6 Best Smartwatches for Kids

Parents, if you're in a kids-smartwatch-choosing pickle, it's time to relax and exit out of that overwhelming Amazon search page. We slogged through it for you to find the kids smartwatches worth your time. Then we tested top candidates' features to be absolutely, positively sure they work—from GPS tracking to voice calling to screen locking.

Our testers really liked the TickTalk 4, and we agree that it has some hard-to-find features (like voice-to-text) that both kids and parents love. But the Gabb Watch is coming in hot with easy setup, incredible deals (free watch, anyone?), and the cutest digital pet this side of 2020. 

And those aren't the only top kids smartwatches with unique features. Check 'em out below.

The TickTalk 4 keeps parental anxiety at bay with GPS tracking and an SOS button. And it caters to kids themselves by streaming music or stories through iHeart Radio Family. The main downside is its price tag: around $200.

We love that the TickTalk 4 isn’t just a smartwatch for parents; it includes features that kids enjoy too. Your child can choose how to communicate, whether it’s through video calls, voice calls, voice messages, preset text messages, voice to text, emojis, GIFs, or photos. It’s just enough variety to allow them to explore some creative expression, but they won’t have access to a full keyboard.

Kids can also use the TickTalk 4’s camera to take pictures, selfies, or videos. Other features include a step counter, do not disturb/school mode, and a reminder list.

We had to see if the TickTalk4 performed well in the real world before crowning it the best kids smartwatch. So, we asked a mom and her kids to put it through the ringer. 

As we expected, the kids loved playing music, making video calls, sending each other greeting cards, and engaging with all of the other kid-centric features of the watch. Mom, on the other hand, appreciated the safety side of things, like the closed communication network and listen-in function.

The COSMO JrTrack 2 was designed by a father with the needs of both parents and kids in mind. It combines safety features with cool colors, comfortable straps, and the convenience of a full-size keyboard.

We like that it has all the features you need (GPS tracking, safe zones, SOS button, two-way talk) plus nice extras like a camera. Best of all, COSMO Membership plans are simple, straightforward, and affordable. 

With COSMO you get to talk, text, and share photos as much as you want—everything is unlimited. It's a huge relief to not worry about data limits when you need to stay in touch with your little ones.

COSMO Plans: Get unlimited 4G talk, text and data.

• $19.99/mo. No contract, month-to-month
• $16.99/mo. Pre-pay for 6-months, device insurance included
• $14.99/mo. Pre-pay for 12 months, device insurance included.

The Gabb Watch 2 is an affordable and simple watch with no camera, but a digital pet helps motivate kids to stay active and complete chores. 

Plus, our testers said it was the easiest kids smartwatch to set up since it comes with its own SIM card.

The parents we talked to felt satisfied with the Gabb Watch's features: GPS tracking, safe zones, to-do lists and reminders, and easy text or voice communication.

There's no video calling, no 911 option, and no discreet audio check-ins, which help keep the price affordable and the battery chugging along. 

Check out the details—including more of our test group's opinions and images—in our full Gabb Watch review. Or get all your questions answered on our Gabb Watch FAQ page.

Before the Gabb Watch came along, the Xplora X5 Play was the go-to if you wanted games and GPS tracking rolled into one slick kids smartwatch. And it still holds its own thanks to the sheer quantity of games available—all of which are designed to get your kid moving.

With Xplora's Goplay platform, your child earns one coin for every 1,000 steps logged on the watch. Coins can be redeemed on the Goplay platform to play virtual games or purchase products.

Physical fitness aside, we think this is a great incentive for kids to wear this GPS-tracking watch at all times.

This smartwatch includes a 2MP selfie camera and stores around 1,000 photos and videos. We’re impressed by the video and audio quality. In fact, we expected video calling to be included in this smartwatch since it has such a nice camera. But that’s the major downside of the Xplora X5 Play; you can’t hop on a video call with your kid. 

The Xplora X5 works best with the T-mobile network and does not work with Verizon, Sprint, or U.S. Cellular. You’ll also need to purchase a SIM card separately.

Learn more in our full Xplora X5 Play review.

Because the new Verizon Gizmo Watch 3 combines the best features of the GizmoWatch 2 and the Disney Edition, it easily became our favorite kids smartwatch from Verizon. Plus, there are new features on the Gizmo Watch 3 that make it more competitive against other kids smartwatches in general, like location history reports, Bluetooth compatibility for earbuds, and more than 3.5 days of standby battery.

There are some pockets of the country where the TickTalk4 won't work because it uses the AT&T cellular network. If you live in a Verizon-network-only area, this is the best kids smartwatch for you. Plus, it's super easy for existing Verizon customers to add it to their plan so there's still just one family cell bill to worry about.

Parents can switch the GizmoWatch to quiet mode or vibration mode via the app. This allows incoming calls to show up on the screen but silences the ringtone and any of the watch’s sound effects. You can also set up specific quiet times to ensure, for example, your child’s ringtone doesn’t disrupt their class. 

Another neat feature is “auto answer.” After parents toggle this setting on the GizmoHub app, the watch will automatically pick up your call after ringing for ten seconds. This lets you listen in to check on your child or talk through the watch in an emergency.

Learn more in our full GizmoWatch review or compare the GizmoWatches to the ever-popular Gabb Watch in our head-to-head review: GizmoWatch vs. Gabb Watch.

The Little Tikes Tobi Robot smartwatch reminds us of the Tamagotchi keychains popular in the ’90s. Kids get to feed and interact with the animated face on this smartwatch. It even has arms and legs that pop out from the side of the watch. (Don’t worry, it’s not as creepy as it sounds.)

Retailing for about $30 (or more, depending on the color), it’s one of the most affordable kids smartwatches on the market. But it really can’t compete with the other watches on our list in terms of features. In fact, it seems to be meant for entertainment and learning rather than safety or as a stepping stone of independence.

This isn’t a GPS smartwatch, nor does it support texting or calling. That’s probably because it’s meant for kids as young as four years old, who probably remain under direct supervision anyway. But if your little one feels super left out when their older sibling gets a cool new gadget, this is what you could give them to keep them entertained.

This watch features a camera and impressive storage. Your budding photographer can store up to 30 minutes of video footage or 3,000 pictures. They can also add stickers to their photos.

Tobi also includes some basic games and an activity tracker/fitness tracker. If one of your kid’s friends also has a Tobi watch, they can send each other photos or emojis. 

The good news is that you don’t need to purchase a monthly cellular plan for this watch because it can't make phone calls.

Learn more in our full Little Tikes Tobi Robot review.

The Angel Watch is a kids GPS tracker, health tracker, and phone service rolled into one. We’re especially impressed with the Angel Watch’s SOS feature, which activates after a three-second press and calls three designated contacts in a loop until someone picks up.

Like the TickTalk4, the Angel Watch includes video calling and a listen-in feature, but it has fewer contact slots and zero entertainment for your kid. (Which can certainly be a good thing, depending on what you're looking for.) 

The Angel Watch also helps parents monitor the health of their child via a vital sign sensor that rests against the skin. The watch can detect four vital signs:

• Body temperature
• Blood pressure
• Blood oxygen
• Heart rate

As neat as this sounds, the Angel Watch Company warns that these readings may not always be accurate. It’s also totally up to the parents to monitor vital signs and take action if needed. This device won’t send out an alert if there’s a worrisome deviation from the norm.

The Angel Watch also counts your kid’s steps and estimates the total distance covered and calories burned. If your child wears this watch to bed, it will also track sleep quality.

Learn more in our full Angel Watch review.

We evaluated many other brands before choosing the best smartwatches for kids. Although these didn’t make it to our top five, they still offer some interesting features that could be perfect for you and your family.

But we don’t think the SyncUP Kids Watch is quite ready to knock our top five faves out of position. It has a few flaws:

• Available to existing T-Mobile customers only
• Available in stores only
• No video calling
• The 911 option can’t be toggled off in the parent app
• Camera quality is poor

The SyncUP Kids Watch retails for about $175 and requires a $10 monthly subscription through T-Mobile. 

We decided to use price as a tie-breaker, and the VTech Smartwatch Kidizoom DX2 lost out because it costs more than double the Little Tikes Tobi Robot.

But we do love that there are plenty of extra learning games you can add to this smartwatch via the VTech Learning Lodge. Your kid won’t get bored if you add a new game to the watch every so often. And they might learn some neat skills like telling time.

The TickTalk 4 earned our vote as the best smartwatch for kids because it includes virtually every safety feature that parents want in a kids smartwatch—including the ability to visually confirm their child’s safety with a video call. But we’re especially impressed that its kid-oriented features strike a balance between “boring after one use” and “borderline addicting.”

Although it is an expensive purchase, it offers a lot of features for the price when compared to other kids smartwatches.

We ultimately came up with a list of 43 criteria for comparing kids smartwatches and sussing out the top candidates. We also read hundreds of user reviews to evaluate each contender’s performance and customer service.

We gave the TickTalk4, Gabb Watch, and Imoo to our testing group and collected feedback from parents who had already chosen and used kids smartwatches.  

Learn more about how we rank and review.

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