Tooth Fairy ideas to make every visit magical

4 November 2026

The best Tooth Fairy visits mix a small payment with one magical detail your child can see in the morning: a tiny letter, a trail of glitter, or a coin that sparkles. You don't need to spend much. Below are ideas for every stage, from the first wobble to the night the Tooth Fairy forgets.

Before the tooth comes out

A wobbly tooth can last for weeks, which gives you plenty of time to build excitement.

• A tooth chart. Draw a simple mouth with 20 teeth on the fridge and colour one in each time a tooth falls out. Children have 20 baby teeth, so it fills up slowly over several years.
• A tooth pillow or pouch. A small pillow with a pocket, or a little fabric bag, stops tiny teeth getting lost in the bed. It also makes it easier for the Tooth Fairy to find.
• A tooth box. A matchbox or trinket box, decorated by your child, for the tooth to wait in overnight.
• A letter to the Tooth Fairy. Let your child write or draw a note to leave with the tooth. Questions are good: "What's your name?", "How many teeth did you collect tonight?" They give the Tooth Fairy something to answer.

What should the Tooth Fairy leave?

Most UK families leave a £1 or £2 coin, and survey averages sit at about £2 a tooth (see our guide to the Tooth Fairy going rate in the UK). Beyond money, you could leave:

• A shiny coin you've polished, or a coin from a special year.
• A tiny scroll tied with thread.
• A new toothbrush in a fun colour, with a note about keeping the new grown-up tooth clean.
• A sticker, a small book or a pencil instead of, or alongside, the coin.
• A certificate for the first tooth, with the date and which tooth it was.

Magical touches that cost almost nothing

1. Fairy dust. A pinch of biodegradable glitter on the windowsill or pillowcase. Go easy: it gets everywhere.
2. Tiny footprints. Dip a fingertip in flour or talc and press two dots for a heel and toe, a few times, from the window to the pillow.
3. Tiny handwriting. Write the Tooth Fairy's note in very small letters, or in silver or gold pen. Children love that it looks different from Mum or Dad's writing.
4. A receipt. A small "Tooth received" slip with the date, the tooth's position and a "condition" grade ("Sparkling! Very well brushed").
5. A coin left in water. Put the tooth in a glass of water, and leave the coin in the glass in the morning. Some children love this swap.
6. A dropped clue. A single sequin or a scrap of glittery paper near the bed, as if she dropped it on the way out.
7. The Tooth Fairy's name. Give her a name and a personality. It makes the letters easier to write and the stories easier to keep straight.

What to do if the Tooth Fairy forgets

It happens in most houses at least once. Have a story ready:

• "She was too busy." Lots of children lost teeth last night, so she'll come tonight. Leave a little extra for the wait.
• "The tooth was hard to find." Move it into a pouch or box and try again tonight.
• "She came but left a note." Quickly write a note while your child is having breakfast: "I saw how beautifully you've been brushing, so I'm letting you keep your tooth one more night so you can show your friends."
• "Rain stopped her." Fairy wings and wet weather don't mix. Very believable in a British winter.

Keep a coin and a ready-written note in a drawer, so that if you remember at 2am, you can do it in seconds.

Lost, swallowed or knocked-out teeth

A tooth doesn't have to be under the pillow for the Tooth Fairy to visit. Most families have a rule that she still comes, and a note from the child explaining what happened is enough. Some ideas:

• Swallowed tooth: The Tooth Fairy "knows where every tooth is", so a note will do.
• Lost at school or in the park: Draw a picture of the tooth and leave that instead.
• Taken out by the dentist: Ask to keep it. If you can't, a note works.

If a tooth is knocked out in an accident, deal with the injury first. The NHS advice on knocked-out teeth is not to put a baby tooth back in, as it could damage the adult tooth growing underneath, and to see a dentist as soon as possible.

Ideas for the first tooth

The first tooth usually comes out at about six. It's worth a bigger moment: a photo of the gap, a note of the date, a certificate or a letter from the Tooth Fairy. Our guide to the first lost tooth has more, and our Tooth Fairy letter ideas include wording you can copy.

Ideas for older children

The last baby teeth don't usually come out until about 12, and many children have worked out the secret long before then. You can keep it going, or let an older child in on the secret and make them the Tooth Fairy's helper for younger brothers and sisters. Many children love being trusted with the magic. For ideas on what the Tooth Fairy does with all those teeth, see what does the Tooth Fairy do with teeth?