activity at the same time: Use the light pen on the front panel of the shirt, and it'll make a glow-in-the-dark design! It fades after a few minutes, so kids can use it over and over again.
Crazy Aaron's Super Scarab Thinking Putty
For kids who always need to do something with their hands, Crazy Aaron's gives them a compound they can stretch, smush, twirl, bounce, tear and shape to their heart's content. Users like this one because the color changes depending on the angle of the light, giving it a cool, sci-fi effect. Ages 3+
This chair has Bluetooth speakers mounted into its headrest, so he'll really feel like he's immersed in his favorite games. The chair also rocks and reclines for comfort, and it also folds up so he can put it away when he's not using it (which will be never).
Zero Gravity Laser Race Car
This race car, a one-time winner of a Good Housekeeping Toy Award, gives new meaning to the phrase "you drive me up the wall." Kids can use a laser pointer to guide it, and it'll drive on the floor, up walls and even on the ceiling! (And don't worry, it won't damage the paint job.) It comes in red or in blue. Ages 8+
It looks like a ping-pong ball, but he'll be amazed by all the things he can program it to do on the Sphero Edu app. Kids can learn how to use drag-and-drop code or program it in Javascript, and then they can use it to play games, wheel around in Joystick Mode or whip around in Slingshot Mode. It also comes in several colors. Ages 8+
It looks like a box, but this fidget toy can be unfolded and snapped into new shapes through the power of magnets. There are more than 70 3D shapes he can mindlessly shift twist it into when he needs something (quiet!) to do with his hands. Ages 8+
Sonic the Hedgehog Plush
This plush Sonic is so soft and pleasing to squeeze, it won a previous Good Housekeeping Best Toy Award. Testers liked laying on it like a pillow. If you want to make it a collection, you can also get them for other Sonic characters, like Tails or Knuckles, or other games, like Kirby, Zelda and Super Mario Bros. and Mario Kart. Ages 3+
Untamed Raptor
These dinos are interactive, responding to sound and touch. Kids can play with them in "tamed" mode, or rile them up and get them to hiss, growl and roar — and even vent some dino gas — then calm them down by petting them again. Ages 5+
Klutz LEGO Gravity Drop Activity Kit
Part book and part activity kit, this comes with LEGO pieces, along with instructions for how to build things like a drop tower, a labyrinth and a fortune teller. Good Housekeeping Institute testers appreciated how the instructions were clear, easy-to-follow and accurate. Ages 8–12
My Robotic Pet: Tumbling Hedgehog
First, kids build this robot, assembling more than 170 pieces. Then, they can program it to respond to a series of claps, so that it does things like tumble, roll, spin around and bristle its spines. Ages 7+
Gravity Maze
Part-marble run, part-board game, Gravity Maze gives kids different tower setups, and they have to figure out how to get the marble to fall from one tower to the red cup in at the end. The 60 included challenges will really get their brains working. Ages 8+
Marisa (she/her) has covered all things parenting, from the postpartum period through the empty nest, for Good Housekeeping since 2018; previously, she wrote about parents and families at Parents and Working Mother. She lives with her toy-collecting husband and daughter in Brooklyn, where she can be found helping out her team at bar trivia or posting about movies on Twitter and Bluesky.
Rachel Rothman was the chief technologist and executive technical director of the Good Housekeeping Institute for over 15 years, overseeing testing methodology, implementation and reporting for all GH Labs. She also managed GH's research division and the analysis of applicants for the GH Seal and all other testing emblems.
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