Our Go-To Advent Calendar Fillers (Add Yours!)
This big list of Advent calendar fillers for kids collects ideas straight from parents to make stocking your family's DIY Advent calendar easy!
If you don't have an empty calendar but want in on the fun, you can count down the days until Christmas by reading a new holiday book each day. Or buy a pre-filled calendar that's ready to go.
Add the best Advent calendar filler ideas you've tried to the list!
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LEGO Minifigures
LEGO Minifigures are great advent calendar fillers or unique party favors for LEGO-loving kids. Part of the fun with these blind bags is not knowing which mini-fig is inside!
Mag-Men Magnets
Jennie Utsinger: These adorable little bendable men have magnetic hands and feet, so they can stick to metal objects around the house or perform acrobatics with each other. Kids will love them as Advent calendar fillers so their collection can grow every day!
Hot Wheels
Brigitte Nohra Miller: With hundreds of styles, colors and shapes you can always find a new Hot Wheels car to add to your kid's collection. One of our kids' favorites are the color shifters as they enjoy dumping them in water and watching them change color.
Bouncing Neon Putty
Brigitte Nohra Miller: This vibrant colorful putty does more than stretching and molding...it bounces!! Kids will have hours of fun playing. And, a bonus for parents, this putty does not stick to fabrics! Tested and approved by our family, these would make great Advent calendar fillers.
ChapStick Holiday Flavors
Kelly R: Seasonal lip balm flavors like Candy Cane and Holiday Cocoa are fun and useful! I like giving these as Advent calendar fillers instead of stocking stuffers because the kids can use them all month leading up to Christmas.
Miniature Kids Nativity Scene
Kelly R: The 11 tiny figures in this kid-friendly nativity scene would be perfect small Advent calendar fillers for the days leading up to Christmas morning. I love that these could be reused year after year.
Bath & Body Works PocketBac Hand Sanitizers
Kelly R: These kid-favorite small hand sanitizers come in fun holiday scents every year. Stuff a few into the DIY Advent calendar for a little extra winter germ fighting.
LINDOR Chocolate Truffles
Kelly R: These chocolate truffles were our Advent calendar fillers last year (one for each kid, of course!). My kids went NUTS for them, and I have to admit that I really enjoyed the overage myself! I used a variety of flavors, but the hands-down favorites were the special seasonal ones like peppermint cookie and snickerdoodle. My Target had a nice selection!
Crazy Aaron's Putty Mini Tins
Kelly R: My kids like Crazy Aaron's Thinking Putty over slime because it's more fun to play with and comes in so many fun varieties. The mini tins are about 2 inches and are great Advent calendar fillers if yours is big enough!
Miniature Wild Animal Toys
Alexandra F.: My kids love playing with animal figurines, and while Schleich toys are our favorites they are still always drawn to these little miniatures as well. I like Battat toys generally, and this set gives you plenty of options for filling your advent calendar every day.
Thomas & Friends Minis
Brigitte Nohra Miller: These mini Thomas and Friends trains are great Advent calendar filler ideas for all little train lovers! Their size is just perfect! They all attach one to another to create more fun during play time. Our kid loved his train-themed advent calendar last year, and every day was excited to reveal which train he was going to get.
Origami Dollar Christmas Tree
Kelly R: Money always goes over well, and folding a dollar into a Christmas tree makes it especially fun for the holiday! There are also origami tutorials for dollar bill stars, angels and more if you want multiple days of Advent calendar ideas. Your kids might even be inspired to try some easy origami tutorials themselves!
Dabble & Dollop Droplets Bath Bombs
Kelly R: These cute 1-inch bath bombs will fit in most calendars, and are individually wrapped so there won't be any residue left behind. Kids can mix and match the different bombs to create their own custom scent blends. I love little Advent calendar fillers like this that are "consumable" but not candy!
Mini Christmas Cookie Cutters
These cute little cutters are fun Advent calendar filler ideas...use them all month long to shape festive bite sized Christmas cookies, Jell-O and candies. You could also use them on veggies, cheese and mini sandwiches for a fun school lunch.
Mini Construction Truck Toys
Alexandra F.: My 2 and 4 year olds LOVE playing with trucks of all sizes, but they especially love mini construction trucks for digging in sand or dirt when they are outside, and kinetic sand when they are inside. They are just the right size for advent calendar fillers, and I love how easy they are to pack up in a purse or diaper bag for on-the-go entertainment!
Primary photo: Markus Spiske on Unsplash
Upparent collects community-submitted recommendations and reviews, and any ideas that are shared reflect the opinions of individual contributors.