The 53 Best Toys For 6-Month-Olds, To Help Them Learn And Have Fun (2024)

Best Developmental Toys For 6-Month-Olds

A Soft Set Of Blocks

Editor’s Pick

These textured, squeezable blocks are soft, so baby won’t get hurt when they knock the stack down. “Before they are even able to stack blocks independently, babies will explore blocks by passing them back and forth between their hands and banging them together,” says Dr. Charissa Chamorro, clinical psychologist in New York City.

Animals In Race Cars

Two of my three kids have been fascinated with cars since they were very young. These animal race cars are simple for babies to operate: They only need to press down on the top to make them go. For best results, use them on a hard surface or low-pile carpet. To help develop language skills, you can repeat words like “go,” “vroom vroom” and “beep beep” as you play.

An Oversized But Soft Block Set

These soft blocks won’t hurt if baby falls down on them. The set includes two cubes, a pyramid and a ball, all designed in high-contrast colors to appeal to babies. The objects also feature tags, a mirror and a bell for more fun at tummy time.

A Mirror To Check Themselves Out

According to Dr. Chamorro, mirrors encourage baby to "engage and interact with their reflection, [and] they can practice smiling and they will even start to make sounds when looking at their reflection.” She also explains that parents can point out body parts and name emotions.It’s a simple toy that can support many aspects of baby’s development, plus it’s adorable to watch them check themselves out.

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A Fun-Filled Wagon For Them To Explore

This interactive wagon features four sides, each designed with different activities like shape sorting, gear twisting, animal mazes and more—making it ideal for your baby to play with during tummy time or while learning to sit. Once they are mobile, they can push or pull it to play songs and sounds. And when playtime is over, a fold-down handle makes for easy storage.

A Furry Friend To Chase

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If your 6-month-old is trying to crawl but isn’t quite there yet, this puppy might be the motivation they need to get going. Place it a few feet away from your baby, and watch as the dog wiggles and sings. Across three modes of play, the dog sings songs, repeats phrases and reviews letters, numbers, colors and shapes.

A Soft Ball With Textured Fabric

This fabric ball has sections made of various textures that are easy to grasp. It also makes crinkle and rattle sounds, which can help keep baby’s interest and develop their sensory awareness. Since it’s soft, it won’t hurt if they throw it at you as they start to explore cause and effect when they get a bit older. It’s machine washable, so you don’t need to worry about spit-up and teething stains.

An Interactive Push Walker With Removable Activity Board

A Toy To Encourage Crawling

While most 6-month-olds aren’t crawling just yet, many of them are starting to work on pre-crawling skills. This engaging toy encourages them to reach their hands out in tummy time, which can help to strengthen their muscles and increase stability. As they get stronger and start to crawl, they’ll bat this toy away from them, which can encourage them to keep moving.

A Playground To Grow With Them

This 6-in-1 toy just about has it all. It’s a visually stimulating place to do tummy time, the tunnel encourages babies to scoot and crawl, and the zebra toy encourages them to practice sitting up while they play. The toy includes hanging sensory toys, a piano, a roller ball, a crawl tunnel and more. You can also remove the piano and the hanging toys for tummy time.

An Enticing Ball Drop

In my experience, babies love any toy that involves dropping something through a hole and then watching it come out the other side. Dr. Chamorro explains that, because they are beginning to understand object permanence, babies enjoy watching objects disappear and then reappear. This is an engaging way for them to work on their memory and to begin to understand the world in a more abstract way.

Develop Their Fine Motor Skills

This Fisher-Price wooden toy is made from Forest Stewardship Council-certified sources. The triangle includes various activities that will mesmerize babies, like sliding knobs and spinning gears. Because it’s all contained on one larger toy, you don’t have to worry about small pieces that could make their way into your baby’s mouth.

Five Sensory Baby Toys In One Package

Editor’s Pick

Rattles, a car, a suction cup toy and a teether: This wooden set has so many interesting toys for babies. If you’re looking for gifts for a 6-month-old you don’t know very well, this Hape collection is a good option because it has a few different types of toys.

A Toy To Chase While They Learn To Crawl

Rickerd recommends toys that move away as babies crawl toward them. This wooden roller encourages them to crawl across the floor and may even inspire some giggles. It’s brightly colored and makes noise, both of which are enticing to babies.

Container Play With This Sweet Gift Set

This sweet set includes several baby toys, but since babies love to put things in and then take them out of containers, the real treasure is the box. “At this time, they become very interested in the concept of things being able to disappear and still exist, later reappearing,” says Dr. Chamorro. Playing like this can help them understand object permanence.

Rattles That Stay Put

These rattles are a favorite in our home; they’re great for sticking to windows, high chair trays and stroller trays. Suction cups help them stay where they are as babies pull and swat at them. My babies also like to use them as teethers once they manage to pull them off the surface they’re stuck to.

Easy For Babies To Grab

There’s no wrong way to play with this toy: It squishes, rattles and rolls around as babies maneuver it in their hands. One of my favorite things about this toy is that it’s easy to pick up because there are so many gripping points. This can help your baby develop their motor skills and grip strength as they work to hold and manipulate the toy.

A Penguin That Rocks (Literally)

This sweet wooden penguin toy wobbles as babies reach for him, teaching them a few things about balance and motion. His arms also shimmy a bit as he waddles, and he plays a few bell-like sounds at a moderate volume, inspiring kids to interact with him.

Best Music Toys For 6-Month-Olds

A Musical Fox In A Box

Many of the experts I spoke to recommended toys that encourage parents to play peek-a-boo and sing songs with their babies, making this musical, soft-sided fox in a box ideal. I like this toy for babies more than a traditional jack-in-the-box because you don’t need to fuss with stuffing it back inside—the toy does so on its own.

An Interactive Drum Sized Just Right

This sweet drum lights up and teaches kids songs and more in both Spanish and English. Dr. Harvey Karp explains that “a baby-appropriate toy drum that they can rat-a-tat-tat on” can support gross motor development. This can also keep them entertained while they work on sitting independently.

Plays Six Songs And Looks Adorable

Editor’s Pick

Babies love to listen to music, so it’s no surprise that musical instruments tend to be a hit with this age. Dr. Liu explains that toys with buttons, such as this adorable toy avocado guitar, teach babies cause and effect. They’ll rock out to the six songs and 10 guitar riffs included in this toy. Just don’t forget the batteries.

A Toy That Allows Baby To Be A Composer

Instead of pushing buttons, the technology on this musical toy allows babies to simply touch the board to make sounds. It has three modes: instrument, color/animal and freestyle. I love that you can set this toy on the floor or on their high chair for tabletop playtime.

A Safe Place To Set Them Down—While Keeping Them Entertained

As babies become more mobile, it’s essential to have a safe place to set them down. This Deluxe Sit-Me-Up Seat is not only a safe place to sit, but it’s also a musical entertainment center. Set the piano at their feet or hands so they can play a tune, and when they don’t need the seat portion anymore, detach the piano for a fun standalone toy.

A Song You'll Soon Know By Heart

When a mom of a 6-month-old recently asked for toy recommendations in a moms’ group that I’m in, this was by far the most recommended toy. It includes buttons and manipulatives, and it plays songs and sounds. All of the buttons, knobs and sounds are sure to hold your little one’s attention.

A Toy To Play With 'Til The Cows Come Home

Gund’s singing and playing animal line includes some of the most adorable baby toys I’ve ever seen, including Buttermilk the Cow. She plays “Old McDonald Had A Farm” and engages babies in an animal sound guessing game, encouraging them to repeat animal sounds. On top of that, the toy is very plush and cuddly.

For Baby DJs In Training

This innovative musical set allows babies to experiment with sound as they simultaneously hone their motor skills. It includes buttons, a turntable and a slider—all of which activate different music and sounds. Many of the experts I spoke to noted that babies of this age are very curious about cause and effect, and this toy provides plenty of options for them to see what happens when they manipulate the toy. Plus, I have a feeling many parents are just as likely to drop a new beat as their baby.

Best Educational Toys For 6-Month-Olds

A Finger Puppet Book

Dr. Chamorro explains that books can help babies develop communication skills and fine motor skills as they learn to turn pages. This one incorporates puppets, music and animal sounds, all of which are sure to be a hit with 6-month-olds. They’ll learn more about this popular song and get a thrill meeting all these friendly animals. For more book recommendations, you can also browse our list of the best baby books.

Always Age Appropriate

If you’re unsure what to gift a 6-month-old baby, then consider a toy subscription box. The Lovevery Play Kit box is filled with developmentally appropriate toys that arrive on the recipient’s doorstep every two months. The kits include toys for the babies to explore and activity guides for their grown-ups.

An Early Dose Of Letters and Numbers

This ball is soft, easy to roll back and forth and contains colorful hidden pictures, letters and numbers. It also talks! While playing with this fun toy, babies hear numbers counted from one to ten, as well as the ABCs recited aloud.

An Activity Table And Baby Seat In One

This activity center lets babies grow into all the fun. Once they’re able to hold their heads and trunks up solidly, they can be placed in the chair for short portions of the day to explore all the fun toys. There are mirrors, buttons to press, sounds and songs, shape sorters and more. Once they start thinking about climbing out of it, you can transform it into an activity table for tots.

A Book They’ll Play With As Often As They Ask You To Read It

Editor’s Pick

I like to use Poke-A-Dot books to help with language development: Say the word of the animal or the sound it makes as you poke its dot. As babies learn to poke the dots themselves, they’ll also begin to work on their fine motor skills and finger strength. Of course, they’ll learn in the process, too.

A Personalized Board Book Filled With Family Photos

Babies love to look at faces, and it’s especially engaging to look at familiar ones. Fill this personalized board book with pictures of baby’s favorite people. Not only will they love looking at it, it might also help them get a little closer to saying their caregivers’ names—and there’s nothing quite like hearing that little voice say “mama” for the first time.

A Curated Box Of Wooden Toys

The Lalo Play Box is full of high-quality wooden toys designed for your baby’s age and stage. The 5-6 month box includes a soft block, rattle socks, a wooden car, and more. I was impressed with the quality, and my kids (the ultimate testers) wasted no time in putting the durable toys to the test. The wooden toys are built to last, and I like that each kit comes with a book, too.

Sensory Cubes With Stylish Designs

“Sensory toys that feature different textures are also great,” Dr. Karp says. This four-pack of multisided cubes from Manhattan Toy features ribbon, soft textures, shapes, numbers and more. It also comes in bold, high-contrast colors that are appealing to 6-month-olds’ developing vision.

Best Sensory Toys For 6-Month-Olds

A Water Mat That Keeps Them Occupied During Tummy Time

This mat is filled with floating sea creatures, and it’s a mess-free way to get in some sensory water play, especially during tummy time or just while seated on the floor. “I really like the water mats on the floor to encourage babies to work on their upper body and core strength and engaging them without the flashing lights and noise that can distract them,” says Dr. Liu.

A Soft Sensory Farm Toy

Ms. Rachel is all the rage. If your 6-month-old is mesmerized by her, they’ll enjoy learning about farm animals with this soft sensory toy that has flaps, a plush animal and pockets. Play peek-a-boo with the animals, sing “Old McDonald Had a Farm” or play along while watching Ms. Rachel.

Something For When Those Teeth Start Coming In

Teething is uncomfortable for many babies, and it’s common for babies to start getting teeth around 6 months old. These camping-themed silicone teethers will help babies soothe their sore gums. The design makes them easy to grab, so they can play with them, too.

A Toy Car That's Easy For Them To Move