Babies Gear and Products The 10 Best Toys for 8-Month-Olds of 2022 What little ones will love By Maya Polton Maya Polton LinkedIn Maya has more than 15 years of experience in digital media and communications and specializes in writing about family, food, and lifestyles. Learn about our editorial process and Ashley Ziegler Ashley Ziegler LinkedIn Ashley Ziegler is a lifestyle writer specializing in motherhood, family health, and consumer products. She has written for Romper, Moms.com, and more. Learn about our editorial process Updated on January 10, 2022 Medically reviewed Verywell Family articles are reviewed by board-certified physicians and family healthcare professionals. Medical Reviewers confirm the content is thorough and accurate, reflecting the latest evidence-based research. Content is reviewed before publication and upon substantial updates. Learn more. by Ann-Louise T. Lockhart, PsyD, ABPP Medically reviewed by Ann-Louise T. Lockhart, PsyD, ABPP Facebook LinkedIn Ann-Louise T. Lockhart, PsyD, ABPP, is a board-certified pediatric psychologist, parent coach, author, speaker, and owner of A New Day Pediatric Psychology, PLLC. Learn about our Medical Review Board Print Our editors independently research, test, and recommend the best products, and articles are reviewed by healthcare professionals for medical accuracy. You can learn more about our review process here. We may receive commissions on purchases made from our chosen links. Eight months old is a transitional phase for babies. Some can sit up on their own and start to seek out the world around them. Many 8-month-olds are very busy, since they love to explore, crawl, and discover (often by putting objects in their mouth). This age is a perfect time to introduce toys that will feed their development as they reach new milestones. Find the best toys for your 8-month-old with these ideas. Our Top Picks Best Cause and Effect: Munchkin Mozart Magic Cube at Amazon Safe for any age, this innovative cube includes instrument sounds and inspires creativity and interactive play. Best Blocks: Bloom Fat Brain Tobbles Neo Stacking Toy at Amazon The innovative toy challenges babies to balance, spin, and stack these spheres in gravity-defying angles. Best Musical: Fisher Price Groove and Glow BeatBo at Amazon The colors and sounds of the plush toy engage the senses while helping develop fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination. Best Gross Motor Skills: VTech Sit-to-Stand Learning Walker at Amazon Complete with five piano keys that play music, the walker also encourages creativity and aids baby as they take their first steps. Best Travel: Bright Starts Lots of Links Rings at Amazon The links are fun on their own or can be attached to your car seat, stroller, diaper bag, or anything else. Best Teether: Munchkin Twisty Figure 8 Teether at Amazon Complete with five gentle and stimulating textures, it provides fast relief for your baby's sore gums. Best Bath: Munchkin Bath Toy, Little Boat Train at Amazon Make bathtime or a beach day more fun with these boats that float and link together, teaching your little one about numbers. Best Sorting: Fat Brain Toys Store Oombee Cube Sorter at Amazon Made for little fingers and safe for teething, this sorting toy will help baby recognize shapes and strengthen fine motor skills. Best for Vocabulary: Fisher-Price Laugh & Learn Magic Color Mixing Bowl at Amazon Complete with six removable pieces, it'll introduce your 8-month-old to the alphabet, numbers, and colors. Best Book: Six Classic Board Books Box Set at Amazon Build up baby's library with this classic board set, featuring six books that are sure to become family favorites. Best Cause and Effect: Munchkin Mozart Magic Cube View On Amazon View On Walmart View On Fatbraintoys.com Pros Made with soft, rounded corners BPA-free and phthalate-free Budget-friendly Cons Songs do not play for long Batteries required Babies at this age are often just discovering cause and effect and how things happen. Add a love of music into that learning and this toy is so well suited for 8-month-olds. Safe for any age, this innovative cube includes instrument sounds from the harp, flute, French horn, piano, and violin. Press each button for individual sounds or press the Orchestra button to play all the instruments at once. This toy will inspire creativity and interactive play while teaching babies how sounds combine, so it’ll be fun for a long time. Best Blocks: Bloom Fat Brain Tobbles Neo Infant Stacking Toy View On Amazon View On Buybuy BABY View On Fatbraintoys.com Pros Colorful Promotes sensory exploration and motor skills Cons Some pieces are heavier than others Made with hard plastic Perfect for ages 6 months and up, these versatile and stylish blocks are great for sensory exploration, motor skills, coordination, spatial reasoning, and imaginative thinking. Busy and curious little kids will be engaged as they balance, nest, spin, and stack these blocks in gravity-defying angles. Many reviewers appreciate the thoughtful design of these modern blocks. Best Musical: Fisher Price Groove and Glow BeatBo View On Amazon View On Buybuy BABY View On Walmart Pros Promotes fine motor skills and eye-hand coordination Easy to use Cons Only 5 songs included Batteries needed This guy is a little musical buddy that’s fascinating for kids 6 months and up. Press his belly to start the music, songs, and dancing. The colors and sounds engage the senses while helping to develop fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination. Parent reviewers note how much their little ones love this little guy and the five sing-along songs are cute and bearable for adults. Best Gross Motor Skills: VTech Sit-to-Stand Learning Walker View On Amazon View On Walmart Pros Removable play panel Over 70 sing-along songs + more Encourages imaginative play Cons Phone is not attached Only back wheels lock Help your little one enhance their gross motor skills with this versatile sit and stand walker. For sitting babies, the removable play panel is engaging with shape sorters, light-up buttons, and more. As your growing baby begins to walk, move the panel back to the walker and your kiddo can play with it standing or use the walker for some helpful support. The 11 Best Toys for Fine Motor Skill Development of 2022 Best Travel: Bright Starts Lots of Links Rings 3.2 View On Amazon View On Buybuy BABY View On Walmart Pros Easy to clean Portable Cons Links may come apart easily A versatile toy that is perfect for any age, this set includes 24 flexible bendable links. The links are fun on their own or can be used to attach other toys to your car seat, stroller, diaper bag, or anything else. Great for when on-the-go, throw a few links in a bag and you’ll have an easy way to entertain a fussy baby. The strong, durable plastic is easy to wipe clean with a wet wipe or a quick dip in soapy water. Verywell Family / Michelle Piccolo Bright Starts Lots of Links Review Best Teether: Munchkin Twisty Figure 8 Teether View On Amazon View On Walmart View On Babylist.com Pros Four textured surfaces Develops motor, sensory, and cognitive skills Cons Most parts made of hard plastic Babies will love that they can twist, shake, or chew on this figure-eight teether rattle. The four textured surfaces will help soothe the baby’s gums while also providing stimulating tactile exploration. Safe for babies 6 months and up, the integrated rattle will make noise anytime it gets moved around. Parents appreciate that this well-made toy is sized just right for little hands. The 8 Best Baby Teethers of 2022 Best Bath: Munchkin Bath Toy, Little Boat Train, 6 Count View On Amazon View On Walmart Pros Lightweight Easy to grasp Cons Not dishwasher safe Lightweight and easy to grasp, these six colorful boats float and link together to create a bathtime boat train. They each have funny faces and are numbered making them perfect for counting, ordering, and number identification games. Great for bathtime (or the beach or a water table), the boats can scoop up and pour out water over and over again. Beneficial for hand-eye coordination, these versatile toys are safe for kids of any age. The 7 Best Bath Toys of 2022 Best Sorting: Fat Brain Toys Store Oombee Cube Sorter, Tactile Toy for Toddlers View On Amazon View On Fatbraintoys.com Pros Six rubbery shapes Strengthens fine motor skills and more Cons Shapes may be hard to put back in Only shapes are soft Little hands will love this shape-sorting toy which invites kiddos to slide each shape smoothly and snugly into their respective slots. The pieces are rubbery, textured, and squishy, so they are made for little fingers and safe for teething. Shapes include a triangle, square, oval, circle, pentagon, and a double circle. Time with this toy will strengthen fine motor skills, shape recognition, and visual-spatial skills. Best for Vocabulary: Fisher-Price Laugh & Learn Magic Color Mixing Bowl View On Amazon View On Walmart Pros Six removable play pieces Volume control switch Plays songs, lights, and sounds Cons Stickers may come off easily Introduce your 8-month-old to the alphabet, numbers, colors, and color mixing with some playful songs, sounds, and phrases. The toy comes with six removable pieces including a milk bottle, two measuring cups, a spoon, and more. Adding the “ingredients” into the bowl will result in exciting sounds, lights, and songs. Safe for babies 6 months old and up; parents will appreciate the volume control switch. Best Book: Six Classic Board Books Box Set View On Amazon View On Walmart Pros Books come in sturdy box Simple and engaging texts Cons Some books may be misprinted From beloved author-illustrator Eric Carle, this set of six classic board books all feature simple and engaging texts. The six books come in a sturdy box, so young ones will have fun taking out and putting away their special books. With thoughtful and repetitive text, these classic reads are sure to become family favorites. Final Verdict The Eric Carle Board Book Set (view on Amazon) is a toy that an 8-month-old will love well into toddlerhood, while the VTech Sit-to-Stand Walker (view on Amazon) will support their physical milestones and engage them with lights and sounds. What to Look for in Toys for 8-Month-Olds Interests Typically, when you think “interests” for kids, favorite characters, sports, and games might come to mind. While that’s definitely true for older kids, it’s not the case for babies because they’re still developing so much. At 8 months old, babies are starting to inch closer to the transition to toddler, and chances are high they’re most interested in moving and exploring. So, look for toys that offer sensory play and opportunities for curiosity, and that prompt movement. To promote moving and exploring, look for toys that are easy for babies to grab onto. According to Meredith Soucie, an occupational therapist in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, adults can “support babies' interest in moving their bodies by having various toys placed around them where they need to roll or creep some to reach them.” Milestones In the first year of life, developmental progress and reaching milestones is really important. While every baby progresses on their own time (and development can’t be forced), toys can serve as a fantastic aid and support in mastering skills. At 8 months old, babies are typically learning about the world through taste and touch (meaning, everything goes into their mouths). This is essentially exploration through sensory play, and the Munchkin Twisty Figure 8 Teether (view on Amazon) is perfect for it. While they likely aren’t walking at this age, babies are working towards it by pulling themselves up into a standing position from the floor. The V-Tech Sit-to-Stand Learning Walker (view on Amazon) is specifically designed for this. Eight-month-olds often like to bang toys together and stack them, which they can do with the Fat Brain Toys Tobbles Neo (view on buybuyBABY). Entertainment Entertaining an 8-month-old can be tricky, but if there’s one thing Soucie recommends, it’s sensory play. She explains that caregivers can “encourage exploration in diverse toys by having objects with different textures, shapes, colors, and sounds.” So, while a baby likely won’t be able to sort by colors or shapes at this age, they will still get engaged with toys' sight and touch. Babies are often working on mastering crawling around this age, too, so toys that roll on the ground, whether it’s a ball or an electronic toy designed to move around on the floor, can encourage that movement. Finally, don’t forget how entertaining and engaging books can be for kids of all ages, especially as baby starts understanding more and more. Books that offer opportunities for interaction (like different textures to touch or flaps to flip) are especially appealing for 8-month-olds. Frequently Asked Questions What toys should my 8-month-old have? At 8 months old, babies are really starting to explore. They’re sitting up on their own, and they might even be crawling. Your 8-month-old will likely love any toy that has sensory elements, such as textures, bright colors, and music. If they are crawling and inching towards walking, a sit-to-stand walker can help encourage them to move with support. Your baby might also enjoy a teether if they have teeth coming in.Any toys for an 8-month-old must be safe and non-toxic, as putting things in their mouth is still the primary way they explore the world. How many toys should my 8-month-old have? It’s really easy to quickly pile up a lot of toys. But at 8 months old, babies don’t need too many toys. They are learning about the world around them, and might be just as happy playing with a box as an age-appropriate toy. It’s less about the quantity and more about the quality. Is the toy engaging? Is your child able to hold it or grasp onto it? Is it a safe toy that they can put into their mouths? Three to five good-quality, interactive toys, such as teethers, ring toys, and an activity cube, could be enough for your baby. What are the best toys for an 8-month-old's development? During this transitional phase—they’re on the path to toddlerhood—8-month-old babies need toys that will help satisfy their curiosity. That means having toys that engage the senses, as well as toys that encourage movement. Toys that stack and that can be pushed over, toys that have bright colors, and toys that help them get moving are all good for development. Music is also very engaging at this age, so keep that in mind when looking for developmentally appropriate toys. Why Trust Verywell Family? Maya Polton is a former marketing manager and current freelance writer who covers food, home, and parenting. She’s a mom of a 10-year-old son, 7-year-old son, and 3-year-old daughter. Her favorite toys for 8-month-olds are a set of classic board books. They have long-lasting appeal, as that 8-month-old can someday read them back to you (or younger siblings). Additional reporting by Ashley Ziegler. Ashley Ziegler is a parenting writer and mom to a 2-year-old and a 4-year-old. She has personal experience in researching and purchasing products that are essential to motherhood. Key considerations she used when selecting these recommendations include functionality and purchaser reviews. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Track your baby’s most exciting moments with our milestone checklist. Get it free when you sign up for our newsletter. Sign Up You're in! Thank you, {{form.email}}, for signing up. There was an error. Please try again. What are your concerns? Other Inaccurate Hard to Understand Submit 1 Source Verywell Family uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Important milestones: Your baby by nine months.