35 Best Gifts for 11-Year-Olds 2023, Tested by Experts

Get them started on an entrepreneurial path with this kit, which helps them get a pet-care business off the ground. It comes with some tools of the trade (like some pet toys, a collapsible water bowl, a pet brush and poop bags), but also marketing materials (door hangers, pins, business cards, etc) and items to keep them organized (a client book, receipts). Or, if pet care isn’t their passion, there are also It’s My Biz kits for a lemonade stand, babysitting business or baked-goods business. Ages 8+

This game takes their marble runs to the next level: The STEM-themed brain-teasing game challenges players to make different kinds of marble runs using limited pieces. Good Housekeeping Institute testers say that, since there are challenges of varying difficulty included in the same box, older and younger siblings were able to play together. Ages 8+

They’ll have to keep their minds sharp and their observational skills on point to solve the 20 mysteries in this book. Each of them has a science-themed bent, too, so they might pick up facts about how a baker can know if an egg is raw or hard-boiled, or how an animal expert might know if an elephant stampede is coming. If they like it, they can get the other books in the Sleuth & Solve series. Ages 8 – 12

Kids love Nee Doh in all shapes in sizes, from the very small to the very large to groovy shapes like fruit or cats. The Nice Cube is still fun to squeeze and squish like all the other shapes of Nee Doh, but, no matter how much you smush it, when you put it down it will always return to its cube form. Ages 3+

Those summer-camp days feel like they’re here forever with this friendship-bracelet kit. Not only does it come with 20 pre-cut threads (in their own storage drawer, no less), it has a board that holds the bracelet and strands in place while the creation is in-progress. (The board even comes in several colors!) You can also use its app to find friendship-bracelet patterns and instructions. Ages 8+

LEGO fans and Super Mario Bros. devotees will be thrilled to be able to build out Donkey Kong’s jungle habitat, complete with a Donkey Kong and Cranky Kong. (There’s also a smaller, less expensive Dixie Kong set.) And, if you have the figures from the Super Mario Starter Course (or Peach Starer Course), you’ll be able to send them through the area and use the LEGO app to collect digital coins. Ages 7+

Tweens are still into the fidget craze, and this amazing box will give his hands something quiet to do for minutes on end. It unfolds into different shapes, revealing different patterns inside, and then it’s a puzzle to get it back into its cube form again. Ages 8+

Who wouldn’t want to cozy up and read, play video games or text and chat in a chair like this? This chair impressed Good Housekeeping Institute testers with its firm fill, but really won over Lab experts with how easy it was to clean the fabric. It comes in several colors and prints, and has a handle so you can drag it around.

RELATED: The Best Bean Bag Chairs, According to Expert Testing

As kids get older, their craft projects may get bigger and more elaborate, but the supplies are still basically the same. If they need their stash refreshed, give them this all-in-one craft kit, which comes with more than 300 pieces in a range of colors. Ages 6+

Notes to friends, reminders and doodles are way more fun when they’re done on small squares of scratch-art paper. This comes with 125 square sheets of scratch-art paper, plus a wooden stylus to use. It’s a cute gift to put in a stocking or a small gift basket. Ages 4+

For tweens into the Pokémon Trading Card game, this box will beef up their card collections with their favorite Paldea-region Pokémon from the Scarlet and Violet games. It comes with nine booster packs, along with fun extras for players like damage-counter dice, card sleeves, coins for coin flips, status markers and energy cards. Ages 6+

Cell phone cameras get the job done, but it’s way more fun to take pictures with an instant camera — especially when there’s film involved. They’ll especially appreciate the small mirror that makes taking selfies so much easier. The camera comes in several colors, and you can buy additional film with fun borders. (And get an album to put the pictures in, too!) Ages 8+

Axolotls are the animal du jour, and this plush gives you two for the price of one. It comes in a galaxy pattern with a happy expression, but flip it inside-out and you get the firey one with an angry expression. If you don’t like that pattern combo, it comes in more than a dozen others. Ages 3+

These glowing, flying spheres are definitely trendy among tweens, and this one has received more than 4,000 five-star ratings on Amazon. The whole thing is controlled by hand, not remote, and kids can learn how different throwing angles result in different flight paths. Ages 6+

Whether they’re into taking cool photographs or building elaborate LEGO scenes, this book will get their creativity working overtime. It teaches kids different photography techniques, like how to use forced perspective to make a minifigure look as tall as a person, or how to use depth of field to direct attention to a certain part of the scene. It also comes with props, like a clear posing rod, to help inspire scenes. Ages 7+

They’ll love personalizing their rooms with these lights, which feature 50 clear clips to hang photos from on 17ft of lights. Their walls will be one-of-a-kind.