Best Gifts for 1 Year Old Under $50 (2025)
At this age, babies are just learning to walk and putting everything in their mouths. These are some of the things to keep in mind when shopping for the best gifts for 1 year old.
So you want to find something that is brightly colored to draw their attention, is robust enough to survive teething, and safe enough so they won’t get their fingers trapped.
In this list I’ve chosen toys that have longevity – which means these toys can grow with the child, or are robust and can be passed down.
🌿Sustainability considerations
Things to watch out for if you want to buy a gift that would last and be appreciated.
- Fabric parts that cannot be washed easily
- Plastic parts that easily break and cannot be repaired
- Lots of small parts
- Lots of parts that require clean up every time
- Battery cover that isn’t screwed on
- Paint that chips off
👶What 1 year old kids are looking for
- Bright colors.
- Sorry to ruin your home aesthetic, but given a choice, the kid will most likely gravitate towards the colorful toy (case in point: fisher-price play gym was preferred over the pricey lovevery one)
- Textures.
- They’re learning about the world around them, learning about cause and effect and seeing what sounds different materials make
- Fine motor challenges.
- Things like buckles, jigsaw pieces, and interactive parts can hold their attention better than just a stuffy.
🎁Best Gifts for 1 year old – full list
Tub Works® Tub Soup™
Don’t sleep on bath toys! A good bath toy goes a long way! This set is not hollow inside so there is no chance to mold to grow.
Blockaroo Magnetic Foam Building Blocks
I gifted this to a friend and it was a hit! These blocks float, and are magnetic, so they can entertain budding lego lovers in the bath.
LEGO DUPLO Number Train Toy
They will play with Duplo until even age 5. You can buy larger sets for a more substantial present.
This number train introduces numbers and allows them the creativity to build their own creations.
This is probably the best gift for 1 year old.
VTech Drop and Go Dump Truck
I don’t know what it is about trucks, but kids just looove trucks. This one lets you push the “rock” into the hole and it shoots out into the dump truck.
Baby Einstein and Hape Magic Touch Wooden Toy Piano
Everyone loves and gifts Hape toys. They are known for quality wooden toys. Baby Einstein makes electronic interactive baby toys.
You can’t go wrong with anything from Baby Einstein or Hape! You can also bet that these toys will last.
Dancing Mimicking Talking Cactus Toy
This mimicking toy is fun for the whole family! It’s fun to watch baby’s reaction to a mimicking cactus. Adults also find it funny to hear their voice in a cactus 🙂
Busy Book
These busy books have kept my child entertained for a while. They like the buckles and the velcro jigsaw puzzles.
Great for developing fine motor skills and easy to pack away!
Cube & 6 Sensory Shape Blocks
Another one for training those fine motor skills. Cubes double as teethers and pack away nicely into the cube.
Durable Pound A Ball Toys for Toddler
When my kids see this toy at someone’s house, they always like to give it a go. It’s fun to pound the balls and watch them roll down.
Hopefully this list gives you some ideas. There are higher prices options from the same brands that are linked on the same Amazon page.
You can also group several toys together that are lower in price.
Thank you for reading this far. This post contains affiliate links. If you click on a link and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.
