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40 Best Toys for 1-Year-Olds Who Love to Play

These are the toys that toddlers are loving right now.

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gifts for one year olds
Mike Garten. Prop Styling by Lis Engelhart and Alex Mata

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One-year-olds are no longer the infants content to just lie down and play with whatever's in their grasp. "One-year-olds are at a period in their development when they are becoming increasingly powerful and competent — evidenced by the fact that they are starting to walk and talk," says Rebecca Parlakian, M.A., E.D., a parenting expert from Zero to Three, an organization that focuses on kid development during the early years. "They are also really interested in big questions like, 'How does this work?' 'What does it do?' And, 'What happens if I do this?'”

Our favorite gifts for kids this age help them explore and find the answers to these questions. That's still a lot of options. To help find the best toys and gifts for 1-year-olds in 2025, the Good Housekeeping Institute tests toys year-round to make sure they're safe and have the power to withstand the love of from a toddler. Then, the best toys are shipped off to actual 1-year-olds and put to the real test. When all was said and done, these toys, which include current and former Good Housekeeping Best Toy Award winners, rose to the top.

Playskool Chase 'n Go Ball Popper

Best Seller
Playskool Chase 'n Go Ball Popper

Just press the button and colorful balls pop out from the elephant's trunk, leaving toddlers free to run, chase the balls, and put them back in again. It'll help them get their energy out while working on their gross and fine motor coordination. It includes four easy-grasp balls and also plays six fun songs. Ages 9 months+

Fat Brain Toys PlayTab Essentials

Fat Brain Toys PlayTab Essentials
Credit: Fat Brain Toys

Each square tile on this busy board has something to engage kids' brains, be it a gear to spin, a button to press or a texture to feel. But, to keep them from getting bored, the tiles can swap out — they attach magnetically — to make the toy feel fresh. It comes with six tiles, but extra tile sets can be purchased separately. And now, there's also PlayTab Go, which lets kids bring two tiles with them and comes with a ring to attach to a car seat or stroller. Ages 1+

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Radio Flyer Busy Buggy

Best Seller
Radio Flyer Busy Buggy

Beep, beep! While your little one is working on their leg muscle strength, you can still push them around on this previous Toy Award Winner. Then, as they become a more confident walker, they can propel themselves. There are also lots of little features that spin, click and otherwise make noise to keep them interested. Ages 1+

Ms. Rachel Official Speak & Sing Doll

On Sale
Ms. Rachel Official Speak & Sing Doll

Parents' favorite YouTuber is now available in the most adorable soft doll. Just like in the show, this 16-inch doll, which won a Good Housekeeping Toy Award, sings a handful of educational songs and says sweet, encouraging phrases. Ages 6 months+

RELATED: The Good Housekeeping Best Toy Awards

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More Than 25,900 5-Star Reviews on Amazon

VTech Smart Shots Sports Center

Best Seller
VTech Smart Shots Sports Center

Start a sporty toddler off with soccer and basketball with one toy. The set lights up and makes sounds while also keeping track of the baskets and goal on a light-up scoreboard. Ages 1+

Good Housekeeping Best Toy Award Winner

LeapFrog 4-in-1 Learning Hamburger

LeapFrog 4-in-1 Learning Hamburger

Good Housekeeping Institute parent testers said their kids loved assembling the burger pieces and watching them spin down the pole. But when they get tired of stacking, kids can pop out the shapes in the center of the ingredients and use them as a puzzle, or take the onion, cheese, lettuce and tomato and play ring toss. Ages 1+

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Melissa & Doug Wooden Shape Sorting Grocery Cart

On Sale
Melissa & Doug Wooden Shape Sorting Grocery Cart
Now 45% Off
Credit: Melissa & Doug

This is a push toy, a walker, a role-playing item and a shape-sorter all in one! Early walkers love pushing around the grocery cart, just like their parents do. (It even comes with a little coffee cup to make it more realistic!) Then, food pieces on geometric shapes fit through the holes in tie sides of the cart, acting as a shape-sorter. The same pieces also fit into puzzles that store in the cart. And, after "checkout," they can play with the pretend food just like in a kitchen set. Ages 1+

Crayola Washable Palm-Grasp Crayons

Crayola Washable Palm-Grasp Crayons

They'll be making their own mini masterpieces in no time with these egg-shaped crayons, which are easier for small hands to grasp. They'll get 12 colors in the pack, which will get them scribbling, coloring and working on their pre-writing skills. Ages 1+

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Montessori-Inspired Toy

Carrot Harvest Game

Carrot Harvest Game

These carrots aren't just cute — plucking them out of their holes works on that all-important pincer grasp. Then, it becomes a matching game to get the right carrots into the right-size holes again. Ages 1+

RELATED: The Best Montessori Toys for 1-Year-Olds

Farm Animals Sorting and Stacking Toy

Farm Animals Sorting and Stacking Toy
Credit: ShyLizard

Six boxes of different sizes, six animal friends, yet so many ways to play. Kids can stack the different sized boxes vertically and match each animal to its preferred house. Or they can arrange them horizontally to make a village for imaginary play. When that's done, they can use the animals as finger puppets, practice counting the boxes and animals, use the boxes to make other structures — and knock them down again. Ages 1+

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Good Housekeeping Kids' Book Award Winner

'Hello Hello Colors' Board Book

'Hello Hello Colors' Board Book

Good Housekeeping Institute testers loved the way this book used beautiful illustrations of animals to teach kids their colors. The end offers another look at ever animal, plus information about whether or not they're endangered. "My 3-year-old absolutely loves sitting there describing all the items of that color on the pages after we read the words," one parent said. Ages 1–4

RELATED: The Good Housekeeping Best Kids' Book Awards

Skip Hop Explore & More 4-in-1 Activity Walker

Skip Hop Explore & More 4-in-1 Activity Walker

This toy is intended to grow with a child: It starts off as a lay-flat item to use during tummy time, turns into a walker for kids taking their first steps, and then converts to either a grocery cart or stroller for older kids getting into pretend play. All in all, there are more than 40 play features, including buttons, spinners, lights and songs. Good Housekeeping Institute parent testers liked how siblings could interact with the toy in different ways. Ages 6 months+

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Playskool Weebles My Smart House

Playskool Weebles My Smart House

This play set combines the fun of a dollhouse with the excitement of a marble run — all in a toddler-sized package. The two included Weebles figures can roll down the chutes and slides and sit in the chairs and swings. Plus, there are more than 30 sounds they can activate. (The best is when the Weeble slides from the top to the middle floor and "lands" in the toilet!) Ages 1+

Hape Scoot Around Wood Bike

On Sale
Hape Scoot Around Wood Bike

They'll work on balance and coordination when they push themselves along on this wooden ride-on toy. The wheels are rubberized, so they can use it indoors without damaging floors. Ages 1+

RELATED: The Best Ride-On Toys

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Fat Brain Toys Tobbles Neo

Fat Brain Toys Tobbles Neo

The innovative shape of these toys means they can do more than just stack into a straight tower. Rounded and uniquely weighted, these toys can also stack, spin, balance, wobble, tilt and roll, and kids can work on their motor skills by nesting them in different ways. Ages 6 months+

Hape DJ Mix & Spin Studio Musical Toy

Hape DJ Mix & Spin Studio Musical Toy

Toddlers can experiment with tempo, rhythm and sounds by playing the piano keys or using the knobs and buttons to add effects to backing songs. They can even use the record to make scratching noises. Ages 1+

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Great Grandparent Gift

Foldable Triangle Climber with Ramp

Foldable Triangle Climber with Ramp

This one impressed the experts at the Good Housekeeping Institute because of how easy it is to adjust the height of the ladder (and the difficulty of the climb). They also liked how you can fold it to store it away when it's not in use. It also comes in a neutral wood color. Ages 6 months+

RELATED: The Best Pikler Triangles for Toddlers

Basket of Babies

Basket of Babies

Toddlers love taking after their parents and taking care of their own babies. With this set of six dolls, there's a lot here to love! Each snuggly soft babe comes with a removable outfit, so your toddlers can mix and match while practicing their fine motor skills when dressing and undressing their dolls. Ages 1+

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More Than 35,900 Five-Star Reviews on Amazon

Alora the Unicorn Animated Plush

On Sale
Alora the Unicorn Animated Plush

This plush really captures a kid's attention with music and movements. It plays two songs — one for ABCs and one for counting — depending on which hoof you press. And it also moves its front hooves to encourage kids to clap along. In addition to a unicorn, you can get a bunny, cow, elephant or penguin. Ages 0+

VTech Go! Go! Smart Wheels Spinning Spiral Tower Play Set

VTech Go! Go! Smart Wheels Spinning Spiral Tower Play Set

Car kids will thrill to seeing this play set's van drive through the different levels and courses in this car track. There are also places for them to flex their imaginative muscles, like a gas station and car wash, and certain points along the course trigger sounds and other fun phrases. Ages 1+

Headshot of Marisa LaScala
Marisa LaScala
Senior Parenting & Relationships Editor

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. 

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gifts for one year olds
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