Best Lego Gifts for Brick Builders (2026): Smart Bricks, Video Games, and More

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To address the elephant in the room: Yes, Lego bricks are made of plastic. The company makes billions of tiny bricks that proliferate all over the world and all over your living room, and they will not biodegrade and cannot be recycled.

With that said, Lego bricks are machined to incredibly tight tolerances. Unless your dog chews on them, the bricks retain what Lego refers to as their “clutch power” for decades. Like so many others, my family became obsessed with Lego sets during the Covid-19 pandemic, and we still love them today. Years on, I have found no better way to while away a rainy afternoon than making tiny tyrannosaurs and pterosaurs with your son.

If you and your loved ones are also obsessed with Lego sets, we have some great gift ideas for you. If not, don't forget to check out our other gift guides; Mother's Day and Father's Day are coming up sooner than you think.

Updated April 2026: We added the Throne Room, added more information about smart bricks, and updated links and prices.

Their Favorite Themed Set

One of the reasons that Lego sets are so popular is the company's innumerable licensing deals. No matter what you're into, Lego has signed a deal to make a Lego set about it. (And then, in an ouroboros of advertising, the company will then make a movie about the Lego set about the franchise.) Anyway, this is a long and roundabout way of saying that my son and I are obsessed with the Lego Formula 1 sets. I even got to watch the Lego cars hit the track at a Formula 1 race. Ever since then, we've been watching the races and Netflix's Drive to Survive. It's the perfect collaboration because Lego bricks and Formula 1 engineers are on the same page when it comes to precise engineering and tight tolerances. Also, once you're done building, the cars work as toys as well as sets.

Smart Bricks

If you’re curious about Lego’s new Smart Play system, the Star Wars Throne Room Duel and A-Wing set is a great way to dip your toe in the water. This fun build enables you to reenact the climax of Return of the Jedi, with Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker duking it out as Emperor Palpatine looks on and a space battle rages outside. Smart Bricks add lightsaber noises, lasers, explosions, heavy breathing, and even a rendition of “The Imperial March.” They also light up, but you’ll have to remember to charge them.—Simon Hill

A Lego Centerpiece

My daughter and my husband love the Lego Botanicals collection. These gorgeous tree and flower sets work well as holiday centerpieces once you're finished building—you can leave them right out on the table, instead of hiding them away in your Lego basement once you're done. My 11-year-old built this lovely rose bouquet, which has articulated heads so you can arrange them in the case. For the winter holidays, we also recommend the Lego poinsettia set ($40), which was our centerpiece last year.

A Lego Stocking Stuffer

If you have a coworker who likes Lego and would like to gift him or her something tiny and thoughtful, I suggest this little notepad. It's very cute, with 224 pieces of paper, and one side looks like a brick. The notes themselves are about 5 inches long, which is big enough for a pretty substantial note! Chronicle Books has a whole line of Lego books, puzzles, and stationery for your Lego-obsessed friend. You could also throw in a pack of these brick erasers ($17) to make a little care package.

Lego Playing Cards

If you also have an 8- or a 10-year-old, let me recommend a simple life hack—instead of caving to their demands to let them look at your phone while you're out, just always carry a deck of cards in your bag. It's crazy how many times my kids have settled down and waited patiently in a doctor's office or restaurant, as long as they can start a game of Crazy Eights or Go Fish (I do not recommend Speed). These Lego playing cards are beautiful and brightly colored, feel sturdy, and have held up to several rounds of shuffling around a table. The box comes in a pack of two, so your kids can split it.

Ornaments for Your Tree

I wish we were a family that kept treasured family heirlooms all wrapped up in tissue paper, ready to be marveled over at the next year's tree decorating. Unfortunately, every year finds us with some Christmas tree–related disaster or the other. Our new puppy has chewed the stuffed animals that an uncle has sent us; my son has sent a baseball crashing into the ceramic horse head that I got as a kid. We always need new ornaments, so why not new Lego ones? These are very cute, and my son assembled them in a matter of minutes.

A Big Lego Book

Have all your sets now become disassembled, and do you need some inspiration while looking at the giant wheelbarrow of Lego bricks on your front porch? This is my kids' favorite book for ideas on what to build. It has been a struggle to not “lose” it from the library. All of the builds are fairly easy, and so far I haven't seen any that require specialized pieces. However, you will probably need more than just 12 red bricks or 14 yellow ones to make many of the builds, so you should make sure your Lego loved one has a substantial collection already. If you want other sources of inspiration, we also like The Art of the Brick ($30), and I would be remiss if I did not include our own Brian Barrett's book, The Art of the Minifigure ($28).

A Family Activity

If you're having relatives over for the holidays, I suggest having a little puzzle like this to whip out while everyone's waiting for you to put the final touches on dinner. It's not one big puzzle, which can feel overwhelming and makes it hard to get off the dinner table—it's four separate little puzzles. Your kids, or parents, or fun uncle ("funcle") can work on each small puzzle separately and attach them together later. Each of the backs is patterned differently, so you can tell the different puzzles apart when you're putting them away or back together again.

A Lego Head Mug

As Lego-branded toys rolled into my house, I do have the caveat that my kids were very confused. ("Why are all these Lego gifts coming in but none of them are Legos?") However, my son was immediately thrilled and delighted with this mug and demands that I wash it every morning for him to drink out of. There are several faces to choose from if your children don't want to match. It's ceramic and can hold about 17 ounces of liquid—so, pretty big for a 7-year-old but nothing their little hands can't handle. It's dishwasher-safe. We've also received these off-brand Lego mugs ($13) as gifts, but again, the clutch power of off-brand Lego bricks is unsatisfactory and the bricks don't stick on very well.

The Best Lego Notebook

Do you have an artsy little Lego lover? My daughter has been obsessed with this notebook and carries it around everywhere she goes. It's about 6 inches square, so small enough to fit in a backpack or tote bag, with a decent 176 lined sheets. It has a wonderful conceit—the Lego gel pen matches the color of the binding and clicks right into it, so it both locks the notebook shut and ensures you never lose your pen. That's unless you're 10 and leave your pen on the kitchen table, where your puppy finds it and eats it (see next).

Add Some Lego Pens

My daughter was so heartbroken when her puppy destroyed her Lego pen that my husband decided he had to replace it immediately (also, the pen was very cool). This is a 10-pack of licensed Lego gel pens. They come in 10 separate colors and fit Lego bricks, which is very fun if your child decides that they want to build their own homemade desk organizer as they draw. The ink flows smoothly, and they've lasted for several weeks. For more paper and pen ideas, check out our guide to the Best Paper Notebooks.

A Keychain Light

Far be it from me to tell you what to add to your bag charms, but Lego's night light keychains are quirky and useful. If you've ever dropped something