School’s out, summer temps sizzle, and vacations are underway, but we’re celebrating Christmas in July here at Melissa & Doug with special deals on our top toys all month long!
This year especially, we know parents will be more thoughtful and discerning with their holiday gift budget, which means shopping for toys that are high-quality, well-made, and will last for generations of play—that’s where Melissa & Doug come in. In this blog post, we curate a list of our favorite toys for kids age 3+ as a dedicated source for your Christmas in July shopping. Preschoolers love pretend play, and we are here for it! There’s nothing better than watching kids get engaged and immersed in playing with our favorite top toys for 3-year-olds. These holiday gifts are ones kids will love, and you’ll feel great about giving.
If you'd like additional help finding the right toy for your child, visit the Melissa & Doug Gift Guide. Read on for a look at the best Christmas in July toys for 3-year-olds!
Our Best Toys & Gifts for 3-Year-Olds
Sticker WOW! Collection
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: Build skills with 24 pages of counting, matching, and more activities, plus use the stamper for creative art projects.
Fun feature: One-of-a-kind Sticker WOW!® features sticker stampers with 300 stickers and activity pads for mess-free fun anywhere.
Skills: Promotes fine motor skills and C-grip strength, encourages creative play, and it’s satisfying, fidget fun!
Also available: Sticker WOW! features collectible character-themed sticker stampers, which are compatible with all Sticker WOW! refill packs. Check out our entire Sticker WOW! Collection for a whole new way to play with stickers!
Wooden Pizza Food Truck Activity Center
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: Get playtime cooking and take imaginations for a spin with all the essentials for a pretend play pizza food truck experience! The multi-sided, easy-to-assembly wooden structure, with a built-in pretend pizza oven and dozens of wooden and felt play food accessories, lets kids be the helpful food truck vendor or the hungry customer.
Fun feature: Display choices on a magnetic menu board, add logs, and turn the dial to “fire up” the pizza oven, sort and store pizza toppings in the prep tray, slide pizza into the oven with the wooden pizza paddle, then serve in the cardboard delivery box!
Skills: Helps kids develop sorting, matching, counting, and color recognition skills and encourages narrative, cooperative, and imaginative play.
Also available: If your child enjoys total immersion into their cooking role, we suggest helping them look the part as well with our Chef Costume Role Play Set.
Wooden Beauty Salon Play Set
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: Add glamour and style to playtime with these wooden beauty essentials for make-believe makeovers! The 18-piece set includes a sturdy white and pink vanity with mirror and storage drawer. The wooden pieces include a hair dryer, hair spray, hair straightener, flip-top lotion bottle, lipstick, two nail polish bottles, blush, makeup brush, eye shadow and applicator, comb, and brush.
Fun feature: A reusable spa services card lets kids get the full salon experience by customizing makeovers for themselves, friends, stuffed animals, and dolls!
Skills: Encourages fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, imaginative play, creative express, and self-esteem.
Also available: Kids can add to the role play fun with our Hair Stylist Role Play Costume Set when they want to give friends, family, or plushies a glow-up!
Wooden Cafe Barista Coffee Shop
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: Perk up playtime with this full-service wooden coffee shop that lets kids be the barista or the customer! This 35-piece play food set offers kids countless opportunities to develop early learning skills and to create, imagine, and role play.
Fun feature: Use the coffee maker with a flip filter and “steamer” and the drink dispenser with frother to prepare pretend espressos, whipped cream-topped lattes, tea, and cold drinks. Customers may choose from items listed on the magnetic menu board, including wooden double-sided cake pops, cookies, and granola bars. Then, slide the credit card in the card reader, and sign the magnetic pad to pay for purchases!
Skills: Encourages fine motor development, counting and sorting skills, color recognition, and storytelling.
Also available: If your kiddo stans beverage culture role play, supplement their pretend caffeine intake with imaginary healthful drinks & smoothies via our Smoothie Maker Blender Set.
Simmer & Stir Stovetop Play Set with Water WOW! Color Reveal
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: Satisfy hungry imaginations with Melissa & Doug Water WOW! color-changing play food stir fry!
Fun feature: Drop play food into the pot or onto the stovetop griddle, squeeze water from the spoon or drip from the olive oil bottle, and watch colors change as food magically “cooks”! Little chefs can pretend to simmer mushrooms, carrots, and broccoli, sauté chicken, shrimp, and beans, and steam double-sided disks of rice, soup, spaghetti, and mac and cheese. Let the pieces dry and cook with water again and again!
Skills: A fun, engaging way for kids to practice important developmental skills, such as fine motor skills, sorting, counting, and imaginative play, and to demonstrate cause-and-effect.
Also available: For kids who enjoy colorfully creative arts & crafts fun, we also offer a full selection of Water WOW! toys and activity sets.
Blockables Wooden Construction Toys Collection
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: With Blockables™, kids can build out their own adventures, again and again. The play is pretend, but the skills are real!
Fun feature: Building and rebuilding provide lessons in resilience while also offering an “I can do it!” sense of satisfaction.
Skills: Promotes fine motor skills, problem solving ability, storytelling, and creative ability.
Also available: Explore our new connectable, stackable, playable wooden block sets designed to help build key developmental skills through play. Collect them all!
Play to Go Play Sets
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: Create deliciously fun pretend play food treats with this engaging, hands-on construction toy that kids can take anywhere thanks to the handy self-contained cup that holds all the included pieces.
Fun feature: A great travel toy: All the play pieces fit inside the to-go cup, made to fit in cup holders in cars, car seats, and strollers.
Skills: A creative way to encourage imaginative play, sorting, counting, color recognition, and fine motor skills.
Also available: There are two versions of the Play to Go play sets to choose from: Play to Go Cake & Cookies Play Set if your kiddo loves to pretend bake, and Play to Go Ice Cream Play Set for DIY frozen treats.
Sort, Stock, Select Wooden Vending Machine Play Set
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: Satisfy hungry imaginations with the push of a button! Open up the back of the unique wooden vending machine and stock it with nine double-sided play food packages, including snack bars, drinks, and pouches. On the front, select an item, insert a color-matching play coin or bank card, press the corresponding letter and number button, and the snack drops into the collection drawer!
Fun feature: No batteries required!
Skills: Engaging, hands-on way to help teach kids about cause-and-effect, and to encourage letter, number, and color recognition, sorting, matching, counting, and fine motor skills.
Also available: Melissa & Doug offers a full selection of pretend play toys for kids of all ages, stages, and abilities!
Wooden Chocolate Factory Play Set
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: Sweeten up playtime by ordering, assembling, displaying, and gifting deliciously fun pretend play candy treats. The Melissa & Doug Wooden Chocolate Factory Play Set lets kids create imaginative filled play chocolate candies with durable plastic tops and bottoms and colorful wooden fillings that can be decorated with stickers.
Fun feature: Completed play candies slide down a chute, where kids can pretend to decorate with a pretend icing squeeze tube, then display in a fancy gift box!
Skills: Great for color matching, counting, and developing language skills through cooperative play.
Also available: Melissa & Doug offers a full selection of pretend play toys for kids of all ages, stages, and abilities!
Disney Snacks & Popcorn Wooden Food Counter
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: Get playtime popping with pretend play popcorn and treats inspired by Disney’s Mickey Mouse and friends! There’s a Mickey-shaped wooden pretzel that hangs on a display hook, Mickey and Minnie Mouse-shaped wooden ice cream treats and cupcake, a cookie, a pineapple ice pop, popcorn, and drinks.
Fun feature: Put four durable jumbo popcorn pieces into the compartment and turn the knob back and forth for real popping action—a see-through window lets the customer see the popcorn jiggle and jump while the vendor pops!
Skills: Encourages imaginative role playing, sorting, counting, and other developmental skills.
Also available: If your kiddo is a fan of Mickey Mouse & friends, be sure to check out our selection of Disney-themed toys.
Slice and Bake Cookie Set
Why it’s a great gift for a 3-year-old: Your little baker can pretend to slice the cookies, place them on the cookie sheet, make believe they're baking, and then use the oven mitt for the "hot" cookies once they're done. Then it's decorating time!
Fun feature: When playtime is over, kids can store the cookies in the durable dough tube so they're ready for next time.
Skills: What a delicious way for kids to practice fine motor skills, number concepts, storytelling ability, and creative expression.
Also available: We also offer a holiday-themed version of these pretend play cookies that you can enjoy all year long!
Chef's Kitchen - Cloud
Why it’s a great gift for a 3-year-old: Budding young chefs can hone their craft in this beautifully designed, white marble-colored modern play kitchen! The easy to assemble chef's kitchen includes a refrigerator/freezer with innovative working ice maker that dispenses two included "ice cubes," an oven and stove top with dials that turn, microwave with turning plate, sink with moving faucet and handle, grocery checklist, movable hooks, and ample shelving and storage for easy cleanup.
Fun feature: Includes oven, stove, microwave, sink, refrigerator with working ice dispenser, freezer, ample storage space for easy cleanup.
Skills: Gross & fine motor skills, storytelling ability, cooperation, and creative expression.
Also available: Stock up on the basics and more with pretend play food for your little chef to prep in the kitchen.
Food Groups
Why it’s a great gift for a 3-year-old: Planning a well-balanced meal is child's play with this adorable wooden food groups set. The collection includes items from each of the five food groups, including watermelon, a milk carton, cheese, fish, a hamburger, eggs, and much more.
Fun feature: The high-quality items are crafted of solid wood and come with four wooden baskets for sorting as well as easy storage.
Skills: Introduce your child to meal planning and food groups, while they learn about dairy products, meat, carbs, fat, and fruits and vegetables. Encourages fine motor skills, creative expression, and storytelling ability.
Also available: Play food goes great as an accessory to a play space such as a pretend kitchen.
Dust! Sweep! Mop! Cleaning Play Set
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: This six-piece play set gives kids all the housekeeping tools they need to keep it clean! Sized just for kids and built to last, the broom, mop, duster, dustpan, and hand brush are comfortable to use and easy to store.
Fun feature: The dustpan can also snap onto any of the handles.
Skills: Fine and gross motor, problem-solving, storytelling, color recognition
Also available: If your little one loves to play clean-up, we also offer the Let's Play House! Spray, Squirt & Squeegee Play Set for more squeaky clean pretend play fun.
Scoop & Serve Ice Cream Counter
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: Scoop up some cool treats with this all-inclusive, 28-piece pretend play ice cream counter! Take orders on the reusable menu card and serve up delicious fun!
Fun feature: The sturdy wooden tabletop counter holds eight wooden scoops of different-flavored ice cream, six assorted toppings, two cones, a plastic cup, an ice cream scooper, wooden spoon, tongs, reusable menu card, and six bills.
Skills: Fine motor, storytelling, color recognition, basic counting.
Also available: If your child is a fan of frozen treats, we suggest gifting them our Wooden Magnetic Ice Cream Puzzle & Play Set—not only does it encourage problem-solving fun, the magnets can be used as pretend play pieces, meaning kids get double the developmental boost.
Super Smile Dentist Play Set
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: Smile, the dentist will see you now! This 25-piece dental care play set features an oversized set of pretend teeth so young dentists-in-training can give cleanings, treat cavities, and even fit retainers and braces!
Fun feature: Mark the pretend teeth with the cavity stickers, then use the vibrating tool with interchangeable polishing and drill heads, and the toothbrush to clean.
Skills: Fine motor, creativity, imagination, good dental health practices.
Also available: Maybe your kiddo would rather practice medicine on pets and animals instead? We’ve got a toy for that—our Examine & Treat Pet Vet Play Set to be precise!
Top & Bake Pizza Counter - Wooden Play Food
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: Mama mia, it's pizza time! Create fresh-baked pizza, made to order, with this deliciously unique 34-piece pizza making set.
Fun feature: Start with felt sauce and cheese on the wooden crust, choose from wooden toppings (pepperoni, olives, mushrooms, and peppers), then "bake" in the pizza oven built into the storage and serving counter.
Skills: Fine motor, storytelling, imagination, basic math skills.
Also available: Serve a healthy balanced pretend play meal and offer up a side of our Slice & Toss Salad Set—kids need five to seven servings of fruit & vegetables every day.
Stainless Steel Pots & Pans Play Set
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: This play set features shiny stainless steel cookware Mom and Dad would envy. With two hardwood utensils included and stainless steel pieces polished to a gorgeous mirror-finish, this set is truly top shelf!
Fun feature: Generously sized (5-inch diameter) for a more realistic look and feel, the colander and three pans (with interchangeable lid) fit most play food items for exciting restaurant and kitchen play, and store neatly on a convenient storage rack when the kitchen is closed.
Skills: Gross and fine motor, storytelling, imagination.
Also available: Your little foodie will need ingredients to prepare in those Stainless Steel Pots & Pans, so stock up on pantry staples with our Fill & Roll Grocery Basket Play Set.
Wooden Cool Scoops Ice Creamery
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: Scoop up cool pretend play creations with this full-service ice cream shop! Offer pretend play ice cream and soft serve cones, cups, milkshakes, and ice cream sandwiches.
Fun feature: Add toppings like sprinkles and hot fudge for an extra special treat!
Skills: Fine motor, sorting, and counting skills; promotes imaginative play and storytelling.
Also available: If pretend play service is something your little ones enjoy, consider our Wooden Cafe Barista Coffee Shop to power their imaginations.
PAW Patrol Rescue Mission Wooden Dashboard
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: Rev up playtime and have hours of imaginative adventures in the driver’s seat with the PAW Patrol™ pups! Slide one of the three double-sided mission cards into the windshield of the wooden dashboard and set the dial to show who needs help.
Fun feature: Turn the removable key to hear the engine rev and shift the gear to "D" to start the scrolling GPS - turn the steering wheel to keep the vehicle on the GPS track!
Skills: Fine motor; promotes imaginative play and storytelling.
Also available: If your child is a fan of the Adventure Bay rescue pups, explore our full selection of PAW Patrol themed toys.
Slice & Stack Sandwich Counter
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: Create piled-high sandwiches, made to order with this wooden sandwich counter play set with all the fixin's!
Fun feature: The sturdy wooden deli counter includes a play meat and cheese slicer for the wooden play food, and felt sandwich roll and toppings to create sandwiches ordered from the menu.
Skills: Counting, sorting, and fine motor skills; promotes imaginative play and storytelling.
Also available: Your kiddo likes breakfast foods more than lunchtime fare? No problem! Melissa & Doug serve up pretend breakfast 24/7 with our Star Diner Restaurant Play Set!
Fresh Mart Grocery Store
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: Kids who love a good grocery-shopping trip will never want to leave this pretend-play grocery store! Ideal for a few kids to play with at once, this free-standing play space has a browsing area as well as a checkout setup, complete with a hand-cranked conveyor belt in the bagging area!
Fun feature: The checkout area includes a “beeping” scanner and pretend card swipe machine!
Skills: Sorting, fine and gross motor skills, color recognition, math skills, collaborative play.
Also available: Add to the available options in the Fresh Mart Grocery Store with the Let’s Play House! Grocery Basket with Play Food!
Deluxe Double-Sided Magnetic Tabletop Easel
Why it’s a great gift for 3-year-olds: From the magnetic dry-erase board, to the chalkboard, to the paper-roll holder, this easy-to-fold-flat tabletop easel leaves everything to the imagination! Preschoolers will love using the dry-erase marker and felt eraser, colored chalk, and seemingly endless (50-foot-long) paper roll!
Fun feature: This double-sided easel includes 36 letter and number magnets!
Skills: Counting, creative play, collaborative play, fine motor skills, color recognition, letter and number recognition
Also available: Get creative on the paper roll with the 24-pack of triangular crayons!
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For more of the best toy content from Melissa & Doug, check out these blog posts:
Shop Melissa & Doug Gift Guide
Shop Melissa & Doug Toys by Age
Shop Melissa & Doug Learning Toys
Shop Melissa & Doug Pretend Play Toys
Shop Melissa & Doug Arts & Crafts Toys
Learn More Melissa & Doug Skills at Play
Shop Melissa & Doug Vehicles & Train Toys
Explore Melissa & Doug Living Playfully Blog
