The best kids’ smartwatches give adult smartwatches a run for their money, with plenty of features, all wrapped up in a robust and child-friendly package.
These mini wearables track activity levels – some can even time kids’ laps in the pool – and are great for encouraging kids to get active through daily step goals. Not just for fitness tracking, some also offer GPS tracking, while others are packed with fun features such as games and cameras.
If you want to delay giving your older child a phone for as long as possible – to hold off the lure of social media or unrestricted internet access – then a connected kids’ smartwatch with restricted calling and messaging functions is a great alternative that’s well worth considering.
To find the best kids’ smartwatches, my mini helpers (aged six and nine-going-on-10) and I put a range of models through their paces. Here, I’ve included a mix of mini wearables that offer a bit of everything for each age group and budget. Keep scrolling for the ones that ticked my boxes as earned a thumbs up from my little helpers, too.
The best kids’ smartwatches for 2026 are:
- Best overall – Garmin bounce 2: £259, Amazon.co.uk
- Best budget option – Ice Watch kids smartwatch 021877: £39.99, Amazon.co.uk
- Best for younger kids – Garmin vivofit jr 3: Was £76.58, Amazon.co.uk
- Best for bringing to school – Xplora X6 play: £179.99, Xplora.co.uk
- Best for games – Vtech kidizoom smart watch max: £39.99, Amazon.co.uk
Read more: 7 best kids’ headphones for noise-free screen time
How we tested
With the help of my six-year-old and nine-year-old, I tested a mix of kids’ smartwatches over a month-long period. Taking into consideration everything from ease of setup (there were a lot of parent apps to download) and battery life to screen quality, features and kid-appeal, these are the ones that came out on top. You can read about my full testing criteria at the end of my review.
Garmin bounce 2
Best: Kids' smartwatch overall
Age suitability: 6+
Tracking: Steps, active minutes, sleep
Other functions: Voice calls, voice messaging and text messaging (with subscription), weather forecast, sport specific modes, SOS button, timer, alarm, games, link to Amazon music, school mode
Battery life: Up to two days
Connectivity: LTE (with subscription), Bluetooth, wifi
Waterproofing: 5 ATM
GPS: Yes
Camera: Not available
Why we love it
- Intuitive to use
- Sport specific tracking
- Accurate GPS
- Easy to use messaging function
- Looks cool
Take note
- Expensive
Garmin is one of the biggest names when it comes to smartwatches and fitness trackers for adults, so it’s no surprise this was the best kids’ smartwatch on test.
It was an instant favourite with my nine-year-old tester, who loved the “cool” design. We opted for the slate grey colourway for testing and it definitely felt more grown-up compared with other watches in this review; perfect for a style-conscious tween or teen.
Set-up was mercifully easy, I just had to download the free Garmin Jnr app, set up a profile and link the bounce 2. From the parent app, I was able to set up step targets, activity goals and daily chores (which my son was able to tick off on his smartwatch as he completed them throughout the day). With the LTE subscription set up (at an additional £9.99 a month), I was also able to set up the real-time location tracking and create boundaries (such as home and school), receiving alerts when he left or arrived at specific locations.
Out of all the kids’ smartwatches we tested, the bounce 2 has the best quality screen, brightly backlit with excellent clarity and the smoothest touchscreen for easy navigation. In fact, the smartwatch as a whole is just so simple to use. My nine-year-old got to grips with all the features within a day of use, including calling me and sending me voice and text messages, including some pre-programmed emojis with sound effects, which he found hilarious. Meanwhile, I love that it offers the connectivity of a phone with zero internet access or social media.
My sporty tester loved working his way through some of the built-in sports apps, tracking his biking and swimming stats, and he wouldn’t rest until he’d hit his steps and activity goal every day. In fact, he genuinely loved every feature of the watch, so it was a relief I could set it to ‘school mode’ during the day, via the parent app, to keep distractions at bay.
I appreciate it’s the most expensive smartwatch here, but I cannot fault it. I’ve both been raving about it to anyone who will listen and I truly believe it’s worth the investment. It’s a smartwatch kids will wear and benefit from for years.
Buy now £259, Garmin.com
Ice Watch kids smartwatch 021877
Best: budget smartwatch for kids
Age suitability: 6+
Tracking: Steps, heart rate, distance covered, sleep
Other functions: Sport specific modes (walking, running, hiking, cycling, free sports), SOS button, timer, alarm, games
Battery life: Four to five days
Connectivity: Bluetooth
Waterproofing: IP68 water resistant
GPS: Not available
Camera: Not available
Why we love it
- Great value
- Sport-specific data tracking
- Good size for children
- Excellent battery life
Take note
- Heart rate tracking isn't very accurate
- No classroom mode
If you’re looking for the best budget smartwatch for kids, there's a lot to love about this relatively affordable offering from Ice-Watch. Set-up required me to download the parent app, but synching the watch was quick and easy, and it was on my tester’s wrist within minutes after charging.
Despite the low price, it offers an impressive number of features, including the standard step counter, as well as distance covered in a day and sports-specific modes such as hiking and cycling. It also tracks sleep data and heart rate, although I’m not fully convinced on the accuracy of the heart-rate monitor, with the watch recording 96bpm when it wasn’t being worn.
Navigation is via a touchscreen and side button, and my nine-year-old tester had no problems finding his way around the different features. The parent app is relatively self-explanatory, and it was easy enough to click between the different data, although it’s worth noting the watch doesn’t include GPS tracking.
There’s a choice of four simple games you can play on the watch, so for this reason I would have liked the option of setting the phone to ‘classroom mode’ during the day, but that’s a small issue. Overall, if you’re after a budget smartwatch for children that offers plenty of activity tracking, this is a great option.
Buy now £39.99, Watches2u.com
Garmin vivofit jr 3
Best: smartwatch for younger kids
Age suitability: 4+
Tracking: Steps, active minutes, sleep
Other functions: Alarm, stopwatch, calendar, ‘in case of emergency’ widget, chore tracker
Battery life: One year
Connectivity: Bluetooth
Waterproofing: 5 ATM
GPS: Not available
Camera: Not available
Why we love it
- Encourages kids to get active
- Perfect size for young children
- Durable
- No need to recharge battery
Take note
- Screen could be brighter
Aimed at younger kids aged four and up, the vivofit jr. 3 is the best smartwatch for younger kids. I love that it encourages kids to keep active in a fun way, without too many screen distractions (as it’s game-free), and it's a firm favourite with my six-year-old, too.
Instead of a touchscreen, it’s operated by pressing the side button to move through menu options – something my six-year-old tester got to grips with instantly. Similar to the bounce 2, it includes a step counter, activity goal, daily chores and sleep data, which can be tracked through the watch and via the parent app.
On the app, you can choose an icon (we chose a cartoon cat) to appear on the watch when your child reaches their step goals, something my mini tester loved. You can also personalise the watch face with the child’s name, as well as set chores and reminders to pop up on the watch. By completing all the activity goals and chores, your child can unlock games and ‘adventures’ on the parent app – while my tester did enjoy these, it wasn’t something she was particularly fussed about.
It doesn’t need recharging; instead it has a CR2025 battery that lasts about a year, according to the brand. There are instructions on how to replace this in the manual.
I also love the size. It’s by far the smallest watch face out of all the devices I tested, and sat really nicely on my six-year-old’s wrist – she also said it was the most comfortable to wear all day. We put it to the test daily at school and at various gymnastics, dancing and swimming classes, and it never got in the way.
Buy now £65.47, Garmin.com
Xplora X6 play
Best: kids’ smartwatch for school
Age suitability: 4+
Tracking: Steps
Other functions: 4G voice and video calling, voice messaging, text messaging, SOS button, school mode, weather report, calculator, timer, alarm
Battery life: 72 hours
Connectivity: Wifi, Bluetooth, 4G/3G/2G with SIM
Waterproofing: IP68 water resistant
GPS: Yes
Camera: Yes
Why we love it
- Stretchy watch strap is easy to put on
- SOS button calls two family contacts
- Interchangeable frames and watch straps available
- Decent 5MP camera
Take note
- Expensive
- Can only send pre-programmed text messages
Intended as a smartwatch for kids who don’t yet have a mobile phone, the Xplora X6 Play is a great option if you’re looking for the best smartwatch for kids to take to school. It has plenty of fancy features, but the ‘school mode’ is a must to make sure your child doesn’t get distracted. It’s easy to set these restrictions in place on the parent app, disabling calls, alarms and notifications for a specific time scale. Only the SOS button can still be accessed.
It works alongside a parent app, which was easy to download and sync with the watch. It’s set up for voice and text messaging, although my mini tester found it frustrating you could only choose from a selection of pre-programmed text messages, rather than type out your own. The watch has a pre-installed SIM card, which can be activated via the Xplora subscription (£9.99 a month), enabling your child to make and receive calls from ‘safe’ numbers added to the contacts section on the app. We found call quality really clear and reliable, too.
Despite this smartwatch being recommended for ages four and up, I feel it is better suited to older children and teens, mainly due to the size. The watch face is the biggest out of all the ones tested – it even looked big on my wrist – although this didn’t bother my nine-year-old tester in the slightest.
Screen size comes into its own when used with the 5MP camera, which my mini tester loved. There’s a decent 8GB of storage, too, so they can snap away quite happily. Just be aware this can drain the battery quite quickly – while the watch claims a max 72 hour battery life, in reality, we had to charge practically every night with continuous wear.
I liked the GPS tracking, which always proved accurate and was easy to monitor in the parent app. I also like the SOS button – a feature found on other devices such as the bounce 2 and myFirst Fone R2. This calls two of the family members set up as admins in the app and sends a live location via push message, when the button is held down for five seconds.
We tested the X6 play with a stretchy strap, which made it so easy for my nine-year-old to slide the watch on and off. There’s a huge choice of stretchy or standard watch straps, as well as detachable frames, so the option to personalise the watch is there, as is the chance to get the perfect fit.
Buy now £179.99, Xplora.co.uk
Vtech kidizoom smart watch max
Best: kids’ smartwatch for games
Age suitability: 4+
Tracking: Steps
Other functions: Games, voice recorder, video recorder, music player, calculator, drawing, alarm clock, stopwatch, timer, calendar, action challenges
Battery life: Two to three days
Connectivity: Micro-USB
Waterproofing: Splash-proof
GPS: Not available
Camera: Yes
Why we love it
- Lots of interactive features
- Motion challenges are a fun way to get kids active
- Simple touch screen
Take note
- Large size for a four-year-old
- Parental controls easy for a child to switch off
The best kids’ smartwatch for games, it’s no surprise that my six-year-old was a huge fan of Vtech’s kidizoom smart watch max. It’s absolutely packed with games and interactive features, including numerous games, a voice recorder and a camera, where you can add your own fun effects.
No parent app is needed for this watch, but you can set some parental controls if you want your child to wear this watch to school. A heads up; if they can read, they can easily navigate these and switch them off, so perhaps not the best option for school days.
As a fitness tracker, it doesn’t offer anything like the Garmin vivofit jr. 3 or bounce 2, but my mini tester did love the interactive activity challenges where they either have to run or jump and the chicken or dragon picture on their watch does the same.
Another feature my mini tester loved was the option to change the watch face – and there are a lot to choose from. She also liked creating her own, taking photos of the family using the built-in camera and setting us as her watch face. While my child is old enough to tell the time now, there is a cute feature where you shake the watch on your wrist, and it will announce the time for you.
Battery wise, Vtech says that with low usage the watch can last two weeks, but with the amount of time my child has spent playing around on it, I’m not sure it will last that long. We’re currently a week into the charge and the battery is starting to get quite low.
If you’re after a watch with games, this is a really fun buy, but if you’re looking for a fitness tracker watch or a way to keep in touch with your child, you may be better off with different options.
Buy now £39.99, Smythstoys.com
MyFirst fone R2
Best: kids' smartwatch for safety
Age suitability: 5-12 years
Tracking: Steps, heart rate, distance covered
Other functions: 4G voice and video calling, voice messaging, text messaging, SOS button, MP3 player, classroom mode
Battery life: 16 hours
Connectivity: Wifi, Bluetooth, 4G with SIM
Waterproofing: IP68 water resistant
GPS: Yes
Camera: Yes
Why we love it
- Accurate real-time GPS tracking
- Comfortable to wear
- Grows with your child
Take note
- Expensive
- ‘Calories burned’ tracker unsuitable for kids
- Parent app is tricky to navigate
The MyFirst fone R2 is an update on the previous R1 smartwatch. This newer model is less chunky and sits better on the wrist, although it’s still rather large and better suited to older kids. While the circular watch face is similar in size to the bounce 2, the addition of the side camera makes it appear bulkier. That said, my nine-year-old tester wasn’t concerned about this, and thought it was quite a cool-looking smartwatch.
Again, this kids’ smartwatch needs to be paired with a parent app and, while it was easy enough to download, I felt it was the trickiest app to navigate and far less intuitive than the Garmin Jr. app.
The smartwatch includes a step counter, distance covered and heart-rate monitor, although I wasn’t a fan of the ‘calories burned’ feature, which feels completely unnecessary on a kids’ watch (this is also the case with the ICE smartwatch).
I’d say it’s less of a fitness tracker and more a phone alternative. The text messaging function (via the app) is limited to sending emojis or photos, however, you can record your own short voice message to send, too. Your child can only call or message pre-approved contacts, which you can manage through the parent app, and there’s no access to the internet or social media. With the MyFirst SIM subscription (£8.99 a month), you call and video call other approved contacts, wherever you are.
My nine-year-old loved the selfie camera and the fact that you can add your own music, which plays via MP3 on the built-in loudspeaker. For me, though, it was the safety features that really stood out. The GPS uses ‘smart location tracking’ to provide real-time data of your child’s daily movements. You can also add ‘safe zones’ such as school or home, and be alerted when they move out of these, like on the bounce 2.
The SOS button is activated by pressing the side bar on the phone, and blasts out a siren alarm through the parent app until you switch it off yourself. Trust me, it’s not a noise you can miss.
If safety is your main concern as your child starts enjoying a little more independence, I think this smartwatch is a reassuring alternative to a mobile phone.
Buy now £199, Myfirst.tech
L.O.L. Surprise! interactive watch
Best: kids’ smartwatch for easy setup
Age suitability: Six and above
Tracking: Steps
Other functions: Video recorder, voice recorder, timer, calculator, alarm and games
Colourways: One
Battery life: 12 hours
Connectivity: USB
Waterproofing: None
GPS: Not available
Camera: Yes
Why we love it
- Easy to use touchscreen
- Helps kids learn to tell the time
- Colourful design
- Fun voice and video recording
- No app required
Take note
- Fairly basic fitness tracking
As the best kids’ smartwatch for easy setup, the L.O.L. Surprise! interactive smartwatch doesn’t require an app to get started. After a three-hour initial charge it was ready to go. The hot pink and turquoise colourway was a big hit with my L.O.L. Surprise!-loving six-year-old, who couldn’t wait to show it off to her buddies at school.
As a fitness tracker, it’s pretty basic, with a simple pedometer to keep track of steps. There’s a selfie camera, video recorder (again, in selfie mode), voice recorder and a choice of six games, which my mini tester loved. You can also set an alarm, use the stopwatch or timer function, and there’s a built-in calculator, too. It’s all straightforward for a young child to get their head around.
I like that there’s a choice of digital and analogue clock displays, which is perfect for helping your child learn to tell the time. To switch between the different watch faces, you just need to hold the touchscreen and it flips through the designs.
While the watch face itself is quite large, it is very lightweight and my six-year-old wore it comfortably. The nine strap holes made sure it was easy to get a good fit.
There’s no school mode or GPS tracking, but if you’re after a cute and colourful ‘watch with extras’ that offers decent battery life, this is a great buy.
Buy now £35.89, Amazon.co.uk
Your questions about kids’ smartwatches answered
What is the best kids’ smartwatch?
Hands down, the Garmin bounce 2 was both mine and my young tester’s favourite smartwatch. It’s full of excellent features that encourage kids to keep active, as well easy-to-use messaging and calling. It’s the ultimate fitness tracker and first phone alternative, and I think it’s absolutely worth the higher price tag. If you are after something a bit more affordable that is simpler to use, the Garmin vivofit jr. 3 is the perfect pick for younger kids.
How I test kids’ smartwatches
While putting a range of smartwatches to the test (with some help from two young testers), I considered the following criteria.
What features to look for in kids’ smartwatches
If you’re planning to buy a smartwatch for your child, these are some features to look out for.
Why you can trust IndyBest reviews
Sarah Dawson is a writer specialising in recommending the best parenting buys and products for kids, having tested everything from walkie talkies to kids’ bikes. To bring you her verdict on her top picks, Sarah recruits younger testers who put products through their paces during hands-on testing – for this review, she was able to see how different kids’ smartwatches went down with kids in real world-testing environments. In short, they've earned a thumbs up from both kids and parents.
For grown-up tech, read our guide to the best smartwatches that do more than just tell the time
