Advent calendar trends: toys losing ground to books, tea and beauty
21.11.2025
Translation: Katherine Martin
The period spanning from October to November is a big moment for Advent calendars. In fact, 90 per cent of festive calendars sold on Galaxus are ordered during these months. Although toy-filled calendars continue to dominate the sales rankings, they’re losing market share to themed varieties containing socks, drinks, cosmetics, books, jewellery or sex toys. As many as 40 per cent of Advent calendars are aimed at grown-ups.
With the festive season just around the corner, many parents are planning to give their children an Advent calendar. Some people, on the other hand, might just want one for themselves. Surprisingly for some, the days of chocolate-only calendars have been and gone. In their place, there’s a massive array of products. In addition to Advent calendars containing chocolate or other sweets, Galaxus also sells ones dedicated to socks, tea, gemstones, jewellery, sex toys, tools, candles, puzzles and wine. And there’s a market for every single one of these product types.
Daniela Sanzoni, Category Manager at Galaxus: «We’re seeing more and more sectors breaking into the Advent calendar segment. Take books, for example. Publishers are producing editions especially for the festive period, either containing 24 mini books or a story divided into 24 taped-up sections.» In 2021, book calendars made up just under four per cent of Advent calendar sales on Galaxus. The figure’s since gone up to around 11 per cent. Meanwhile, beauty calendars’ share of Advent calendar sales has increased from four per cent in 2021 to 10 per cent in 2025.
However, the lion’s share of Advent calendars sold contain toys. Although their share of the calendar pie has shrunk from 36 to 31 per cent since 2021, toy-based varieties are still a favourite with customers looking to bring a smile to children’s faces. This is reflected in Galaxus’s list of the top ten best-selling Advent calendars of 2025:
Of course, Advent calendars are available all year round. However, the vast majority (90 per cent) are purchased on Galaxus in October and November. In fact, sales double between October and November. Customers ordered a six-figure number of Advent calendars from Galaxus in 2024, almost twice as many as in 2021.
Are we getting lazy? DIY calendars are on a downward slide.
Looking at the sales data, it’s evident that themed and niche calendars are on the rise. While calendars containing socks, tea, wine, jewellery or gemstones (=other) still accounted for nine per cent of Advent calendar sales on Galaxus in 2021, the figure’s since gone up to almost 20 per cent. Sales in the «other» calendar category have gone up to 17 per cent. If we add books and beauty into the mix, this share rises to almost 40 per cent. That means 40 per cent of calendars are niche, as opposed to classics containing toys or chocolate.
The calendars on the flipside of this trend are the fill-it-yourself varieties. While DIY calendars made up one third of Galaxus’s Advent calendar sales in 2021, the figure has dropped to 10 per cent this year. Does this mean we’ve got lazier? Daniela Sanzoni: «I wouldn’t interpret it that way. The selection of very specific Advent calendars containing high-quality, carefully selected products has just become so large that it’s hard to resist buying one. Plus, you need to put a lot of time into finding the perfect product. You can’t afford to be lazy when doing that.»
Have you ever bought an Advent calendar containing socks, sex toys or gemstones? How did you like it? Let us know in the comments!
Header image: Thais Ceneviva / iStockphoto
Daniel Borchers
Senior Communications Manager
Daniel.Borchers@galaxus.deA soft spot for good series, loud music, science fiction and (second division) football. As PR Manager, I am available to answer journalists' questions about Galaxus and honest e-commerce.
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