Best Gifts for a 3 Year Old Boy

I'm Mom to two boys and the younger one is 3 and so is his boy cousin, so I know what they like! If you need a Christmas or birthday gift for a 3 year old boy, you'll find lots of ideas here. 

The gifts cover a range of prices and interests. The gifts are all selected because they get good reviews, from my kids and others. 

A three year old boy is ready to move on from infant toys to some really cool big boy stuff. 

We'll start with my three-year old son's absolute favorite activity: Play-Doh. He just loves it, and so do all the other kids at his preschool. 

3 year olds love jigsaw puzzles. In my experience the boys love a really big floor puzzle that they have to move around to complete. 

This Melissa & Doug Safari Floor puzzle is a great choice. The pieces and thick and chunky and very good quality. The puzzle has 24 pieces which a lot of 3 year olds will be able to complete on their own - if not it's fun to get parents to help. 

The puzzle design is nice and bright with a cheeky money and a scary snake. 

Fisher-Price TRIO is a construction toy for kids from age 3. It has bricks, sticks, panels and interesting shaped pieces. 

The TRIO dinosaur set is very cool. It has nice bright colors and cool shapes. 

3 is a good age to buy this set as kids will have fun making their own creations. They probably won't be able to follow the instructions yet, but will really enjoy it if parents help then to build the designs that come with the sets. 

Buying TRIO when a child is 3 means they'll get plenty of use out of it. 

The Imaginext range is superb for three year old boys. My boys have some and it's really solid and well built but packed with features. 

My 3 year old nephew has the Batcave and loves it - it's one of his favorite toys. It comes with minifigures that can be used to trigger actions within the Batcave. 

There's lots here to keep little boys busy. The Batcave is compatible with lots of other Super Friends sets so kids can build up a collection. 

3 year old boys love dressing up and going on adventures. A pirate costume is great fun. They can pretend to search for buried treasure. 

The Melissa & Doug Pirate Costume is really well desgined. Instead of including pants, it makes the rest of the costume better quality. Kids can wear it with a pair or shorts or the pants from another costume. 

The hat, sword and eyepatch will make a child really feel the part!

Lots of little kids love Transformers, but most of the transformers toys are too tricky for little hands to operate. 

Luckily the Rescue Bots range has been designed for preschoolers and little kids from age 3. 

Optimus Prime is the main hero in Transformers so he's a good choice. The Transformers Rescue Bot Optimus Prime does transform into a truck, it's done in a single action which small kids can trigger. 

I haven't met a three year old who doesn't like to paint. My 3 year old loves to get creative with some different colored paints or chalks and create a masterpiece. 

This Melissa & Doug Deluxe Easel is well designed. It folks neatly when not in use and has a paper roller and handy storage trays for painting supplies. Two kids can use the easel at the same time as well, great for twins or siblings who are close in age.