The Curiosity Box
Inquisitive Inc. (Vsauce / Michael Stevens) · Grades 6–12+
Quarterly subscription box from Vsauce's Michael Stevens. Premium science toys, puzzles, books, and viral experiments arriving four times a year for curious thinkers of all ages.
$70–$75/box ($280/year annual plan, includes a free box)
Overview
Vsauce in a box. Michael Stevens (the YouTuber asking why the universe exists and where deleted files go) and his team design four boxes a year of items you can't get anywhere else. A Möbius scarf. A four-dimensional tape measure. A Nitinol paperclip that remembers its shape. Slide-rule chopsticks. Each box has $100+ in custom science toys, puzzles, books, a magazine, and a shirt. Marketed as 'the subscription for thinkers', which is exactly why it lands for older homeschool kids who've outgrown kid-branded STEM kits.
Strengths
- •Designed for adult-and-teen intellectual depth. No condescension, no kid-grade packaging
- •Items are exclusive, custom-designed, and surprising (recent boxes: Möbius scarf, 4D tape measure, Nitinol paperclip, slide-rule chopsticks)
- •Includes a magazine that explains the science behind every item: the educational scaffolding is real
- •Family-shareable: the parent doing pod facilitation will want to open the box too
- •Vsauce brand recognition gets reluctant teens to engage with science again
- •Sister product to MEL Science (same parent company). Pairs naturally for a chemistry-plus-curiosity science track
Limitations
- •Quarterly cadence means it's enrichment, not a curriculum spine. Four boxes a year doesn't fill a school week
- •Premium pricing. $75/box ($280/year) is one of the most expensive science subscriptions
- •Marketed to adults; the publisher's 'Shopping for Kids?' link explicitly redirects to MEL Science, signaling Curiosity Box knows itself as the older-tier product
- •hand-picked. You can't choose what's in each box, which frustrates families who want specific subject coverage
- •Some items skew novelty over depth (the t-shirt and stickers are fun but not science instruction)
Best fit for
- •Older homeschool kids (12+) and teens who watch SciShow, Veritasium, or Vsauce on their own time
- •Pods running enrichment alongside a primary science curriculum (pair with R.S.O. or MEL Chem for depth)
- •Family-style science where the parent and kid open the box together
- •Gifted kids who roll their eyes at age-graded experiment kits and want adult-level material
- •The 'I hate science class' kid who needs to remember science can be weird and fun
The honest read
Curiosity Box knows what it is: not a curriculum, but the closest thing in subscription form to what Michael Stevens does on YouTube. If your science kid is reading at adult level and rolling eyes at kid-branded STEM kits, this is the box that meets them at their actual intellectual age. Pair it with MEL Chem or Real Science Odyssey for the curriculum spine; let Curiosity Box be the quarterly arrival that reminds them why they fell in love with science in the first place. Premium price, premium delivery, and the rare science subscription where the adult opening the box has as much fun as the kid.
Get The Curiosity Box
Quarterly subscription box from Vsauce's Michael Stevens. Premium science toys, puzzles, books, and viral experiments arriving four times a year for curious thinkers of all ages.
SHOPRelated in Science
The Curiosity Box
$70–$75/box ($280/year annual plan, includes a free box)