With five million Tonieboxes and 58 million Tonies sold between 2016 and 2022, there's no denying the appeal of these audio devices. And if you are keen to jump on the bandwagon, then a Tonie starter bundle is a great way to kickstart your collection
If you're fresh to the world of Tonies, here's a quick lowdown. Tonieboxes are screen-free and wireless audio devices suitable and simple enough for kids age three and over to operate themselves. They help to encourage children to play and learn independently and can foster language skills too, especially when used from an early age - check out our picks of the best Tonies for preschoolers. To play character-themed stories and songs, you'll need Tonies, which are hand-painted magnetic characters that sit on top of the Toniebox. There are more than 700 Tonies in the collection, with the most popular Tonies including fan favourites from Peppa Pig, The Gruffalo and Disney.
Before buying, you might want to weigh up Yoto versus Tonies to see which audio box is right for you and your child. But if you settle on Tonies, then we've found some great bundles to get you started, including some brilliant bargains.
If Paw Patrol is your little one's thing, then this is the Toniebox for you. The bright red colour holds broad appeal, and with four Tonies in the set, including Chase, Marshall, Skye and Liberty, it's a real treat for little PP fans. Each Tonie has a running time of approximately one hour to keep kiddies entertained.
The perfect starting point for those new to Tonies, this bundle includes a blue Toniebox and four Tonie characters including The Gruffalo, Stick Man, Peter Rabbit and Thomas the Tank Engine. Running times vary between about 15 minutes up to an hour, with a mixture of themed stories and catchy songs.
For wannabe Disney princesses, this pink Toniebox bundle will be right up their street. With a pink Toniebox, along with a Creative Tonie, it includes four princess Tonies, including Belle from Beauty and the Beast, Moana, Rapunzel and Ariel from The Little Mermaid. This bundle offers a £15 saving compared to buying everything individually.
Perfect for younger children before they go to school, this pre-school bundle includes CoComelon, Peppa Pig, Igglepiggle, Bing and Peter Rabbit audio characters. As with all the Tonieboxes, you'll also get a Creative Tonie that you can use to record up to 90 minutes of your own stories.
With five children's book character Tonies included, this bundle is the perfect companion for a budding reader. This set includes three Julia Donaldson classics, including The Gruffalo, The Gruffalo's Child, Stick Man, Paddington and the titular character from We're Going on a Bear Hunt.
There are variety of Disney Princess bundles available to buy, but they don't all have the same characters, or number of Tonies included. This one has three - Mulan, Elsa and Belle - and is a great screen-free alternative to watching the films.
The ultimate starter bundle for little Disney fans, this set includes six Tonies to kickstart a wonderful collection. Little ones can enjoy stories and songs from The Lion King, Moana, Encanto, Frozen, Cars and The Jungle Book. Currys is selling the bundle for £145 which is a saving of just under £25 compared to buying everything separately.
If you want to build up the collection at a slower pace, then this Toniebox with two audio characters is just the ticket. It includes the bestselling On The Road with Peppa Pig Tonie as well as Disney classic, The Little Mermaid. At just under £100, this is a saving of almost £10 on the price you'd pay to buy these items individually.
The good news is that you're not limited to buying pre-picked bundles, you can make your own on the Tonies website. You can choose the colour of your Toniebox, and then pick a bundle to include either three, five or seven Tonies. Save £9 on a bundle with three audio characters, £19 on a bundle with five, and £35 on a seven-character bundle.
Is a Toniebox bundle good value for money?
When you consider that the Toniebox (which comes with the creative Tonie as standard) is £79.95, and each Tonie character is roughly £15, then it's relatively easy to work out whether a bundle is giving you value for money or not. You can maximise value for money by buying a bundle if you see it on offer.
For example, if you bought a Toniebox and three audio characters separately, it would set you back just under £125. However, at the time of writing, you could buy a bundle including the same products for just over £86 on Amazon, which is a saving of about £39 (which could be put towards another couple of Tonies, with money left over).
GoodtoKnow's Consumer Editor and mum-of-three Heidi Scrimgeour adds: "Buying a Toniebox is a decision you’ll probably want to take a bit of time to think about, because it’s a fairly hefty amount of money to part with when you’re new to the world of screen-free devices for kids.
"As I've had a Toniebox for years, I can happily say this is an investment that’s worth every penny. As well as the device’s storytelling features, it also encourages interactive play and comes in a super durable format that even the most rambunctious toddler can’t easily destroy - I’ve lost count of the number of times ours has been dropped, including once down the stairs!
"When it comes to the long-term benefits of owning a Toniebox, it’s easy to see that it ends up offering excellent value for money. I like to think of value for money in terms of price-per-use. If you use a Toniebox every day even just for a couple of years (and we used ours for many, many years) then it’ll effectively only cost you a few pence per day, all things considered. Much cheaper than an audiobook subscription or buying new books to read over the same period of time. Add all the ‘extra’ functionality, like the option to record your own stories and build your collection of Tonie characters as your child’s interests change and develop, and it’s clear that a Toniebox is a worthwhile investment in screen-free educational entertainment for your child."
For more screen-free fun for the little ones in your life, you might also like the best dinosaur toys, these mix and make toys or this year's top toys.
