Kids’ subscription boxes are a brilliant way of entertaining children, whether you want to keep them busy with a craft project in the school holidays or get them off screens for a bit on a rainy day.
There are lots of subscription boxes to choose from, so you can either pick something they’re keen on – like art with a monthly craft box, or to help them along with their schoolwork. That could be via regular deliveries of fun but educational maths challenges to support their learning in school, or through a STEM-inspired box to hone their problem-solving skills.
How do kids’ subscription boxes work?
Kids’ subscription boxes are usually delivered every month, but you’ll find bi-monthly boxes available too, as well as some larger boxes that are delivered every three months. They work on a regular basis, so you’ll usually need to commit to a longer period – for example, 12 months – if you want the best deals. Increasingly though, you can pause or cancel your subscription whenever you like, and there are often deals to be had – particularly on your first box.
Most kids’ subscription boxes are designed for one child, but many get the whole family involved with options for siblings where you can double the contents and let them get stuck in together.
When you’re choosing a kids’ subscription box, keep an eye on recommendations as they tend to be designed for specific ages. And if you just want to try a box before you commit, look for one-off boxes – which also make great gifts.
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Lovevery Play Subscription Box
Lovevery’s subscription-based play kits are a top-quality option for babies and toddlers. They’re based on the idea of stage-based play, which means your little one receives a box of toys and books carefully tailored to their age and stage.
Play Kits for babies aged 0–12 months (£80) are filled with items to help them develop fine and gross motor skills and are delivered every two months. Play Kits for ages 1 and 2 (£120) build on your child’s curiosity and independence and are delivered every three months.
We tested The Babbler Play Kit, designed for little ones at 13, 14, and 15 months, and we were blown away by the quality and sheer number of toys inside. From clever wooden stacker toys and a cute board book, to a play guide filled with helpful tips for parents, this is a substantial subscription box that offers bang for your buck.
Buy now £80.00, Lovevery
KiwiCo STEM subscription box
KiwiCo stocks all sorts of STEM and STEAM subscription boxes, starting with their play-inspired Panda Crate for babies, all the way up to their engineering-inspired Eureka Crate for ages 14 and up. We tested the Doodle Crate, an art-focused box aimed at kids aged 9-16, as well as the Tinker Crate, which has more of a science focus and develops problem-solving skills for the same age range.
Our nine year old tester absolutely loved making a domino machine he’s seen on YouTube, particularly because he could follow the instructions independently. The crates are shipped internationally, so the first one may take a little longer to arrive than normal, but from that point onwards you’ll get a new themed box delivered every month.
Buy now £19.65, KiwiCo
Baketivity
Each brilliant Baketivity box includes pre-packed dry ingredients, a step-by-step recipe, a fun activity lesson, a cook-along video and more. Long-time subscribers will not only enjoy reduced subscription rates, but they’ll also get ahold of a chef hat and apron at a later stage. Some of our favourite kits include the cake pop baking, the birthday cake kit and the unicorn cookie decorating kit. All you’ll need to purchase is some fresh wet ingredients such as milk and eggs.
Buy now £34.95, Baketivity
ToucanBox Craft Subscription Box
For young children who enjoy crafting, toucanBox delivers two creative projects through the door every month. Our little testers had fun making a dinosaur tail and a tiny greenhouse with real seedlings, and we were impressed that everything we needed was packaged up inside the box.
While the crafts are generally aimed at kids aged 3+, the instruction booklet is clear enough for older children to follow and make the crafts independently, and our seven year old tester was proud to make hers without help. What’s particularly nice about these is the flexibility.
As well as signing up for an ongoing monthly sub, you can also gift a shorter subscription – three months is the shortest option – or buy one-off boxes like new unicorn and dino cookie baking kits.
Buy now £13.90, Toucanbox
It’s Our Planet Too Eco Subscription Box
We love the no-fills nature of this box, which aims to educate and empower children to think about the environment via lots of simple activities. It’s entirely plastic-free, and the creative activities – which are printed on recycled cards – often use recycled materials or bits and bobs from around the house.
Our little testers particularly liked the fact that half of all profits from the boxes go to good causes, and felt the contents could only be bettered with the addition of a (sustainably sourced) sweet treat. Overall this is an empowering little tool kit that teaches children to take care of the planet in a fun yet factual way.
£33 for a three-box subscription.
Buy now £33.00, NOTHS
Pipsticks Sticker Subscription Box
This monthly kids’ sticker club box ships from the US, so the first delivery may take a little while, but it’s well worth the wait. For starters, the branding is brilliant – from the holographic sticker storage pouch with a bold kid-friendly slogan on, to the shiny silver envelope it arrives in.
The stickers themselves are fabulous, too – you get 15 sheets and a real mix of colourful, shiny, glittery, puffy, and scratch ‘n stiff options. There’s a little activity book included, too, although our testers were so happy with the stickers they barely noticed.
Buy now £17.95, Pipsticks
Cubie Maths Subscription Box
This maths subscription box is delivered to your door at the start of each month and contains bite-sized maths exercises for your child to complete each day. Each exercise takes 10-15 minutes, so you can fit it in before or after school, and there are enough booklets to last the full month until your next box arrives.
The exercises follow the National Curriculum for Reception, year 1 and year 2, and run alongside the school year to reinforce what they’re learning in the classroom. While they’re designed to be followed independently, there’s a parents’ booklet in every box with tips to aid their learning, plus a reward chart and poster so they can track their progress.
Buy now £28.33, Cubie
Parrot Street Book Club Subscription Box
This monthly kids’ book subscription box is a nice option whether your child loves to read or needs a little encouragement. Every month you get a new chapter book delivered to your door, and the titles aren’t ones you’re likely to have come across already. You set the reading level – whether that’s 5-8, 8-12, or 12-14, and Parrot Street does the rest.
Every box comes with a little activity booklet themed around the book, and our testers liked feeling like they were part of a book club. This one is charged in a minimum three-month block and works out at £14 a month on that basis, with discounts for longer subscription periods.
Buy now £14.00, Parrot Street
Make + Wonder Art Club Subscription Box
If you’ve got a mini artist in the making, Make + Wonder’s monthly art subscription box will be right up their street. The focus is on female artists, and the projects are totally open-ended to encourage creativity. That means instead of step-by-step instructions you get pointers that encourage your little artist to take a much more fluid approach and see where their creativity leads them.
All the art materials you need are in the box, themed around a new female artist each month. We like the fact the cost of a sibling box, which has enough art materials for two kids, isn’t vastly different at £19.50 a month. The price goes down the longer you commit to.
Buy now £15.50, Make + Wonder
Mystery Football Shirt Kids Box
Know a mini Messi or the next Neymar? This sub box includes a new mystery football shirt every month, plus an info card about the team, kit, and league. We love the way the shirts are picked at random from clubs and countries all over the world – it means kids can boost their international footie knowledge as well as their kit collection.
Buy now £17.99, Mystery Football
Verdict
Each subscription box offers something a little different, but we were particularly impressed with the Play Kits from Lovevery for the quality of the contents, albeit at a higher price point than many boxes. For crafts for young kids, it’s got to be toucanBox – these boxes are brilliant fun at a budget-friendly price. And for fascinating STEM activities for older children, we’d recommend KiwiCo – the variety of boxes on offer is fantastic, as are the projects.
