Eggs are in short supply this year, but you can still fill your family's Easter baskets with fun Easter egg alternatives.
15 Cheaper Alternatives to Dyeing Eggs This Easter
Updated on Apr. 14, 2025
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Pick Up Dyeable Egg Kits
If you want to decorate Easter eggs like usual, simply swap out hard-boiled eggs for these dyeable eggs. The process is exactly like decorating real eggs, but you don’t have to worry about accidentally breaking the shells—ideal if you have younger kids. Plus, many kits even come with dyes and all the other supplies you’ll need to make beautiful Easter eggs.
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Paint Wooden Eggs
Wooden eggs are another fun alternative for your holiday crafts. They can’t be dyed, but you can paint them to look like Easter eggs. Plus, their durable form means they can be used for years to come. Simply paint over them again to create a whole new look.
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Dye Potatoes
Did you know that it’s surprisingly easy to dye potatoes? Yes, really! All you have to do is get some mini potatoes and paint them with food-safe dye. Once you’re done with the colorful spuds, you can cook them up into a vibrant dish that your family is sure to enjoy. We think they’d make particularly fun smashed potatoes, but you could also mash or roast them.
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Make Peanut Butter Eggs Together
Reese’s Eggs are a favorite at Easter time, and while you could buy a bag from the store, it’s arguably more fun to make homemade peanut butter eggs with the whole family. It’s surprisingly easy to do—form the filling into egg shapes, let them cool in the fridge, then dip them in chocolate. You can also decorate the outside with icing and sprinkles to make your Easter baskets even more festive.
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Make Colorful Jell-O Easter Eggs
Jello Jigglers were all the rage back in the ’90s, and you can recreate these colorful, jiggly eggs with the help of a silicone mold and box of Jell-O mix. All you have to do is make the Jell-O according to the instructions, then pour it into the molds to cool. Just like that, you’ve got an easy and budget-friendly alternative to classic Easter eggs.
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Fill Plastic Eggs with Candy
Plastic eggs are one of the most popular Easter egg alternatives out there. The shells hinge open, allowing you to put candy or other Easter treats inside, and they’re great for baskets or Easter egg hunts. Plus, you can use them year after year, and they can be decorated with paint or stickers, if desired.
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Stock Up on Cadbury Eggs
While they certainly don’t have the same nutritional value as real eggs, no one is going to complain if they find Cadbury Eggs among their Easter goodies. These iconic foil-wrapped candies have a chocolate shell and gooey fondant center, and they’re individually wrapped in foil, making them easy to arrange in your family’s Easter baskets.
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Go Sustainable with Fabric Eggs
These handmade fabric eggs are another reusable option for Easter, and they’re more eco-friendly than plastic. Each egg has a little pocket where you can stash candy or a small toy, and they come in a variety of fabric options, all of which have fun seasonal patterns.
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Hide Sidewalk Chalk Eggs
These colorful eggs might look like the real deal, but don’t take a bite! They’re made from sidewalk chalk, offering a fun activity for young children to do after their Easter egg hunt. Most chalk eggs come in a pack of six that includes a variety of colors, and, as an added bonus, only cost a few bucks.
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Decorate Paper Eggs
Your family will have a blast decorating paper eggs with markers, paint, glitter, stickers and other craft supplies. The sturdy eggs come in a pack of 12, and the best part is that they pop open, letting you fill them with candy or other goodies.
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Craft (or Purchase) Felt Eggs
How cute are these rainbow-colored felt eggs? They’re made from 100% real wool, and they come in large and small sizes, depending on how you plan to use them. If you’re feeling ambitious, purchase a bundle of loose fiber and needle-felt your own custom eggs. This way, you can make multicolored designs and fun patterns.
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Make Papier-Mâché Eggs
If you don’t mind a mess, your family will have a blast making eggs with papier-mâché. Make the paste using a simple mixture of flour and water, then dip strips of newspaper into the mixture, and lay them over a small inflated balloon. When the form dries, pop the balloon inside and decorate the shell with paint or glitter.
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Use Kinder Joy Eggs
Cadbury Eggs aren’t the only egg-shaped candy out there. Kinder Joy Eggs are another popular confection for Easter baskets, and each set comes with a special toy as well. The eggs are filled with layers of cream and chocolate wafer bites, and they’re great to put on display alongside a box of new Peeps flavors.
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Whip Up Marshmallow Eggs
Once you start making your own marshmallow Easter eggs, you won’t want to go back to the store-bought kind. This recipe uses a pan full of flour to shape the marshmallows, but you can streamline the process with the help of a silicone mold. Then, all you have to do is dip your confections in chocolate and decorate them with icing. Yum!
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Decorate Egg-Shaped Sugar Cookies
Still want to decorate eggs with your family? Make a batch of egg-shaped sugar cookies! We’ve got a great recipe for cut-out sugar cookies, and all you’ll need is an egg-shaped cookie cutter. Mix up several colors of royal icing for decoration, and we recommend putting the topping in squeeze bottles to make it easy for kids to handle.
