What a 4-Year-Olds Girl Wants for a Gift (2025)

While a 4-year-old might still love to role-play with a toy kitchen or a baby doll, they're also ready to incorporate new skills into play, something to keep in mind when looking for gifts for kids this age. "Four-year-olds are full of questions as they begin to decode the patterns and processes driving the world around them," says Rebecca Parlakian, M.A., E.D., a parenting expert from Zero to Three, an organization that focuses on early child development. "They're all about problem-solving and enjoy mastering new challenges." Friendships and social play are a major source of joy for preschoolers, their attention span is growing and they're getting better with fine-motor skills that helps with arts and crafts.

There are lots of toys that appeal to 4-year-olds. Parlakian suggests construction toys like LEGOs and Magna-Tiles for building, challenging puzzles of 20 to 40 pieces, costumes and play sets that encourage imaginative play and simple board games that'll let them try logic and strategy along with patience and turn-taking. Age 4 is also when many preschoolers have a clear sense of gender identity and might especially want "girl toys" or "boy toys." Any of the items on our list might appeal to either gender, but many are what would traditionally be considered girl-themed, such as princess-focused toys.

The Good Housekeeping Institute evaluates toys all year long, in addition to keeping track of trends and new releases, to choose winners for the Good Housekeeping Best Toy Awards. Lab experts evaluate the toys for safety and quality and then hand them over to kids and parents for their brutally honest feedback.

For $12 or less she'll get 24 activity pages, a stamper and 300 stickers. "This was really easy for my daughter to use," a parents told us. "It kept her entertained and was great for travel." Another parent raved, "I personally like that this is mess-free. I don't have to worry about markers or paint, and the stickers are light and easy to take off things if she puts them places besides the paper. I also like that there is a holder for the stamper on the pad." Ages 3+

Good Housekeeping Institute toy testers have been fans of Crayola's Scribble Scrubbie Pets from the very beginning because they let kids color in their animals, rinse them off and color them in all over again, fostering their creativity. The Arctic Snow Explorers won a Good Housekeeping Best Toy Award because it adds a color-changing element to the fun: The pets turn white when warm and or blue when cold. The set comes with three pets, six washable markers, two snowboards, two tubs, a scrub brush and a vehicle that can be used as storage. Ages 3+

"As a 'fidget' kid, my child can play with Kinetic sand forever," a parent told us. This new set comes with a pound of play sand that never dries out, a stamper and five other tools to mold fun shapes. The sand naturally expands when kids squish it, giving it that fun "motion." Said another parent, "My daughter liked the pink, yellow and blue sand colors this came with." Ages 3+

This talking microscope, featuring the voice of Bindi Irwin, comes with 20 prepared slides and 5x images to help introduce preschoolers to the wonders of the world around them. The microscope comes with two eyepieces, so there's no squirming one eye to learn. There's also a GeoSafari Jr. Talking Telescope for kids who want to take their science knowledge even further. Ages 4+

This 48-piece magnetic construction set wowed our most recent testers, and parents reported that their kids played with it for more than a half hour at a time. "My daughter loved the sparkly tiles and has built her own castle multiple times since we opened the box. The dragon and princess figures were also a big hit," a tester told us. Ages 3+

Everything mini is hot right now with little girls, and this set of four Barbies and four color-changing vehicles plays right into that. The vehicles include a boat, plane, camper and convertible, and the Barbies, adorable at less than 2 inches tall, bend and pose. You might add the $10 Mini Dreamhouse to make this extra fun for playdates. Said one parent, "This felt like a fresh, new take on the Barbie franchise. The past few years it's been constantly about Barbie getting bigger, but this was a whole new way to play with Barbie, which brought a lot of excitement." Ages 4+

This light-up, music-playing and talking Ariel from the Disney Junior TV show was put through the toy-testing paces and got perfect marks. "She's designed to be played with in water, and my 4-year-old daughter took it to the beach," a dad told us. "The doll survived the salt and sand, and my daughter played with her all week long. The singing continues to function great and shows no signs of wear." Ages 3+

Our testers had fun pouring in water and getting the reveal started with these Hatchimals eggs. "My 4-year-old was excited that there was a rainbow slide. She enjoyed the visual experience of watching the animals hatch and rise up and come to life in such a real way," a parent told us. "She was excited to take care of them from the start and used the little towel it comes with to first to dry them." It includes six mini figures in color reveal eggs and ten accessories. Ages 3+

As a remote-control vehicle, this one is pretty sweet! Kids can make it turn around or go forward. "It also lights up and plays music," a parent said. "My daughter spends a lot of time setting other toys inside and then sending the carriage on secret missions in different bedrooms of our house." Three AA and two AAA batteries are required to power the carriage and its remote controller. Ages 3+

This interactive, 11-inch goat will do yoga with your kid! It's a play on adults who do "yoga with goats" classes and honestly, you might want to join in on the fun too. Daisy has a pretend water bottle, makes bleating sounds and giggles — and farts, for classic 4-year-old humor. Switch her to meditation mode and she does deep-breathing and plays soft music, which might calm your child for real. Ages 4+

Four-year-olds can create, squish, squash and shape this play foam that never dries out. The no-stick formula lets kids sculpt anywhere without making a mess. This particular play foam variety pack comes with eight colors, creating endless possibilities for little hands to try. Ages 3+

Kids can practice their nurturing and empathy skills while caring for these pets, in the form of a full salon experience. It comes as a big fluff overgrown scruff, and kids can trim its hair (and stuff a pet bed with the excess), style it and even paint its claws. Once they shave the scruff they'll be able to tell if they got a Yorkie or a Frenchie. Ages 4+

"This is perfect for my daughter who loves dolls and horses," one parent tester raved. "It really made her feel like a big girl because of its size." Our Lab experts like the price, which is less expensive than other 14-inch doll lines. The set comes with the Gia, with long blonde and pastel hair, and her horse, Gypsy, plus pastel accessories like the saddle, harness, boots and cowboy hat. Ages 3+

kids can dress up as four of their favorite classic Disney princesses with this set, which comes with ensembles patterned after Belle, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty and Snow White. It also comes with a bevy of accessories like three bracelets, three rings, three headbands and a soft tiara. It's fun for playdate! Ages 3+