Smartwatches don’t have to be just for adults; in fact, there is now a range of smartwatch models on the market that cater to a younger audience, some offering games and learning development, which can be a great reason to invest in some wearable tech for when they’re on the go.
These are the best smartwatches for kids, with some smart fitness trackers thrown in too.
Because during the summer holidays, you want to make sure your kids are staying active, rather than spending every day in bed playing Fortnite. Maybe they could also get creative with the best camera for kids.
If your child is a little older, then you may also want to check out the best smartwatches (for adults and teenagers).
(opens in new tab)How to buy the best smartwatch for kids
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There are a range of different features you can look for in a kids smartwatch; some are purely for entertainment, whereas some have great learning development exercises such as the LeapFrog LeapBand Activity Tracker (opens in new tab) or the VTech Kidizoom Smart Watch (opens in new tab).
If you’re an active family, then the Fitbit Ace 2 (opens in new tab) and Fitbit Ace (opens in new tab) are the latest kid’s edition from Fitbit which can help motivate your children and track their activity.
Finally, some kids’ smartwatches are designed with safety in mind, including a GPS tracker which parents can monitor to ensure the whereabouts of their children at all times.
Whatever you’re looking for, our list below has something for everyone, read on to find out more.
The best smartwatches for kids you can buy:
We loved Fitbit’s Ace 2 fitness tracker for kids, but the new version – the Fitbit Ace 3 - builds upon an already near-perfect tracker by adding lots more battery life. Yes, it’s slightly chunkier and pricier, but the Ace 3 boasts fresh looks and more features thanks to a heart monitor under the hood.
The biggest boost is battery life. While the Fitbit Ace 2 had five days of battery life, the new version has eight, which seems pretty conservative, since the watch we’re testing is still going strong on day nine.
While it packs a punch feature-wise, the watch also looks great, and because there are no specific character or movie tie-ins, it offers longevity. It may even be acceptable to teenagers (maybe).
- Read T3's full Fitbit Ace 3 review
Fitbit Ace 2 is designed to help kids ages six and over learn healthy habits at an early age and encourage them to spend more active time with family and friends. Ace 2 has a swim-proof design with a useful bumper to protect the screen during kid-related activities all day long.
The Ace 2 is available in a selection of fun and bold kid-friendly colours. It debuts new animated clock faces, motivating challenges to keep kids moving, and colourful avatars and cover photos to personalise their profiles within the Fitbit app. Additionally, parents can stay on top of their kids’ activities with a Fitbit family account.
- Read T3's full Fitbit Ace 2 review
The Garmin Vivo Jr 3 isn’t just a fitness tracker for kids. It’s a handy wearable that unlocks games and adventures when paired with a phone app, which should get every miniature couch potato moving and delight constantly on-the-go kids too.
As well as being fun for kids, the device allows parents to keep an eye on their kids’ activity levels, counting their steps and sleep, and of course, children can use it as a watch too.
The gadget is packed with features to help parents out too. When it’s connected to an app, they can view their kid’s activity and sleep, as well as see if a child has completed their goals, including ‘chores’. The watch lets parents assign tasks and chores and designate a reward virtual coin value, which can be redeemed by a child for agreed-upon rewards. They can also program the watch with their kid’s emergency contact information, which could be useful, although hopefully never needed!
Available in different colours and even Marvel and Disney editions, there’s something to please everyone.
- Read T3's full Garmin Vivofit Jr 3 review
The Spacetalk Adventurer packs a lot of punch, from offering a way to stay in touch to taking snapshots of the day. Its array of practical functions are impressive.
However, the smartwatch is less fun than the Disney-powered Neo and considerably more expensive than its less feature-packed rivals. It costs £189 upfront and requires a Nano SIM card and a Spacetalk app subscription for £3.99/month. There’s also no getting away from the fact that this is a big watch for little wrists, so if sleek and slim gadgets are preferable, the Adventurer won’t be for you.
But, if you’re looking for an Apple Watch-type gadget for kids that’s heavy on productivity and safety features and light on distractions, this is a good option. Yes, it’s a pretty expensive gadget, but for parents or guardians of adventurous kids who like to break a few rules, being able to keep in touch and stay on top of their whereabouts will likely prove priceless.
The Neo manages to do just about everything you could want from a smartwatch, while putting Disney characters and safety features at its core. If you want to stay in touch with your child 24/7, then this is the one for you, with voice and messaging functions.
However, the smartwatch is considerably more expensive than its less feature-packed rivals, with a large upfront cost as well as a monthly subscription. The Neo may also lose some of its magic for those that like their gadgets slim and sleek, as well as efficient when it comes to battery life.
Children are almost guaranteed to be wowed by the incredible clarity of the screen and fun features such as the animated Disney characters, however.
The Neo Smart Kids Watch, along with its data subscription, is now available at Vodafone (opens in new tab).
- Read T3's full Vodafone Neo Smart Kids Watch review
The Apple Watch SE is a truly excellent smartwatch for adults and children. It looks great and it's comfortable, making it perfect if you have a style-conscious teen.
Where Apple has cut back for the more budget price, your child won't notice (unless they're really into taking ECG readings). It feels like the full-fat Apple Watch experience, with all the advantages that it brings in communication, fitness tracking, and health and safety features.
You'll also want to use Family Setup, which is particularly well suited to younger children, as it gives you more control over what they can do with their Apple Watch.
Family Setup turns the device into a GPS tracker that also allows you to talk to them through the smartwatch. That's ideal if you want to communicate with them while they're out, such as by giving them a heads up that they need to come home soon from visiting a friend.
- Read T3's full Apple Watch SE review
- Apple Watch for kids: how to set up an Apple Watch for your child
This Garmin kid’s smartwatch has a whole range of functions which can make every day a little bit of an adventure. It’s a durable watch that is fine to be bashed around, and you can award points for doing daily tasks and chores. The idea is these can then be traded for treats, so your children have an incentive to brush their teeth or play nicely with their brothers.
The colour screen and strap are customisable, and the latter is soft and stretchy, designed to be comfortable to wear both day and night. The VivoFit Jr 2 won’t need charging because the battery lasts for 'up to' a year. It actually seems to be more like 6-7 months, but that's not bad, and will vary depending on use.
Essentially a Fitbit Alta with a simplified app that allows parental supervision, the Fitbit Ace is a great way to encourage and motivate kids to get moving.
This slim kid’s smartwatch is designed to track daily steps and make it fun by providing rewards and badges for hitting certain goals.
It’s water resistant so you don’t have to worry about them going out and ruining their new bit of tech at the first sign of rain, and battery life lasts up to 5 days so it’s perfect for wearing all week to school. You can set up a family account if you all have Fitbits so you can view your children’s progress easily, and they can customize their watch face with 10 funky clock designs.
If you measure this watch simply by its features, the XGO2 is one of the leaders of the pack. It offers more flexibility than the Vodafone Neo when it comes to sending messages and making calls, making it the leader of all the kids smartwatches and trackers we’ve tried when it comes to this feature. It similarly offers more security features than its competitors.
But the watch overall is a little lacklustre and joyless. It does a lot of things adequately, but little with any pizzazz. Photos are grainy, there’s little animation on the watch face, and the extras are pretty boring, so it feels quite pricey for £99, not forgetting you’ll need to pay for a SIM too.
If calls and safety are a priority (or your kid fancies themselves as the next Alan Sugar) this watch is a good bet, but otherwise, there are more fashionable and fun options out there.
VTech have created the ultimate kid’s smartwatch, that has a lot of cool features but won’t burn too much of a hole in your wallet. This watch has a camera for taking photos and videos, a motion sensor for tracking activities, and has a range of games and apps to use.
There are over 50 different 3D-effect clock faces- both digital and analogue depending on your preference and you can download all your favourite games and apps to customise this kid’s smartwatch.
This kid’s smartwatch is practically a smartphone for the wrist. Just like an adult smartwatch, it features a range of apps, a camera for photos and video, and the ability to send messages. Other features include a media player, activity tracker and a hands-free kit for use with a smartphone.
It comes with two interchangeable straps for personalisation- one of which is a thermal colour changing one! You can expand the 256mb of memory to 32GB so you can store a wide range of apps and media on this device.
This smartchwatch from LeapFrog provides you with a virtual pet, just like the good old Tamogotchis from the 90s. You can feed and power your pet by completely activities or exercise to gain points.
This watch is designed to teach your child core skills with a full curriculum that will have them learning how to tell the time and the importance of nutrition. There’s a range of games to play but the parental controls will allow you to limit the time your children spend playing, so that they can focus during school time and bedtime.
How we test the best kids' smartwatches
We spend a lot of time reviewing the best smartwatches for children, so when it comes to recommending what kids smartwatch to buy, you can be safe in the knowledge that we'll recommend the best options for you.
For a start, all of the smartwatches we review are reviewed by parents and used with their children. We'll usually spend a week or longer testing new smartwatches, and the review process is fairly straightforward – we strap them to the wrists of our children. This helps us see how reliable they are and whether all of the features work as advertised.
It also lets us test whether the smartwatches actually capture the attention and imagination of the children, as well as how comfortable the children find the devices.
If the smartwatches have any advanced features, such asGPS tracking or calling, we'll try these out to test if they work and if they're worth the extra money they no doubt command.
Once the initial review period is complete we'll publish a full review, give thekids smartwatch a star rating, and add an abridged review to this guide.
