16 Best Potty Training Books of 2023
Say goodbye to diapers with these helpful methods for parents and kids.
Medically reviewed by Katie Lockwood, M.D., ME.d
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It's potty time! Your child is ready to leave those diapers behind. You've chosen a potty training seat or chair, and have all your favorite of the potty training apps loaded up on your phone. Now what?
If you're just starting out on your potty training journey, it might be wise to consult some potty-training books first — for you and for your child. Potty training books for kids often try to get them excited about the idea through upbeat and positive messages, often highlighting the advantages of ditching the diapers (like cool underwear, or more playtime). Some also take kids step-by-step through the process so they know what to expect, explain to them how to check their body for signs they need to go or just de-stigmatize the whole conversation around peeing and pooping.
When reading potty-training books with kids, experts advise caregivers to always use the actual anatomical names for body parts, since code names or nicknames can make children feel shame around their bodies. This is also a good time to talk with kids about bodily safety, who can and can't accompany them to the potty, and who is and isn't allowed to touch their bodies, especially if they're in a school or daycare setting when teachers may be helping them dress and undress.
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For adults, books can describe the different potty-training methods out there, from three-day boot-camp-style programs to more child-led methods. Caregivers can peruse the different strategies to see which ones line up best with their parenting style and their lifestyle in general (since not everyone can block off a three-day stretch just to focus on potty training).
With all that in mind, these are the best potty training books for kids and adults in 2023. With these on your bookshelf, your family will be more than prepared for your potty journey.
Potty Training Books for Kids
Fans of Leslie Patricelli's board books, like No No Yes Yes and Yummy Yucky, will appreciate how she uses her simple words and pictures to illustrate the potty experience. In it, a toddler of unspecified gender recognizes that they have to use the bathroom, considers what to do — go in the diaper? Use what the cat uses? — and finally uses the potty, to much triumph.
Super Pooper and Whizz Kid: Potty Power!
For anxious potty-goes, this book is relentlessly upbeat about using the potty, hyping up everything from the new underwear potty-users get to the way going to the potty helps parents. The book was created by Eunice Moyle and Sabrina Moyle of design team Hello!Lucky, and the illustrations are done in their signature joyful style.
P is for Potty!
Even if your child doesn't listen to you, there's probably a good chance they'll listen to Elmo. In this book, Elmo and his friend Albie talk with pride about how they're learning to use the potty, and Elmo describes all the steps, from saying he needs to go to washing his hands. Or, for a book with even more sensory reinforcement, Potty Time With Elmo comes with seven interactive buttons that make different sounds, including flushing and washing.
For kids who are enamored of all things superhero, this books uses rhyming text to make using the potty seem like a superpower, with the goal of getting rid of diapers and earning "big boy pants" or "big girl pants." There are a couple of different versions, with heroes of different genders and skin tones.
Daniel Tiger's Potty Time!
Families of Daniel Tiger fans know that the main appeal of Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood is the catchy songs that reinforce good habits. So, of course, this one plays a song, too. ("If you have to go potty, stop and go right away! Flush and wash and be on your way!") In addition, the text prompts kids to press buttons that make other sound effects. The book ties into the episode where Prince Wednesday also learns how to use the potty.
In this book, cute illustrations and fun rhymes come together to celebrate one thing: panties! Once kids see the varieties of patterns and colors of big-girl pants out there, they're going to want some of their own.
This book has been a potty-training staple in the United States since the '90s because it's true: everybody poops! Kids who love scatological humor will love seeing the illustrations of all the different animals (and their poop), and it might make them feel less ashamed to go No. 2.
Time to Pee!
Fans of Elephant and Piggie and the pigeon from Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus might recognize author Mo Willems's art style in this book's illustrations. In it, adorable, sign-carrying mice tell kids what to do when they get "that funny feeling," prompting kids on being attuned to what's going on in their own bodies.
Once Upon a Potty
These books have been demystifying the potty process for toddlers since 1980, using straightforward, simplified language to talk about everything from wee-wee to poo-poo to where it all comes out of. There is a different version for boys and for girls.
The lift-the-flap nature of this book might be the initial draw for kids, but hopefully they'll also let writer Karen Katz's rhyming word sinks in. It follows a child who initially doesn't want to use the potty — they want to keep playing! — but eventually finds success, so it might be good for an unwilling potty-user.
Another book that's split into a girl's version and a boys' version, these books focus on the good: Being potty-trained means more independence — and more time to play! It also praises the courage needed to try again after mistakes, and also the sense of pride kids feel when they've mastered potty training.
Potty Training Books for Adults
For parents who are ready to be done with diapers. potty-training expert Jamie Glowacki gives caregivers a road map to potty training success. Rather than a set number of days, her process involves six "blocks," or skills that kids build on once they've mastered the previous one, starting with using the potty naked and ending with handling nights and naptimes. Her method involves having kids stay naked or go "commando" for a period of time, so kids can really get attuned to how it feels in their body when they need to use the bathroom.
Glowacki's method is rigid: parents are supposed to get rid of diapers on Day 1, there are no treats or rewards offered for success, and families are supposed to stay home to only focus on potty training, which can strike some families as too inflexible or judgmental. ("If you can't stay home with your child for a few days, you might want to change your priorities. At this age, a child should neither be overscheduled nor oversaturated with entertainment," she says of parents who are unable to block off a three-day stretch to devote solely to potty training, as if everyone only has one child to focus on.) Others find her tough-love, hard-truth tone just what they needed.
Potty Training in 3 Days
This book, from parenting consultant and potty trainer Brandi Brucks, uses an intensive, three-day timeline to get potty training started off on the right foot. It starts off with high parental involvement — prompting with lots of reminders, offering lots of drinks, heaping lots of praise on top of successes — that can be eased up over time once kids get the hang of things. Again, the three-day, boot-camp-style may not be feasible for everyone. And some parents have mixed feelings about the use of sugary rewards or drinks throughout the process. But users find Brucks's strategies winning, especially when it comes to her tips for overnight dryness.
The First-Time Parent's Guide to Potty Training
Parents may already be familiar with Jazmine McCoy, a clinical psychologist who makes frequent TV stops to simplify vague concepts for overwhelmed caregivers. She does the same potty training here, sometimes giving parents the exact wording of things to say to their kids. ("Would you like to go potty in two minutes or five minutes?") Her method is also rooted in a three-day, half-naked process, though McCoy suggests delaying overnight potty training instead of trying to tackle daytime and nighttime potty training simultaneously. Rewards are allowed, and parents (first-timers especially) generally respond well to McCoy's positive, empowering tone she takes with her readers.
Those who are devotees of the gentle parenting method may have already read Gentle Discipline and Gentle Sleep, also by Sarah Ockwell-Smith. Consider this Gentle Potty Training. Ockwell-Smith's method also starts with a stretch of days when a child is bottomless, but her approach is more child-led with an emphasis on compassion, empathy and teamwork and a focus on the emotions of potty training. There are no external rewards, but the focus is more on how to make the process as tear-free and struggle-free as possible without them.
This is one of the few potty-training books that acknowledges that there might not be one "best" method for potty training, as so much depends on the individual child. It begins with a quiz about your child's personality: Are they goal-oriented? Are they impulsive or strong-willed? Do they internalize everything? Are they sensory-oriented? From there, the book recommends different approaches based on your child's assessment. Parents, especially those who have found it hard to potty-train with other methods, like the personality-specific tips and adjustments.
What age should kids start potting training?
As with most things related to parenting, it depends on the child. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, potty training most often occurs between the ages of 2 and 3, though it can occur anywhere between the ages of 18 months to 4 years. Emily Oster, author of Cribsheet, says research shows that kids who start earlier take longer to train, and kids who start later pick it up faster. So if you're eager to get them out of diapers ASAP and don't care how many accidents you have to clean, you can start on the earlier side; if you don't mind changing diapers but want the potty-training process itself to be as quick as possible, hold off until later. Of course, external factors — like daycare rules or special needs — might also affect when to initiate potty training, but in general starting when your child shows signs of readiness will make the process easier.
What are some signs of potty training readiness?
A child might be ready to try potty training if they're showing these signs:
- They have enough gross motor coordination to manage walking to the potty, managing clothes, and sitting on the potty.
- They're drier for longer periods of time (around two hours).
- They can recognize the signs they need to go.
- They're able to communicate when they need to use the bathroom.
- They seem interested in using the bathroom or getting rid of their diapers.
Other signs a child is ready is a sense of increased independence, the ability to follow one-and two-step directions and showing that they don't like being in wet diapers.
Marisa (she/her) has covered all things parenting, from the postpartum period through the empty nest, for Good Housekeeping since 2018; previously, she wrote about parents and families at Parents and Working Mother. She lives with her toy-collecting husband and daughter in Brooklyn, where she can be found helping out her team at bar trivia or posting about movies on Twitter and Bluesky.
Katie Lockwood, M.D., ME.d is a primary care pediatrician at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and assistant professor of clinical pediatrics at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. As a primary care pediatrician, she focuses on the overall health and wellness of children and has a passion for medical education. She is the creator and host of Primary Care Perspectives podcast. Dr. Lockwood received her medical degree from Jefferson Medical College, her masters in education from Monmouth University, her bachelor of arts from Barnard College of Columbia University, and completed her pediatric residency at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, where she was chief resident. She lives outside of Philadelphia with her husband and two children.
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