As well as finding the best potty for your tot, a potty training reward chart is a great way to encourage your little one during the potty/toilet training process.
While there's no set time to potty train, it's recommended by the NHS that you should start introducing the potty when they're around the age of 2 to get them used to sitting on it. When toilet training, take the potty with you whenever you leave the house with your child so they understand that they need to use it every time they need a wee or a poo. It's a great idea to try to time your potty training for the summer months, as your child will be wearing less layers, and will be more likely to be outside, making any accidents easier to clean up.
Many potty training experts hail the use of a reward chart as the key to a successful transition away from pull-ups and nappies. It acts a great incentive to keep them on track and you can even take it with you on the go (along with your travel potty of course).
The best potty training reward charts at a glance:
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Best for personalisation: Paper Projects The Gruffalo Reward Chart and Stickers
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Best for reusability: Crafty Ltd Personalised Kids Star Reward Jar
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Best for being handmade: CraftlyLtd Potty Training Reward Chart
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Best for gifting: My Carry Potty Training Pack
We spoke to potty training expert, Amanda Jenner who told us that every child learns differently, so we've put together a list of the very best toilet training charts for you to peruse, including jars with tokens, sticker charts with different tasks on them and multipacks that come with rewards such as badges and certificates. Check them out below.
The best potty training reward charts
Best for popular characters
Designed to support parents with potty training and toilet training, it will encourage little successes along the way. With every one of your child's favourite characters, including George Pig, Mummy Pig, Daddy Pig, and of course, the wonderful Peppa. This product is perfect for any mini fans of the popular cartoon show!
A reviewer said: "Made from a good sturdy, glossy card, complete with reusable stickers. Plenty of reward sections/options so kids stay engaged with the process. There are also plenty of stickers within the pack, making it impressive and value for money!"
Pros
- Budget-friendly
- Board is wipe-clean
Cons
- Stickers can be tricky to reuse
Best for interactivity
This magnetic reward chart comes with 3 stickers that can be placed in the bathroom to remind them to use toilet roll, flush the toilet and wash their hands once they've finished. It's very colourful and it comes with a crown they can wear to make the process more fun.
One mum said: "Lovely colourful magnetic chart which gives options to reward for your child asking to use the toilet, going to the toilet, washing hands etc, so covers every step of the process which we found really useful. It is the only chart we’ve had any success with as our daughter genuinely engaged with it. And it has Unicorns which every kid seems crazy about nowadays."
Pros
- Magnets come in different colours
- Ideal size for small hands
Cons
- Some reviewers say that it's easy to bend
Best for personalisation
Featuring the much-loved Gruffalo from the famous Julia Donaldson books, this wonderful chart and stickers include The Gruffalo and all the wonderful creatures he meets. The stickers also have all of his friends and a range of wonderful captions.
This parent said: "Brilliant! My little boy loves choosing a colourful sticker to put on the chart. The stickers are great quality foil stickers, and the chart is a pretty sturdy, kind of laminated surface. Pretty sure I’ll be able to remove the stickers and reuse the chart once it’s full."
Pros
- Available in different pack sizes
- Space to write in your own tasks
Cons
- Some of the boxes are quite small
Best for reusability
www.notonthehighstreet.com
We love this chic potty training chart. Your child can enjoy placing their earned brightly coloured stars into their jar chart. This chart can be used as a potty chart and later as a reward chart. You can tailor how many stars you order. You can also personalise the chart.
Review: "I love this reward jar, the colours are beautiful and it's so unusual, a great way to incentivise my little girl as she looks forward to putting a star in the jar."
Another customer wrote: "Beautiful item and my little one loves getting her stars for good behaviour."
Pros
- Can be hung up
- Choose from 10 or 20 stars
Cons
- Not specifically for potty training
Best for lots of stickers
This set has everything you need to make potty training a complete success. Ideal for both potty and toilet training, designed for both boys and girls. Stickers, medals and badges are included.
Review: "Reusable sticker chart! Absolutely brilliant, we’ve just started training my two-year-old daughter and she loves this sticker chart; she’s started sitting on her potty just to get a sticker! I would highly recommend it as a rewards tool."
Pros
- 130 stickers in total
- Comes with a hints and tips sheet
Cons
- Some report that the paper isn't the best quality
Best for being handmade
www.etsy.com
We absolutely love this cheeky handmade potty training and toilet training chart. Your child can earn a hand-painted wooden wee or poo shape to fill their jar when completing a task on their potty. They can pick a "poop" or "wee" token. Many buyers have commented that this is the perfect chart for a cheeky tot.
Review: "We love our jar. It’s been a huge hit with our 3-year-old who has been struggling with wanting to go #2 on the potty (who would rather hold it in for days). This jar has been a great visual tool for him to get excited about going potty, versus a “chart.” We ordered ours with just the “poop” tokens, as that’s all we needed. It is also made very well!"
Pros
- Durable wooden material
- Easy to use
Cons
- None that we can find
Best for a colourful option
The perfect way to encourage your child to potty train. A bright and colourful A4 glossy chart with 125 star stickers to pop in the boxes. Each time your boy or girl completes a potty training task they can add a sticker to the chart. Once you've filled it up they can peel off and use a fresh set. This chart can also be personalised.
Review: "Lovely bright colours. It is just a laminated A4 page but it's nice and clear. Stickers are good for little fingers to peel off and stick on if children want to put them on themselves."
Pros
- Space to write their name
- Each task has an illustration
Cons
- Lots of boxes but they are quite small
Best for easy usage
Encourage your child to grasp the idea of potty training with this colourful and engaging potty training sticker chart. Includes everything you need to make potty training a complete success, with stickers, medals and final reward badge to appeal to children's curious nature, using an incremental reward system.
Review: "This along with a story book about potty training helped me potty train my very reluctant 3 year old in about 2 days by the 3rd day we had no accidents and my son felt incredibly proud of himself each time he put a sticker on the chart. The medals were especially encouraging for him and once he collected all four medals he was allowed to choose a new toy. It was a really lovely positive experience and it came with lots of helpful tips."
Pros
- Badge is child-safe
- Large collection of stickers
Cons
- Some stickers are a bit tiny
Best for a multipack
Sprinkle a little bit of magic on their toilet experience thanks to this reward product. This wipe-clean and reusable chart includes 135 star stickers and can be personalised with your child's name.
Review: "I bought this product for my daughter to encourage her during potty training. It worked really well and she really enjoying getting little stars. She loves the animals and tractors on the chart too. I really like the fact that there were two charts. A potty chart and a toilet chart. So you can choose depended on whether your child is using the potty or toilet."
Pros
- Great for parents of twins
- Laminate so it's reusable
Cons
- Stickers are quite small
Best for gifting
www.johnlewis.com
As well as the reward chart, this handy kit from My Carry Potty also includes George & Hollie & the Magic Potties storybook, Amanda's Potty Training Programme, Magic Reward box, Potty Training Certificate and more.
Review: "This has been so useful to encourage my 2 year old son to use his potty. We bought the Carry Potty and this was recommended alongside it. The chart and stickers created some excitement and a lovely way to reward him whenever he used the potty! And he loves the book that goes with it. Definitely a good investment!"
Pros
- Informative instructions for parents/carers
- Educational book for children
Cons
- No varying designs to choose from
When to buy a potty
Every child learns at a different pace and most little ones should be able to control their bowels and bladder by the age of 3. However, you should introduce a potty earlier to get them familiar with how the potty works and when they should use it.
Many parents suggest starting in the warmer months as there are less layers of clothing to take off and any soiled clothes from accidents can be washed and dried quicker as the temperature is higher than the winter months. Plus, if they need to use the potty when they're outside, they can do so without getting cold.
Try not to begin the toilet training when there are major events happening (such as the introduction of a new baby or a house move) as this can already be a confusing time for your little one and they may regress.
If you feel like you have tried everything but they are not wanting to use the potty at all, don't force them - they'll learn when they're ready and as they start to get older most children won't want to wear nappies all of the time.
What to look for when buying a potty
According to our expert, Amanda Jenner, "Getting the right equipment for potty training is always a good start. A child-sized potty, a carry potty or a special seat to attach to your regular toilet is a must. Whichever you choose, make sure your child can sit comfortably."
Benefits of using a potty training chart
There are four main benefits of using potty training charts both for you and for your little one:
• The stickers could help your tot to get a bit more excited about the potty training process.
• A visual reward system motivates the trainee.
• It makes it easier for you to keep track of when your child last used the potty (therefore when they might be needing to go again).
•No dirty nappies to clean, even in the morning (a toilet night light is perfect for helping them to locate the potty at night time).
• It makes it more fun - who doesn't love an excuse to buy stickers!
Potty training expert Amanda Jenner says, "Every toddler loves to feel special and to please mummy and daddy, especially when it comes to potty training. Using rewards is a great way to encourage your toddler to sit on the potty or the toilet, this can be through a reward chart and stickers or even a magical star box. It is important to reward even if they try and do not perform, sometimes it can be difficult to get them sitting on the potty or the toilet and this needs a little extra encouragement. Make sure you reward them immediately so they get the instant gratification."
Downloadable Potty Training Chart
Here's our very own potty training chart for you to use with your tot. Just click on the chart to save and print out.
It's easy to implement into your potty training routine - simply add a sticker to the chart each time your child uses the potty.
The actions rewarded in most potty training charts are these:
• Doing a poo
• Doing a wee
• Washing their hands
• Wiping correctly
• Sitting in their potty for a bit
• Not having accidents at night
• Pulling their pants up and down themselves
Whether you decide to DIY or buy a ready-made chart, you can pick and choose from lots of different designs, whether your little one is into princesses, fairies, spaceships or pirates.
Potty training expert, Amanda Jenner, answers your potty training questions
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Louella Berryman now works in Audience Development across Bauer’s lifestyle brands after training as a journalist at Cardiff University.