The 7 Best Kids' Gifts to Buy at Costco

The ideal gift sparks joy in a child. And that's part of what makes shopping for holiday gifts fun. However, you're not just focused on the holidays. You're paying for pesky little things like groceries and auto insurance, too.

Fortunately, these seven gifts represent holiday excitement at a discounted price.

One quick note: If you see anything you like, consider ordering it online, as it may not be available in your local Costco store.

1. LEGO® Friends Heartlake City Community Center: $95 (with $30 manufacturer's savings, valid through Dec. 4, 2023)

Recommended ages: 9 and up

Why it's a great deal: LEGO blocks never go out of style. With time, they only take on more meaning to kids who opened them on long-ago Christmas mornings. Snagging the $30 manufacturer savings means you'll pick the Heartlake City Community Center up for $45 less than it costs on Amazon.

This community center has it all, including a recording studio, music room, chill-out zone, and video room. The set comes with 1,513 total pieces and can be combined with the LEGO Friends Heartlake City Community Kitchen.

2. LEGO® Friends Main Street: $95 (with $30 manufacturer's savings, valid through Dec. 4, 2023)

Recommended ages: 9 and up

Why it's a great deal: It's not often you find a discount on LEGO sets, so we wanted to include one more option. With the manufacturer's savings, Main Street costs $45 less than you'll find it for at Target. That's enough money to buy another gift or tuck away into a savings account.

Main Street features four different buildings: A three-floor hotel, a music store, a record store (with a band on the rooftop), and a cafe. Buildings can be detached for separate play or connected to form a traditional scene. It comes with 1,459 pieces.

3. VTech KidiStar DJ Mixer Sound-Mixing Music Maker: $40

Recommended ages: Any

Why it's a great deal: You can pick the same music maker up at Walmart, but it will cost you $14 more.

Imagine how much a kid would love playing DJ, creating custom mixes along with the 15 included songs, or connecting to their own music player via Bluetooth. They can dazzle you with a performance and record their very own sound effects using the internal mic.

4. American Girl Dolls No. 123 and No. 111: $105 each (with $25 manufacturer's savings, valid through Dec. 4, 2023)

Recommended ages: 6 and up

Why it's a great deal: With the manufacturer's savings, you can pick these little beauties up at Costco for $10 less (each) than you'd pay at the American Girl store.

We can't guarantee that it will work, but if you have a little one who's not wild about going to bed at night, one of these American Girl dolls may be all the inspiration they need. Each comes with pajamas, a fold-out bed, a donut pillow, a blanket, a robe, a silky eye mask, blue slippers, and more. Doll No. 123 has dark brown eyes, a dark skin tone, and curly black hair. Doll No. 111 also has dark brown eyes, a light skin tone, and wavy long black hair.

5. Made By Me Arts & Crafts Creative Studio: $25

Recommended ages: 6 and up

Why it's a great deal: Walmart offers this same 1,000-piece crafting set, but for $14 more.

For the art lovers in your life, this all-in-one set gives kids all the supplies they need to craft to their heart's content. You name it, it's in there. The set includes everything, from rainbow craft sticks and easy-squeeze paints to scissors, tape, brush markets, and watercolors.

6. MEGA Pokémon, Pokémon Discoveries: $70

Recommended ages: 8 and up

Why it's a great deal: This Pokémon Discovery bundle will set you back $70 at Costco. At Walmart, you'll pay $81.

Kids who know the Pokémon characters are passionate about their favorites. This bundle includes Zubat's Midnight Flight, Jungle Ruins, Pikachu's Beach Splash, Charmander, and Galarian Ponyta. In total, there are 884 pieces, each compatible with other Pokémon building sets by MEGA.

7. The World of Tolkien: 7-Book Boxed Set: $46

Recommended ages: 12 and up

Why it's a great deal: You can pick these books up at Walmart, but you'll pay $7 more.

If you have a J. R. R. Tolkien fan in your life, you know how deeply they immerse themselves in the people, creatures, and powers Tolkien's books bring to life. This boxed set is a guide to the Tolkien world, providing everything a child needs to know to understand the vernacular, history of battles, heroes, ring legends, and more. In addition, there are more than 200 illustrations to help a reader capture the full lay of the land. These hardbound books will look beautiful on any bookshelf.

Naturally, the holidays are about far more than gifts (or saving money, for that matter). Still, if you can elicit a smile or two from the children on your gift list, it's a nice bonus.