21 best toys for 18-month-olds to boost their development

This adorable Unicorn is a fun interactive toy that encourages your tot to follow it around. One customer said it "moves well on both carpet and hard flooring"; another said, "Although it worked better on the laminate, it did work on the carpet also."

Built with little ones in mind, buyers describe the toy as being "sturdy", with one reviewer saying, "(it's) built to last and exciting to play with." The sensory details certainly make this toy engaging and the movement encourages kids to develop their fine motor skills and imagination. One buyer liked that the cause-and-effect style play encourages thinking as well as identifying colours and phrases/melodies with the sensory element.

We like that the toy is a good size for little ones to hold, move and interact with, offering different ways to interact, such as sing-along songs and role-play prompts. It's also great that the 4 x AA batteries required are included, so there'll be no disappointments when you get it home if you forget to buy a pack. One thing to note is that the buttons may be a little stiff for younger kids, but they'll grow into the different features and with more to discover as they develop.

Read our full Vtech Electronic Toot-Toot Friends Magical Unicorn review

Parents love the value and educational benefits of this fun toy aimed at helping little ones with their counting skills. Our testers found it helped their children learn colours, counting, and general number work, and that it kept them occupied for a decent amount of time. It's perfect for role-play, and the size is great for popping it in a bag to take with you if needed.

Overall customers were happy with the variety and quality of the product. Our mum tester said, "It’s easy enough to use for a child independently and is great fun to play together as well." However, she did wish it was designed slightly differently, saying it was quite easy for the coins to get stuck down the back of the till - so be prepared to come to your toddler's rescue!

We like that the batteries come with the toy and that there is a sound element for even more fun and engagement, with counting songs and educational interactive features too.

Read our full Leapfrog Count Along Till review

A sweet wooden toy playset, based on Mr McGregor's garden. It includes all the pieces to create the perfect garden as well as Beatrix Potter favourites, Peter Rabbit, Jemima Puddledock and more. Our testers agreed the toys felt built to last and were easy to wipe clean.

One of our testers said, "Peter's friends are adorable & lovely and chunky for little hands. Some parts but small for my 19m but I’ll just remove those until she’s a bit bigger." She also mentioned that they had been reading the book and watching the film - we love that the well-known characters encourage children to use their imaginations for storytelling and play.

As well as being durable and long-lasting, perfect for collecting and passing down through generations, these wooden toys are also eco-friendly being made from FSC® certified wood with 100 per cent recyclable packaging.

Read our full Orange Tree Toys Peter Rabbit Play Set review

Fisher-Price's push toy vacuum has it all - music, lights, and phrases to encourage your baby to push and play. Flip the switch “on” for vacuum sounds and “off” for learning songs and phrases. Your child can role play as they "help" you tidy up, and be learning while they play. The songs and phrases introduce counting, colours, shapes, opposites, and more. As your baby pushes the vacuum here, there and everywhere, they are developing important gross motor skills like balance and coordination.

One customer who bought this for their baby daughter describes it as a "wonderful little toy" saying she loves it and describing it as "solid" and "sturdy". They liked that it comes with a battery meaning less hassle, and highly recommended it.

It's a great toy for imaginative role-play, and we like that it supports little ones learning to walk. However, if your tot is on the taller side, it may be too short for them to comfortably push around - it's about 45cm/17 inches when upright.

Although it's for ages two and up, this is a fun, snap-based game that can help your toddler use problem-solving skills to match cards with adult supervision. Help your tot find the matching pair of wellies, from zig zag tiger print to spots and hearts. Our mum testers thought it was a good game to encourage tots to take turns and share, and their little ones loved playing the game.

We like that there are two ways to play the game making it suitable for toddlers and older kids. One reviewer commented, "The concept of the game is very easy to pick up, basically matching pairs of wellies on monsters!" They also appreciated that the game could be adapted for different ages, saying, "For example, whilst my daughter is quite young, she enjoyed putting the monster boards together as they are nice simple 3 piece jigsaws, then she gave 2 of the boards to her teddies so we could use all the pieces and then we just had to match the wellies to the right place as we turned them over! As she has got older, she is getting better at putting the pieces back when they don't match hers!" They point out that each welly is also backed with either green or red to help kids learn about left and right shoes.

We think the bright colours and friendly characters make this an engaging game. The size of the cards is perfect for little hands, although younger ones may have some difficulty handling them. We also like that they are made from eco-friendly recycled cardboard!

Read our full Orchard Toys Smelly Wellies review

This cute dragon is made from super soft plush and makes the perfect playmate in a world of adventures and imagination. We like that it's a good size for cuddles, making it easy for little ones to form a bond with their new companion. The dragon has sound and light effects and it guides children to discover all the educational content available. There are many nursery rhymes and funny phrases to keep your child entertained too.

Overall buyers thought this toy was good value for money, although one reviewer said, "Cute and well made but not convinced there’s as many recordings/sayings on it as it says." We like that there are two volume settings so it won't annoy you, and the batteries come included. Unfortunately, you can only surface clean the toy though, so keep it away from the dinner table and indoors!

While aimed at ages two and up, we think this is a lovely role-playing toy for both boys and girls for encouraging pretend play. One reviewer said, "The role play is brilliant and never-ending." The set includes 20 playing pieces for hours of open-ended games. Your child can use the magic ice cream scooper to learn about colours and numbers as they fill it with ice cream scoops and toppings. Six hungry character activity cards are included for more learning fun and mean it can be played independently as well as with friends and family.

Customers say the toy is easy to assemble and is sturdy for younger toddlers to play with. We like that it encourages the development of communication skills and confidence, especially the cards that help little ones to play independently. Younger toddlers may not be able to fully appreciate everything great about this toy, so they'll need a little support and encouragement.

Kids will love the tactile wooden block pieces in this sweet colour sorting toy. The house design is adorable, and your tot will be able to learn to match colours, and develop their problem-solving and fine motor skills as they hit each piece in place with the hammer! The block set is made from chunky natural wood, so it's sturdy enough to take on a toddler.

One reviewer said the packaging was good with a nice box and that it was easy to assemble. Another buyer said they would have preferred the ball to be bigger for safety. Another customer also mentioned that they had expected the toy in general to be bigger. Overall people like the quality of this toy. We like that the toy is made from wood so it's durable and easy for little ones to handle.

This Baby Clementoni Interactive Ride-On Unicorn offers a whole range of play possibilities. This ride-on toy can be used for rocking, riding or as an activity centre. The electronic mane makes it an incredible educational activity centre to light up the imagination! It teaches children their ABCs, numbers, colours, animal names, noises and so much more, all with cheerful rhymes and songs. The unicorn also senses movement, activating realistic sounds and melodies for happy times rocking and riding.

One reviewer comments on the toy being "so much fun!" They say the unicorn is sturdy, and when locked into the rocking function they found it very secure and said they thought their child was safe playing on it. They also described the voice as being "soft but happy and excited which is perfect for a child." They say the seat and handles are a good size too and that the wheels turn easily when moving along the floor. We like that the batteries come included.

An activity table with three tools – a hammer, a screwdriver and a wrench. With six accessories including bolts, nuts and screws, your toddler can learn to fit the pieces together on the workbench and puzzle solving, which is great for helping them to develop their hand-eye coordination. One reviewer mentions that their toddler loves screwing and unscrewing the tools, and that "they are the perfect size for little hands."

The toy also becomes a practical toolbox that little ones can carry, so great for on-the-go play, and also works well to keep everything together for storage. We like that the toy is eco-friendly and made from 100 per cent recycled plastic and that it's durable;e and designed for heavy-handed play, especially with the nature of the toy.

The interactive design of this toy encourages the use of language, motor, and cognitive skills; thus providing children with the right tools to enhance their learning. There's a different function button on all six sides; alphabets, numbers, colours, music, animal sounds and musical instruments. One reviewer says it was a very entertaining toy for their baby boy who enjoyed tapping the cube and listening to the sounds and songs.

The cube is a good size for toddlers to handle, and the toy is designed to reward curiosity with lights, sounds, songs and knowledge. Although some have said they wished it was more child-friendly in terms of having a more colourful or characterful look to it. We like that it's suitable from 6 months, meaning that early learners can safely benefit from the toy.

There are lots of fun features to discover in the Peppa Pig Weebles Wind and Wobble Playhouse. Teaching cause and effect, your toddler will quickly learn to wind the handle to move the included Peppa Pig Weebles figure up, and then down the slide to land with a splash in the muddy puddle. Push Peppa on the swing and around the roundabout and although she will wobble as she goes, she'll never fall. We like that the toy is designed for kids to experience success during play too, with easy drop-in bases.

There's plenty of room to develop their imagination as they grow, with more sets and characters to collect, although customers have pointed out that they wish more than one character had been included in the set as others must be purchased separately. Overall though, people think the toys is good value for money and they like how sturdy and child-friendly it is, with the size of Peppa Pig being perfect for little hands, and nice and chunky with a rounded finish for comfortable handling.

For those vital first years of schooling, keep little minds active and inspired by their favourite animals with Janod’s Animal MagnetiBook. Self-contained in a tin the size of a book, the aim is to use the fun and easy-to-hold magnets to build an animal matching the one on the card, helping to support little ones with learning about their creatures great and small! One reviewer thought this was a very nice toy saying, "Pieces are big enough and with every animal the same size so my 22-month-old gets the hang of it and you can mix up the animals. Recommended", although the product specifies that this toy is only suitable from 3 years.

Trigger your child’s creativity with SmartMax My First Totem stacking toy. They can build their own crazy totem, or complete one of the 24 challenges by making the funniest constructions. The extra-large SmartMax parts help young children safely discover the magic of magnetism. One customer liked that this toy was a bit different from others, and also that the pieces were a really nice size for their one-year-old. they also appreciated that each piece has a different sound or textured part, making them more interesting to pick up and hold. they said, "My 4-year-old also really enjoys making different towers with them so will be buying the older sets too!"

SmartMax My First Totem contains eight parts and 24 challenge cards and is suitable for children from 12 months. The set consists of different magnetic blocks, funny shapes with sounds, characters with different emotions and different textures. We especially like that the magnets have been polarised so that they don't repel, making it easier for younger kids to play.

Read our full My First Totem review

Does your little one love music? Perhaps they would benefit from a musical toy, particularly this piano mat. It promises hours of fun as they can stomp on the mat to make their own sound. It's got a two-sided design with different built-in sounds for your little one to get creative with. One reviewer who bought it as a first birthday present for their nephew thought it was well made and kept little one busy, saying, "He quickly realised that the keys made different sounds and was happy to use his play mat for an extended amount of time. I also noticed that he happily returns to the toy and looks for it in his toy box. Happy with my purchase."

We like that the mat is made from soft fabric with an anti-slip surface for safe play. It's a lovely creative toy that grows with your tot as it develops and discovers more functions. We also like that you can fold it up smaller, making it easy to store and travel with or take outside to play in the garden. Unfortunately, the piano mat must be kept dry though, which makes cleaning tricky. Some parents also found it to be a bit on the loud side, so beware of disturbing the neighbours if you take it in the garden!

Learning numbers has never been more fun than with Tender Leaf Toys' endearing Counting Carrots. You can teach your toddler or child to count to 10 with the numbered carrot rings, but they'll also spend ages amusing themselves sorting by colour, stacking for fun or feeding the super-cute white bunny. It's an open-ended delight that's a real treat to display on the shelf too. Customers like the traditional style of a wooden toy, saying it looks beautiful and is finished well. We like the educational aspect that makes it easy for parents to engage and educate their little ones through interactive play, however, there may not be enough to engage an older child through independent play.