The pink aisles in the toy section might first seem overwhelming, but understanding the developmental milestones for 5-year-olds should ease this process.
We have studied all the latest research on child development and put what we’ve learned to the test. We’ve compared countless toys, games, and activities to come up with our list of the best toys and gifts for 5-year-old girls.
Our choices reflect our goals to help promote motor skills, thinking skills, social-emotional development, an active lifestyle, creativity, and a sense of fun and adventure.
Check out our top picks to find the best gift to thrill that special 5-year-old girl.
- 14.5 inches tall
- Dressed from head-to-toe
- Whimsical garden-themed accessories
- Best pretend play horse
- For indoor and outdoor use
- Big and soft cushioned seat
- Ultimate headband set
- Mom's Choice award winner
- Great value for money
- Changes color in water
- Affordable
- High-quality design
- Magical interactive pet
- Batteries included
- Over 40 animations and sound effects
- 12-pack egg carton
- Easy to stack
- Lightweight
- 16-piece fashion-plate rubbing kit
- Snap-shut, take-along storage case
- Easy to use
- 6-piece set
- Durable materials
- Characters float at different depths
- 100% cotton
- Adjustable straps
- Machine washable
- Whimsical design
- Contains 120 cards
- Colorful and creative
Review Methodology: At Mom Loves Best, we conduct thorough research and analysis to provide you with the most reliable information on the best gifts for 5-year-old girls. Our team of professionals uses their experience and expertise to evaluate products based on criteria such as age-appropriateness, educational value, creativity, and durability. We compare and rank gifts, measuring their performance and offering hands-on reviews to ensure you make informed decisions. By assessing key factors such as design, innovation, and entertainment value, we identify what sets each product apart from its competitors. As a result, we present you with data-driven findings and first-hand evidence to help you choose the perfect gift for your little girl.
Best Toys & Gift for 5-Year-Old Girls of 2023
Here are 16 great toy and gift ideas for 5-year-old girls.
American Girl WellieWishers Willa Doll
Best Doll Gift for 5-Year-Old Girls
This American Girl doll might quickly become your little girl’s best friend. Her boots have cute ladybug faces printed on them, and the adorable outfit makes her look like a sweet rainy-day fairy. Your girl can brush and arrange her long strawberry-blond pigtails to her liking, and her limbs are movable.
When she’s ready to go out, a leafy headband adds an extra touch. Willa has cute facial details, including freckles and hazel eyes. Her outfit includes underwear, a velour leotard, and a skirt that are easy to put on and remove.
If Willa feels lonely, this collection comes with four other doll friends. Your daughter can add Ashlyn, Camille, Kendall, and Emerson to her friend group to extend the fun. Exciting pretend play awaits.
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Medallion My Pony Ride On
Best Ride-On Toy for 5-Year-Old Girls
Is your 5-year-old begging for a horse? This ride-on toy might be a good compromise. It’s designed to look like a real horse for the most realistic experience and should stick with your child until their early tween years.
By pressing the footrest forward and backward, the pony’s legs move in a galloping motion. The handles located on each side of the head will give your child something to hold onto while they “ride.”
Although the pretend horse cannot go backward, it can make right or left turns. However, you can use safety locks if you’d prefer your child to advance in a straight line.
This toy can be used on any flat surface — indoors or outdoors. Your girl might need a little help with the mouth, but once she’s on, this toy offers a chance for physical exercise and some riding experience.
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Creativity for Kids Fashion Headbands Craft Kit
Crafty Fashion for Girls
Most 5-year-old girls love to accessorize. Wearing headbands is fun, but making them can take the excitement to another level.
This award-winning headband kit includes 10 colorful headbands your child can accessorize with satin, butterflies, flowers, feathers, and more. This craft promotes creativity and fine motor skills, and her little fingers will be working hard to come up with the most outstanding headbands.
Ideal for playdates, this set might also help your little one with social skills, teaching them to share while promoting teamwork.
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Breyer Horse Color Change Bath Toy
Most Unique Bath Toy
Having trouble getting your child in the bathtub? This pony toy should make any bathtime battle a little easier. It could be the starting point for many interesting storytime adventures.
When placed in warm water, spots on the body, along with the mane and tail, change color. Ella, the pony transforms from purple to pink. Once dried, the pony converts back to its original purple color.
When bath time is over, your girl can dress her pony in a bathrobe. The set comes with a pretend sprayer and a brush for grooming.
Bryer makes several of these fun, color-changing horses, so your little one can continue to grow her collection.
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WowWee Fingerlings 2Tone Monkey
Best Toy Friend for 5-Year-Old Girls
Fingerlings are fun toy companions that can occupy your little one when they have no one to play with.
Summer the monkey comes in four different colors to appeal to all styles and tastes. She’ll latch onto your girl’s finger while making cute noises.
Summer will show different reactions when held upside down or upright. Blow a kiss, and she might blink her eyes open or even respond with a kiss in return.
Summer is interactive, responding to touch, movement, and noise. This toy comes with batteries installed, ready for play.
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Season 4 Hatchimals CollEGGtibles
Hatchimals Pretend Play
This cute and popular set includes 10 Hatchimals and two Swanlings. Arranged in an egg carton, they’re easy to take on the go. Whether you’re adding these Hatchimals to your existing collection or this is her first set, your child won’t be disappointed.
Each egg displays a purple heart. To hatch your Hatchimal, gently rub the heart. Once it turns pink, crack the egg to discover which Hatchimal it hides.
These Hatchimals are either metallic or translucent. Some can also shine, glitter, or glow when placed over a light.
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Melissa & Doug Fashion Design Art Activity Kit
Fashion Design Kit
Is your little girl already expressing an interest in fashion or drawing? This artistic kit should satisfy both interests. It includes 18 stylish designs over nine plates and comes with four pencils.
To get started, select the combination of textured fashion plates you wish to use to make your perfect outfit. Next, place the paper over the plate and close the frame. By rubbing the black crayon horizontally over the plate, the design outline will clearly appear on the paper. Open the frame; it’s time for coloring.
This fashion design art kit comes in a case for easy storage and transport. Note: the paper isn’t included.
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SwimWays Disney Finding Dory
Best Pool Playtime Toy
This pool kit should make your little girl feel more confident around water and add some fun to swimming time.
This Disney kit includes a net designed in the shape of Mr. Ray plus five cute figures: Kathy, Nemo, Sheldon, Pearl, and Dory. Some characters float, while others sink for diving practice.
Your girl might be more comfortable catching the floating characters at first. As she becomes more confident, she can drop the sinking figures to increase the challenge.
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Toysmith Deluxe Chef Set
Most Fashionable Cooking Attire
Do you need a little sous chef? Or does your little girl own a pretend kitchen and needs the matching outfit?
This stylish pink kitchen ensemble is a complete chef’s attire. It combines an adjustable apron, a chef’s hat, two hot pads, a wooden rolling pin, and a cooking spoon. All the accessories are included to help out in the kitchen.
The machine-washable clothes are made with 100% cotton for ultimate comfort.
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Melissa & Doug Smarty Pants Kindergarten Cards
Best Educational Card Set
Feeling like your child already has enough dolls, ponies, and princess toys? Looking for a different and more educational toy? This brain-building card set might fit the bill.
Developed with the help of educators, the 120 cards contain fun and colorful illustrations. Each card includes an activity to challenge her skills in math, vocabulary, and more.
When your child outgrows this card set, the grade 1 version is available to continue the learning process. The set comes in a cleverly-designed tin featuring a brain wearing little baggy pants and sneakers, hence the “smarty pants” name.
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CreativeElf Drawing Stencils Set
Artistic Traveling
Containing a built-in handle and lock, this portable drawing case is easily transportable. It includes 10 colored pencils and 16 reusable stencils to make 300 different shapes. A three-color pen has been added to the kit as a bonus.
With animal, fashion, flower, butterfly, or even princess shapes, this portable drawing case should keep your little one busy for a while. She can trace the shapes and get to coloring.
The plastic stencils are easy to wash. The kit also comes with a sharpener and 25 sheets of paper.
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Lego Disney Frozen Sleigh Adventure
Frozen Fun for Everyone
This “Frozen” Lego set will wow most little girls. It includes 174 pieces and features three of the main Disney characters from the movie: Anna, Kristoff, and Sven.
The sleigh comfortably fits two passengers and comes with accessories such as an ice pick, two ice cubes, cups, and more. A trading post is fitted with all the details to make the scene more realistic.
This winter wonderland will be a great place for your girl to develop her thinking and instruction-following skills as she builds the set and her imagination as she plays.
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Lego Ariel and The Magical Spell
Building for Imagination
This 222-piece Lego set from the movie “The Little Mermaid” is another playful Lego option.
Ariel’s cave comes with a treasure chest containing a yellow diamond, a sliding door, and a hiding space for Flounder. Ariel uses her hairbrush to ensure her hair remains beautiful as always. And Ursula, the evil witch, makes an appearance too.
Girls love that this kit allows them to recreate the entire story, as Ariel has the option to go full-human, with legs instead of her tail.
Although your 5-year-old girl might need some assistance with construction, this set should be the root of many exciting stories.
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Toysmith Rainbow Stunt Streamer
Best for Outdoor Fun
This toy should help your little one spend more time outdoors and enhance gross motor and fine motor skills. The colorful ribbon is attached to a handle and stretches to 78 inches long. By pulling the cord through the handle, loops will go from small to large spirals.
The ribbon is made of sturdy material that should withstand hours of play without ripping. Although our girls prefer to use this as an outdoor toy, you could also bring it indoors if space allows.
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Build-A-Bot: Unicorn
Best STEM Robot Toy for 5-Year-Old Girls
This cute pink robot comes with 20 pieces that your 5-year-old might need a little assistance snapping together. It includes detailed instructions and a “Build-a-Bot” certificate as a reward when construction time is over.
Your little one can choose her bot’s eye color and decorate the unicorn by adding stickers in various shapes. A clap will activate the robot.
If you’d like a visual, here is a useful video showing how to build and use the robot, which moves and makes sounds in response to your little one’s signals:
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Enchantimals Bree Bunny Doll
Best for Animal Lovers
This adorable six-inch doll could become your child’s best friend. The bunny-themed doll is paired with her own cute little bunny pet.
Your little one can play for hours with this doll and her pet. It will also teach them to love and care for animals. They’ll love the detail in each outfit. The makeup is carefully designed, the outfits are bold and fun, and the doll comes with fun accessories, including her own bunny ears, a removable outfit, and high-fashion shoes.
If your little girl loves magic, enchantment, animals, and dolls, this set is the perfect combination!
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Developmental Milestones of 5-Year-Old Girls
Your daughter’s abilities are progressing rapidly, and she’s developing a greater taste for independent play. Here are a few other milestones to consider (1):
- Motor: 5-year-old girls should be able to run, jump, and hop. They usually have good balance and improved coordination. They should be able to hold a pen, unzip a sweater, or fasten a button.
- Emotional: They’re now able to express their feelings, what they like and don’t like, and even show empathy. This phase is characterized by extreme emotions.
- Social: She enjoys spending time with family and making new friends. Being accepted and pleasing friends and parents is important at this age.
- Language: They can be understood as their vocabulary expands, forming more structured and complex sentences.
- Cognitive: She can copy shapes and count up to 10 objects. Her drawing skills continue to improve.
Other Things to Consider
When purchasing the best toy for your 5-year-old girl, a few other things are worth considering.