Look! A playful lawn mower, ducky, and dog — with a push broom handle? Get your newly wobbly baby toddler walker bopping around with an eco-lovely wooden push-along toy!
Made with a cute-as-could-be character body and a long single push handle — in natural wood that makes the sunshine smile.
In 2022, wooden push toys have advanced wheels and moving parts for smooth sailing — active moving toys on-par with plastic alternatives. Wooden toys are more stylish than their plastic cousins — who haven’t updated their style since “Global Warming” turned into “Global Climate Change”.
For your baby-to-toddler transition — with those wiggly jiggly first steps — there’s a wooden push toy perfect for your child’s now-and-later development stage.
C’mon and push it, baby. Push it real good!
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Top 7 Wooden Push Toys For Babies to Toddlers (12 to 36 Months)
Today, we’re walking and talking and wheeling and dealing push toys, Baby.
I reviewed the best pull-along toys over yonder so that you can easily spot the right type of push or pull toy for your needs.
For every style from the wonderfully whimsical Pink Princess style to the action-packed Action Adventure — the right push-along for your baby or toddler’s age, stage, and particular interest is right here.
- (01) Hape “Best in Class” Wooden Push Along Toys
- (02) Friendly Toys “Natural Pastel” Push Along Toys
- (03) Orange Tree Toys “British Fairytale” Push Toys
- (04) Papa Don’s “Made in USA” Push Along Toys
- (05) Janod Cherry Wood Baby Push Along Toy
- (06) Duck Runner Classic Toddler Push Along Toys
- (07) Imagination Generation Wooden Push Toys
Push Toy vs. Pull Toy: What’s the difference?
The push toy comes with a long handle allowing you to push the toy in front of you, away from your body. You push it while walking, so it’s best for children who are just beginning to walk independently.
…Like this push toy duck example from Friendly Toys on Etsy.
The pull toy comes with an attached string you use to pull the toy behind you, towards your body. You can pull it from any position, so it’s appropriate for floor play before baby can walk, and also for walking play when your toddler is walking independently.
…Like this pull toy dinosaur example from Friendly Toys on Etsy.
There are some similarities between push and pull toys too.
Both can be pulled and pushed according to what the child is playing. Both push toys and pull toys are designed to make the children more mobile and active through push-and-pull play — they both help strengthen the children’s muscles.
Push-Along Toy vs. Push-Walker Toy: What’s the difference?
Okay, your baby is walking and you’re looking for a walk-ready push toy. Should you get a push-along toy or a push-walker toy?
The push-along toy is generally a stick with a toy attached at the end. They’re less expensive. It’s like a single broomstick, so it can’t support kids’ weight while walking. It’s best for toddlers who don’t need extra support to walk — i.e. advanced walking toddlers.
…Like this wooden push-along butterfly example from Hape on Amazon.
The push-walker toy (a.k.a. baby walker) usually has four wheels and sturdy weight-bearing handlebars that fit two hands. They’re more expensive. It’s best for early walking babies who need a sturdy support to hold onto while walking — i.e. early walking babies and toddlers.
…Like this wooden push-walker toy example from Hape on Amazon.
Similarities between push-along toys and baby push walker toys include — both being great for children’s gross motor and physical development. They both enhance their overall mobility and coordination between the limbs and gives them added support to practice walking correctly — kind of like a walking stick.
Plus important exercise habits to last a lifetime.
It’s a gold standard fun way to explore their home environment and make the mundane into an escapade of imagination with their trusty push buddy leading the way!
Push-Along Shopper’s Guide: What to look for
Many different types of toys are available in the market. But every parent wants a toy that can benefit their child in the best way possible — and every child is different.
The push-along toys can be an excellent investment for your toddler — if you know what to look for.
Here’s a push-along shopper’s word cloud to get you on track.
Sturdy Handle • Adjustable Handle • Easy Push Wheels • Adorable Design / Character / Theme • Natural Wood • Bright / Pastel Colors • Activities Center • Shape Sorter • Interactive Sounds • Wooden Blocks
Push along toy handles matter.
Some are thicker, heavier, and sturdier. While others are thinner, lighter, and more fragile. Find a good balance to meet your baby or toddler’s level of strength and development. Beefy babies can handle heavier push-along toys.
Some are adjustable — which when designed safe, secure, and sturdy — the toy adjusts in size to fit your growing toddler over the months and years.
Put your personality into it.
Other than functional features — the fun and funky character you pick matters just as much. Find one to catch your toddler’s attention and motivate them to get active.
We’ve got some fantastic options for your kiddo’s next-best-thing to an imaginary friend.
(01) Hape “Best in Class” Wooden Push Along Toys
Hape takes the cake for a variety of enticingly multi-colored wooden push-along play pals.
Available in bird, butterfly, push mower, and some butterfly dancing flower I’m happy to see for the first time — it’s endless fun and excitement a kiddo walk-along
Enjoy so many intricately designed interactive features — animated as you push it forward. Like a toddler lawn mower with imaginary blades and tumbling balls to mesmerize the mythological lawncare gods in my imagination.
More visual-auditory multisensory engagement to explore. An all — walk-along, sing-along, dance-along — with so many songs I’d love to play!
Another perk — most Hape models come with a handle that can be adjusted to different lengths. Parents love that because the toy fits your child as they grow. Kids love that because they can adjust the length for all kinds of play purposes — like make it short to roll in a tiny corner.
Hape’s beautiful multi-colored push-alongs include fun features like… The wings of this push-along move up and down as the child walks with it — like the toy is practicing motor skills with your toddler. An eye-catching feature that keeps kids engaged!
(02) Friendly Toys “Natural Pastel” Push Along Toys
Handcrafted to perfection — “pastel meets neutral-tone” for nurseries and playrooms with naturally soft comfy vibes.
This aesthetically pleasing push-along unicorn, puppy, ducky, and more — makes you feel like you’re inside a fairytale.
Sustainably harvested birch wood; Paint derived from natural milk; Eco-everlasting linseed oil finish to maintain the quality of the wood (and handle rough and tumble baby toddler play).
The moms and dads running Friendly Toys put safety first — with nothing to harm your kid even when toy-to-mouth contact is made.
Durable materials and quality craftsmanship mean once you purchase the toy, you don’t have to worry about it breaking.
Buy when your baby starts walking. Enjoy for years to come.
(03) Orange Tree Toys “British Fairytale” Push Along Toys
Like your bedtime story came alive to boot scoot with you — find storytime animals and characters closely from popular children’s classic stories.
Orange Tree Toys Store on Amazon
First off, the handle is relatively long compared to other brands — at ≈18 inches it’s a larger-sized model excellent for toddlers.
If your child is an animal lover — to the tune of bear, lion, shark, dinosaur, zebra, mouse, unicorn, tiger, or crocodile (at the time of writing). — this might be your most interesting pick!
For a little walker who’s got a specific animal, character, or theme they love — Orange Tree Toys ranks number 3 because of its great variety.
The toys themselves offer interactive knick-knacks too. When you push the shark toy, it wags its shark tail like it’s swimming. When you push the zebra toy, it makes a nice rhythmic rattling sound like a dazzle in the safari.
Each toy from Orange Tree offers its own unique personality — many with super-unique animated movements you won’t find elsewhere.
(04) Papa Don’s “Made in USA” Push Along Toys
The perfect combination of wood, color, and sound — it’s America’s favorite handmade lawn mower push-along hand-made by Grandpa Don himself.
Papa Don makes a few different solid wood push and pull toys — but their far-and-away most popular model is the lawnmower.
Like the old-style mechanical push-mower made of top-quality alder wood — you push it and the barrel rolls along the ground. With colorful balls inside the barrel — they move and make a sound.
Made in the USA from start to finish — you’ll like the story behind this little Oregon woodshop.
(05) Janod Cherry Wood Push Along Rattle Toy
Janod push-alongs are designed in France to top safety standards — with French aesthetic appeal.
Like the lawnmower push-alongs we looked at — the Janod push-along has the cage rotates as you push it — with jingling musical balls tumbling inside.
In a soft white, teal, and pink color palette — of water-based paints and lacquer finishes — for parents’ peace of mind.
(06) Duck Runner Classic Toddler Push Along Toys
The classic running duck toy design that started it all — with upgrades in 2022.
The duck runner is the original push-along toy. A retro wooden toy your parents will remember, now with some new upgrades to meet modern standards.
Enjoy a wide age range of toddlers (18 months) to kids (6 years).
A mallard is cute and colorful — it works magic for the children who want to walk and run. And reminds the whole family of the classic NES Duck Hunt game.
With duck heads available in green, yellow, and pink — the contrast of color means you could raise an entire raft of ducky families.
(07) Imagination Generation Wooden Push Toys
The runner-up for variety — lesser known than the big name push toy brands.
Imagination Generation on Amazon
Imagination Generation is another brand with several attractive animals and imaginative push-along figurines to choose from.
For the extreme baby ready to race around the house — the burnout racers collection is an esoteric pick.
For most families, their ducky or mower is most palatable.
This push-along toy makes walking easier and faster — with the safe paints and non-toxic materials you’ve come to expect.
