The 16 best toys for 6-12 month-old babies, to help aid their development

Parent testers loved the bright flashing lights and vibrant colours of the walker which instantly caught their toddler's attention, keeping them engaged and entertained as they navigated around. The range of activities provide additional stimulation, promoting cognitive and motor skill development. Parents also loved the compact design, making it easy to store away when not in use. It was also shortlisted for a 2020 Mother&Baby Award.Mum Paige said: "This product is fab for a range of ages. The activity panel is removable which meant I could lie it on the floor to let my 7-month-old play with it while my 3-year-old enjoyed zooming around pushing the walker. I love that it can entertain both my children which frees up my hands so I am able to complete a few tasks around the house. Plus it is easily wiped clean when sticky fingers inevitably get all over it."

Read the full tried and tested review from our mums here.

The vibrant colours and textures of the 8 organza squares and two crinkle blankies of this toy with fluffy textures provided endless exploration opportunities, encourages baby to reach, grasp, and manipulate objects – a crucial aspect of their motor skill development. Parents found The Taf Toys Tissue Wonder Box provided valuable sensory experiences and interactive play, adapting to their changing developmental needs. This toy was shortlisted for the Mother&Baby Awards 2022.

Mum Bina said: "The wonder tissue box was fantastic for my 9 month old as it kept her entertained much longer than a lot of her other toys making life easier as a mummy as she wasn't bored within 2 minutes then me having to give her another toy allowing me to do a little tidying around bubbas play. There is a lot of versatility as it is used as a tissue box but also for peek-a-boo games with the organza tissues, learning colours, counting and the concept of open and close, in and out. One toy serves a multitude of learning purposes and play, rather than needing 5 different toys to teach the above, saving space in the toy box."

Read our full parent review here.

With a built-in motor that'll get your baby to crawl after it, parents loved how many development opportunities were available to baby in this toy from motor skills to sensory development, discovery to exploration. They can twist, slide and spin the features with fun music and animal sound effects, a feature parents found older children loved too.

One parent said: "Great toy that my 10-month-old plays with. She likes the colours and sound and tries to grab it when spinning. My 4-year-old plays together (she also likes it)."

With over 20 cheerful melodies, your tot will have hours of fun with this spinner from Bright Starts, great for encouraging babies to play and learn. Parents love how this toy allowed their child to associate cause and effect, identify seaside animals and tune their fine motor skills.

One reviewer said: "Purchased it as my 10 month old loves it at playgroup. It lights up and spins and makes sounds when pressed. My son loves pressing it over and over again and it's not too difficult for him. It's sturdy and well made, not too easy to knock over."

With this interactive honey pot, your little one can enjoy four sing-along songs and 15 happy melodies as they play peek-a-boo with the cute soft, fabric bear. There are two learning buttons and parents loved the little bumble bee that makes the bees on the front spin when pushed down.

Auntie Cara said: "My niece loves playing peek a boo and loves this toy! Laughs at it every time she plays with it! Great for little ones."

With over 75 different songs that are bound to get stuck in your head, phrases, jingles and tunes, this entertaining puppy dog is brilliant for helping develop your baby's language and speech with their first 100 words being taught with the puppy. This product was also shortlisted in our Mother&Baby 2016 Awards.

Mum Stephanie said: "My daughter was immediately drawn to this toy. She has started to hug and kiss the puppy, which she hasn't done before with any other soft toy. I like the 3 different levels of learning which correspond to different ages. It's easy to use and I like the various different songs." Read more mum reviews here.

There are loads of fun sounds on this entertaining activity table, from animal noises to catchy tunes to help develop their fine motor skills. With a range of bright colours, parents found there was plenty to stimulate baby's senses and is the perfect toy from 6 months up to their toddler years.

Grandma Sharon said: "Gave this to my 6month old granddaughter for Christmas. When she can sit on her own it will be brilliant but even now she sits and touches it and loves the different colours and music. Also nice that the volume has two levels, really happy with it"

Enjoy hours of fun stacking these brightly coloured rings, bursting with tickly textures and tactile finishes. This fun game helps your baby develop their problem-solving skills and hand-eye coordination. This was also shortlisted for a Mother&Baby Award in 2019.

Mum Jasmine said: "The glow rings were easy to use and straightforward. Each ring was different to look at and feel. My baby enjoyed chewing and sucking on the rings but other than the one with the beads in she didn't really play with the others. When the head came off she liked to play with the tags on top. I'm unsure whether I would recommend it or not, it is nice to look at and is a great visual sensory toy but I am not sure there is enough for the child to play with."

Read more mum reviews of this toy here.

Designed to grow with your baby through two stages of play, this interactive floor-into-table challenges and encourages little ones to play with 20 developmental activities with a light-up piano, a swirl slide, and eight cute and colourful balls. It also includes three character super spinners.

One reviewer said: "My grandson plays with this every time he is at my house, and it is one of the main reasons he started trying to stand up so he could get to it faster than I was moving. He also loves the music and will dance when it is playing. I have definitely gotten my money's worth in the last few weeks with the amount of time spent playing with it."

This preschool learning piano can help little ones become familiar with colours and numbers in English or French! They can explore different instrument sounds, learn to play two popular songs, and designed for sensory play, they can press the melody button to hear 17 delightful melodies to play and sing along with. Parent Gerry said: "Ordered this for my son! Nice quality! My son loves it! easy to use! Nice size! Nice musical toy! Nice and sturdy! Good value for money."

Designed to inspire and motivate your baby to get moving and walking, the walker features over 70 activities, songs, and sounds to help get your baby on their feet and help them walk until they're confident little walkers, and parents loved how it provided their tot with some stability. This product was shortlisted in the 2018 Mother&Baby Awards.

Mum Georgia said: "I’d recommend this product for its strength and stability. My daughter is quite heavy-handed, and yet even after she had pushed this walker into tables, chairs and climbed all over it, there were no signs of breaking. I would also recommend it for the disco ball at the front, which reflects onto the floor and had my daughter dancing and singing to the melody."Read more mum reviews of this product here.

This learning toy suits your baby's needs as they grow and provides plenty of ways for them to play. With each of the six eggs that crack open to reveal different faces and colours, they can play hide and seek, shape sort, colour match, and more and parents loved how it boosted their child's cognitive and physical development.

Parent Liang said: "Probably one of my best investments in toys! My son has been playing with them from 6 months and he's still playing with them now at nearly 26 months, in very different ways."

This is a lovely gift for little ones. It includes soft stacker crocodile, tiger, elephant, lion, and parrot stacking toys. Your baby will find these really engaging, plus they will help with hand-eye co-ordination and animal association.

One reviewer said: "Beautiful item from JoJo … suitable for very small little people to clasp with small fingers and will still be age appropriate as she progresses to sorting stacking and counting. Excellent!"

Parents and their tots found this toy both fun and educational! Your little one will love exploring everything it has to offer. It is designed to grow with your baby and it provides lots of stimulating activities including a clock with movable arms, doors with a sliding lock, a peg maze, peekaboo curtains, a bead maze, a turning barrel and flower cogs.

One reviewer said: "Beautifully packaged!!! Perfect gift for my little boy who adores his sensory. I loved it so much that I also bought one for my friends daughters Christmas."

This jam-packed set of Montessori toys will keep your baby entertained for hours. With unique shapes, bright colours, and various ways to play there is so much for your little one to explore, plus all toys are safe to chew, squeeze, and grasp. The great news for you is they are also easy to clean and won't fade over time. This set includes: 6 Stacking Blocks, 5 Stacking Rings, 1 Pull String Activity Toy, and 1 Montessori Cube + 6 Shape Blocks.

One review said: "I have a very inquisitive baby and she loves these. They can all be washed and wiped down. They don't have a garish colour but still attract the baby's attention. Great price and good selection of different activities on the toys."

There will be lots of fun with this interactive inchworm toy. Your little one can press down on the middle ball to flatten the inchworm, then when they release it the inchworm will crawl and your baby can chase it. Plus it has a light up face and plays music. Not only will your little one be fascinated but it help develop muscle strength and gross motor skills.

One mum tester said: "My sons on second one now lasted 2 years of him dropping it banging it on floors and chewing it. Finally gave up. only weak point is the neck. Helped to get him crawling plus gives him loads of belly laughs when it bumps into him."