Toy & Play Trends

As digital life speeds up, families are choosing tech-free toys that help them power down and reset.

The Cozy Culture trend reflects a growing fondness for low-tech and no-tech play experiences that help families counterbalance constant digital stimulation and overstimulation. Across age groups, consumers are embracing toys and games that prioritize comfort and engage the senses (think: tactile materials, gentle interactivity, or botanical-themed and natural design aesthetics). Rather than rejecting technology outright, this movement represents a conscious reset, with play serving as a screen-free space for emotional regulation, creativity, and connection. The result is a surge in demand for toys that feel intentional, calming, and human centered.

Creator culture is driving demand for toys that encourage building, designing, and customization.

Kids today are growing up watching creators on platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and streaming channels build, design, and make projects in real time. This cultural shift is fueling demand for toys that encourage kids to put down their devices and become makers themselves. The global STEM toys segment is predicted to nearly double between 2024 and 2034 (market.us), and 78% of parents want more toys that help their kids develop skills like creativity and problem-solving, according to The Toy Association’s recent survey of U.S. parents*. Parents view open-ended kits, modular building platforms, design-driven creative toys as tools to empower kids to explore ideas and bring their own designs to life.

Today’s toys are collectible, wearable, shareable, and personal.

Toys are expressions of personality as much as playthings. Beyond collecting, bag charms, clip-on minis, and flocked figures now function as personal badges for kids and adults alike (reflecting fandom, humor, or aesthetic) amplified by haul culture and social sharing. More than half of U.S. parents (52%) report purchasing a blind box toy for their children or themselves in the past year, also signaling renewed momentum for surprise-driven play*. At the same time, tweens and teens are more openly embracing toys as tools for self-expression, stress relief, and emotional well-being, reflecting a broader cultural shift toward individuality and away from pressure to conform to traditional ideas of what’s “cool.”

Toys pulled from the vault aren’t just returning to shelves, they’re going viral.

Nostalgia continues to fuel consumer interest in toys, but today’s throwbacks aren’t necessarily being fueled by childhood memories. Teens and young adults (many of whom didn’t grow up with these toys) are tapping into cultural relics from decades past as a form of exploration, inspired by aesthetics, fashion, and social media. Reflecting this cultural appetite, Pinterest Predicts 2026 reported a 140% surge in searches for 2000s-era kids’ toys. Toymakers, in response, are refreshing heritage IP through updated mechanics, cross-category collaborations, and social-first storytelling to create viral, culturally relevant moments.

Toy companies aren’t waiting for the next blockbuster hit, they’re adapting to cultural moments in real time.

Licensing now accounts for over one-third of all U.S. toy sales, underscoring just how central fandom has become to the category. From the FIFA World Cup and the 2026 Winter Olympics, to streaming hits, “memeable” moments, and viral fandoms, cultural touchpoints are driving toy momentum faster than the traditional movie-led cycle. Instead of hinging on a single release date, a new era of licensing in toys is driven by fresh content drops, cross-platform storytelling, and thoughtful fan-first designs. This also extends beyond IP-led product, with many companies creating non-licensed toys inspired by online and real-world fan behaviors. The result: toys that feel timely, culturally specific, and distinctly relevant across both kid and kidult audiences.