With Christmas right around the corner, there’s currently only one question on the lips of all prospective gift-givers… What is the most popular toy in the world right now? After all, nothing beats the look on a loved one’s face when they open a special present from Santa.
From Lego to L.O.L Surprise, Furbeys to Funko POP, or Polly Pocket to Playstations, plenty of toys have risen to meteoric popularity over recent years and become the ‘must have’ item at Christmas. But what toys have captured the imagination the most in 2021 and staked a claim as the world’s favorite toy?
To help elves worldwide (aka mums + dads), TheToyZone has been on a festive mission to find out. By diving into the Google search data, they’ve discovered the most searched-for toy in every country. As well as breaking it down into specific toy categories outlined by The Toy Association and Wikipedia so you can see how dolls, board games, game consoles, and even 90’s retro toys rank. Here’s a peek at each countries favorite toys:
Nine countries in North America searched for the PS4 more than any toy. Outperforming its successor, with the PS5 claiming only three countries.
While games consoles dominated the continent, traditional toys such as Funko POP, Barbie, Hot Wheels, and Scrabble managed to top searches in Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Haiti, and Guadeloupe.
South America
The spoils were shared in South America, with two toys featuring in the most searches across the continent. The PS4 secured top place in four countries, tying with a more old-school rival: Barbie.
Europe
Lego is the most popular toy in 11 European countries, edging out the PS5 (ten countries) and PS4 (nine).
Playmobil also proved to be popular as the most-searched toy in six European countries. However, it doesn’t feature anywhere outside of Europe.
The Middle East and Central Asia
The PS4 and PS5 dominate much of the Middle East. With Sony’s console claiming the top spot in 14 of the 20 countries in this region.
Barbie is the biggest in Azerbaijan and Turkey. Along with Tajikistan (Lego), these are the only countries in the region that favor ‘real’ toys over consoles.
East Asia and Australia
The PS4 owns this region and is the most popular toy in nine countries. The PS5 adds another four territories to Sony’s haul on this side of the planet.
Lego also proves to be very popular, claiming the most searches in Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Hong Kong.
Two unique toys feature in the region, with Ludo being the favorite toy in Pakistan while Bangladesh favors Slime.
Africa
Barbie is the most popular toy in Africa. The doll is most popular in 15 countries, followed by PS4 (13) and PS5 (6).
Monopoly makes its only map appearance in Nigeria. At the same time, Scrabble claims the top spot in Niger, Djibouti, and The Democratic Republic of Congo.
The World’s Favorite Toys by Category
Finally, the TheToyZone team mapped every country’s most popular toy in each category (consoles, dolls, construction toys, classics, board games, ’90s toys, TV merch, and superhero figures).
90’s toys
Board games
Building and construction toys
Classic toys
Consoles
Dolls
Superhero toys
TV Toys
Key Findings
The PlayStation 4 is the most popular toy in the highest number of countries. Thanks in large part to the current lack of availability of the PS5 and it’s more wallet-friendly price tag.
While game consoles dominate most of the world, LEGO and Barbie fly the flag for ‘traditional’ toys, as the most popular toys in a combined 46 counties.
5 toys proved to be uniquely popular in certain corners of the globe, with Hot Wheels (Guatemala), Slime (Bangladesh), Ludo (Pakistan), Monopoly (Nigeria) and Nerf (Norway) featuring as a favorite toy overall in only one country each.
