Roy Morgan’s annual retail sales forecast, released in conjunction with the Australian Retailers Association (ARA), indicates Australians will spend more than $54.3 billion during the Christmas trading period. A solid part of this will go on gifts for children.

Of course it’s the thought that counts, but for those who aren’t quite sure whether they’re up to date on what kids really like right now, the Kids’ Cool List from Roy Morgan’s Young Australians Survey offers some inspiration.

Netflix tops the 2020 list — for the third year in a row — with the streaming service declared “really cool” by 62 per cent of 6-9 year olds and 70 per cent of 10-13 year olds.

Second in the overall list is Minecraft, riding a renewed wave of popularity. The digital creative building game is especially popular with 10-13 year olds (60 per cent, compared to 54 per cent of 6-9 year olds). Apple’s iPad has dropped a little since topping the list in 2016, but it is still judged cool enough to claim third place overall — and to be the top choice of the 6-9 year olds (64 per cent).

Roy Morgan has been going direct to the source to find out what matters most to Australia’s children since 2004. Each year over 2,000 young Australians aged 6-13 tell us about everything from their hobbies and favourite TV shows to how much pocket money they get, how they like to spend their time, and how they feel about themselves, their families and the world at large.

When it comes to what’s “really cool” right now, other items and brands that get the thumbs-up from the nation’s kids are iPhones (49 per cent); computers, including laptops and other tablets (45 per cent), Nike (42 per cent), Roblox (40 per cent), Harry Potter (just under 40 per cent) and, in equal ninth place, gaming consoles PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch (38 per cent).

There is strong crossover between boys’ and girls’ cool lists but there are differences too, with the Girls’ Cool Top 5 consisting of Netflix, iPad, iPhone, Minecraft and Harry Potter, and the Boys’ Cool Top 5 consisting of Minecraft, Netflix, iPad, PlayStation 4 and Spiderman.

For the 6-9 age group, Harry Potter-related items are a perennial favourite, as well as books, Lego and Lion King-related items. Pre-teens and teens are more focused on tech and high-profile shoes and sportswear brands, including Nike and Adidas.

Commenting on the findings, Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine said: “Christmas is just around the corner and every parent, grandparent, aunt and uncle knows that giving gifts to children can be a joyous experience — but we also all know how hard it can be to figure out what’s currently considered cool and what’s not.

“The changing popularity of Fortnite and Minecraft is a good example. Last year Fortnite was just as popular as Minecraft, coming equal sixth on the overall list. But now it has dropped to No. 16 while Minecraft has risen to No. 2, thanks to influential YouTube stars. As ever ‘cool’ is in the eye of the beholder, but kids know it when they see it!”