Toys aren’t just child’s play anymore: Adults over age 18 — known as “kidults” — are getting in on the fun, rediscovering their love of building blocks, race cars, plush stuffed animals, and other childhood favorites. Toymakers are taking notice — and seizing the opportunity by tailoring products to appeal to this growing segment of enthusiasts and collectors.

Not just child’s play

Overall toy sales have declined, but sales to kidults are up. The 18+ segment accounted for 17.3% of total toy sales, roughly $6.7 billion, in 2023 — an 8% increase over the prior year.¹ Though the first 4 months of 2024 saw a 1% drop in overall industry sales year over year, kidults accounted for more sales than any other age group, overtaking even the preschool segment to contribute over $1.5 billion to the total.² Nearly half of U.S. adults (43%) said they’d purchased a toy for themselves in the first 5 months of 2024.³ Some brands hold such allure for adult devotees that they can make up as much as 25% of sales.⁴

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Banking on adults

When it comes to deriving joy from a toy, there doesn’t seem to be an age cap: According to Empower research, splurges on tabletop and board games spark happiness for 18% of adults. Adults’ growing fandom for toys has some toymakers revisiting and refining their product development and marketing strategies. Companies like Lego, Mattel, and even Build-A-Bear are investing in developing products that specifically target their adult fans — and it’s paying off. 

Grown-up builders are helping Lego solidify its status as the world’s biggest toymaker based on sales.⁵ The brick maker even has an acronym for the fan base: “AFOLs,” which stands for Adult Fans of Lego. Recognizing an untapped market, Lego began focusing on adult consumers about a decade ago, and since then has doubled its revenues to nearly $10 billion.⁶ Adopting the slogan, “Adults Welcome,” the company launched an adult-focused category in 2020, which has burgeoned to 142 sets and counting, and includes an $850 Millennium Falcon and a $680 replica of the Titanic.^{7, 8} Tipping the scales toward adult consumers makes sense: Adults have more spending power and winning them over is fueling the growth of Lego’s $10 billion toy market foothold.⁹

Mattel is getting in on the action too. It’s 56-year-old Hot Wheels line, which sells some 709 million cars annually, grossed $1.43 billion in sales for 2023 — and sales to adults drove an estimated one-third of the revenues.¹⁰ The company has big aspirations for taking things to the next level: Last year the toymaker ran its first Mattel REVEALED virtual event, giving consumers a behind-the scenes look at upcoming products. Some 65,000 fans turned out, blowing past the anticipated 5,000 attendees.¹¹

Kidult consumers are nostalgic for stuffed animals too, and Build-A-Bear is leaning on its website to reach older customers who might be reluctant to visit brick and mortar stores for fear of being seen playing with teddy bears in public. Web sales account for about 15% of revenues, and about 40% of those are to teens and adults over age 18.¹² To appeal to this growing consumer base, the company has partnered with the NFL to create co-branded bears, and unveiled a line of Swarovski crystal-adorned bears, including one that retails for $2,000.¹³

Read more: 1/3 of Americans say they overindulge on everyday luxuries

Fueled by nostalgia

Why are adults flocking to the toy aisle? For some, it’s a way to reclaim childhood memories. Though Lego, in particular, has fans that never stopped building, collaborations with franchises like Star Wars and Harry Potter are big draws for those tapping into their inner child. The pandemic helped fuel interest too. As people looked for entertainment options at home, toy sales surged by as much as 20% in 2020.¹⁴

Will the 18 and over segment keep buying? Roughly 59% of Gen Zers and Millennials consider themselves kidults, and 63% among them say they’re motivated by a sense of nostalgia.¹⁵ Whether that will translate to more toy purchases remains to be seen, but in the meantime, it may be a good idea to free up some space in the playroom.