I was curious about the leading types of advent calendars. Over the past 10 years, I feel there has been an expansion of different types of advent calendars. In 2024, the global market was reported to be USD 13.4 billion due to seasonal gifting trends. Advent calendars originated in Germany, and Europe remains the largest market. While the U.S. is catching up quickly, with 60% of Americans choosing to participate in 2025.
To break down the consumer behavior, toy and chocolate advent calendars are bought for children. Whereas beauty, gourmet food, and alcohol are targeted towards adults. Families tend to have reusable or mixed calendars targeted towards them. People choose to participate in advent calendars for the tradition and nostalgia. Plus, whom doesn’t love a little dopamine hit? There is also a perceived value of advent calendars. Adm indicia reported that beauty advent calendars are often advertised at 2-3x worth retail price. The range for advent calendars can be $<10 - $500 USD.
With personalization and resume there is an evolving global market. Advent calendars originated in Germany by lighting a calendar for 24 days. Gerhard Lang commercialized advent calendars by being the first printed advent calendar. His mother made him a calendar with 24 little pictures glued to cardboard, which he then commercialized. Post WW2 is when the addition of chocolate began. Originally advent calendars were done in a religious sense but now have transitioned to consumer ritual, further evolving to a multi-segment global market.
Sources:
https://www.statista.com/statistics/1075160/having-an-advent-calendar-in-the-united-states
https://advent.center/articles/the-state-of-advent-calendars-market-2025-research
https://growthmarketreports.com/report/advent-calendar-market