Enriching Baby Toys for Fun, Rewarding Playtime
What are the Best Baby Toy Brands?
Motherhood Loves Community Awards nominees have been carefully chosen by our team. We may earn a commission if you buy something through links on our site.
Interactive play is an important part of your baby’s development—encouraging them to develop their five senses, motor skills, and imagination. Developmentally targeted toys can help that journey, and those most durable and engaging will help your baby grow exponentially. We prioritized baby-safe toys that encourage open-ended play and sensory growth for your kiddos 12 months and under (though some can be used for toddlers too!).
Our nominees were researched and selected as the top products in their category. We then turned to the experts—the Motherhood Community—to place their votes and determine the best of the best! The votes are in, and the winners are...
Best Baby Toys for 12 Months and Under of 2024 Winners
Lovevery The Play Gym
Combine an interactive play mat with a framed baby mobile and you get The Play Gym. This cute and colorful set offers versatile play for infants as well as toddlers, with five development zones, five detachable activity toys, and three card sets that encourage curiosity and exploration. During tummy time, little ones can practice skills like grasping, while interacting with various textures, colors, and shapes. Parents can consult the play guide for expert tips and activities.
Infantino Super Soft Building Blocks
Perfect for small hands, these super-soft squeezable blocks encourage open-ended play and help babies learn colors and counting. They’ll have endless fun grasping, stacking, knocking down, and chewing these squishy blocks—developing their motor and sensory skills along the way. Spread these out on the carpet, and you’ll know right where you can find your baby for the next hour or three.
Skip Hop Explore & More Baby's View 3-Stage Activity Center
An interactive experience that babies can continue to use as they grow, this activity center starts as a bouncer chair with a toy table and converts to a coloring and play table for toddlers. The 360-degree rotating seat makes maneuvering easy. Six lock-in toy stations, including light-up piano pedals on the center's base, surround your baby with multisensory play opportunities.
Project Montessori Baby Crawler Musical Crab
Watch your baby light up during tummy time as they watch this USB-powered crab walk around the room while music plays and lights flash. Your kiddo will want to crawl and follow as soon as possible to enjoy this playful fellow more. Smart sensing helps the toy avoid obstacles as it walks.
Miniland Sensorial Reef
Made for touching, looking, listening, and biting, this sea-themed soft toy does it all—with nautical flair. Multiple textures and shapes (a starfish, a coral, an octopus, a fish) combine with a removable rattle. You can hang this toy on your baby carrier or stroller and take it along on outings to keep your kiddo entertained.
Crawligator by Kiddy Crawler
A finalist in the 2023 TOTY awards, this gross motor activity toy helps babies from four to twelve months develop mobility. With tummy time on the Crawligator, the littlest kiddos strengthen key muscles in preparation for rolling, sitting, and crawling. The toy shines in its fantastic ergonomic design and high-quality materials. Plus, its adorable alligator face is charming.
Manhattan Toy Winkel
A great choice for teething babies, this soft, pliable, and lightweight toy is easy for babies to grasp thanks to its distinctive loop design. You can attach it to a stroller or high chair, where the quiet rattle holds your baby's attention without disturbing others in restaurants and airplanes (i.e., It's great for travel!). Another plus: You can refrigerate the Winkel when your kiddo needs something cold to soothe sore gums.
Melissa and Doug K’s Kids Flip Fish Baby Toy
This multi-textured soft toy delights infants with bright colors and a variety of patterns and hidden treasures. During tummy time, babies can squeeze the squeaky tail and lift the scales to find pictures. The diversely textured scales encourage grasping and sensory development. Plus, these fabrics are chew-safe and washable.
Munchkin Mozart Magic® Cube
Nurturing a budding musician? This battery-powered musical cube introduces them to five instruments—harp, flute, piano, violin, and French horn— and lets them combine each in renditions of eight Mozart compositions. Babies love pressing the brightly colored light-up buttons to play with the sounds. Parents appreciate the cube’s safe, rounded edges and easy portability.
Sassy My First Bend and Flex Rattle Set
This easy-to-grasp, multi-colored rattle set stimulates and strengthens babies’ sense of touch, vision, and auditory awareness; flexible, squishy parts and a textured ring handle are great for holding and mouthing. The Peek-a-Boo Beads Rattle, the Bend & Flex Ring Rattle, and the Linky Link make soft noises when shaken and help babies learn cause and effect.
