Best Toys for One-Year-Olds
Your newly minted toddler is ready to play, explore and build their imagination.
By Amylia Ryan and Briana Engelbrecht
At one year old, your little one is growing more curious by the day. Encourage their natural curiosity with toys that move, make noise and mimic the world around them. Toys like walkers and pull-along toys will encourage your newly mobile baby to keep moving. Meanwhile dolls, playsets and toy vehicles help them learn more about their environment.
Your newly-minted toddler is also becoming increasingly capable of creative thinking: Welcome to the exciting era of pretend and fantasy play. At this stage, everything has the opportunity to delight your child’s senses, inspire their imagination and teach valuable behavioral lessons. To help encourage their physical, mental and emotional growth, look out for these features when choosing toys for your one year old:
- Toys with bright colors: As their vision develops, little ones can distinguish vibrant colors more easily than dull or pastel shades, so they’re more likely to play with and learn from a bright red fire truck or a set of rainbow stacking cups. Colors are fun!
- Toys that require or encourage coordination: Your kiddo wants to get their hands (and mouths) on everything, so this is the perfect time to start stocking the playroom with toys that boost both fine and gross motor development and coordination. Puzzles, stacking/nesting toys and shape sorters are perfect for tiny hands to gain dexterity and growing minds to learn problem-solving. Lots of Montessori toys also fall into this category.
- Toys that get them moving: Toys that your toddler can push or pull with a string encourage mobility, which is especially important for one-year-olds who are just getting the hang of walking. Practice makes perfect and toys that move with them make practice way more fun!
- Toys that introduce sharing and parallel play: One-year-olds don’t really play together just yet; instead, they engage in something called “parallel play” (playing on their own while being near another toddler). Parallel play is one of the earliest stages of social development in children, so having toys that multiple toddlers can share (like a large playset or a multi-pack of toy cars) will help get them on the path to being social butterflies.
With those features in mind, we’ve gathered a list of some of the best-loved toys for one-year-olds.
Best Puzzles, Blocks + Sorters for One-Year-Olds
Our favorite toys that help develop your new toddler’s spatial awareness, shape recognition and problem-solving skills.
Best Stacking Toys for One-Year-Olds
The absolute best part of building a tower, is getting to know it down at the end.
Best Toddler Toys to Push and Pull Along
Even when they’ve mastered walking, they’ll still enjoy pushing and pulling these cute toys around.
Best Stuffed Animals for One-Year-Olds
These toys make great loveys for little ones to cuddle for comfort.
Best Books for One-Year-Olds
These engaging books make great additions to their little library.
Best All-in-One Toys for One-Year-Olds
Acvivity centers that encourage development and are an endless source of fun.
Looking for more toys?
Check out our Toy Shelf in the Babylist Shop!
Amylia Ryan
Associate Editor
Amylia Ryan is the Associate Editor at Babylist, specializing in the topics of health, wellness and lifestyle products. Combining a decade of experience in writing and editing with a deep passion for helping people, her number one goal in her work is to ensure new parents feel supported and understood. She herself is a parent to two young children, who are more than willing to help product test endless toys, books, clothes, toiletries and more.
Briana Engelbrecht
Assistant Editor
Briana Engelbrecht is Babylist’s Assistant Editor, where she brings her passion for early childhood development and the perinatal period, plus experience as a mom of two to Babylist articles and guides. She’s also a certified lactation counselor. A former preschool teacher, she loves children’s picture books, cats, plants and making things.
