If not for the Tooth Fairy, the thought of losing a tooth would send most children into a panic. But instead of dreading this small, yet significant milestone, losing a tooth is something most children look forward to.
And we have the Tooth Fairy to thank for that!
For those who didn’t grow up with this tradition, the Tooth Fairy is a beloved mythical creature that gives children a small payment or gift in exchange for a lost tooth. In America, children usually place the tooth underneath their pillow at night. The Tooth Fairy then exchanges the tooth for a gift while they’re sleeping.
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With that said, there’s one question every parent wants to know:
What does the tooth fairy pay these days?
“What does the tooth fairy pay these days? My son lost his first tooth and trying to get an idea. Google is saying between $5 and $20.”
If you asked that question to a group of 100 parents, you would receive dozens of different answers – and, to be honest, none of them would be wrong. And, to be honest, your child will be happy either way.
What’s the Going Rate for the Tooth Fairy in 2024?
While there’s no clear way to answer this question, we can always turn to Delta Dental – a network of dental insurance companies that have been tracking the Tooth Fairy’s annual giving for the past 26 years.
In 2023, their annual poll found that the Tooth Fairy visits 81% of American households. Of the parents polled, the average value of a lost tooth was $6.23 – an all-time high and a 16% increase from 2022.
For reference, the value of a lost tooth was just $1.30 in the late 1990s.
The poll also found that a baby’s first lost tooth was worth even more – coming in at $7.29 on average – and 1 in 5 children received a secondary gift (in addition to money) for every baby tooth they lost.
Don’t worry – things are looking better (for parents, at least) in 2024.
This year, the Delta Dental poll found that the average value had dropped from $6.23 to $5.84 (and from $7.29 to $7.09 for a child’s first lost tooth) – perhaps a result of the recent slowing of U.S. inflation.
“Delta Dental has tracked U.S. Tooth Fairy giving trends for 26 years as a timely way to spotlight the importance of children’s oral health,” said Gabriella Ferroni, a Sr. Director of Strategic Communications at Delta Dental.
Today, most parents give anywhere from $1 to $20 for a lost tooth.
“It is not a surprise to see she tightened her purse strings following last year’s record high,” she added. Despite the more economical reward, Tooth Fairy giving is a fun conversation starter to encourage good oral hygiene habits at an early age.”
15 Tooth Fairy Ideas That Don’t Involve Money
The Tooth Fairy tradition plays an important role in a child’s growth and development, but keeping up with that tradition can be difficult for parents who are on a budget – and let’s be honest, we’re all on a budget!
A little math starts to put things into perspective.
Let’s say you give your child $10 for their first lost tooth, and then $5 for every tooth after that. Since they have 20 baby teeth to lose, that amounts to $105 – per child. If you have multiple children that are around the same age, you might find yourself forking over $5 to $10 every few weeks – and that adds up quickly!
As much as we love the Tooth Fairy, maintaining the tradition shouldn’t break the bank.
The good news is it doesn’t have to!
There are plenty of ways to keep the Tooth Fairy magic alive without the monetary reward. After all, it’s not the money that matters – it’s teaching children the importance of dental hygiene and dental health.
That’s what’s most important.
So, if you’re on a budget, don’t worry – here are 15 tooth fairy ideas that can either replace a monetary reward or be coupled with a monetary reward.
15. Tooth Fairy Activity Sheets
Dental care activity sheets are a fun, interactive, and engaging way to teach your child the nuances of dental care – including brushing and flossing regularly, and visiting the dentist at least twice per year.
Activity sheets can be downloaded off the internet and printed on a piece of paper, but you can also find virtual activity sheets (mobile apps, websites) if your child learns better in front of a digital screen.
Of course, you can also create your own – most activity sheets are just a combination of quizzes, puzzles, word searches, coloring pages, and other games. You can make it a tradition every time they lose a tooth!
14. Tooth Fairy Bedtime Story
Putting the tooth under their pillow is at the heart of every Tooth Fairy tradition, but you can add to that tradition by reading them a Tooth Fairy-inspired bedtime story before they drift off into a dental dream.
Some of our favorites are Tooth Fairy’s Night by Candice Ransom, How to Catch the Tooth Fairy by Adam Wallace, How to Trick the Tooth Fairy by Erin Danielle, and The Tooth Fairy (Peppa Pig) by Scholastic.
If you’re trying to save money, you can find a wide range of free bedtime stories about the Tooth Fairy online – and even on YouTube. Of course, you can always go the homemade route and make your own!
13. A Letter To and From the Tooth Fairy
You already do something similar with Santa Claus – why not do it with the Tooth Fairy, as well? Writing a letter is a fun activity and can be completed as soon as they start to feel a little wiggle in their teeth.
Helping them write their letter will make for a special bonding moment with your child and give you a keepsake to store for later, but you’ll also get to see their reaction when you read them the response!
You can even treat the Tooth Fairy like a pen pal – sending letters back and forth throughout the duration of the baby tooth stage. Send a letter anytime a new tooth starts to wiggle, and anytime one falls out.
12. Phone Call With the Tooth Fairy
Sending letters is fun, but you make your child’s relationship with the Tooth Fairy feel a little more realistic and personal with a phone call. I don’t know about you, but I didn’t have that growing up – but I wish I did!
There are a few mobile apps (such as Call Tooth Fairy Simulator and Call Tooth Fairy Voicemail), but the features aren’t the best and may require in-app purchases. Don’t worry – there are plenty of other options.
The Tooth Fairy Hotline is available toll-free at 1-833-FAIRY-WA and parents can select from four different messages to customize the experience. There are also several companies with similar (paid) services.
11. Video Chat With the Tooth Fairy
You might be wondering if this is a real thing, and it is! The Virtual ToothFairy is a licensed dental hygienist who specializes in helping children with their oral health – it’s basically an online dentist visit.
The hygienist dresses as the tooth fairy and teaches your child about the importance of brushing, flossing, and eating the right foods for healthy teeth. It’s also an opportunity to ask the Tooth Fairy some questions!
If you’re looking to save money, you can have a friend or family member dress up as the tooth fairy and do a video chat with them – or you can have your child’s father call you, and you can do the dressing up!
10. Baby Teeth Scrap Book
There’s no better way to celebrate a child’s milestone than with a scrapbook – especially one that you and your child work on together. You’ll get to spend quality time with your child and have a souvenir for later.
Each page can be dedicated to a different tooth, accompanied by photos, the date it fell out, and even the story behind it—a playful fall, a brave visit to the dentist, or the anticipation of the Tooth Fairy’s visit.
It also serves as a gentle introduction to oral health by encouraging them to take pride in their dental milestones (and life milestones, as a whole) and understand the importance of taking care of their teeth.
9. Craft a Tiny Door for the Tooth Fairy
The Tooth Fairy needs her own magical door to enter through and exit out of when collecting the teeth – so why not make it a fun arts and crafts project? Trust us, it’ll be the most adorable thing you do today!
You can put the door anywhere, but we love the idea of putting it on the trim of their bedroom wall (kind of like a mouse door). The door can be as small as four inches or as big as two feet – let your child decide!
Amazon has miniature doors that can be ‘bedazzled’ to match the Tooth Fairy’s personality, but you can also make one out of paper if you’re on a budget. As long as the Tooth Fairy can make a grand entrance!
8. Craft a Container for the Lost Teeth
Here’s another DIY project you can do with your child as they prepare for their first lost tooth. It doesn’t have to be anything crazy, but find a small container that can house the teeth – instead of using a baggie.
Empty (and clean) pill bottles, old mint boxes, a Tic Tac container, or even a small jewelry box would be perfect for this. Like you did with the Tooth Fairy door, all you need to do is bedazzle and decorate it!
When done, they’ll have a commemorative container to place their tooth in – one that the Tooth Fairy will appreciate when she makes her visit. The Tooth Fairy can also use it to leave a small gift behind.
7. Craft a Magical Tooth Fairy Pillow
We’re sticking with the arts and crafts theme here, but this time we’re making a special pillow that’ll serve one purpose and one purpose only – to house the lost tooth as it awaits collection from the Tooth Fairy.
The pillow should be shaped like a tooth and have a special pocket to place the tooth (or the container you made in the previous project). And it doesn’t have to be a big pillow – it can be a miniature one!
To make your life easier when exchanging the tooth for a gift, tie a string around the pillow and hang it off the side of their bed or even the door to their room – that way, you don’t run the risk of them waking up.
6. Utilize Glitter to Make Fairy Footsteps
We’re talking about the tooth fairy, so it should come as no surprise that there’s glitter involved! It might make a mess, but your child will appreciate the details – and it’ll make it all seem more realistic for them!
While we definitely recommend using glitter on your Tooth Fairy door, pillow, and container, you can also use it to make tiny footprints – a small sign that the Tooth Fairy did, in fact, visit their room the night prior.
Just sprinkle some glitter on the floor – right outside their Tooth Fairy door – and create tiny footprints leading out (and back into) the door. And don’t forget – it’ll make for the cutest Instagram post, too!
5. Leave a Magical Wand Behind
This is something you’ll have to craft yourself, without your child knowing – but it’ll help make the experience a little more realistic and believable. As we said earlier, it’s the details that matter most!
All you need is a small wand made out of a Q-tip or toothpick (how small it is will depend on how big you made your fairy door). You can also find mini wands online, if you want them to look more professional.
When making your tiny footprints with the glitter, leave the wand somewhere by the door – almost as if the Tooth Fairy dropped it on their way out. You can tell your child it’s a unique, one-of-a-kind souvenir!
4. Leave Behind Sugar-Free Candy
Kids love candy, but it’s not the best for their teeth – too much of it results in tooth decay and dental erosion. While we don’t recommend giving your child sugary candy, there’s nothing wrong with sugar-free!
Parents can choose from a variety of sugar-free candies that come in fun shapes (like a tooth or set of teeth), colors, and flavors. It adds a little extra flare to the surprise they find when they finally wake up.
Aside from the treat, these candies give parents an opportunity to teach their children why they’re eating sugar-free candy and the dangers of eating too much candy. Anything can be a teachable moment!
3. Leave Behind Dental Care Gifts
If you don’t like the idea of giving your child a monetary reward, you can replace it with a small gift basket (a bedazzled basket, of course) filled with dental care items – things they’ll get immediate use out of.
Items such as Tooth Fairy-themed toothbrushes, colored floss, flavored toothpaste, and dental care books can turn the experience into an educational opportunity – one that promotes proper dental hygiene.
By associating the loss of baby teeth with receiving new dental care tools, parents can instill the importance of oral hygiene in a positive and memorable way. Everyone walks away a winner!
2. Give Them a Certification or Receipt
Parents can find plenty of templates for printable certificates to help their child commemorate each lost tooth – you can add these to their dental scrapbook as they lose more teeth. Yay for more keepsakes!
We’ve also seen parents print Tooth Fairy-inspired coupons that their children can redeem at any point. For example, you can leave a ‘Good for One Trip to the Aquarium’ coupon under their pillow.
Another fun idea (if you plan on leaving a monetary reward) is to leave them a cute receipt – signed by the Tooth Fairy. Model it like an actual receipt, showing how much money they received and why.
1. Prepare Dental-Inspired Meals & Snacks
When they wake up and find their gift under the pillow, you can make that day a little extra special by making a dental-inspired meal for breakfast or making them dental-inspired snacks throughout the day.
Edible toothbrushes (celery sticks and peanut butter shaped like a toothbrush), watermelon wedges shaped like teeth, or sandwiches in the shape of a tooth are some creative and fun examples.
These snacks are not only fun to eat but also serve as a reminder of the importance of dental health. They can be a great addition to dental-themed parties or as a creative way to celebrate a lost tooth!
When Is the Right Time to Retire the Tooth Fairy?
The Tooth Fairy is integral to your child’s growth and development, but there comes a time when most children either grow out of the tradition (they grow up so fast!) or have no more baby teeth to lose.
With that said, when is it the right time to retire the tradition?
It’s different for everyone, but most children start losing teeth around six years old – which is usually when the tradition begins. They continue to lose teeth until they turn 11 or 12, which is usually when it ends.
Of course, some children stop believing in the tooth fairy around eight years old, but they’ll usually play along with the tradition – especially when there’s a reward at stake. The same goes for Santa Claus.
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What’s important is that we teach our children the nuances of dental hygiene at an early age – that way, they can develop positive habits that remain with them throughout their teenage and adult lives.
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