The 22 Best Interactive Toys for Screen-Free Fun

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It isn’t hard finding fun toys for kids to play with, but finding fun, engaging, interactive toys that actually hold their interest — well, that’s a whole different ball game. Interactive toys are great for kids of all ages because they help develop their imagination and improve their concentration, problem-solving abilities, and fine motor skills while encouraging sensory and cognitive development.

“In addition to upping the entertainment value of toys, interactive features can play a crucial role in helping children’s early age development,” says Kristin McKay, SVP and general manager of Global Brands, Hasbro. “Interactive toys offer multi-layered play experiences that allow kids to practice their cognitive skills — from exercising their memory and simple reasoning to attention and processing.”

Since there are basically endless interactive toys on the market, McKay told us her go-to recommendation... but you'll have to scroll down for that one!

There are many more to choose from, but we narrowed down the 24 best interactive toys on the market, including the nostalgic Furby. (We've been told they no longer come alive at night in your closet, but we remain on alert.) If you're grabbing a gift for a loved one, there's not a miss on this list. You know your kids best, so take that into consideration while shopping. Just think about whether they’d do flips for a bath time water kit or an old-school Tamagotchi that’s been revamped for Gen Alpha.

Shark Beast Creator

The only way to save the world is to create a shark beast. That’s all kids need to hear for this Beast Lab kit to capture their full attention. Getting a birthday gift for a little one who loves monsters and magic? Look no further.

Kids can pour the magical goo into the cauldron and watch it bubble and change colors to reveal the beast inside. While the lava bubbles only work for one or two reveals, the color change and beast mode can go strong until your kid needs a break. The interactive action figure comes with over 80 lights and sounds that make this toy even more fun. We love it so much that we made it our best interactive toy of the year!

Toniebox Audio Player Starter Set

There’s something so sweet about the Toniebox. It’s a screen-free listening experience for young kids ages 3 and up. When a character is placed on top of the box, playback automatically starts, giving kids hours and hours of songs and stories, encouraging imaginative listening and play. The starter set comes with one character, and you can purchase other characters separately, like Carebears, Peppa Pig, Disney characters, and so many more.

My 6- and 4-year-old absolutely love their Toniebox. It’s engaging and keeps them occupied for literal hours. The best part is the sense of calm it provides when my kids are overstimulated or just need to have some down time in their rooms.

Original

The original Tamagotchi that you may or may not have had in the ‘90s is back to bring some fun and a sense of responsibility to kids — while annoying a new generation of parents (that’s you this time).

To keep it happy and quiet, kids must take care of their pet by playing with it, giving it medicine, feeding it, and flushing after it has used the bathroom. The whole toy is technically a screen, albeit a very, very tiny one. But since the technology is practically ancient, I think it’s safe to reference this toy as being screen-free.

Furby

The cutie, furry toy from the ‘90s is back to bring your kids just as much joy as it brought you. Furby is a furry friend who can talk, sing, move, light up, and respond to speech.

This throwback toy is the one McKay vouges for.

“Right now, my personal favorite interactive Hasbro toy is Furby, which specifically helps kids build their social cognitive skills.”

It’s equipped with over 600 responses, and it can even be paired with other Furby friends to communicate. It doesn’t connect to the internet, and it’s a completely screen-free toy. It does, however, turn off — unlike the Tamagotchi. You can thank Hasbro for that one.

LED Busy Board

There’s a lot happening on this wooden busy board. You’ve got lights and various types of on/off switches on one side and colorful animal-shaped letters on the other, all of which help kids develop their motor skills and perception of cause and effect. It’s a fantastic toy to take on an airplane or on a road trip to keep your toddlers busy.

Magical Misting Cauldron

Magic Mixies are a great way for your kids to cast spells without whipping up potions made of your expensive conditioner and body wash. Your whole family will be impressed with this toy, that’s how cool it is.

By mixing the included ingredients to make a potion, real mist rises out of the cauldron. The adorable Magic Mixie reacts to touch and responds to the wand. It makes cute sounds, but it’s not too loud, which is appreciated. It was our toy of the year for 2022, and it's still one of the most popular toys out there.

Wacky Waterworks Pipes Bath Toy

Give your kids something to do in the bathtub other than use an entire bottle of shampoo to “wash” their cars. (Or is that just a thing my 4-year-old does?) This waterworks toy lets kids control the water pressure by twisting the valves, giving them some hands-on experience with cause and effect. Plus, they get to play with water, and that’s always fun.

Handheld Memory Game

This handheld memory game is a great way for kids to develop better focus and concentration while doing something enjoyable. To play, watch the order of the lit bubbles as they appear, then press them in the correct sequence and keep leveling up. Kids can choose from various modes depending on their level. It’s kind of like the classic Simon game but a bit more challenging.

Ball Run Pack

There’s a lot to love about the Connetix ball run pack, which consists of 106 pieces, including all the magnetic tiles, tubing, and balls needed to make an awesome ball run. Connetix makes sturdy magnetic tiles that, to put it bluntly, don’t suck.

The set is recommended for kids ages 3 and up due to the small parts, but since the balls are definitely choking hazards, I’d go with ages 4 or 5 to be sure.

Solar Powered Robot

A 13-in-1 robot that can be built to move on land and water that’s also powered by the sun? Yes, please. Kids can assemble 13 different types of solar-powered robots, each that moves differently. While young tots will likely be impressed with the robot, since it requires intricate building and direction-following skills, it’s best for chidlren ages 10 and up.

Electronic Dance Mat

For kids who are awesome dancers, think they are awesome dancers, or are definitely not awesome dancers but still love shakin’ it, this electronic dance mat will get them movin’ and groovin'.

A version of Dance Dance Revolution, the mat connects to your music via Bluetooth or aux and features three interactive games with five difficulty levels. It’s perfect for kids ages 6 and up, but don’t be surprised when you find yourself playing even when your kids aren’t around.

Claw Machine

If your kiddo always wants to play the claw machines, you have every reason to buy this adorable at-home mini version. While it comes with 10 plush animal toys, you can put other small toys or treats inside to mix things up.

The game also comes with coins that kids need to use to play. The game plays music, but there’s also the option to put it in mute mode, which is a beautiful thing.

Tornado+ Remote Control Car

Double-sided remote control cars like this one aren’t just incredibly fun for big kids to play with. They're great for younger tots, too, since they don’t get stuck upside down (which ultimately means you won’t have to fix it for them constantly). The Force1 Tornado+ features a high-speed car with bright LED lights, 360-degree spins, and grippy rubber tires that can spin the car on just two wheels.

The car can be played indoors or outdoors, but when it’s played with inside, it tends to get a better grip on carpet or rugs than hardwood floors.

Smart Robot

There’s no question about the impressiveness of a dancing robot. This smart robot doesn’t just dance though, it also performs up to 50 moves — all controlled by sensing hand gestures or an infrared controller. Once the robot learns the moves, it records and repeats the movements, so kids are essentially choreographing robot dance moves.

Learning Play Cell Phone

Even though this adorable iPhone toy is designed for toddlers, my 6- and 4-year-old think it’s the greatest thing ever. Of all their toy phones, this one looks the most like a real iPhone, so they incorporate it into their imaginative play regularly. It features several engaging modes for little ones and plays songs with colorful LED lights.

My oldest asked for an iPhone for her Christmas, but she’s 6 and absolutely isn’t getting a real phone anytime soon, so this is what Santa brought her. Surprisingly, she wasn’t disappointed.

The Music Set

Lovevery makes the sweetest, most developmentally appropriate play kits for young kids, and now they have a music set that’ll get babies and toddlers excited about playing music.

The set includes real instruments that are fun to play, as well as a working metronome, music book, and song cards. It doesn’t hurt that the Montessori toys aren’t eye sores.

Kids Construction Track

Of all the tracks my son plays with, this one is his favorite. The set comes with 216 total pieces, and the track pieces are small and flexible, so they can be configured in endless ways. Once the track is put together, the included five cars zoom along automatically.

He especially loves that the track is construction-themed with trucks that have moveable arms, because construction vehicles make everything better.

Walkie-Talkies

If you want to give your kids a bit more freedom, these walkie-talkies are a great way to stay connected. While the range is pretty long for toy walkie-talkies, kids will have to stay relatively close by for them to work. A built-in LED flashlight makes these walkie-talkies even more fun and useful for kids.

Hand-Controlled Mini Drone

This flying mini drone impresses my kids every time they use it. When turned on, the orb floats over your hand and can be tossed to create a boomerang effect or different flight patterns. It’s great for improving hand-eye coordination, and it gets your kids running all over the place. Sure, the mini drone sounds like a very small airplane getting ready for take-off, but the cool factor of the toy far outweighs the noise.

Basketball Hoop

This indoor mini basketball hoop isn’t your average hoop — its features are truly impressive. It’s a good-sized hoop that can be mounted to a door for some fun one-on-one or individual shooting. But the coolest part is that it features an electronic scoreboard with sounds. Your kid will feel like they're a professional when playing with this thing.

It also comes with four mini basketballs and a pump to inflate them. A breakaway rim design encourages dunks, and right after every Michael Jordan-style dunk, the rim bounces back into place.

Electric Guitar Set

If your kid loves performing and pretending like they’re a full-blown rock star but without the actual talent (not yet, anyway), they’ll be super pumped about this electric guitar set. The strings aren’t real, so this set is for imaginative play. The amp, however, lets them plug in their favorite music to rock out to and sing along with using the mic on a mic stand.

Voice-Changing Device

Your kids will love this voice-changing megaphone, but you might feel differently after a while. Still, it’s totally worth it because it’ll bring your kids a lot of joy. The mini megaphone has four voice-changing modes: alien, ghost, monster, and robot. It also has a mic for regular voice amplification. Best of all, when your kids aren’t listening to you, you can use the megaphone to ensure they can hear you.

Microscope for Kids

If your kids love collecting small treasures, they’ll really get a kick out of this kid-friendly microscope. While they can get an extreme close-up view of whatever they’re interested in seeing, they can also use the included prepared plant slides along with rock and mineral specimens. The whole kit lets kids explore and gives them tons of science experiments to tackle.

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