In today’s digitized world, each generation appears to be becoming more tech-savvy, with even toddlers using phones with ease. So, here are some iPad apps for toddlers to help you choose the right one. Even if you try to keep toddlers away from electronic devices, they will find a method to play their favorite games or apps by scrolling down the screen. Thus, the best thing you can do is provide them with apps that are educational, engaging, entertaining, and child-friendly. According to new research, iPads offer three unique features that can improve children’s early education (1). With many applications available, you won’t have any trouble coming up with new approaches to teach your toddler. You can install effective learning apps and turn your device into a cutting-edge teaching tool for toddlers. If you’re not sure what fun apps to get for your toddler, you can go through our list of high-quality apps to choose a suitable one.
Top 23 iPad Apps For Toddlers
1. PBS Kids Games
It is a super fun app for children under five years.
Features:
The app plays over 50 free learning games anytime and anywhere with PBS Kids characters. The app is full of games that encourage your toddler to learn math, science, etc.
Some features include Daniel Wild Kratts, Tiger’s Neighborhood, Sesame Street, The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!, Super Why, and Dinosaur Train.
Parent resources include learning more about a TV series, finding local PBS KIDS station schedules, downloading other PBS KIDS apps, managing storage amount, etc.
Seller:PBS Kids
Rating: 4
Genre: Games
Compatibility:Requires iOS 8.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Price:Free
Language: English
Download Link: Here
2. Elmo Loves ABCs
Elmo is full of videos, activities, and games. It is an educational app that teaches toddlers about sounds, letters, and words. The app is suitable for ages two to five years.
Features:
The engaging, multi-faceted app teaches alphabets.
One mode allows toddlers to choose a letter and trace it as if they are writing. The app plays three video clips of the items starting with the letter.
They can color the pictures of those items and the game also has options for playing hide and seek.
In another mode, a letter from a group can be identified. This letter not only plays its sound but also a related video.
A music note link plays one of the four video renditions of the alphabet song. In one version, Elmo invites the toddler to sing along.
Developed by: Sesame Workshop Apps
Rating: 5
Genre: Games
Compatibility: Requires iOS 6.0 or later. Compatible with iPad.
Price:$4.99
Language: English
Download Link: Here
Dr Jazmine, a child psychologist, recommends Elmo Loves 123s as a great Ipad app for toddlers. She says, “It’s a nice introduction, especially for the young toddlers on math and counting (i).”
3. Cut The Rope
The famous app has 750 million downloads worldwide. The app has a physics-based award-winning game. Your toddler would love to win gold stars and discover hidden prizes. Unlocking exciting new levels is fun. The little monster in the game has only one request… CANDY!
Features:
The app features a cute green monster called ‘Om Nom’.
Players cut dangling ropes holding candy. The goal is to make the candy fall into the monster’s mouth while collecting as many gold stars as possible.
Seller:ZeptoLab UK Limited
Rating:5
Genre: Games
Compatibility: Requires iOS 6.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch
Price:$1.99
Language: English, French, German, Dutch, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Spanish
Download Link: Here
4.Wood Puzzle
The game is fun, relaxing, and challenging. The app is designed to spend free time in a healthy manner. This colorful game can make the toddler more intelligent and sensitive to colors and blocks. Also, it works in development of hand-eye coordination. The Luck Dip of London-certified app is a ten category seller in over 40 countries.
Features:
Featured as an in-store demo in Apple stores, it is ‘kid tested and mother approved’.
Rotation Off makes it easier for beginners to solve puzzles.
Rotation On makes the pieces rotate, making puzzles natural and realistic.
Baby mode is animated puzzles that help the little one with problem-solving skills.
Seller:Tropisounds Corporation
Rating:4.5
Genre:Education
Compatibility:Requires iOS 5.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Price: $0.99
Language: English
Download Link: Here
5. AniMatch
AniMatch is a great fun app that comes with a button big enough for easy navigation. It is very simple and engaging. Nature-themed, the little jiggle by the animals when a successful match is made peaks tots’ interests. The puzzles in the app, featuring animal graphics and funny animal sounds, are easy to learn. The New York Times travel section has mentioned AniMatch as a great game to have on trips for restless toddlers. They can develop cognitive skills, memory, and concentration. Ensure you keep giving them feedback so they are improving.
Features:
The app has four selections. Toddlers can match pictures to shadow images.
Toddlers can play the animal bingo game, where they must pick the animal based on the voice made by the app.
Match shows a written word. The game features a classic concentration card game.
Several buttons on the first page of the app feature other apps from the publisher.
The app comes with retina display graphics and native iPad support.
Toddlers get to know 31 different animals (10 in each game).
Developed by:Lima Sky
Rating: 4
Genre: Games
Compatibility:Requires iOS 4.3 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Price:$0.8
Language:English
Download Link: Here
[ Read: Free Apps For Toddlers ]
6. Endless Alphabet
It is an interactive educational app, teaching the alphabet and building vocabulary with adorable monsters. Each word features an interactive puzzle game.
Features:
The game features short animation illustrating talking letters and the definition of the word.
In total, the app features 100 words, letters, and words reacting to the 3D touch.
The specialty of this app is that it does not show scores or failures, making sure the little one can interact at his pace.
Note:You must be online while using the app and need enough disk space to see the words beyond G.
Developed by:Originator
Rating:4
Genre:Education
Compatibility: Requires iOS 7.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Price: $8
Language:English
Download Link: Here
7. The Wheels On The Bus
The app is an ‘all in one activity center’ for toddlers. Through the classic song, the little tots are exposed to different languages and instruments.
Features:
The app features 12 games with sing along, adorable graphics and sounds.
It has 11 beautiful verses of the classic rhyme “The Wheels On The Bus”.
New version features ‘play road trip’.
Toddlers can collect puzzle pieces to build vehicles.
Touch the screen to make the bus roll along the road, open the doors, and move the wipers.
Lyrics can be heard in English, German, Italian, Spanish, and French.
Note:This app is free to play, but it has in-app purchases for a few items. However, you can disable it.
Developed by:Kids Games Club by TabTale
Rating:5
Genre: Education
Compatibility:Requires iOS 7.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Price:Free
Language:English
Download Link: Here
8. Super Why
The Super Why App allows toddlers to play four different mini-games based on spelling, reading, letters, phonics, and rhymes. It allows reading stories.
Features:
Each game features a different character from the Super Why! TV series.
Toddlers can handle the games’ controls with ease.
Virtual stickers earned as rewards from each successful game can be used in a design-a-scene bonus game.
This app was featured by Apple at the launch of the iPad2 and the Parents’ Choice Silver Award winner.
Developed by:PBS Kids
Rating: 3
Genre:Educational
Compatibility:iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, Android, Kindle Fire
Price: $3.67
Language: English
Download Link: Here
9. Press Here: The App
The app includes an interactive picture book with 15 delightfully simple games and activities. It reinforces basic concepts in math and art.
A few of them are:
Photo: Draw a picture and then take a picture of it.
Rain:Make it rain colors.
Many Roads: Draw roads with your finger.
Are You Coming?: Drag the dots to each other and try to combine them.
Tap Tap: Tap to create dots everywhere.
Get Inside:Try to get the little dot into the big circle and more.
Seller:Chronicle Books
Rating:5
Genre: Education
Compatibility:Requires iOS 3.2 or later. Compatible with iPad.
Price:$1.99
Language:English
Download Link: Here
10. YouTube Kids
The delightful, free app for toddlers is designed for the curious minds. It is a portal to YouTube. Toddlers can enjoy videos even on the big screen with Apple TV, Chromecast, smart TVs, or game consoles.
Features:
For easy exploration, the videos in the app are divided into Music, Shows, Learning, and Explore.
Videos also include intro to sports, games, animals, crafts, and more.
The app comes with big buttons, instant full-screen, and easy scrolling.
Toddlers enjoy their favorites such Thomas & Friends and Talking Tom, Sesame Street, on-line hits such as Mother Goose Club, TuTiTu, Stampylonghead, and a lot more.
They can watch them offline to avoid ads.
For your child’s safety, parental control features such as timer, blocking channels, and disabling search features are available, making it age-appropriate.
Note: The channels and videos are subject to change due to regular updates.
Seller:Google, Inc.
Rating: 4 plus
Genre: Entertainment
Compatibility: Requires iOS 8.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Price: Free
Download Link: Here
Language: English, Arabic, Armenian, Albanian, Bulgarian, Catalan, Chinese, Cambodian, Croatian, Czech, Dutch, Danish, French, Finnish, German, Greek, Georgian, Hindi, Hungarian, Hebrew, Indonesian, Italian, Kazakh, Korean, Japanese, Laotian, Latvian, Malay, Mongolian, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Persian, Polish, Norwegian Bokmål, Romanian, Russian, Portuguese, Serbian, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Swedish, Slovak, Thai, Turkish, Traditional Chinese, Ukrainian, Vietnamese.
Note:The YouTube Kids App is only available in the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, Spain, and Canada (excluding Quebec). YouTube Kids is available with YouTube Red in the US, New Zealand, and Australia.
11. Five Little Monkeys
The interactive book app is designed for toddlers to explore pictures, personalize the story, and learn vocabulary. While the toddler explores the story, the parent can encourage literacy skills, teach vocabulary, and also own record narration.
Features:
As the toddler taps the monkey, it falls off the bed. The monkey then starts twirling around the head. It is then that a song commences. And the mommy monkey calls the doctor.
Easy-to-use navigation is toddler-friendly.
Seller:Oceanhouse Media, Inc.
Rating:4 plus
Genre: Books
Compatibility:Requires iOS 5.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch
Price: $0.99
Language: English
Download Link: Here
12. Drawing Pad
The app allows your toddler to play with colors, shapes, and also lets him create his own designs. The little one’s artistic piece could be shared via Facebook, Twitter, SMS, or email.
Features
The other features of the app include the accessibility and importing photos from camera or library, saving photos, selecting color pencil, customizing color, opacity, and brush size.
There are no instructions so let your tot use all his creativity!
Tap on your tool to start drawing, stamping, painting, or erasing.
Seller:Tiep Nguyen
Rating:4 plus
Genre:Entertainment
Compatibility:Requires iOS 6.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch
Price: Free
Language: English
Download Link: Here
13. Petting Zoo
The engaging app is full of surprises, witty, and quirky animations! With over one million downloads, the app is rated as “Absolutely adorable”, “A wonderful app for all ages!” by USA Today.
Features
The app is an interactive picture book featuring 21 hand-drawn animals with great animations, and playful, musical sounds for each animal.
It combines animations and humor with state-of-the-art technology.
Developer:Fox & Sheep
Rating:4 plus
Genre:Educational
Compatibility:Requires iOS 6.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch
Price:$2.79
Language:English, Dutch, German, Italian, French, Korean, Portuguese, Japanese, Simplified Chinese, Russian, Spanish, Traditional Chinese
Download Link: Here
14. Nighty Night!
The popular app is perfect for daily go-to-sleep ritual with cute animals, stunning narration, and lullaby music. The toddler watches all the animals going to bed, which lulls him into sleep.
Features:
“Nighty Night!” is brought to you by Oscar-nominee Heidi Wittlinger.
The interactive book combines little sets made of paper, 2D illustration, and animation. It is not a reading app, though.
The little one finds 13 different animals, including duck, dog, pig, cow, sheep, fish, pony, chicken, spider, cat, goat, rabbit, etc.
They can tap the rooms of the house and turn lights off to put the animals to sleep.
It features cause-and-effect lessons for toddlers, accompanying the soothing going-to-sleep music.
Seller:Fox and Sheep GmbH
Rating:4 plus
Genre: Books
Compatibility: Requires iOS 7.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Price: $2.99
Language: English, French, German, Dutch, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Japanese, Simplified Chinese, Swedish, Turkish, Spanish.
Download link: Here
15. Little Red Hen – Interactive Reader
The app comes with the classic fable that tells the story of the industrious hen. Your toddler would learn about the value of hard work and teamwork by interacting with the scenes and characters in the story.
Features:
The app takes your little explorer on an adventure while making them learn about the animals on the farm.
The kid-friendly narration makes the story more accessible than ever.
Your darling would love to read it again and again. There is an option to read the story in two ways, Read Aloud (listen to the narration) and Read It Myself (reads the story by self).
Seller:McGraw-Hill School
Rating:4 plus
Genre: Education
Compatibility: Requires iOS 4.2 or later. Compatible with iPad.
Price: $1.99
Language:English
Download link: Here
16. Bubbles
The app is a fun distraction for toddlers. It also improves their hand-eye coordination.
Features:
Bubbles pop up, making sounds
Gravity pulls the bubbles downward. Toddlers can draw bubble letters, shapes, and numbers.
As toddlers run their fingers over the screen, the bubbles fly through on the screen.
Seller:Jesse Grosjean
Rating:4 plus
Genre: Entertainment
Compatibility:Requires iOS 7.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Price: $0.99
Language: English
Download link: Here
17. Pat the Bunny
Pat the Bunny is the first interactive book of its kind and the best iPad app for preschoolers. Based on a book by Dorothy Kunhardt, the app is perfect for little fingers and little one’s imaginations. It is particularly designed for preschoolers and toddlers with playful sound effects and impressive music.
Features:
The app has a play mode for toddlers to feed and interact with the bunny.
They can tap, swipe, and explore 14 interactive scenes.
The bunny becomes the toddler’s interactive pet. You can hear your darling’s delightful giggles as he plays hide and seek with the bunny, catches butterflies, makes music in the kitchen and pops bubbles in the bathhub.
Seller:Random House
Rating:4 plus
Genre: Books
Compatibility:Requires iOS 7.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Price: $0.99
Language: English
Download link: Here
18. Talking Carl
Sing, talk, and play with Carl. As your baby tickles, punches, and irritates Carl, he can hear the funny growls, laughter, and more! This game can help improve your baby’s communication and social skills.
Features:
Strike Carl by lightning
Feed him bones
Talk to hear him repeat your words.
Poke his eyes to hear him yell and shout.
If you forget him, he will grumble to remind you of him.
Carl is very polite as well. He says goodbye every time you are about to shut the app.
Note:The app might encourage misbehavior.
Developer:Tayasui
Rating:4 plus
Genre:Entertainment
Compatibility:Requires iOS 9.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Price: $0.99
Language:English, German, French, Italian, Japanese, Simplified Chinese, Korean, Spanish
Download link: Here
19. Sound Touch
This is one of the best educational apps for toddlers and irresistible too. It plays many different sounds to inspire little minds.
Features:
The toddler can choose from the extensive list of sounds such as trumpets, boats, trains, sheep, cats, horses, etc.
They can just tap a picture in one of the six categories: vehicles, domestic or farm animals, birds, wild animals, household items, and musical instruments.
The sound-touch features an intuitive interface, engaging learning, simple controls, quality sound recordings, photographs, and graphics.
It is optimized with the latest mobiles, flawless use, and new bonus.
Note: A picture like a cobra (ready to strike) or growling voices of some animals might disturb your toddler.
Developer:Eran Talmor
Rating: 4 plus
Genre:Education
Compatibility:Requires iOS 6.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Price: $4.41
Download link: Here
Language: English, Arabic, Catalan, Afrikaans, Croatian, Czech, Dutch, Filipino, Danish, Finnish, French, Greek, Hebrew, German, Hindi, Hungarian, Japanese, Korean, Italian, Norwegian Bokmål, Polish, Portuguese, Persian, Russian, Slovenian, Spanish, Simplified Chinese, Swedish, Turkish, Traditional Chinese.
20. Toddler Flashcards
The app acts as a great tool for the toddlers to learn basic words. The toddler gets engaged and learns through the app.
It comes with 20 cards, spoken pronunciations in multiple languages such as English, French, Chinese, Spanish, German, Farsi, Greek, Russian, Hindi, Portuguese, Arabic, and Japanese, besides animal sound effects.
Flashcards teaches the names of animals, things, foods, and colors. Toddlers are also introduced to numbers, alphabet, and animal sounds.
Seller:iTot Apps
Rating:4 plus
Genre: Education
Compatibility:Requires iOS 4.3 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Price: Free
Language: English, French, Chinese, Spanish, Simplified Chinese
Download link: Here
21. Moo, Baa, La La La! – Sandra Boynton
The Moo, Baa, La La La! Digital book app will amuse toddlers. It is an interactive version of the classic board book by Sandra Boynton. The app is rated by Kirkus Star, Children’s Technology Review Editor’s Choice, and Common Sense Media – 5 Stars.
Features:
It has an appeal of a traditional pop-up book.
Each animal makes its unique sound. Touching the moon turns day to night.
Your little one can slingshot the running cats away from barking dogs.
Your darling touches a duck to hear its quack and brings another duck and the chain continues. So, touch the animals to hear them moo or oink or quack.
You can read it loud or the app reads out.
Seller:Loud Crow Interactive
Rating:4 plus
Genre: Books
Compatibility:Requires iOS 4.3 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Price:$3.99
Language:English
Download link: Here
22. The Going to Bed Book – Sandra Boynton
The app offers lively interactivity and thoroughly mesmerizing and delightful discovery. Characters in the app respond to touch with movement and sound. Toddlers can enjoy turning the tap water on and off as well as adjust the steam levels that fog the screen. They can, interestingly, write their name on the steam. They can also brush their teeth, besides doing a session of group exercises with ten pajama-clad animals (each animal exercises in its own way).
More features include:
Help the piggy turn off the lights and rock yourself to sleep to the soothing sound coming from the music box, containing twinkling stars.
The gentle narration by British Invasion legend, Billy J. Kramer is simply amazing.
Tilt the device to watch things slide.
Make the animals move by touching, pulling, and turning them.
Realistic page turning interactions are highlighted.
Hear individual words pronounced with the tap of a finger or read them yourself.
Developer: Loud Crow Interactive
Rating: 4 plus
Genre: Books
Compatibility:Requires iOS 4.3 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
Price:$3.67
Language:English
Download link: Here
23. Monkey Preschool Lunchbox
This is an exciting educational game for preschoolers between ages two and five.
Features:
Kids may learn about colors, the alphabet, counting, shapes, sizes, matching, and distinctions through seven games.
A charming, animated monkey assists children while they play the game.
Dozens of voice recordings and noises representing letters, colors, fruit names, and other concepts.
Stickers with animations! Children receive stickers as incentives for their accomplishments.
Designed with children in mind—no complicated navigation or menus.
Infinite play! Every game seamlessly leads onto the next.
Seller: THUP Games LLC
Genre:Education
Rating: 4+
Age:Made for Ages 0–5
Compatibility:Requires iPadOS 10.0 or later.
Price:$1.99
Languages:English
Download Link:Here
Ipad apps for toddlers can help them learn basic language, numbers, and other activities. PBS kids games, Elmo loves ABCs, wood puzzles, cut the rope, etc., are some of the iPad apps for toddlers. You may choose the app based on your child’s requirements and interests. These apps are one of the best ways to learn the alphabet and colors without hassle. Video apps such as YouTube kids can also be beneficial for toddlers. Although iPad apps help learn, limiting screen time for better eye health and learning from other sources is essential.
Key Pointers
- It is important to provide toddlers with iPad apps that are entertaining, educational, engaging, and child-friendly.
- Toddlers above two may use the iPad under the watchful supervision of an adult with limited screen time.
- Toddlers with special needs can consider iPad apps like SoundingBoard, Braille Academy: Play & Learn, and Lexico Cognition.
- To improve fine motor skills, toddlers can try iPad apps like Cut the Rope, PBS Kids Games, and Elmo Loves ABCs.
Discover the best toddler apps in this video! These engaging, educational, and fun apps are perfect for your little ones.
