We love a little bit of chocolate every day in the lead up to Christmas, but now there’s a treat which lasts much longer – Lego! In recent years, Lego advent calendars have taken off, becoming increasingly popular with kids of all ages (even you adults out there).
Thanks to the wide range of Lego designs, themes and styles, you can find the perfect gift for yourself or your loved ones ahead of the holidays. So whether you’re after a Lego Star Wars advent calendar, or want to embrace the season with a festive-themed Lego City advent calendar, there’s plenty to choose from.
Join us as we compare our picks for the best Lego advent calendars in preparation for a very merry Christmas!
undefinedHow do Lego advent calendars work?
Most Lego advent calendars operate how you might expect: open one door each day to reveal your Lego gift. Some calendars also feature a fold-out panel on the box, which doubles as both door and play scene environment.
We’d always advise reading the descriptions and reviews carefully ahead of your purchase. Older Lego advent calendars may require parts which you gradually unlock over a series of days. It’s important to get the gift that will be most enjoyable for the recipient to avoid potential disappointment.
Now let’s get into it!
The best Lego advent calendars for 2023
1. Lego City advent calendar
Best for original Lego fans
There are plenty of themed Lego advent calendars based on popular franchises, but where better to start than with some authentic classic Lego! This Lego City advent calendar gives you 24 days of Lego gifts, so by Christmas day you’ll have everything you need for a fun, festive play scene.
Featuring festive characters, mini builds, and accessories, including a foldout playmat for imaginative winter adventures, this is the perfect pre-Christmas gift for kids aged 5 and up.
Pros: Fun festive scene
Cons: Non-figure item days may be less exciting for some fans
2. Lego Star Wars advent calendar
Best for teens/adult Star Wars fans
Even in a galaxy far far away, everyone still enjoys a bit of Christmas cheer! If you’re obsessed with Star Wars (or know someone who is), then this advent calendar is perfect.
The 2023 LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar (75366) brings joy to the holidays with eight unique characters, including Emperor Palpatine, Ewok, Pit Droid, Gonk Droid as a reindeer, Omega with a sledge, 212th Clone Trooper, B-1 Battle Droid, and Princess Leia, all dressed in festive outfits.
Alongside these characters, the calendar offers a galactic adventure with 25 mini builds, including iconic Star Wars vehicles and scenes like The Justifier, Imperial Shuttle, Ewok village, and the Emperor's throne to spark imaginative play for fans of all ages.
Pros: Super-cute Ewok! Cool mini-builds
Cons: Doesn't include classics like Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, or Chewbacca
3. Lego Marvel The Avengers advent calendar
Best for Marvel fans
The Lego brand has been incredibly successful teaming up with popular franchises, and the Marvel Universe is no exception.
The LEGO Marvel Avengers Advent Calendar (76267) is the perfect Christmas gift for Marvel fans aged 7 and up. It features 24 daily surprises, including minifigures like Okoye, Doctor Strange, Captain America, Spider-Man, Wong, Iron Man, and Black Widow.
You also get mini builds and accessories inspired by the Marvel Cinematic Universe, offering endless imaginative adventures long after the last window is opened.
Pros: Fun for both adults and kids, lots of variety
Cons: Hulk and Hawkeye mini-figures not included
The 2023 Lego Calendar
Completely Lego obsessed? The 2023 Lego Calendar would make a brilliant gift, providing 365 days of inspirational ideas to challenge your master-builder skills!
4. Lego Harry Potter advent calendar
Best for young Harry Potter fans
If you’re looking for a way to keep your young muggles entertained this Christmas, then the Lego Harry Potter advent calendar is a great choice! Your six mini figures include Harry, Ron and Hermione, as well as Draco Malfoy, Aberforth Dumbledore and Madam Rosmerta.
There's also 18 mini builds of iconic Hogsmeade locations, and the option to combine these surprises with other LEGO Harry Potter sets for endless creative play possibilities, ensuring a truly magical holiday season.
Pros: Includes the classic characters plus minibuilds.
Cons: You have to wait until the 24th to access all the minibuilds.
5. Lego Friends advent calendar
Best for children
The Lego Friends series of products was specifically designed to appeal to young children and even has its own TV show! Slightly different in design to traditional Lego sets, the Lego Friends advent calendar has a really strong Christmas theme and feel to it.
The LEGO Friends Advent Calendar 2023 (41758), features 24 days of pet-themed activities, mini builds, and characters to create a festive pet playground display, providing hours of imaginative play throughout December. This creative gift celebrates the pets of Heartlake City and allows kids to decorate a Christmas tree and customize the pet playground, offering a fun and interactive countdown to Christmas.
Pros: Prominent Christmas theme and plenty of extras for imaginative play, more affordable.
Cons - Not the traditional Lego style
The best Lego Advent calendar previous editions
1. Lego Avengers Advent Calendar
For die-hard Avengers fans, the Lego Avengers Advent Calendar 2021 is a thrilling holiday gift. It features seven highly detailed minifigures of iconic characters like Iron Man, Spider-Man, Black Widow, Thor, Captain Marvel, Thanos, and Nick Fury, alongside a collection of exciting items and accessories for endless imaginative play.
With 298 pieces in total, this calendar offers buildable play experiences, including popular Avengers landmarks like the Quinjet, Helicarrier, Spider-Man drone, and Avengers Tower, allowing kids to recreate epic superhero battles and scenarios as they count down to Christmas.
Pros: Huge array of characters and scenes!
Cons: More expensive as it's a retired product.
2. Lego City advent calendar
Best for Lego City Adventures TV series fans
The 2022 version of the Lego City advent calendar features five classic Lego City TV characters – Billy, Maddy, Mr. Produce, Tippy and Raze, plus a Santa minifigure too.
There’s also plenty of fab mini-builds and accessories that will help your little ones to enjoy some festive imaginative play.
Like many of the Lego advent calendars it also comes with a fold-down play mat attached to the calendar that helps to set the scene.
Pros: Not overly festive so can be played with all year round
Cons: Some people might prefer a stronger theme to mini-builds and accessories
3. Lego Star Wars advent calendar
Best for original trilogy Star Wars fans
Want to see your favourite Lego Star Wars characters with a fab festive twist? The 2022 Lego Star Wars advent calendar is definitely for you! In this calendar you get eight mini-figures.
Enjoy C-3PO and R2-D2 kitted out in Christmas outfits, Darth Vader donning a summer outfit (if you know, you know), plus Luke Skywalker and a Clone Trooper Commander, Snowtrooper, Battle Droid and Gonk Droid dressed up as Santa. There’s also ten Vehicle mini-builds and six other accessory mini builds such as a Hoth laser cannon and ammo rack!
Pros: Classic characters, festive fun!
Cons: More expensive as its a retired product.
4. Lego Harry Potter advent calendar
Best for fans who want to recreate each of the films
While the 2021 Harry Potter advent calendar featured the classic characters and accessories, the 2022 calendar features a clever twist that will really appeal to hard-core Potter fans! In this calendar, the toys from the first three doors make a scene from the first film, the second three toys make a scene from the second film and so on for all eight editions of the beloved film franchise!
We think that kids and teens will love this fresh take on Christmas advent calendars, as it creates a wider range of possible play and display options. Adults will love the variety and rarer characters and accessories. The mini figures in this calendar include – Harry Potter, Sirius Black, Moaning Myrtle, Lord Voldemort, Horace Slughorn, Nymphadora Tonks and Neville Longbottom. Once you’ve opened all twenty-four doors, there’s even a bonus game to play too!
Pros: Wide variety of characters and scenes, plus a bonus game
Cons: Younger Potter fans may miss characters like Ron & Hermione (which can be found in the 2021 advent calendar)
5. Lego Friends advent calendar
Best for interactive play for young children
This new version of the Lego friends advent calendar is not only fabulously festive, but does feature great interactive elements worth a mention. The calendar comes with 3 Lego Friends characters, plus Santa, his sleigh and a reindeer. Plus the whole advent calendar is themed around a Christmas market, so there’s lots of fun mini-builds such as food and game stalls.
There’s also a few little features that we think kids will really enjoy, like the game of chance wheel that really spins. There’s even a tin can game where you can actually knock the cans over with the stud shooter!
Pros: Lots of mini-builds and interactivity
Cons: We can’t really think of any for this one! A great set for young kids
When do Lego advent calendars come out?
Lego launches new ranges of official advent calendars each year, which are normally available to purchase from September onwards. You can also buy Lego advent calendars from Amazon all year round, if you prefer to get ahead of the rush. Amazon can also feature previous editions which may not be available on the Lego website.
With new Lego advent calendars released each year, it’s worth paying attention to the item number if you want to easily tell the different products apart. There are, for example, multiple Lego City advent calendars available for purchase on Amazon at a given time.
Choosing the best Lego Christmas advent calendar
While Lego produces new and exciting advent Calendars each year, it is always worth checking out the back-catalogue of editions available on sites like Amazon.
With endless choice and multiple options, you can find the ideal gift whether they’re a Star Wars purist or a Mandalorian fan. Exploring your options is always the best bet to make sure you secure the perfect gift in the run up to Christmas.
Get great ideas for other Lego Christmas gifts with Gathered
Everyone loves a toy at Christmas, even adults – they make perfect gifts for a bit of quiet time after Christmas dinner. So why not treat your nearest and dearest with a complete set this holiday season?
Check out the full range of fantastic choices in Gathered’s picks of the Best Lego sets for adults!
