Kids love giving party favors or goodie bags at the end of their birthday party! It’s a fun way to spread the birthday excitement and tell friends that you are glad they came. Unfortunately, party favors can also be a treasure trove of sugar, cheap plastic, and “fun” that will be tossed into the trash almost as soon as possible. If you cringe at the thought of sending home another bag full throw aways, keep reading! Here you’ll find 50+ amazing party favors that are not junk.
Alternatives to junky goodie bags
If sending home a celephane bag full of cheap treasures seems inevitable, I want to reassure you that it’s totally possbile to find better party favors without pulling out your hair! Most of the party favors on this list aren’t expensive and can even be incorporated into your party. Double win! The goal is to get out of the party isle at the grocery store. I’ve found that most (but not all) of the party favors there are cheaply made and will break quickly. Here are my favorite party favor ideas:
Crafts that can double as a take home gift
One year my daughter chose to paint picture frames with her friends as one of her party activities. Those picture frames also made for a fun take home gift at the end of the party! Here are a few more examples:
Decorate a pillowcase—just get inexpensive pillowcases and fabric markers! I love this pillowcase below, but you could also snag some simple white pillowcases and let the kids have a blank slate.
- Color Your Donuts! – This listing is for One (1) 20″ x 30″ white pillowcase with twelve(12) small donuts in different designs Fits 20×30 inches pillow insert(Insert Not Included).
- Fabric markers included dual tip wash durable cloth dye pens, 6 piece arts and crafts set for vibrant colored painting and writing on clothes, non toxic paint art marker kit. All the colors you will need in one set: This permanent marker set includes the 6 most essential colors of red, blue, pink, orange, yellow and green. We recommend using cardboard between layers of fabric to prevent bleed through.
Tote bag—inexpensive tote bags from the craft store, decorated with paints, or fabric markers. This 12 pack would be great for a party!
- DURABILITY: 15″W x 16″H, made of 100% 5oz natural cotton, lock stitching inside, with compacted stitching throughout, including cross-stitching at the handles for maximum strength allowing the bag to hold up extra bearing capacity, which are much stronger than our competitors. With two reinforced handles sized 1″W x 25″L, convenient to carry in hand or wear on your shoulder, sturdy enough for all kinds of daily use.
- MULTI-FUNCTION: great for painting and decorating projects at home, at school, or in camp, add your own touch with paint and other craft tools for a personalized gift bags to your loved ones (please add a paper in the bag to avoid the ink permeating into another side when do a painting). Buy some Heat Transfer Vinyl paper to iron-on transfer it on the bag, also can do embroidery.
Art canvas—pick up a multi pack and some paints. Kids love painting these blank canvases.
- Super value of 10pcs 8×10″ inch canvas boards.
- Each white canvas in this pack is already primed with 10 oz. of acid-free acrylic gesso. No prep necessary — you’re ready to start creating right away.especially great for oil and acrylic color to keep your paintings bright and glossy.
Paint your own pottery—go to a pottery painting studio, or DIY it yourself with pottery or ceramics from the craft store. I love this little set of owls!
- Quantity: 6 Sets 6 Design DIY Ceramic Owl Planters Paint Craft Kit includes 6 pcs unpainted owl flowerpots in 6 designs, 2 sets of acrylic paints, 2 pcs paint brushes, 1 pcs palette, 1 pcs black marker pen, and 1 pcs white masking tape.
- Color: The ceramic owls feature 6 assorted owl designs, pairing with solid white color, ready to be painted with paints or marks. Each paintable ceramic planter pot comes with a drainage hole at the base for appropriate draining of plants. Acrylic paints have 12 colors, including red, pink, yellow gold, orange, green, blue, light blue, purple, light purple, brown, coffee, and beige.
Slime—slime is easy to make and our kids always love putting it together. This kit even has the fun mix-ins.
- 🌈 Slime Bulk Super Pack: Get ready for a rainbow of fun with our 96-pack of mini glitter putties. These come in assorted neon colors like blue, yellow, orange, purple, pink, and green, all neatly enclosed in 1.25″ clear plastic containers that spark joy.
- 🧠 Mindful Play: Looking to boost focus and unleash creativity? Our squish putties are here to help. They’re not just fun; they’re ideal for stress and tension relief and make excellent fidget toys, making them perfect for kids and adults alike.
Picture frame—paint or decorate a blank frame with stickers.
- Package Include: Come with 5pcs of blank 6’’x8’’ photo frames with stand, 2 sets of color paints (8 colors, 2.5ml each), 1set paint brushes, 80pcs Hearts Stars EVA Stickers, will maximize kid’s fun and interest.
- Features: DIY or Painting your customized picture frame, it’s a meaningful gift for kids to give special someone. Creating your own photo frame is an easy and fun craft project for kids and a perfect decoration for the home or office.
Tie dye—this can be as simple or complicated as you want. Pick up anything from t-shirts to white socks and have fun tie dying your items together.
- America’s Favorite Tie Dye
- The original One-Step Dye formula makes tie dye easy for all skill levels: just add water, shake, and apply!
Cookie or cake decorating—bake or buy cookies/cupcakes and let the kids decorate their own. Encourage them to save it to take home at the end of the party.
- Master the art of cookie decoration with the cookie decorating tools and supplies kit! Follow the guide book in this cookie icing decorating kit for little ones to make sugar cookies.
- Use the cookie cutters in the sugar cookie decorating tools set to make uniquely shaped cookies, featuring lovely designs like Rainbows, Unicorns, Clouds and Hearts!
Birdhouse—I’ve seen small wooden birdhouses for as little as $1-2 each at the craft store. Let the kids paint or decorate them however they like. You could even send home a small baggie of birdseed with them at the end of the party.
- Creative Hobbies 12 Pack – Unfinished Mini Wood 3.25 Inch Bird Houses – This bulk pack includes 12 unfinished birdhouses, perfect for crafting and DIY projects.
- Premium Quality – Made of 3/16″ thick and 1/4″ thick natural pine plywood, these bird houses are sturdy and measure 2.75 inches wide x 3.25 inches tall overall.
Take home craft—you don’t have to do the craft at the party to use on as a party favor. Some craft stores have pre-arranged crafts that you can send with the kids to do at home. Our family was gifted this set of crafts and it was so easy–each kit comes with everything you need to complete the craft.
- Funny DIY Crafts for Kids – The paper plate crafts kits can stimulate children’s imagination, cultivate their hand-eye coordination, and promote their psychological growth. As a simple papercraft, children can easily remove each part and paste it on the paper plate without using scissors and other tools, which provides a safety guarantee for young kids’ handmade creations.
- Value Art Set – The Package contains 1 gift box, 12 cute animal pattern cards, 12 colored paper trays, and 144 double-sided foam adhesives. It can allow multiple Kids to create at the same time. In addition, all the crafts are made of environmentally friendly, non-toxic and odorless paper, It can be used by toddlers with confidence.
Playdough—this is one of the more economical craft options. Playdough is so easy to make (see our recipe here) and it makes for a fun party favor.
- 【DOUGH TOYS SET】:50 Pieces durable clay and dough tools kit include rolling pins, molds, cutters, stamps, extruder and Storage Bag etc.
- 【DOUGH MOLDS】:The dough tools are bright in color, different in shape, perfectly sized for tiny hands. Molds Easily Into Any Shape!
Crayons—these are a useful and inexpensive favor. You could also get creative with the kids and melt “new” crayons into shapes with crayon molds.
Markers—every kid I know loves a new marker. These markers make me laugh…my kids would want to eat them!
- CRAYOLA SILLY SCENTS MARKERS: 10 Fine Line Markers featuring fragrant scents that are ready to scribble and sniff.
- SWEET SCENTS: Includes sweet scents such as Strawberry, Watermelon, and more!
Watercolors—stock up during back to school season–these are so useful and fun for kids.
- 16 ASSORTED COLORS: Let your budding artist explore their creativity with 16 Crayola Watercolor Paints in assorted colors, including primary and secondary shades, for a multitude of painting possibilities.
- EASY PAINTING PROJECTS: Create beautiful painted projects without the preparation time, dry time, or extensive cleanup of traditional kids paints. These water-based paints are easy to use and clean up with just soap and water.
Stickers—get a large pack of stickers like the one below and break it out to give to several kids.
- Fantastic Assortment of Sticker: Sticker pack contains 200 pieces of different cute stickers. No random delivery and no duplicates, the pattern shown in the main picture will appear in your package, and water bottle stickers can bring a lot of fun to your life.
- Reusable and Durable: All the stickers for kids crafted with non-marking glue, it can paste repeatedly and tear off the glue free of trace, if not satisfied, you can re-paste after tearing off.
Just for Fun party favor ideas
Puzzle—my middle son LOVES puzzles. The dollar store has pretty great kids puzzles and they’ll get used again and again. Even this 12 pack doesn’t cost that much!
- 🦄Package Include:The gift set includes 12 style preschool wooden animal jigsaw puzzles for toddlers 2-3. Each jigsaw puzzle consists of 9 small wooden boards. Boys and Girls can follow the pattern on the bottom to make these jigsaw puzzles into different animal shapes (Tigers, Cows, Bunnies,Triceratops, Lion, Zebra, Tyrannosaurus Rex, Elephant, Giraffe, Sword Dragon, Pterosaur,Lamb pattern.)
- 🦄Safe Wooden Material:The boys and girls preschool puzzles are made of high quality natural wood.And the animal pattern are printed with Non-toxic colors.The smooth surfaces and rounded edges makes the animal puzzles safer while your kids are playing it in daily life.
Balloons—whether you fill them up with helium or leave as ground floaters, balloons are always a hit. Bonus: you get to use them as party décor and send them with the kids when the party is over! We used some balloons like this for a glow in the dark party a couple of years ago and they were a hit!
- Led Balloons: 10 pack of 20 inch transparent TPU balloons with LED lights inside that float when filled with helium or air
- Decorative Lighting: Glow in the dark balloons add colorful illumination to parties, celebrations, Halloween, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, weddings, and more
Book—choose your child’s favorite book or just some that they like. If we were doing a party for my son, he’d want to give away this one because it’s his favorite!
- Amazon Kindle Edition
- Schertle, Alice (Author)
Keychain—my kids love to hang keychains from their backpacks! These donut backpack keychains are fun!
- Donut Themed Party Favors: Donut Party Keychains incluing 6 Styles, Total 25 Pieces Donut set Keychains as kids birthday party favors.
- Donut Party Favors Keychains are made of quality silicone rubber. They are not easy to break,eco-friendly,Simple but stylish, practical, nice to collect the keys.
Friendship bracelet—let your kids make the bracelets before the party. It’s a personalized party favor that gives your child plenty of crafting experience. Or if you are feeling brave enough to tackle it during the party, let each child make their own!
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Nail polish—my daughter would flip over a new new polish!
- MAGICAL COLOR CHANGING: Watch the magic happen with 5 bright, eye-catching colors that transform with temperature changes. From warm to cool, these polishes offer a new look every time.
- DIFFERENT LOOKS INSTANTLY: Choose from vibrant shades that shift colors with sunlight, warm water, or warm light, making every manicure a surprise. Perfect for creative, mood-matching designs.
Legos—this can be a little more tricky because Legos can get expensive fast. But sometimes you can find a deals for Lego men that keep them less expensive. This set of minifigures isn’t too bad!
- Fantastic Educational Toy, STEM, FUN, Educate
- Great Addition to any Lego City
Rubix cube—all of my kids love Rubix cubes!
- Mini Cube Puzzle Toy: This cube puzzle set includes 20 pack mini 3×3 magic cube, measure approx 1.18 x 1.18 x 1.18 inch.
- Recyclable Material & Vivid Color: These cube toy are colorful stickers surface, eco-friendly ABS material. All mini cubes no-toxic and no-harm, super-durable and environment.
Card games—Go fish, Slap Jack, and even playing cards can be inexpensive and fun.
- Classic Fun for All Ages: These kids’ card games are ideal for family game nights and playing with children and grandchildren. Ideal for kids ages 4 and up, these games are designed for 2-4 players.
- Child-Friendly Design: Each card in this set is crafted with vibrant, bright colors and easy-to-understand symbols, tailored to engage and captivate young minds.
Take home treats
Cookie mix and cookie cutters—I know it might sound silly, but they get a treat that they get to make later and you don’t have to make them!
Cookie decorating kit—add a sugar cookie, sprinkles, and a small baggie of frosting in a bag for them to frost their own cookie later.
Homemade treat—have your child help you make a fun treat to package up and send with kids at the end of the party.
Sport favors
Jump rope—you can even teach them your old tricks from elementary school!
- 【Package Include】: You will receive 4/8 high-quality PVC skipping ropes.Two black, two blue, one yellow, one green, one red and one orange.You can share with your family or friends.
- 【High quality and Comfortable】: JUSDO Adjustable Length Jump Ropes are made of high-quality PVC materials. Each rope has modified handles and can be easily adjusted to any length up to 9 feet.
Bouncy ball—kids love balls!
Playground ball—our playground ball gets so much use! From kickball to Gaga we’re constantly using ours. This option can be a little more pricy if you are buying several.
Velco ball catch—these come with two velcro paddles and a tennis ball that sticks!
- DEAYOU toss catch game set is great for kids and adults to train hand eye coordination and arm muscles, enhance physical fitness and improve focus, keep persons active and healthy. Also ideal for little ones to learn throw and catch skill, which is basics of baseball. The vibrant green and pink colors make catcher pad and ball easy to see
- Our paddles are sticky enough to catch balls, also easy for children to pull the ball off. The ergonomical back fasten strap is lengthened and adjustable to fit different sized hands, will help you move the disc catcher without straining your wrists. Players just stand a distance apart, one side throws the ball and the other try to catch it with the paddle
Outdoor party favors
Bubbles—great for outside. You can even pass them out for the kids to use outside while you wait for parents to pick kids up from the party!
- 1. Perfect Value Pack: Each 12-pack contains 2 red, 2 blue, 2 orange, 2 purple, 2 green, 2 yellow color ,4 oz Big Bubble Bottle
- 2. Best Summer Gift: Let the bubble water save the children every day in the summer; Different ways of forming different bubbles to increase the fun of children
Sidewalk chalk—Every piece of sidewalk chalk my kids have ever had has been well-used!
- Value Pack: 180 chalks set with gift box, 9 each in 20 colors, including blue, green, pink, orange, purple, yellow, white, teal, brown, gray, red, etc. The sidewalk chalk bulk are colored and vibrant.
- Sturdy and Break-resistant: 4 inches in length and 1 inch in diameter and possess the thickness to withstand enormous pressure. Washable Chalk is very easy to clean on any surface, so you don’t have to worry about making a permanent mess.
Kite—make your own as a party craft, or just give out inexpensive kites as a party favor.
- DIY Kites for Kids. 3 pack blank diamond kites, ready to be custom decorated. Drawing and coloring a craft, every kite is perfect for creating a unique piece of art.
- Great for Many Occasions. It could be used for a kite party, a kite day event, a project, a program, especially for school class students, it will help to make unforgettable memories.
Frisbee—kids love chasing frisbees. You could even give them instructions on the proper way to throw a frisbee during the party!
- Made from Non-Toxic, excellent raw material, easy to catch, throw and safe use. Do not worry to jam your thumb or fingers anymore.
- Each flying disc only 27g, red, blue, green, purple, yellow, five colors of the rings give you a different visual experience
Water balloons—great for summer parties!
- Rapid-Filling Water Balloons: Save Filling Time And Jump Into The Outdoor Fun This Summer! Fill & Tie 100 Water Balloons In Just 60 Seconds
- Self-Sealing Technology: No More Tedious Tying With Zuru’S Innovative Self-Sealing Bunch O Balloons Design
Pool noodle—if you are doing a pool party, give each kid their own pool noodle to play with during the party. Grab these in the summer to get them cheaper!
- 【Durable and Strong】These pool noodles provide excellent flotation for endless use whether you’re in the pool or the lake. The soft, but firm foam allows for last use from even the most intense pool fights.
- 【More than Just Swim】These foam noodles can be used for DIY projects or arts and crafts. The foam tubes work excellent for padding, edge cushion, or as creative kids’ accessories. Use your imagination to think of even more uses.
Pool toys—these can range from squirting toys to diving toys.
- 12 Rainbow Colored Beach Balls, (One Dozen Per Package)
- Big Mo’s Beach Ball Measures 12″ When Inflated
Squirt guns—you know kids will use and abuse these during the summer!
- SUPER VALUE:Each pack comes in 12 pcs mini water guns.and mixed colors including green,yellow, red, blue, and organge.
- GREAT QUALITY:This water guns is Made with Safty Material. Meet US Toy Standard.
Water bottle—let kids decorate their own with stickers!
- All Purpose Sport Water Bottle: Lightweight, portable, and ideal for exercise, athletic fitness, cycling, hiking, or Yoga. These drink water bottle squeeze help you stay hydrated and on the go. Made of HDPE plastic in the United States by American people.
- Fits Most Bike Cages: Designed for cycling enthusiasts, this bicycle water bottle easily fits into standard bike bottle cages. Made in the USA, it’s a reliable companion for road biking adventures.
Wearable party favors
Temporary Tattoos–Krissy Hadick, founder of The Hadicks, recommends temporary tattoos. Kids love the magical process of seeing the image transfer from the paper to their skin.
- Chill Out! Our ice cream party tattoos are the perfect goodie bag favor, party decoration, birthday surprise + stay at home activity 🙂
- Tats for The Whole Party: two sheets with a total of 56 colored + metallic tattoos featuring handdrawn designs of ice cream sundaes, Ice pops, confetti + more that kids will absolutely love!
Sunglasses—just imagine these party pictures! So cute!
- Perfect for Any Occasion and Party Favors – 12Packs Party Sunglasses in 6 Neon Assorted Colors,are the ideal party favor for any summer party or event you are holding. Kids Glasses are cute, colorful, and a favorite among unisex children. Get these shades on, it will change your events from ordinary to cool!
- High Improved Quality – Made of comfortable and sturdy polypropylene material, the kids sunglasses will last until you can’t party no more! And the safe and lightweight frame makes you hardly feel them on your face, gives you a great experience at your everyday use. A great choice for parties supplies,pool party,school dance,birthday party,outdoor activities or group trips.
Superhero cape—my oldest son attended a party when he was 4 and the mom had made inexpensive superhero capes as a party favor!
- 🌟➤【Flash Star Superhero】 :★ 12 pack superhero capes and masks for kids bulk to celebrate your Superhero status at your next birthday with these unique superhero capes! 12 felt stars/flashs are SUPER easy to use-simply peel and stick, provided to meet each little superhero’s various desires.
- 🌟➤【Overedging Operation and Eco-friendly Material】:★ Kids can play comfortably with our Eco-friendly satin superhero dress up capes. Bright, bold, and fun colors and is bound to long-term adventure. Superhero masks are soft felt to protect children’s skin.
Necklace—let the kids make their own with beads or snag these fidget bracelets.
Hat—decorate plain hats with puff paint.
- DIY YOUR OWN BASEBALL CAP – Kids can draw different patterns on the white caps and creat their stylish hats by themsleves. It will be a cool experience and they can enjoy their masterpiece with friends!
- WIDELY USE SUN HAT – It can be a nice sun hat for various outdoor activitives, such as playing baseball, golf, fishing, camping, school day, vacation time or daily life. Protecting kids from sun light
Scarf—teach kids how to make their own fleece scarves using the cut and knot method.
Fun socks—who doesn’t love funny socks!
- PACKING* 6 Pairs kids food socks bulk come in a Gift Box which is specially customized for avocado doughnut taco pizza egg bacon pineapple burrito lovers in gift seasons
- SIZE & FABRIC* Funny little boys/big boys socks. M: Fit for Shoe Size 10-1(Youth)/4-7 Years Little Kids. 85% Cotton, 12% Polyamide, 3% Spandex warm comfortable and stretchy. No fading, no slip off from legs
Tutu—perfect for a princess or ballerina party.
- Great Value – Includes 6 Ballet Tutus with assorted colors as shown in images
- Perfect for your daughter’s birthday party – Cute tutus for your darling and her friends to enjoy
Other party favors
Joke cards—my kids would love this! Make your own or get the ones below!
- 150 UNIQUE HILARIOUS CARDS: The puns and jokes are kid-friendly and ready to brighten your little one! All the cards are unique with no duplicates!
- LAUGH-OUT-LOUD FUNNY: Jokes have been curated so each card will make anyone bust out laughing.
Pokemon cards—get a large pack and break it down so each child gets just a few cards.
- 50+ Pokemon Cards
- 5 Holos Guaranteed minimium per order
Ice cream gift card—ask your local ice cream shop if you can get several small passes inexpensively.
Fidget toys—there are so many great fidget toy options. These can be a great way to help kids focus.
- PACK OF 120: 4 Pop Bubbles, 1 Flip Chain, 6 Mochi Squishies, 6 Stretchy String Fidgets, 4 Mesh and Marble Sensory Toys, 1 Fidget Pad, 1 Snake Cube Twist, 1 Tracks Fidget, 1 Infinity Cube, 1 Soccer Ball, 2 Puzzle Boxes, 1 Squeeze Soybean, 2 Pop Bracelets, 21 Pop Rings, 21 Mini Pop Bubbles, 1 Pop Ball, 10 Stickers, 20 Spiky Balls, 8 Foam Putty, 5 Pop Tubes and 3 Fidget Spinners
- Our Fidget toys are durable and doesn’t break or crack when dropped or twisted. All our products pass US toy standards
Silly putty—did you ever try the newspaper ink trick with silly putty? My kids love blowing bubbles into their silly putty.
- Bouncing, molded fun
- Comes in it’s own egg container for storage
Silly string—grab a few cans of these at the dollar store and send them home to spread the party fun!
- 2 COLORS PER PACK: Keep the fun lasting twice as long with the two pack of streamer string! Keep the fun to yourself, or give one can to a friend for an intense streamer battle!
- BRIGHT COLORS: Paint the sky with the brightest colors of streamer string! Receive either red, purple, blue, green, pink, or orange. Package comes with 2 individual 3oz spray cans.
Plant to grow—give each kid their own plant to take home. You could even let the kids decorate a pot or can to take the plant home in.
Seeds—similar to a plant, help the kids plant a seed and let them take it home to grow
- Set of 24 Plantable Seed Paper Set: Includes 24 butterfly-shaped seed papers, planting guide & envelopes, perfect for weddings, baby showers, and other life events.
- Wildflower Seeds Included: This set includes handmade packets filled with wildflower seeds, ready to plant and enjoy.
Finding party favors that are not junk can be tricky but it’s not impossible. Which of the party favors above have you tried? 😊
