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Best Advent Calendars of 2026 | Kids, Beauty, Food & Viral Favorites
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items Advent calendars are getting better (and crazier!) every year, and some of the hottest ones are already selling out. I rounded up the 2026 calendars actually worth knowing about; from viral toy and collectible calendars to beauty, food, tween favorit...
Sections
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🔥 Viral & Hard-to-Find Advent Calendars
🎁 Best Advent Calendars for Kids
✨ Tween & Teen Advent Calendars
💄 Beauty & Self-Care Advent Calendars
🍫 Foodie & Treat Advent Calendars
🎄 Unique Advent Calendars you would never think of!
🔥 Viral & Hard-to-Find Advent Calendars
These are the calendars getting the biggest buzz this year; the ones I’d grab early because they’re already selling fast, going in and out of stock, or have major collector appeal.
This one is so hard to get that Amazon is currently making it invitation-only. You have to click ‘Request Invitation’ while logged into your Amazon account, and they’ll email you if you’re selected to purchase it; so if your kid is NeeDoh obsessed, I...
Schylling NeeDoh Squishmas Advent Calendar
Pokémon collectibles are already huge this year, and opening a tiny new surprise every day makes this such an easy holiday win. I especially like that the pieces become an actual little collection instead of 24 throwaway trinkets.
Bitty Pop! Pokémon Advent Countdown Calendar
This one feels like a splurge without being completely outrageous for a beauty calendar because you’re getting more than $300 worth of skincare, makeup, fragrance and hair products for $98. It’s especially good if you love trying higher-end brands wi...
The 24 Days of Beauty Advent Calendar
If you want the glamorous beauty-lover gift, this is the big one. It includes 15 Charlotte Tilbury makeup, skincare and accessory surprises including four full-size products and the gorgeous box turns into a keepsake when you’re done. Charlotte Tilbu...
Charlotte Tilbury Beauty Advent Calendar 2026
This is such a cute option for the person who would rather open something delicious than another tiny product. You get 24 limited edition jams and spreads in flavors you usually can’t buy during the rest of the year, so breakfast basically becomes pa...
Bonne Maman New 2026 Limited Edition Advent Calendar
This might be the weirdest advent calendar on the list; in the best way. 😂 If your kid is into Fugglers, they get festive mini characters and collectibles you can’t get in the regular blind boxes, which makes this one especially fun for existing fan...
Fuggler Christmas Advent Calendar 2026
🎁 Best Advent Calendars for Kids
The fun ones kids will actually be excited to open every morning, with toys and activities they can keep playing with long after December is over.
If your kid already loves LEGO, this is such an easy win because every day adds another little build or character they can actually keep using afterward. I love that it doesn’t turn into 24 random trinkets once Christmas is over.
LEGO City Advent Calendar 2026
This is one of my favorite kinds of Advent calendars because every little piece becomes part of a toy kids already love. By Christmas they’ve built up a whole holiday train set, and all the pieces can mix into their regular MAGNA-TILES afterward!
MAGNA-TILES Advent Calendar
For the Disney kid who also loves building, this gives them 24 little characters, accessories and mini builds leading up to Christmas. It’s especially nice because the pieces keep working with the LEGO sets they already own instead of being one-and-d...
LEGO Disney Princess Advent Calendar 2026
This is such a good one for younger creative kids because every day gives them another color or tool to add to a big holiday Play-Doh scene. It keeps the countdown hands-on instead of giving them another tiny plastic figure every morning.
Play-Doh Holiday Advent Calendar, Arts & Crafts Playset with Over 24 Surprises
If your kid is still in their Bluey era, this is such a cute daily countdown because they get figures and little accessories from the show instead of candy. It’s especially good for preschoolers who want something they can actually play with each mor...
Bluey Advent Calendar
This is the pricier collectible option. Current 2026 kids Advent guides are flagging Squishmallows as one of the season’s major plush/collectible calendars. For the Squishmallows kid who wants to collect ALL the tiny ones, this is basically 24 days o...
Squishmallows 24-Day Micromallows Holiday Advent
✨ Tween & Teen Advent Calendars
Because older kids are way harder to shop for! These are the calendars that feel cool enough for tweens and teens without being too “little kid”.
This is such a cool option for the kid who loves escape rooms, mysteries and figuring things out. Instead of just opening a prize every day, they have to solve a new puzzle to unlock the next part of the story, so the whole month becomes one giant Ch...
Thames & Kosmos EXIT: The Game - Advent Calendar - The Magic of Christmas
This is a great tween pick because it still has the fun of opening something every day, but all the pieces build into one big winter scene instead of becoming random clutter. The minidolls and animals make it especially cute for kids who already love...
LEGO Friends Advent Calendar 2026
For the kid who loves crystals, rocks or collecting little treasures, this is way more fun than another candy calendar. They get a real gemstone each day plus a dig experience at the end, so they actually finish December with a collection they’ll kee...
National Geographic 2026 Gemstone Advent Calendar
This is such a cute tween gift because they get new holiday press-on nails and nail art to play with throughout December without needing glue or a salon appointment. It feels much more current and fun than a basic kids makeup calendar.
Olive & June - Mani Magic Advent Calendar
This is a really good first beauty calendar for a teen who loves experimenting with makeup without jumping straight into a $200 luxury box. There are 24 makeup surprises with a mix of minis and full-size products, so there’s actually a lot to open fo...
W7 Beauty Blast 2026 Makeup Advent Calendar
K-beauty plus Squishmallows feels almost designed for tweens and teens. 😂 It has masks, hand creams, lip products and other skincare surprises, so it gives them the fun beauty experience without being a calendar full of heavy makeup.
Squishmallows 10 Days of Skincare Advent Calendar
💄 Beauty & Self-Care Advent Calendars
Twenty-four tiny reasons to treat yourself. These are the beauty calendars that actually offer exciting brands, useful products and enough value to make the splurge feel worth it.
This might be one of the best beauty values this year: 25 products with 19 full-size, including brands like Summer Fridays, Olaplex, First Aid Beauty, Supergoop!, La Roche-Posay and medicube. It’s over $525 worth of beauty for $109, so this is one I’...
Amazon Beauty Advent Calendar 25 Days 2026
If you want a full 24-day beauty calendar without spending $100+, this is a really good middle-ground option. It has makeup, skincare and accessories including 13 full-size products and Sephora says the box is worth $190.
Advent Calendar - SEPHORA COLLECTION
This one is especially good for someone who cares more about skincare than trendy makeup. You get Elizabeth Arden classics, including ceramide and retinol skincare, plus five full-size products, and the total stated value is $317. Macy’s currently sh...
12 Days of Elizabeth Arden Beauty Advent Calendar
If Benefit is already one of your makeup brands, this feels like getting an entire makeup drawer for Christmas. There are 24 surprises covering brows, lashes, cheeks, lips and complexion, with a mix of full-size and mini favorites worth $330.
The Hotel Beneville 24-Day Beauty Advent Calendar Holiday Gift Set
This is such a nice self-care option for someone who loves rich hand creams, body care and that luxurious spa-at-home feeling. It includes 12 L’Occitane favorites with four full-size products, including some of their iconic almond and shea formulas.
12 Days of Provençal Beauty Advent Calendar - L'Occitane
This is such a good affordable pick if you’re into K-beauty or trying to get that hydrated glass-skin look. Instead of random minis, the seven products work together as an actual skincare routine from cleansing through moisturizing.
7-Days of Glass Skin Advent Calendar - ANUA
🍫 Foodie & Treat Advent Calendars
For the person who would much rather open chocolate, coffee, jam or another delicious surprise than another tiny toy.
This is the classic elevated chocolate pick: 24 days of premium milk, dark and white chocolates in a really pretty holiday box. It feels gift-worthy without jumping into the $100+ luxury-calendar range.
2026 Holiday Chocolate Advent Calendar
This is such an easy crowd-pleaser if you want good chocolate without spending a fortune. You get a mix of Lindt Teddy chocolates and other holiday treats, and it’s one of the better-value branded chocolate calendars I found.
Lindt Teddy Christmas Advent Calendar Assorted Chocolate Candy Box
This is a really good pick for a tea lover because each day is a completely different loose-leaf tea instead of another version of the same flavor. It feels cozy and giftable without being overly expensive.
VAHDAM 2026 Tea Advent Calendar Gift Set - 24 Days Loose Leaf Tea Countdown Box
This is such a cool alternative for the person who loves cooking more than sweets. You get 24 different spices and blends from za’atar and curry to truffle salt and gingerbread spice so the surprises actually keep getting used long after December.
Spice Advent Calendar
This is the nostalgic candy-shop option with things like peanut butter cups, caramels, peppermint truffles and Sticky Paws. I like that it feels more special than a basic grocery-store chocolate calendar without getting insanely expensive.
Williams Sonoma Classic Candy Advent Calendar
If your idea of December happiness is a giant mug of hot chocolate, this one is made for you. It has a mix of indulgent flavors to try throughout the month, so it turns the countdown into a nightly cozy drink instead of another tiny piece of candy.
Hot Cocoa Advent Calendar, 24-Piece
🎄 Unique Advent Calendars you would never think of!
The fun, unexpected ones that make you say, “Wait…they make an Advent calendar for THAT?” Perfect when you want something more memorable than the usual chocolate countdown.
This is such a cool gift for the creative person who would rather MAKE something than collect another bunch of minis. Each day brings a new art supply, project or creative surprise, so December basically becomes one long craft night.
Craft Project Advent Calendar
I love this idea because you don’t just open a door, you get another section of a 1,000-piece puzzle every day. By Christmas Eve the whole winter scene is finished, so the countdown becomes an actual cozy holiday tradition.
Winter Advent Calendar Jigsaw Puzzle
This is such a fun pick for the person who always has a book in their hand. Instead of chocolate, every day has a little bookish surprise like bookmarks, stickers, ornaments and other reader goodies.
The Book Lover's Advent Calendar
This is such a fun one for a curious kid because every day brings a completely new science experiment covering things like chemistry, biology and physics. It makes the Christmas countdown feel exciting without sneaking in another 24 tiny toys.
Experiment A Day Science Advent Calendar
This is such a fun pick for someone who loves crafts because instead of opening random little trinkets, you’re actually making adorable crochet projects throughout the countdown. It includes four full-size Woobles, four accessories, yarn, supplies an...
Here We Go A-Wooblin' Advent Calendar
This is such a fun one for a Gilmore Girls fan because the whole calendar opens into a light-up 3D Stars Hollow scene with the gazebo and Christmas tree. Each day reveals another ornament to add to the tree, so by Christmas you’ve basically built a l...
Gilmore Girls: Christmas in Stars Hollow
🛠️ Best Advent Calendars for Boys, Teens & Men
Most advent calendars are geared towards beauty, candy, or little-kid toys. These are the ones I’d pick for boys, teens, dads, husbands, and guys who are into tools, sports, fishing, cars, and fandoms.
This is perfect for the basketball fan who already loves opening card packs. You get a new holiday pack every day with NBA rookies, veterans, parallels, and inserts, so the countdown feels like 24 mini card-opening sessions.
2025-26 Topps NBA Holiday Basketball Trading Card Advent Calendar
This is such a good inexpensive gift for the kid, dad, or grandpa who loves fishing. Each day has actual Strike King fishing gear instead of filler, so they finish the countdown with things they can really use on the water.
12 Days of Fishmas Fishing Lure Advent Calendar Version 2
This is an easy win for Star Wars fans because every day gives them another character or mini build from The Mandalorian universe. I love that everything can mix into their existing LEGO collection after Christmas instead of becoming random little cl...
LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar 2026
For the Hot Wheels kid, this is way better than a calendar full of throwaway trinkets. They get 10 actual cars plus holiday accessories, so the surprises keep getting added to a collection they’re already playing with.
Hot Wheels Advent Calendar
This is the practical guy gift that still makes the countdown fun. You get 12 pairs of festive crew and no-show socks, so every surprise is something he can actually wear instead of another tiny gadget.
MUK LUKS Men's 12 Days of Christmas Socks
This might be one of the most useful Advent calendars I’ve seen; actual tools instead of candy or tiny collectibles. It includes a ratchet, sockets, screwdriver, bits, accessories and a storage case, with CRAFTSMAN claiming up to $200 in value, so it...
12 Days of CRAFTSMAN Advent Calendar