The best baby toy is the one that matches the stage a child is actually at. We compared the toys Australian parents buy most on Amazon.com.au against the mandatory toy standard for children under 36 months, looked at what each asks a baby to practise, and read verified-purchase reviews to find the ones that survive real use.
Our verdict
Best overall gift: Fisher-Price Deluxe Kick & Play Piano Gym — a play gym that works from the first weeks of tummy time through to sitting play. Check price on Amazon.com.au
Best budget: Oball Easy-Grasp Rattle — the first toy most babies can hold on their own; we would put it in every newborn gift. Check price on Amazon.com.au
Best hero gift: Skip Hop Explore & More Activity Centre — a premium-band activity centre that converts to a play table and earns its place to age three. Check price on Amazon.com.au
Quick comparison
| Toy | Best for | Price band | Key spec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oball Easy-Grasp Rattle | First grasp, 0 months+ | Budget | Open-weave ball, soft rattle beads | Check price |
| Lamaze Captain Calamari | Pram and capsule, 0 months+ | Budget | Clip-on soft toy, crinkle, mirror, teether | Check price |
| Fisher-Price Kick & Play Piano Gym | Best play gym, newborn to sitting | Mid-range | Kick-activated piano, arch toys, tummy-time pillow | Check price |
| Baby Einstein Kickin’ Tunes Gym | Alternative play gym | Mid-range | Detachable piano, four modes, machine-washable mat | Check price |
| Fisher-Price Rock-a-Stack | First stacker, 6 months+ | Budget | Five graded rings on a rocking base | Check price |
| Fisher-Price Baby’s First Blocks | First shape sorter, 6 months+ | Budget | Ten blocks, three shapes, carry-bucket lid | Check price |
| Skip Hop Explore & More Activity Centre | Hero gift, 4 months to 3 years | Premium | Rotating seat, adjustable height, converts to table | Check price |
| Melissa & Doug Shape Sorting Cube | Wooden sorter, 2 years+ | Budget | Twelve wooden shapes, fold-open cube | Check price |
| Nuby Floating Octopus | Bath toy, 18 months+ | Budget | Floating octopus with three hoop rings | Check price |
| Lamaze Pile & Play Cups | Stacking cups, 6 months to 3 years | Budget | Eight textured, nesting cups | Check price |
The picks in detail
0–3 months: looking, grasping and kicking
Newborns see best at about 20 to 30 cm, in high contrast, and spend their first weeks learning to track, bring hands together and push up on their arms. Toys for this stage are about texture, contrast and something to kick.
1. Oball Easy-Grasp Rattle
An open-weave flexible ball with rattle beads inside, sized so a newborn’s fist can hook through the holes before they can grip deliberately. It is the most bought baby toy on Amazon.com.au because it is the first toy a baby holds, shakes and later throws, and it is one piece with no small parts.
Pros
- Graspable from the first weeks; light enough to drop on a face
- Single moulded piece, easy to wash
- Budget band
Cons
- Rolls under furniture constantly
- Colours vary by listing
Who it’s for: every newborn gift bag.
Check price on Amazon.com.au2. Lamaze Captain Calamari
A soft octopus with a clip ring for a pram, capsule handle or play gym arch, with crinkle tentacles, a mirror, a squeaker and a teething ring in the high-contrast colours young babies track best. It is the pram toy that gets through a supermarket run. Take it off before a nap.
Pros
- Clips to prams, capsules and gyms
- Several textures and a mirror in one toy
- Surface-washable
Cons
- Fabric gets grubby quickly
- Squeaker is loud in a quiet car
Who it’s for: gift buyers pairing it with the Oball.
Check price on Amazon.com.au3. Fisher-Price Deluxe Kick & Play Piano Gym
A padded mat with an arch of hanging toys and a kick-activated piano at the foot end, which a newborn sets off by chance and a three-month-old on purpose. The piano detaches for sitting play and there is a tummy-time pillow. It covers the longest stretch of the first year of any gym here.
Pros
- Works for lying, tummy time and sitting
- Piano detaches as a standalone toy
- Machine-washable mat
Cons
- Needs floor space and batteries
- Hanging toys are fixed in position
Who it’s for: the main newborn gift from grandparents or a group.
Check price on Amazon.com.au4. Baby Einstein Kickin’ Tunes Gym
The closest rival to the Fisher-Price gym, with a detachable piano, hanging toys that come off for the pram, and a machine-washable mat. The music leans classical with volume control, and some parents prefer its calmer colours. If you would rather skip the electronics, the Tiny Love Gymini has arches that lower for tummy time and come off once your baby sits. See it on Amazon.com.au
Pros
- Detachable toys reuse on the pram
- Volume control; calmer soundtrack
- Washable mat
Cons
- Piano is less responsive to light kicks than the Fisher-Price
- Batteries not included
Who it’s for: parents who want a play gym without the brighter Fisher-Price styling.
Check price on Amazon.com.au6–12 months: sitting, grabbing and cause-and-effect
Once a baby sits unaided, they bang, drop, fill and empty, and learn that an action produces a result. Stackers, blocks and a safe place to stand suit this stage.
5. Fisher-Price Rock-a-Stack
Five graded rings on a rocking cone. At six months it is a set of safe things to chew and bang; by twelve months it teaches size order and the pleasure of taking something apart and rebuilding it. The rings are large and smooth.
Pros
- Teaches size ordering and hand coordination
- Rings double as teethers
- Budget band classic
Cons
- Rocking base topples on a thick rug
- Outgrown by about two
Who it’s for: a six-month or first-birthday gift that gets used daily.
Check price on Amazon.com.au6. Fisher-Price Baby’s First Blocks
Ten chunky plastic blocks in three shapes and a bucket whose lid is a shape sorter. Early on your baby tips the blocks out and puts them back through the open top; sorting through the lid usually clicks between twelve and eighteen months.
Pros
- Grows from dump-and-fill to shape sorting
- Large pieces, well inside the small-parts rule
- Self-storing bucket
Cons
- Only three shapes
- Lid is stiff for small hands
Who it’s for: the natural pair with the Rock-a-Stack.
Check price on Amazon.com.au7. Skip Hop Explore & More Activity Centre
A fabric seat that rotates inside a round play table, with toys around the rim and a flexible platform underneath so your baby pushes with their feet. Once your toddler walks, the seat comes out and the table becomes a play surface. It replaces a bouncer, a jumper and a toddler table.
Pros
- From about four months (with head control) to three years
- Foot platform encourages flat-footed standing
- Converts to a play table
Cons
- Large footprint; slow assembly
- Premium band
Who it’s for: a group gift for a baby whose parents have the space.
Check price on Amazon.com.au12–36 months: sorting, stacking and water play
Toddlers want to solve things. Shapes that fit one way, cups that nest in order and bath toys that pour build the fine-motor and problem-solving skills that come before pencils and puzzles.
8. Melissa & Doug Shape Sorting Cube
A wooden cube with twelve shapes and a matching hole for each on its six faces; the cube opens so the shapes tip out. It is a genuine step up from a three-shape sorter. Because the smaller shapes approach the small-parts limit it is labelled for two years and up, and we would respect that.
Pros
- Twelve shapes give real problem-solving
- Solid wood; wipes clean
- Budget band for a wooden toy
Cons
- Not for under-twos
- Pieces go missing under the couch
Who it’s for: a second-birthday gift for a toddler who has mastered the plastic sorter.
Check price on Amazon.com.au9. Nuby Floating Octopus Bath Toy
A floating octopus with three hoop rings to toss over its tentacles, labelled for 18 months and up because of the rings. The octopus is a solid floating piece rather than a hollow squirter, so it does not fill with water and grow mould inside. If you want something that pours as well, the Munchkin Falls fountain is a similar sealed design. See it on Amazon.com.au
Pros
- No hollow cavities to trap water and mould
- Rings build throwing accuracy
- Budget band stocking filler
Cons
- Rings are easily lost
- Not for under 18 months
Who it’s for: parents who have thrown away one too many mouldy squirters.
Check price on Amazon.com.au10. Lamaze Pile & Play Cups
Eight nesting cups with textured faces. At six months they are things to bang and mouth; at a year they stack and nest; at two they pour water in the bath and become towers to knock down. Stacking cups are the most open-ended budget toy you can buy.
Pros
- Useful from six months to three years
- Works in the bath and the sandpit
- Nests small for travel
Cons
- Textured faces trap sand
- Lid piece is easily lost
Who it’s for: anyone who wants one toy that is never outgrown.
Check price on Amazon.com.auGifts by budget
Stocking fillers (budget band): the Oball, Captain Calamari, Rock-a-Stack, Baby’s First Blocks, the Nuby octopus and the stacking cups. Two matched to the child’s age beat one bigger toy that is not.
Under the tree (mid-range): a play gym gets the most hours of use in the first year. Pick the Fisher-Price or Baby Einstein gym for a baby under six months.
Hero gift (premium): the Skip Hop activity centre is the one premium-band toy worth grandparents or a group pooling for.
How to choose a baby toy in Australia
The mandatory toy standard
Toys for children up to and including 36 months must meet the Consumer Goods (Toys for Children up to and including 36 Months of Age) Safety Standard 2023, which draws on AS/NZS ISO 8124.1. The core rule is small parts: no piece, and nothing that can break off, may fit inside a small-parts cylinder roughly the size of a toddler’s throat. Toys for older children are not held to that rule, so keep anything labelled three years and up away from a baby sibling. Toys with a button battery must also meet the mandatory button battery standards.
Match the stage, not the age on the box
Age labels are a safety floor, not a developmental target. Watch what your child is working on, such as grasping, sitting, standing or sorting, and buy for that.
Bath toys and mould
Hollow squirt toys draw water in and never fully drain, and the black mould inside ends up in your toddler’s mouth. Choose sealed or solid bath toys and hang them up after each bath.
No baby walkers
Wheeled baby walkers are sold in Australia under a mandatory standard, but Kidsafe and child-health services advise against them: they do not help a baby learn to walk and are linked to falls down stairs, burns and head injuries. A stationary activity centre, or a push-along walker for a toddler who already stands, is the safer gift.
Fewer, better, rotated
Babies play longer with a few toys they can reach than with a box full. Keep three or four out and swap them weekly. Check recalls.gov.au before accepting a hand-me-down, and inspect second-hand toys for cracks, loose eyes and battery covers that no longer screw shut.
How we chose
We shortlisted the toys Australian parents buy most on Amazon.com.au, confirmed each is sold as suitable for the age we recommend it under the mandatory under-36-months toy standard, then read verified-purchase reviews on Amazon.com.au and Australian parenting sites for durability and washability. We use price bands rather than prices because Amazon prices change daily.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Australian toy safety standard for babies?
Toys for children up to and including 36 months must meet the Consumer Goods (Toys for Children up to and including 36 Months of Age) Safety Standard 2023, based on AS/NZS ISO 8124.1. The key requirement is that no part, or piece that can break off, is small enough to be a choking hazard. Toys with button batteries must also meet the mandatory button battery standards.
What is the best toy for a newborn in Australia?
For the first three months, a soft high-contrast toy to look at, a light rattle they can hook a fist through, and a play gym for tummy time cover everything a newborn can do. The Oball rattle and a play gym such as the Fisher-Price Kick and Play are the two most useful newborn gifts.
Are wooden toys safer than plastic ones?
Not automatically. Both must meet the same small-parts rule for under-threes. Wooden toys last longer and avoid batteries, but painted pieces can chip and some wooden sorters are labelled for two years and up because the shapes are smaller. Check the age label and the condition of the toy rather than the material.
How do I stop bath toys going mouldy?
Buy sealed or solid bath toys that cannot fill with water, such as floating toys and stacking cups, rather than hollow squirters. Squeeze out and hang up anything hollow after every bath, and throw away any toy that shows black spots inside, because the mould ends up in your toddler’s mouth.
Is a baby walker a good first-birthday gift?
No. Wheeled baby walkers are associated with falls down stairs, burns and head injuries, and they do not help a baby learn to walk. Kidsafe and child-health services advise against them. A stationary activity centre for a younger baby, or a push-along walker for a toddler who can already stand, is a safer choice.
Related guides: buying for a new arrival? Browse the newborn hub and the gift hub, or see our picks for the best high chairs in Australia for the start of solids.
