Toy Insider, a New York-based publication that reports on toy companies and trends, revealed in a sneak preview what it predicts will be the hottest toys for the 2022 holiday season. To make the cut, the toys must meet certain standards.
"We usually get hundreds of submissions," Ali Mierzejewski, editor-in-chief at Toy Insider, told Insider. "We have five criteria that we look for: play value, originality, skill building, product integrity, and then last but not least, we make sure that it's fun."
Ahead of the holiday season and rising costs, Mierzejewski suggests shoppers get a move on and save extra money.
"Everything was up this year," Mierzejewski said. "We're recommending all consumers budget an extra 15%."
Here are 20 budget deals on award-winning toys across a wide range of ages that Toy Insider found that won't break the budget. The prices are the manufacturer's suggested retail prices, unless otherwise indicated.