Happy holidays! We hope this toy guide is helpful for those of you looking to have a toxin-free and environmentally-responsible holiday!
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure page.
Toys, like evvvvverything else, can introduce toxins into your home, to say nothing of the environmental impact of producing and disposing of ALL THAT plastic.
This non-toxic toy guide helps you minimize the risks to both your kids and the planet by investing in higher-quality, non-toxic toys.
If you want a truly toxin-free toy box, you will need to:
Here’s a quick non-toxic toys cheat sheet:
Some types of toys are consistently found to more toxic than others in study after study. Be especially cautious when purchasing:
For the purposes of this guide, I am not going to designate any toys that are entirely made of plastic as “Good Stuff.”
That said, there are some plastics that are likely completely inert and therefore don’t present a health risk. See “The Okay Stuff” below for a bunch of safe plastic toys.
From an environmental perspective, I would love to see us all support those companies who make high-quality wooden toys that can be passed down rather than thrown away.
This natural dough from Denmark lasts forever, and is made without perfumes, dyes, or parabens.
$26.00 – $33.00Buy Now
Apple Park makes sweet plush toys made with 100% certified organic cotton and OEKO-TEX 100 toxin-free dyes.
$3.99Buy Now
We love this European brand’s line of platinum silicone toys–and they are safe for the youngest kids because they are entirely non-toxic should they end up in a mouth.
$18.99Buy Now
Made in Germany of hard maple and beechwood, Holztiger wooden animals are colored with water-based paint and finished with a water-based sealants.
I had two key-obsessed babies, and I was freaked out when I learned that not only are your set of house keys filthy, but they also often contain lead. Kleynimals 100% stainless steel toy keys are made in the USA.
You can see the whole lineup of stainless steel toys here.
$34.99Buy Now
My favorite wooden animals are those by Ostheimer, mostly because of simply how pretty they are. They are hand-carved in Germany, and use only non-toxic paints and natural oils for finishing.
$59.00Buy Now
This is a great brand of safe, natural paints and face paints. Ingredients include simply organic corn starch and natural mineral pigments.
Petit Collage makes adorable paper dolls, magnet sets, wooden pull toys, stickers, coloring books, and other non-toxic toys. Everything is made without PVC, and using recycled paper and vegetable inks.
$13.99Buy Now
Plan makes all of their non-toxic toys in a sustainable factory in Thailand, where they maintain control and employ solar power.
PlanToys wooden toys are made from natural rubberwood trees that no longer produce latex. To keep the wood pure, no fertilizer is added to the soil for at least three years prior to harvesting the wood, and the wood is strengthened via a chemical-free kiln-drying process.
Plan’s printed materials are made of recycled paper and soy ink, and assembled with zero-formaldehyde-free glue. Plan’s dyes are free of heavy metals.
Like Plan, Tender Leaf Toys are made of rubberwood and painted with water-based paints. I rank them slightly below Plan because they are less transparent and overtly eco-friendly, although I can’t find anything to suggest they contain toxins.
My kids have tons of Tegu blocks and they don’t emit any odor, and hold up well after years of play.
$37.00Buy Now
We hope you’re enjoying this post! Sign up for our newsletter to be alerted when we publish or update our Safe Product Guides.
A lot of you asked about this brand, and while their toys are made in China, they are all free of lead, phthalates, and BPA. This company is also committed to environmental sustainability in their packaging.
Bruder vehicles, which are made in Germany, are constructed of ABS plastic, which is non-leaching and safe.
Green toys are among the best plastic toys you can find. They are made in America of recycled polyethylene, which is a non-leaching and safe kind of plastic.
Many of you have asked me about the play kitchens made by KidKraft. These kitchens are made mostly of wood, but they do employ some particle board (though it’s CARB II compliant), and some plastic.
This company didn’t get back to us with any certifications to back this claim up, but they assured us that none of their plush toys are treated with flame retardants.
This newer brand uses solid wood, non-toxic water-based paints, and organic cotton for almost all of its toys. I like their play kits.
While not organic or certified as non-toxic, I think Steiff is the best brand for more realistic stuffed animals. Steiff animals are made from higher-quality materials, like mohair, alpaca, cashmere, 100% cotton, and wool felt.
Barbie Dolls are made at least in part of PVC vinyl. On the upside, Matell has ditched the solvent-based paints for Barbie’s eyes.
Baby dolls, like this one by JC Toys, are usually made of vinyl.
Matchbox cars were found to contain “toxic chemicals” in this study.
In addition to the fragrance added to My Little Pony figures, the ponies themselves are made of vinyl.
TCG’s Road Racers Play Mat was found to have high levels of bromine in a study by HealthyStuff.org.
Transformers
Like Legos, Hasbro Transformers are made of ABS plastic, so I assumed they would be safe. In a recent study, Hasbro’s Transformers were found to be free of even trace amounts of heavy metals and other contaminants. However, a phone representative told a reader of ours that they are “neither BPA- nor PVC-free,” so we have to call them Sneaky Stuff.
I was disappointed to learn on Healthystuff.org that Playmobil is contaminated by a range of toxins and heavy metals. These were among my favorite toys when I was a child, and I assumed they would be a safe plastic choice until my research told me otherwise.
We own a lot of Schleich animal figurines, because I assumed they would be safer than the cheap alternatives (it’s a German company and the animals are beautiful and high-quality, the paint never chips, and they don’t smell toxic). Unfortunately, Schleich figurines are made of PVC, and they only mention being free of the phthalates that are banned in children’s toys.
Don’t see your favorite toys in any of the Good, Okay, Bad, or Sneaky categories? Comment below and let us know!
If you liked this post, sign up for our newsletter to be alerted when we publish new content like this!
This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Bobbie. All thoughts and…
Once again, December is chugging along with Covid cases ticking upwards across the country. A…
UPDATED: November 2021 Written by Maia & John Finding a non-toxic mattress is super-important, but…
This year, because of delayed delivery times from most stores, we are publishing our gift…
We've partnered with three of our favorite brands to reward our early-bird holiday shoppers. The…
Stuffing is my favorite part of the Thanksgiving meal. I am not crazy about the…
View Comments
Great list! Thanks for giving us some food for thought.
You have now made me want to put on the Christmas tunes. ;)
Thank you so much for doing and sharing this important research!
Hey Maia, great post just in time for the holiday shopping! I was wondering what you thought of B. Toys.
Best
Tina
Thank you so much for making this list (and this entire website). I discovered your site I think shortly after I gave birth a couple of years ago, and I've been referring mommy friends to your site ever since. I'm wondering about these toy brands:
- Jellycat stuffed animals
- B. Toys
- Tegu magnetic blocks
- Magformers
- Pretty much all the other popular magnetic block brands listed in this article, except Magnatiles which you already covered: https://blogs.babycenter.com/products_and_prizes/magna-tiles-vs-magformers-a-magnetic-tile-review/
Thank you so much in advance!
Banner Toys is made in China and not organic + polyester.
Thank you for the guide! My son loves Green Toys so I was glad they at least made the Okay list.
What about Duplo and Megablocks?
Duplo and MegaBlocks are also safe. I only call them "okay" rather than "good" because they aren't recyclable.
While not recyclable, they are reusable and looking lasting. They can be handed down or saved for the next generation. Almost all of our duplos have come from Goodwill. We have such a fantastic collection now I plan on saving them for my grandkids!
What about Cabbage Patch dolls?
Their faces are vinyl, unfortunately.
Eeek, my kid uses our crayola sidewalk chalk indoors to color daily- is there an alternative or brand you reccomend!?
Here's a great safe sidewalk chalk!
http://amzn.to/2AHiGfy
Hi! Wondering what you think of B toys? Also is there a safe chalk you recommend? What about dry erase markers??
Thanks!!
Awesome guide!
I too am wondering about B toys.
Thanks!
Hi there. Great piece! Any thoughts on safe dinosaur toys? My kiddo really loves the realistic look of toy dinosaurs (being able to move the limbs, etc.) so a 2D wooden dinosaur won’t cut it. I was looking at the Learning resources ones but saw you had their animals on the bad list. What is unsafe about those? Also have you seen these baby dolls:
https://treexies.com
My son loves his. They are a bit small but I believe totally safe and more realistic looking.
Most dinosaur toys are bad because they are made of vinyl (you'll know by the smell). Here are some made of ABS plastic that your son might like: http://amzn.to/2yTB73n
Thanks SO much for putting Treexies on my radar. They definitely look like Good Stuff!!
Are all of the Plan Toys train pieces safe? Or just the classic train? My son has gotten multiple Thomas train and tracks handed down to him from cousins but I️ have confiscated them all because of the lead paint issue. I need a safe alternative!!!!
Yes, all of Plan is safe!