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Teenagers have a reputation of being “too cool” for some things — but gifts ain’t one of them. And when it comes to counting down the days until Christmas, teens also like to get swept away in the fun of a great advent calendar. And who wouldn’t? They’re not just for grocery-store chocolate anymore, and there are advent calendars out there to suit the interests of everyone from coffee lovers to sock collectors. And the interests of teens are no exception: From their favorite culture obsessions to new entries into their beauty routines to fun little items to add to their collections, these advent calendars for teens keep teenage faves in the forefront. (And yes, there are chocolate ones, too, but much yummier ones than the grocery-story kind.)
Our Top Picks for the Best Advent Calendars for Teens 2023
From bath products to hot sauces, check out the list below for even more countdown goodness.
Looking for more great advent calendars? Check out these Good Housekeeping guides:
Advent Calendars for Kids | Beauty Advent Calendars | Chocolate Advent Calendars
‘Star Wars’ Advent Calendar
Kids, teenagers and adults (or should we say “kidults”) don’t agree on much, but everyone seems to have warm feelings for LEGO. This one offers little Star Wars-themed builds to construct, including ships and droids, and also holiday-themed minifigures of characters like Emperor Palpatine or an Ewok. If Star Wars isn’t their fandom, there are also LEGO advent calendars for Marvel and Harry Potter.
RELATED: The Best Gifts for Star Wars Fans of All Ages
‘Friends’ 24 Beauty Days Advent Calendar
For the teens in your life are obsessed with TV re-runs — Friends, The Office and the like — this advent calendar could not be any more perfect for them. They’ll get fun, beauty-related treats like hand creams, bath fizzes and lip balms with Friends-themed packaging, like a bath product in the shape of a lobster (IYKYK) or body wash in a bottle that says, “How you doin’?” There’s also a 12-day version for $28, but that’s much harder to come by — grab it if you see it in stock!
Pop! Dragon Ball Z Advent Calendar
If they collect Funko Pops and want to add more 1.87-inch “pocket” pops to their collection or if they want to display their love of anime on their shelves, this Funko advent calendar will add 24 Dragon Ball Z characters to their collection. Or, if they’re not into Dragon Ball Z, there are also pocket-pop calendars for Disney characters, DC Super Heroes, Marvel, Star Wars, Harry Potter and Pokémon.
RELATED: The Best Gifts for Anime Fans
Makeup Advent Calendar
This set is great for teenagers looking to fill out their makeup kit and try out different brushes, colors and cosmetics. They’ll get some makeup, some tools and even some hair accessories that they can play around with.
Don’t Miss: Best Beauty Advent Calendars
12 Days of Marvel Socks Advent Calendar
Whether their favorite is The Hulk, Captain America or Spider-Man, the Avengers can assemble…in their sock drawer. This comes with both short and long socks emblazoned with various Marvel heroes.
RELATED: Cool Marvel Gifts for Kids and Adults
The Nightmare Before Christmas: Ghoulish Delights
If you’re looking for just a little something to get them through the dark winter days, this one is filled with paper-based treats for fans of The Nightmare Before Christmas, including ornaments, stickers, greeting cards and trivia. And if you’re looking for something similar for other teens on your list, the publisher does similar advent calendars for a ton of teen faves, including Elf, Supernatural, Fallout, Friends, Dragon Ball Z, Skyrim, Home Alone, Batman, Marvel, Star Wars, Harry Potter and Dungeons & Dragons.
Dairy Milk Heroes Advent Calendar
If they do want a traditional chocolate advent calendar, you can get them one that’s filled with candies they might not get every day. These, from Cadbury, are filled with 24 different candies from across the pond, including Wispas, Twirls and Dairy Milk bars.
12 Days of Nails Advent Calendar
When they finished opening all the goodies in this advent calendar, they’ll have everything they need to do their own at-home gel manicures, including prep pads, an LED light, top coat and remover. They’ll also get seven different gel nail polishes and holiday-themed nail stickers, so they’ll be set for all the season’s holiday parties.
12 Days of Hot Sauce Advent Calendar
If they like their food spicy, give them different flavors to try out. This comes with 12 different hot sauces with names like “Zombie Apocalypse” and “Garlic Reaper.” If they dig it, maybe for Christmas they’d be interested in the Make-Your Own Hot Sauce Kit, too.
12 Days Holiday Advent Calendar
They can never have too much ChapStick, and this advent calendar will refill their stash with lip balms in flavors like sugar cookie, candy cane and hot cocoa. They’re much-needed on cold, winter days!
Fidget Advent Calendar
Fidget toys are still popular among kids of all ages, from elementary schoolers through teens. (And maybe you have a few stashed away for yourself?) This one gives kids 24 items to squeeze, twist, pop and twirl when they need something to do with their hands.
Bath Set Advent Calendar
If the teens in your life love experimenting with new skincare routines, give them this adorable bath set. This one comes with different, trial size hand lotions in fun holiday scents. They’re the perfect size for stashing in backpacks, purses or a locker.
Amazing Magic Advent Calendar
They say a magician never reveals their tricks, but this advent calendar will do it for them. Each day offers a new magic trick to try, so when the month is over they’ll have a little repertoire of card tricks, “mind reading” tricks and sleight-of-hand magic under their belts.
Crystal Advent Calendar
Whether they believe in the healing power of crystals or just want to add new specimens to their rock collections, this advent calendar comes with 24 rocks, gems and crystals, and even a necklace! It also comes with information about the properties of each type of stone.
Brain Teaser Advent Calendar
One trend for the 2023 holiday seasons? Puzzles, brain-teasers and other mind workouts are incredibly popular. Similar to a fidget toy advent calendar, this one offers 24 ways to busy their hands. The first half of the month is all metal loops that teens have to work to uncouple, and the second one is plastic pieces they have to assemble into a shape.
Harry Potter Pop-Up Advent Calendar
If they don’t need a lot of stuff and just want a fun way to count down the days, this calendar is a pop-up tree, and every day one of the presents unfolds to reveal a different ornament for it. As the month goes on, the pile of presents transforms into a lush tree with decorations like house crests and pictures of favorite characters.
12 Days of Hot Cocoa Advent Calendar
If Jack Frost nips at their noses all December long, give them a way to fight back. This one comes with 12 luscious hot chocolate packets in different flavors, like peppermint, hazelnut and salted caramel. Don’t forget to add your own mini marshmallows!
The Book Lover’s Advent Calendar
There’s nothing better to do on cold days than cozy up with a good read. While this advent calendar doesn’t choose the books for them, it’ll help them lean into the hygge with items for readers like a winter reading bingo card, a magnetic page-clip bookmark, book tags and more. Give it to your BookTok-obsessed teen.
EXIT: Advent Calendar
They’ll have to use all of their logic and critical thinking skills to solve the mystery at the heart of this escape room-style advent calendar! Each day, they’ll have to solve a puzzle that’ll tell them which door to open for the next day. If they enjoy it, you can get them more Exit: The Game sets for their stockings. Ages 10+
Hello Kitty Advent Calendar
Sanrio fans are legion, and while this is a candy advent calendar, it comes wrapped in an adorable Hello Kitty package. (Move over, Santa’s elves, we’ve got a new cutie delivering gifts.) Inside is like a trip through a sweet shop, with gumdrops, caramels, chocolate hearts and more.
12 Days of Putty Scents
No, their love of squishing things around in their hands didn’t end with Play-Doh. Indulge their urge to squash, sniff and mold with this advent calendar, which offers 12 different small tins of putty. Some of them even have seasonal scents, like pumpkin pie, festive wreath, frosted cookie or even fruitcake!
Advent Shower Steamer Set
It may be hard to get teens up and going in the morning, but maybe the promise of a new shower steamer each day will put some pep in their step. (Hardly!) These come in 24 festive scents like peppermint or fir tree and clove, and in addition to shower steamers they can also be used as exfoliating bath scrubs.
Mochi Squishy Advent Calendar
When they’re just looking for a little pick-me-up every day, they can enjoy 24 different squishy toys. Some of them are seasonal, and will help their desks look ready for the holidays, and others are just adorable.
Christmas Popcorn Advent Calendar
Chocolate advent calendars may have all the glory, but popcorn tins are where it’s at. This combines the two into an advent calendar that offers different gifts for popcorn lovers, including kernels and seasonings, plus recipes. Teens can try out different toppings, like French toast seasoning or Dill pickle seasoning, on all different types of kernels.
Through the Window Jigsaw Puzzle Advent Calendar
This is the perfect way to do a jigsaw puzzle: a little at a time. Each day offers a small jigsaw puzzle of a tiny, wintry scene, but they combine to make one larger holiday picture. It’s a good lesson for teens that little things, done every day, add up to a lot!
Why trust Good Housekeeping?
For decades, the Good Housekeeping Institute has provided expert reviews and advice on everything parents, kids and teens love from board games to best drones. While not all of the selects on this list have been specifically vetted by our experts, Marisa LaScala, Good Housekeeping‘s senior parenting and relationships editor, has looked for trusted brands at reasonable prices. Marisa has covered all aspects of the world of parenting, from the postpartum years through the empty nests, since 2015, and she’s pitched in with Good Housekeeping‘s toy coverage since 2018. She lives in New York City with her husband and daughter, who are both avid toy collectors.
Shop more toys and gifts for kids
Looking for more great gifts for kids? Let the experts do all the hard work for you!
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Great learning toys: While all toys can be helpful vehicles for supporting developmental growth, we love to spotlight notably exceptional educational Toys and STEM toys as well as ones that can support social-emotional growth, like those included in our lists of the best sensory toys, pop fidget toys, Montessori toys and autism toys.
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Gifts for babies: Please the newest members on your gift list (and their parents) with these useful baby registry items, as well as gifts for babies, gifts for baby girls and gifts for baby boys. Of course, you might want to get something for new parents to help them through the hectic newborn stage.
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Gifts for toddlers: The coolest new toys in this space pull double-duty, whether it’s social-emotional learning combined with motor skills, or creative play combined with language, as you can see in our gift guides for gifts for 1-year-olds, gifts for 18-month-olds, gifts for 2-year-olds and gifts for all toddlers, as well as our stocking stuffers for toddlers.
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Gifts for preschoolers: As they begin to explore the world around them on a deeper level, help them explore with STEM sets, art kits, creative toys and toys that inspire their imaginations. Find our favorites in our gifts for 3-year-olds (including gifts for 3-year-old boys and gifts for 3-year-old girls), gifts for 4-year-olds (including gifts for 4-year-old boys and gifts for 4-year-old girls) and gifts for 5-year-olds (including gifts for 5-year-old boys and gifts for 5-year-old girls).
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Gifts for big kids: By these ages, they’ve developed their own interests. Help them dive deeper into the subjects that most interest them, from coding to art to cartooning to history and geography, with these gifts for 6-year-olds (including gifts for 6-year-old boys and gifts for 6-year-old girls), gifts for 7-year-olds (including gifts for 7-year-old boys and gifts for 7-year-old girls), gifts for 8-year-olds (including gifts for 8-year-old boys and gifts for 8-year-old girls), and gifts for 9-year-olds (including gifts for 9-year-old boys and gifts for 9-year-old girls). It’s also fun to shop for some of our best-reviewed and top-selling stocking stuffers for kids.
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Gifts for tweens: Sure, once they get old enough for an iPad or gaming console you might be at a loss of what to get them. We have you covered with engaging picks for gifts for 10-year-olds (including gifts for 10-year-old boys and gifts for 10-year-old girls), gifts for 11-year-olds (including gifts for 11-year-old boys and gifts for 11-year-old girls), and gifts for 12-year-olds (including gifts for 12-year-old boys and gifts for 12-year-old girls), or see what’s trending with boys or tween girls as a whole.
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Gifts for teens: We decode what’s on the lists for this picky age group, from the hottest accessories to the most-wanted tech gifts, with gifts for 13-year-old boys, gifts for 13-year-old girls, gifts for 14-year-olds, gifts for 15-year-old boys, gifts for 16-year-olds, gifts for teen girls, gifts for teen boys and even fun stocking stuffers for teens.
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