Toddler Testers and Toy Experts Named These the Best Toys and Gifts for 1-Year-Olds
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We all know the old cliché about 1-year-olds: give them a gift, and they'll wind up more interested in the box it came in. No matter the hype surrounding a new toy, or the claims a company makes about its educational or developmental value, there's really no way to know if it's something a toddler will like unless you get it in their hands. That's why the Good Housekeeping Institute tests toys and books with real families and kids, soliciting feedback about everything from how easy it is to get out of the packing to how long it held a kid's attention, in order to find our favorite gifts for kids this age .
Our top picks:
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Best overall gift: Fat Brain Toys PlayTab Essentials
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Best book: 'What's That Noise? Meow!' Board Book
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Best shape sorter: Fisher-Price Object Permanence Box
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Best for imaginative play: Fisher-Price Little People School Bus
Of course, our list of the best toys and gifts for 1-year-oldsinclude many that do work on motor skills, object permanence, cause-and-effect, and other developmental milestones. But, most importantly, the toddlers couldn't get enough of them! When all was said and done, these toys, which include current and former Good Housekeeping Best Toy Award winners, rose to the top.
Best overall gifts for 1-Year-Olds
These toys are triple winners: approved by experts, loved by kids, and parents just can't stop buying them.
VTech 4-in-1 Steps & Stages Activity Center
Lay it down, stand it up, separate the panels, or connect them all together—there's so much versatility built into this toy. Each tester reported their child had a different favorite panel or function, be it the pretend phone, the piano keys, or the buttons. "I love that it has so many different configurations and could essentially be considered four toys in one," one parent said. Ages 3 months+; three AA batteries required
Radio Flyer Busy Buggy
Beep, beep! While little ones work on their leg muscle strength, adults can still push them around on this previous Toy Award Winner. Then, as they become more confident walkers, they can propel themselves. There are also lots of little features that spin, click, and otherwise make noiseto keep them interested. Ages 1+; three AA batteries required
Fat Brain Toys PlayTab Essentials
This busy board has a unique way of always staying fresh for kids: It's made up of different magnetic tiles that can be swapped in and out.Each tile has its own play feature, like gears, buttons, or textures. It comes with six tiles, but extra tiles with different play features can be purchased separately. And now, there's also PlayTab Go , which lets kids bring two tiles with them and comes with a ring to attach to a car seat or stroller. Ages 1+
Developmental toys for toddlers
While any toy can have developmental benefits, these work on some important skills for toddlers like sorting, stacking, eye-tracking, matching, and fine-motor coordination.
ShyLizard Farm Animals Sorting and Stacking Toy
Six boxes of different sizes, six animal friends, yet so many ways to play. Kids can stack the different sized boxes vertically and match each animal to its preferred house. Or they can arrange them horizontally to make a village for imaginary play. When that's done, they can use the animals as finger puppets, practice counting the boxes and animals,use the boxes to make other structures—and knock them down again. Ages 1+
Fisher-Price Rock-a-Stack & Baby's First Blocks Bundle
You get two classics for the price of onein this bundle, and they both offer a brain tune-up. First, kids are challenged with stacking the colored rings by size on a curved base, which adds to the difficulty. Then, after they're done playing with the shape blocks, they have to find the correct holes to return them to the bucket. Ages 6 months+
KMTJT Carrot Harvest Game
These carrots aren't just cute—plucking them out of their holes works on that all-important pincer grasp.Then, it becomes a matching game to get the right carrots into the right-size holes again. Ages 1+
Infantino Bop & Drop Ball Tower
Kids can bop the colorful balls with the hammer, then watch as they drop down and roll down the ramp. The bopping helps them work on hand-eye coordination, and watching the balls race downwards is good for eye-tracking. Ages 1+
LeapFrog 4-in-1 Learning Hamburger
Good Housekeeping Institute parent testers said their kids loved assembling the burger piecesand watching them spin down the pole. But when they get tired of stacking, kids can pop out the shapes in the center of the ingredients and use them as a puzzle, or take the onion, cheese, lettuce, and tomato and play ring toss. Ages 1+
Fisher-Price Wood Montessori Toy Object Permanence Box
A shape-sorter that introduces the idea of object permanence, toddlers can put the wooden shapes into the box by finding the correct slots, then slide the door open to find them and bring them out again. It's part of Fisher-Price's new Montessori line of toys, which was awarded the AMS Seal of Excellence by the American Montessori Society. Ages 1+
Fat Brain Toys Tobbles Neo
Stacking toys are a toddler staple, but these are unique in that they're egg-shaped and differently weighted. That means, in addition to simple stacking, these can also spin, balance, wobble, tilt, nest, and roll,giving kids more ways to play. Ages 6 months+
Active toys
These toys are designed to get toddlers up and moving! While they're having fun, they're working on their gross-motor skills.
VTech Smart Shots Sports Center
Start a sporty toddler off with soccer and basketball with one toy. The set lights up and makes soundswhile also keeping track of the baskets and goal on a light-up scoreboard. Ages 1+; three AA batteries required
Costzon Foldable Triangle Climber with Ramp
This one impressed the experts at the Good Housekeeping Institute because of how easy it is to adjust the height of the ladder(and the difficulty of the climb). They also liked how you can fold it to store it away when it's not in use. Ages 6 months+
Skip Hop Explore & More 4-in-1 Activity Walker
This toy is intended to grow with a child:It starts off as a lay-flat item to use during tummy time, turns into a walker for kids taking their first steps, and then converts to either a grocery cart or stroller for older kids getting into pretend play. All in all, there are more than 40 play features, including buttons, spinners, lights, and songs. Good Housekeeping Institute parent testers liked how siblings could interact with the toy in different ways. Ages 6 months+
Edushape Sensory Balls
These textured balls, which come in a pack of different sizes, are covered in little nubs that allow for tactile development. As your toddler grows, they can grab, squish, and chaseafter them. Ages 6 months+
Storytelling and literacy toys
Expose them to language and build their vocabulary with these great gifts.
Nosy Crow 'What's That Noise? Meow!' Board Book
It's a read-aloud and a seek-and-find in one.Readers press a button to hear a sound, and then kids have to look under flaps to find the animal that made the sound. "My 1-year-old tries to mimic the animal noises, which she had never done before," one parent tester said. Ages 0+
Tonies My First Tonies Travel Set
While the Toniebox and its assorted figures have been a hit with preschoolers, these new "My First" Tonies are for the toddlers: They're bigger for easy grasping, and they come in a soft, squeezable silicone.The travel set comes with an airplane, boat, and train, and each one comes with about four songs and real vehicle noises. There's also a farm set and a jungle set , or you can get some of the My First Tonies, like the horse , individually. Ages 1+
Spin Master Ms. Rachel Official Speak & Sing Doll
Parents' favorite YouTuber is now available in the most adorable soft doll. Just like in the show, this 16-inch doll, which won a Good Housekeeping Toy Award, sings a handful of educational songsand says sweet, encouraging phrases. Ages 6 months+; two AAA batteries included
Little Simon 'Once Upon a World' Board Book Boxed Set
When it comes time to introduce them to fairy tales, reach for the Once Upon a World collection, which sets classic fairy tales in different places around the globe and gives them all new illustrations: Snow White takes place in Japan, Rapunzel in India, Cinderella in Mexico, and The Princess and the Pea in Russia. In addition, outside of the boxed set, there's a version of The Little Mermaid set in the Caribbean, and a Sleeping Beauty set in Africa. Ages 1+
Toys for imaginative play
Even small toddlers can star to play pretend, and dolls and figures help them create imaginary worlds.
Playskool Weebles My Smart House
This play set combines the fun of a dollhouse with the excitement of a marble run—all in a toddler-sized package. The two included Weebles figures can roll down the chutes and slides and sit in the chairs and swings. Plus, there are more than 30 sounds they can activate. (The best is when the Weeble slides from the top to the middle floor and "lands" in the toilet!) Ages 1+; three AA batteries included
Creative Minds Basket of Babies
Why settle for one baby doll when you can have six? This one comes with a half-dozen soft baby dolls with different outfits and skin tones, but the whole crew is all smiles. The outfits are removable, so toddlers can mix and match while practicing their fine motor skills when dressing and undressing their dolls. Ages 1+
Fisher-Price Little People School Bus
When they're just starting to get into imaginative play, toddlers love Little People figures because they're just the right size for little hands.This one comes with two figures and a bus that plays music when it rolls; the doors also open and the stop sign folds out. Ages 1+; two AA batteries included
Adora Sweet Babies 11" Baby Doll
Kids who love to pretend to nurture and care for dolls will go for this 11-inch, powder-scented baby doll. Looking cute in a grapefruit-themed outfit—though there are other versions with other outfits available— the doll has a soft body and can suck on its thumbor on its bottle. Ages 1+
KiwiCo Magnetic Car Set
These magnetic cars link to each other, and are also big so little hands can push them around easily.Each one does a little something different, like having parts that spin, rattle, or fold open for more play. Ages 1+
Musical Toys
According to Zero to Three , exposing kids to music at a young age has so many benefits, from language development to even emotional learning. These hit just the right notes.
GUND Peeki the Puppy Animated Plush
If Peeki's ears look extra large and floppy, there's a reason for that: Press on its paw, and it'll use its ears to play peek-a-boo.Press the other paw, and it'll sing a song without playing the game. Good Housekeeping Institute kid testers loved the ear movements. "[My child] was surprised every time when his ears would cover his eyes during peek-a-boo!" one parent said. "She would laugh every time." Ages 0+; two AA batteries included
Hape Pixel Piano
Good Housekeeping Institute toy experts were impressed with the way this blends wooden and electronic elements.Square "pixels" light up on the body of the piano, and then kids can press the key of the corresponding color to play a sound. There are other play modes, too, that get them working on color recognition, rhythm, and creativity. Ages 1+; four AA batteries required
Fisher-Price Flap & Wobble Penguin
Parent testers reported that their kids couldn't get enough of this toy, and loved turning it on themselves.When they did, they were rewarded with flapping wings and up to 10 minutes of music. And though we tested this with toddlers, babies can also use it as a tummy-time toy, since it's suitable to use from birth. Ages 0+; four AA batteries included
Bath toys
Upgrade tub time with these fun-to-use, easy-to-clean water toys.
Boon PIPES Bath Toy
Kids can experiment with cause-and-effectwith these pipes, which suction cup to the side of the tub. Pour water in the top, and amazing things happen: wheels spin, the water changes direction, or the stream gets divided into littler streams. Ages 1+
SoapSox Baby Shark & Mommy Shark Washcloth and Bath Toy
After swimming all over the ocean, Baby Shark has to get clean again. These stuffed animals can go in the bath, and also act as washclothswhen it comes time to scrub. Ages 0+
Playmobil Ariel's Shell Shower
Look at this stuff that comes with this toy. Isn't it neat ? Their bath collection isn't complete without this play set, which includes a shower that suction cups to the side of the bath. Kids can put the figures in and pour water in the top, watching as the water rains down.It also comes with a flounder and a starfish net to scoop with. In addition, Playmobil also has bath toys featuring Moana , Tinker Bell , and Winnie the Pooh . Ages 1+
Art toys
It's never too early to inspire their creativity!
Fisher-Price Laugh & Learn 4-in-1 Activity Table & Easel
Experts at the Good Housekeeping Institute love when the life of a toy can be extended, and this one is designed to grow with a child. On one side, there's a busy board with lights, sounds, and buttons, but when kids outgrow that stage, the table surface flips and becomes a drawing table, or stands upright to be an easel.Testers reported that this one was very engaging. "This has been a time saver for sure and really lets me do quick chores," one parent tester said. "I feel like it also helps her strength and balance and she still develops her legs." Ages 6 months+; three AA batteries required
Crayola My First Palm Grip Crayons
They'll be making their own mini masterpieces in no time with these egg-shaped crayons, which are easier for small hands to grasp.They'll get six colors in the pack, which will get them scribbling, coloring, and working on their pre-writing skills. Ages 1+
Great gift sets
These bundles are perfect for birthday parties and pack a lot into small packages.
Edushape First Birthday Gift Set
Make their birthday the most fun with this musical set. It comes with five instruments and includes bells, shakers, maracas, and a drum.Parent testers say they loved how it let kids explore cause-and-effect, seeing how the different instruments made sounds in different ways. Ages 12 months+
Melissa & Doug Wooden Surprise Gift Box
Some kids just love playing "birthday," and this gift set helps them pretend to celebrate while exploring different textures and sensations.The set comes with five pieces: a wooden box to open and close, plush crinkle paper to "wrap" and "unwrap," a ball with a chime in side, a bear, and a cloth book. When they open the box, there's also a surprise inside—a mirror! Ages 6 months+
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