Very Best Toys for Toddlers: 2 and Up

The best toys for toddlers to play with. Get great toddler Christmas gift ideas and birthday gift ideas. These toys are great developmentally for toddlers.

I have great news! Now that your child is moving into the toddler age range, toys will last longer. They enjoy playing with toys for a long time, so the toys I list will be toys my kids enjoyed starting at that age (or soon after), but that doesn’t mean they won’t be enjoyed at a later age. For example, this post is for 2 and up. So the toys might be great for your two year old and can also be great for your three year old.

By age two, your child will be outgrowing that “in-between” stage of 18-24 months and will take great interest in toys. This is the age I find kids start to play with toys in the manner we envision our kids will play with toys. Here are some toys my kids loved at age two.

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Great Toys for Toddlers

Here are some great toys for you to get for your toddler.

Old Favorites

I start every post with this category for a reason. As your child grows up, the old favorites aren’t necessarily going to be toys they now find “blah.” As I have said before, your child changes the way she plays with these old favorites. At age two, Kaitlyn still loved the Fisher-Price Rock-A-Stack. She often uses the rings as her bracelets. Brayden also loved that toy at this age, but he used it to intently focus on colors and size relationships. Both kids also loved the LeapFrog Learn & Groove Musical Table. This has got to be one of the best toys ever made. It has such great longevity. With just one kid, you would get your money’s worth. It went through four children and was still in fabulous shape.

All of that is to say do not give up on old toys. It can be wise to do a toy rotation with them where you put up toys for at least a couple of weeks so the novelty and excitement is back when they are brought back out.

>>>Read: Timeless Toys to Get Your Kids

Old Categories…Updated

As your child gets older, many of the old categories are still great for her, but you might want to get some updates. An example is puzzles. As your child gets older she will need more advanced puzzles. The exact age that she will need this varies; just be aware of it. Some categories will never be too young, including Balls. Balls are always great; you just change the size and softness as they get older. You also have Stuffed Animals, Trucks age 2-4, and Dolls age 2-4 . If your toddler has a category of toys they just love, consider adding to that collection.

>>>Read: 8 Different Styles of Puzzles You Should Get for Kids

Vehicles

Tractors: Brayden absolutely loved tractors. John Deere Tractors were a major favorite.

Tonka Trucks: One of Brayden’s favorite toys he got as as two year old was Metal Tonka Truck. He got a dump truck and a loader, and he still played with those on a daily basis for many years.

Cars: If your child is into cars, they will love this car transportation set that doubles as a race track.

Cute Cars: Your toddler might prefer vehicles that are more cute and less realistic. These Press & Go Cars from iPlay, iLearn are super cute with little animals driving the vehicles. They are also novel with the child just needing to press the head down and the car drives.

Magnetic Train Set: Another fun vehicle set that is cute is this magnetic wooden animals set.

Sports Equipment

T-ball Set: Another fun toy Brayden got as a two year old was Little Tikes TotSports T-Ball Set. He still played with this as a four year old. Kaitlyn loved to play with the t-ball as a two year old, also.

Basketball Hoop: Another favorite of Brayden’s was Little Tikes EasyScore Basketball Set. Again, he still played with it for years. Kaitlyn started playing with this at age one, so a younger child can definitely have fun with it.

Outside Toys

Kids love to be outside. It is a great place for kids to burn off extra energy and get gross motor play in. Fun toys for outside will help keep your toddler occupied while playing outside.

Pic-nic Table: Around the age of two, we got a Little Tikes Pic Nic Table for Brayden. We have a deck and like to eat outside in the summer. He loved it so much. We ate lunch outside almost every day. It was so toddler friendly and preschooler friendly. Kids love to be outside when they can. It folds up compactly if you need to store it in the winter.

Lawnmower: The Lawnmower is an all-time favorite. Kids love to copy their parents. Brayden always likes to push it around behind my husband as he mowed the lawn. Brayden used this for years, well into age 4, and it was one of Kaitlyn’s favorite toys. She would literally push that thing around for an hour straight if you let her.

Bubble Blower: This is a toy more for you than for your child. My sister got a battery-operated bubble blower for Kaitlyn for her birthday when she turned two. It was like it was my birthday! I had previously thought I wouldn’t ever get such a thing. I have lungs. I can use them. But when I was blowing bubbles for multiple children for 20-30 minutes, I started to get light-headed. The bubble blowing machine is awesome!

Swim Vest: This is not a toy your child will play with, but it is something that will help your child have safe fun playing in the water. Our swim teacher said you can’t flip in them no matter how hard you try. In other words, the child stays upright. She had one on hand and put it on Brinley. It worked! Having a device like this is helpful when you are just playing in water and you have multiple children to watch. Drowning happens quickly, and this is a measure of safety. Many swimming experts also highly recommend you have your child use a flotation device when first learning to swim (not at lessons–just while playing). It helps children to feel confident in the water and not scared. And for us, Brinley was a very beginning swimmer with a sibling on a swim team and two others who qualify for swim team. They are strong swimmers. She can’t play like they can. This helped her be able to play more with them instead of on the sidelines. Body Glove also makes a popular version of this.

Playsets

Playsets are really fun for fine motor skills and also pretend play.

Little People: I list this all the time. I love the little people toys. At age two, Brayden got the Fisher-Price Little People Farm. If you love Little People, the barn is one of the best, I think. Brayden also got and loved his fire truck Fisher-Price Michael and His Rescue Rig. Another best is the one Kaitlyn got for her two year birthday (we have a tradition where they get one Little People item for each birthday and Christmas): Fisher Price Little People Camping

These can be expensive at times. This is a great alternative to a Fisher Price Barn set that is a lot less expensive.

Calico Critters: I don’t know if I have mentioned this before, but my kids had a lot of my old toys from when I was growing up. This might come as no surprise, but I took really good care of my toys. One thing they had was a dollhouse. But I never had dollhouse furniture or anything. For Kaitlyn’s second birthday, my parents got her some Calico Critters. She really liked them. She really likes the Calico Critters Cat Family. My parents said there were so many different animals to choose from, but she loved cats so they went with cats. Calico Critters often come with lots of small pieces, so the toys are usually rated for older kids. The critters themselves are fine for a two year old, you just want to save the small pieces for when they are older.

Playmobil Junior: Playmobil is another fun brand for playsets. They have a cute junior series for kiddos ages 1-4.

Mr. Potato Head: This is a classic toy that doubles as a playset. It is great for fine motor skills!

Building Toys

Duplos: I know I mentioned this in the previous age group, but they are so great, I wanted to reiterate. My toddlers played with these every day. We have the My First LEGO DUPLO Set and love it.

Blocks: There are many fun versions of blocks out there. This Montessori wooden block set is super fun and cute.

Ride-On Toys

Plasmacar: At our local toy store (not a box store, a real toy store), they sell the Plasmacar. They have one out for kids to ride. When we went there, Brayden always rode it around. As a two year old, the tricycle can be hard to ride, so I thought Kaitlyn might enjoy a Plasmacar. Every time I went into the toy store, they were sold out, but a mom would stop me and tell me how awesome they are and how their 5, 7, or 10 year old still loves it. “It is the favorite toy of the neighborhood!” So I found them online for cheaper than the toy store. Kaitlyn was absolutely thrilled with it. Brayden was absolutely wanting one, and Grandma ended up getting him one for his birthday. There was a time all four kids had one and they would ride around and around all together.

Scooter: My grandpa got Kaitlyn the Radio Flyer My First Scooter for her second birthday. She really liked it. My friend gave her son one for his second birthday, and it was a hit. She also let him ride it inside during the winter (he has a winter birthday) and it was something he could do indoors that gave him exercise.

Tricycle: When Kaitlyn was first two, she couldn’t ride the tricycle at all on her own. However, at three months past two she was learning to pedal by herself. I think that our tricycle can be hard for younger children to ride. We have a radio flyer one. I think some of the other tricycles can be easier for younger children–but they don’t last as long. At age four, Brayden could still ride and enjoys the little radio flyer tricycle we have. So those are some aspects to consider.

Here are Tricycles on Amazon. Ours doesn’t have a handle on the back for the parent to push, but I have to say that would be an awesome feature. As Kaitlyn was learning, she needed a push. To push with the handle would be a lot easier than stooping over! But of course that is just a nicety not a necessity (unless you have back problems or something–of course the handle could help prevent back problems! 🙂 ). Your two-year-old might like something like the Radio Flyer Scoot-About, which doesn’t require peddling. But if you are interested in the plasmacar at all, it also doesn’t require peddling. I know when I was this age I had a Big Wheel . I could see that being easier for a younger child to peddle.

Dolls

Dolls are a lot of fun for toddlers and older. There are many things you can get to go with dolls, so if you have a child who is a doll-lover, you will have endless options for gifts to add on in this category.

Baby Doll Furniture: You know how you always want to get the toys for your kids you wished you had as a kid but never got? At least I hope other parents are that way! For me, it is doll furniture. I always wanted doll furniture and never got it (it’s okay, Mom, I don’t feel deprived 🙂 ). So, my kids had it. If you decide to get it, I advise you look around for a while and find the best deal. You can buy them in sets, but in the end I found it to be less expensive to buy them individually. Sometimes, though, you can find good deals on playsets.

Search for Baby Doll Playset to see what is available. I would make a list of things you would want in the playset and things that might be nice. Possible items are stroller, high chair, carseat, bed, diaper bag, playyard, swing, and bouncer. Then look at playsets that have what you want. Then compare prices to buying your desired items individually. There are some things to keep in mind. One is that you can buy a real diaper bag for an inexpensive price for your girl. Don’t get hung up on the diaper bag as part of the playset. They sell small diaper bags that will work. Also, be cautious about the sets that have a whole lot for a whole little price tag. I know that sounds great, but often times you will sacrifice quality. Be sure to read the reviews of any you are considering.

Manhattan toy company is a good brand. We have a Baby bassinet from Badger Basket (also a good brand). I love bassinets. I have since thought, however, that you could use your real bassinet if you are done with it. The doll bassinets are smaller, but it would of course work. If you want a doll one, just be very sure you are buying a doll one and not a real one because some doll ones look very real!

We have a car seat and love it. We also love having a high chair for baby.

You can get Toy diaper bags, but as I said, you can often get small real diaper bags that are less expensive (but this one from Melissa & Doug is well-priced).

There really isn’t a limit on what you can get with this baby stuff. You could get a Baby Doll Swing. My choice was to just let Kaitlyn use our actual swing since her room was not very big. They have so many Baby Doll Accessories out there. I like the tip up bottle (you know, the ones that look like they are emptying as it is tipped upside down). I also gave Kaitlyn some of her old bottles for her babies. A fun thing is diapers. I remember loving diapers. I gave Kaitlyn some of McKenna’s newborn size diapers that she had outgrown for her dolls. You can buy doll diapers, too, but a set of six can easily run about 14-15 dollars. You can buy an inexpensive brand at the store for less money.

Another brand I highly recommend is Melissa & Doug. I love all of their stuff. They have some great doll toy options!

Kitchen Toys

First off, if your toddler does not yet have a toy kitchen, I HIGHLY recommend it. This is one of my top recommended toys for children that will last through many years of play with many ages.

Kitchen Dishes: Don’t forget about the Play Dishes. My kids love their dishes not only at the play kitchen, but also in the bathtub!

Dress Up

Dress up Clothes: Dressing up is fun for kids. A friend gave me the great idea of buying Halloween costumes on clearance after Halloween for your dress-up clothes. If you sew, you can also make them. They would be higher quality, but of course would take more time. I always waited for the pattern sales at Joannes, Hobby Lobby, and Hancocks and buy as many as I can. Of course they also sell Dress-Up Clothes sets for kids. There are tons of options!

Purse: My sister also got a purse for Kaitlyn. She loved stuffing it full of stuff. You can buy a toy purse or you can give your kiddo a hand-me-down!

Hats: Brayden’s friend gave him a fireman’s hat for his second birthday. He loved it. Around age two, Kaitlyn developed a great love for that same hat. You can buy dress up hat sets. You can also just buy fun hats for your kids to play with.

Conclusion

Hopefully that has given you some ideas for fun toys for your two year old. Please share your child’s favorite toys from this age range! See also the related posts links for further ideas.

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