9 Best Toys to Keep Kids Active

Written by Ilona Bannister

Published on June 12, 2024

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• Keeping your children engaged in healthy physical activity from the start is a great way to encourage a lifelong love of movement and exercise. 
• Active play toys are one way to get your children interested in sports, dance, and all kinds of movement, while helping them work on important gross motor skills like balance and coordination. 
• Active play toys are excellent props for your child’s imagination, and they’ll find amazing ways to use them in a role-playing game or as part of construction play, building their language and social skills. 
• Look for active play toys that are versatile, safe, and multi-purpose that will last through different stages, and always supervise your children when they use them. 

We all know how important it is to keep our kids active and moving. You can start by getting them interested in active play toys that lean into their natural interest in seeing what their bodies can do, like jumping, bouncing, balancing, running, and throwing. 

Active play toys are often multi-purpose and can grow with your child through their different stages of physical development. Look for toys that stimulate your kids to work on their gross motor skills but that also encourage them to engage in imaginative play. 

Climbing toys turn into forts, and stepping stone toys turn into the only escape from a dragon in a castle. Check out our guide to some of the best toys to keep your kids active. 

Our Choice: Bilibo by Moluk

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The Bilibo by Moluk is a versatile, creative, multi-purpose toy for indoor and outdoor play that will get your kids moving and thinking about all the different ways they can use it. 

The Bilibo can be used for sitting in and spinning, rocking, and rolling. Made of shatterproof material, it’s durable enough to be used outside for these activities and so much more. Your kids can use it for water play, in the sandbox, or even on snow! 

This is a brilliant multi-use toy for physical play as well as giving your kids’ imagination a creative boost for years to come. 

Age Recommendation: 2-7 years | Item Weight: 1.54 pounds | Product Dimensions: 15 x 15 x 8 inches
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Playskool Sit n’ Spin: Best Spinner 

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The Playskool Sit n’ Spin is a classic toy enjoyed by generations of children. Great for kids 18 months old and up, this is an indoor toy your kids will return to again and again for loads of fun spinning and whirling. 

Excellent for practicing balance skills, coordination, and motor skills, one of the things kids love best about this favorite is they can control the speed of it themselves by pushing and pulling the wheel to make the base spin.  

The perfect toy for little kids, it also comes in PJ Masks and Peppa Pig themes, as well as in classic primary colors. 

Age Recommendation: 18 months and up | Item Weight: 4.55 pounds | Product Dimensions: 17.9 x 17.99 x 3.99 inches
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Hide N Side Tunnel: Best for Indoor Play 

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Crawling tunnels are a staple of nursery schools and activity centers. Continue the fun at home with this Hide N Side Crawl Through Tunnel. Crawl through tunnels are a great addition to homemade obstacle courses and relay races. Or add it to your ball pit. 

Light and versatile, the Hide N Side can be folded up and taken with you for outdoor fun on the beach or picnics. Use it indoors for hours of active play or to give some energy to play dates. 

For bigger kids, there is also a multiway tunnel version so that multiple kids can play at the same time or add an element of extra fun to indoor play on rainy days. 

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Age Recommendation: 3-6 years | Item Weight: 1.26 pounds | Product Dimensions: 18 x 72 x 18 inches
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Special Supplies Stepping Stones: Best for Balance 

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Although there are many stepping-stone active play toys on the market, Special Supplies Stepping Stones are a great, durable option that’s also safe. These stepping stones have rubber edging on the bottom, making them non-slip, both indoors and outdoors. 

They also come in varying heights and sizes to really help your child work on their gross motor skills, balance, and coordination. They can also handle up to 220 pounds so that the whole family can get in on all the fun too.   

Age Recommendation: 3 years and up | Item Weight: 12.3 pounds | Product Dimensions: 16.2 x 16 x 11.75 inches
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Little Tikes Easy Score Basketball Set: Best for Sport Lovers 

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If you’ve got a little LeBron James in the making at home, the Little Tikes Easy Score Basketball Set is the perfect toy for young kids to start shooting hoops. 

The basketball hoop has six adjustable heights, extending from 2.5 to 4 feet, so your child will be able to play with it for years, indoors and outdoors. This versatile toy is waterproof, so you can keep it in the backyard. 

The extra large rim makes it easier for little active kids to score while working on their balance and hand-eye coordination. This will quickly become one of your child’s favorite toys. 

Check out other sets from Little Tikes to encourage a love of sport with their soccer and golf sets too. 

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Age Recommendation: 18 months and up | Item Weight: 9 pounds | Product Dimensions: 23.75 x 22 x 61 inches
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iPlay, iLearn Bouncy Pals: Best Bouncy Toy

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Bouncy toys are always a favorite with little kids and are a great way to burn off extra energy. The range of animals from iPlay, iLearn Bouncy Pals, including zebras, tigers, and foxes, also give your kids an outlet for imaginative play. 

Parents love that this bouncing toy is durable, sturdy, and well-made and that the fabric covering is soft and easy to clean. This is a fun and super cute toy for the under threes, so go ahead and let your kids bounce away! 

Age Recommendation: 18 months and up | Item Weight: 3.11 pounds | Product Dimensions: 22 x 11 x 22 inches
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Gentle Monster Wooden Wobble Balance Board: Best for Versatility 

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You’ll be amazed at all the ways your kids will find to play with this Gentle Monster Wooden Wobble Balance Board.  It’s wonderful for active play to rock on and to help your child with gross motor milestones including balance, coordination, and improving their core strength. 

Flip it over to use as an arch for crawling, stepping on, adding to an obstacle course, or using with your other climbing toys. Kids love to run cars, balls, or any toys that roll over and under it. 

Not only will your kids love rocking on it, but it will encourage lots of imaginative play too. This super fun toy will help your kids stay active and it is one of those toys they’ll use for their games for years to come. 

Age Recommendation: 2 years and up | Item Weight: pounds | Product Dimensions: 33 x 8 x 1 inches
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B. Toys Ring Toss Game: Best for Hand-Eye Coordination 

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The ring toss has to be a classic favorite among active play toys, and your whole family will have so much fun with this B. Toys Ring Toss Game. 

This versatile set can be used indoors and outdoors and is perfect for play dates and birthday parties. The numbered pegs help you with scoring and add some fun with numbers to your child’s games, and you work on hand-eye coordination skills. 

This is a very easy toy to set up, clean, transport and use which is perfect for active play, helps with coordination and teaches kids to count and add. What more could you want from a game? 

Age Recommendation: 3 years and up | Item Weight: 1.25 pounds | Product Dimensions: 11.5 x 4 x 17 inches
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Tiny Land 5 in 1 Pikler Triangle Set: Best Indoor Climbing Set 

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Keep your little climbers in training busy with this fantastic and versatile Tiny Land 5 in 1 Pikler Triangle Set. This is one of those toys your children will find endless ways to play with, and they’ll stay interested in it for years. 

The natural wood construction is non-toxic and odorless and is a modern-looking addition to home decor. If you don’t want to leave it out, the three pieces detach and the triangle folds flat. 

However, the best part about the Tiny Land set is the multiple uses your children will find for it, from the age of two up. It’s perfect for practicing balance, hand-eye coordination, and climbing. Flip over the board to its flat side, and you have a slide. 

Not only is this an excellent toy for active play, but it’s also one that will stimulate your child’s imagination to use as a fort, a car garage, a castle, a mountain, as play furniture, and so much more.  

Age Recommendation: 24 months and up | Item Weight: 35.2 pounds | Product Dimensions: 42.3 x 20.2 x 4 inches
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