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Best toys for 1-year-olds in Australia

We pored over hundreds of customer reviews and established the best toys for 1-year-olds you can buy online in Australia.

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Charles Perrin
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The best toys for 1-year-olds in Australia

How did we pick this list?

Our editorial team has picked the products featured in the list based on real customer reviews found on Amazon Australia and other reputable sites. For each category, we carefully selected parameters based on our research and identified the toys for 1-year-olds with the highest review within the criteria judged.

Read more detail on our methodology below.

Best overall toy: Fisher-Price Stack and Explore

Pros

  • Helps with problem solving skills
  • Good price point

Cons

  • Blocks aren’t sturdy
  • Blocks quite small
Price (RRP): $10.00
Amazon Price: From $8.00
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Why we chose it

Known worldwide for its creations, Fisher-Price and its Stack and Explore model knocks off its main competitors in this category. With close to 4,000 reviews published on Amazon Australia, the Stack and Explore wowed customers as over 80% of reviews returned a perfect 5-star rating and the average was 4.8 stars.

This toy is very versatile and helps with hand-eye coordination as well as problem solving skills. It consists of a set of five baby blocks which can be stacked up from the biggest to the smallest. Each block is a different colour and pictures a different animal.

Suitable for babies too, this toy enables children to think more laterally about how to stack up the blocks. Made of plastic, the product weighs a mere 0.65kg and the item dimensions are 8.9 x 8.9 x 33cm.

Best educational toy: Melissa & Doug Geometric Stacker

Pros

  • Good for strengthening hand-eye coordination
  • Blocks are quite durable

Cons

  • Smaller blocks a possible choking hazard
  • Paint can come off when separating blocks
Price (RRP): $34.24
Amazon Price: From $34.24
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Why we chose it

Colourful and vibrant, the Melissa & Doug Geometric Stacker was very well received and there have been over 7,000 reviews published to date on Amazon Australia. It averaged 4.8 out of 5 stars and close to 90% of the reviews garnered a 5-star rating. Customers gravitated towards this product and some praised it for being a "truly multi-skill development toy".

Comprising 25 pieces, this geometric stacker is made of robust material and contains a wooden stand. There are different shapes such as circles, squares and rectangles and there are a variety of colours too, including orange and blue.

This product will bolster hand-eye coordination and in terms of dimensions, the item is 8.1 x 21 x 27.9cm.

Best musical toy: Ditty Bird Classical Music

Pros

  • Book is very interactive
  • Well illustrated

Cons

  • Area to press on each page not clearly identifiable
  • Volume level could be louder
Price (RRP): $23.95
Amazon Price: From $22.95
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Why we chose it

Suitable for babies and toddlers, the Ditty Bird Classical Music will foster a love for classical music from some of the pre-eminent composers. With nearly 200 reviews published on Amazon Australia, the Ditty Bird Classical Music averaged 4.6 stars out of 5 and customers were very complimentary. Words such as "great" and "good" frequently appeared.

This product is a book and can be read and it also doubles up as an audio book. 1-year-olds can listen to musical masterpieces from the likes of Mozart, Beethoven and Vivaldi. There is an electronic push button on every spread of the book which then initiates a memorable classical piece.

With up to six tunes to listen to, this will keep babies and toddlers entertained. The product weighs 249 grams and is 16 x 1.5 x 16cm.

Best outdoor toy: Quack and Flap Duck Push Toy

Pros

  • Safe for very young children
  • Very cute looking

Cons

  • Doesn’t push easily
  • Has cheap feel about it
Price (RRP): $40.79
Amazon Price: From $36.95
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Why we chose it

For those who want to take their toys on an adventure outdoors, the Quack and Flap Duck Push Toy is one to consider. This product has generated over 60 reviews on Amazon Australia and received an average of 4.1 out of 5 stars. Customers were very satisfied with the toy as some said it was "cute" while others professed how much their sons or daughters loved it.

Designed by Italian toy manufacturer Quercetti, the duck is a push toy that comes with big feet and an orange bill and feet. As you push it along, the wings flap up and down. Standing at 21 inches high, this product is safe for 1-year-olds and toddlers.

In total, the product weighs 300 grams and is made of plastic. Overall, there are plenty of educational benefits to be had with the Quack and Flap Duck Push Toy. Among these include sensory development and spatial reasoning skills.

Best wooden block toy: Hape Pound and Tap bench

Pros

  • Develops motor and hand-eye coordination skills
  • Safe for very young children

Cons

  • Some of the notes on xylophone may be discordant
  • Can create a lot of noise if you drop wooden parts on the floor
Price (RRP): $49.98
Amazon Price: From $35.64
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Why we chose it

Another musically-orientated toy, the Hape Pound and Tap bench has amassed over 8,500 reviews on Amazon Australia and averaged 4.7 out of 5 stars. Customers were very satisfied with the product, with some saying it is "well made" while others said they "would recommend it".

Formed like a xylophone, this product is very colourful and there are balls that can be retrieved in order to play the instrument. 1-year-olds can pull out the keyboard and xylophone should they wish to play a solo. This product is also acclaimed as it was crowned winner of the 2018 Cribsie Award for best musical toy suitable for ages 12 months to 3 years.

This product helps fine tune motor skills and bolsters dexterity as well as hand-eye coordination. It is also child safe as the toy uses water-based paint and has non-toxic finishes. Overall, the product weighs 136 grams.

Best toy to help with walking: Pull Along Giraffe Baby toy

Pros

  • Toy very well made
  • Easy to pull along

Cons

  • Bit on the small side
  • Giraffe could have more movement
Price (RRP): $46.02
Amazon Price: From $32.00
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Why we chose it

For babies that are obsessed with animals, it may be hard to overlook this cute pull along giraffe baby toy. With 240 reviews published to date on Amazon Australia, it averaged 4.6 stars out of 5. Customers were very impressed with the toy and while some acknowledged the quality of the manufacturers, BRIO, words such as "fantastic" and "great" popped up in the reviews.

This pull-along giraffe is rather cute looking and it is made from FSC certified wood, so you can be sure that it is sturdy and durable. The giraffe can move its head and neck while you pull it along.

The item dimensions are 108mm in width by 97mm in depth and 196mm in height while the width of the pack is 143mm. This product is suitable for age 12 months and up and this giraffe will keep them entertained for hours.

Best puzzle toy: Tooky Toy Puzzle

Pros

  • Paint used on shape blocks is non toxic
  • Very appealing to the eye

Cons

  • No cover comes with the box
  • Pieces quite similar in size so might be tricky for baby to distinguish
Price (RRP): $34.99
Amazon Price: From $18.80
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Why we chose it

For those parents considering buying toys that provide educational value for their babies, then the Tooky Toy puzzle is well worth considering. With close to 40 reviews published on Amazon Australia, more than 80% of these returned a perfect 5-star rating while the average was 4.7 stars.

Coming with a variety of different coloured shapes, this puzzle will not only encourage hand and eye coordination, but it will also help your child with their problem solving skills. The vibrant puzzle/shape sorter will fine tune their motor skills and keep them stimulated while at home.

Recommended for children aged 12 months and above, the dimensions for the item are 14 x 14 x 14 cm and the product weighs 798 grams.

Amazon prices last updated on 23 June, 2021 at 01:01 pm

Methodology

  • We compared all the major toy brands found in the biggest online retailers.
  • We excluded brands that aren't widely available.
  • The products featured on this list are chosen by our editorial team and not selected based on commercial relationships.

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