Puzzles are a rewarding, self-contained, educational activity that fun to complete. Not only are they fun for toddlers to do, but they are also a fantastic developmental activity for little ones. They help toddlers improve recognition, logical thinking, patience, and hand-eye coordination. Completing puzzles is a self-affirming activity that can be both challenging, and rewarding, given the right puzzle size is given to the child in question, dependent on their age, abilities, and skills.
In this article, we share a variety of different wooden puzzles for toddlers, including wooden shape puzzles, Melissa and Doug hide and seek puzzles as well as Melissa and Doug lock puzzles, wooden peg puzzles, personalized name puzzles, Hape chunky alphabet puzzles, tegu magnetic puzzles, and more.
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View our top wooden puzzles for toddlers list below to find the perfect puzzle for the toddler in your life. All of the wooden puzzles for toddlers are available for purchase on Amazon. Simply click on the ‘View Price’ button to see the current price of the puzzle on Amazon and buy it there.
1. Begin Again Wooden Counting Chameleon Puzzle
15 Piece Wooden Counting Chameleon Puzzle by Begin Again. Great for children ages 2 to 4-years-old.
This puzzle not only makes a cute and colorful chameleon shape, but it also has the number on the front (1), and the number is written out on the back both in English (one) and Spanish (), making this a fantastic learning toy. Learn more about this Chameleon toy and see our gift pairing idea (Neon Leon adorable hardcover children’s book) for a thoughtful, giftset on our Counting Chameleon Puzzle listing.
2. Personalized Wooden Name Puzzle
This Personalized Wooden Name Puzzle is available in options up to 9 characters, as well as 10-12 characters, with pegs and without, and in primary or pastel colors (when specified when ordering). Made by South Bend Woodworks. Great for helping little ones learn how to spell their name. Can also double as nursery decor. This Personalized Wooden Name Puzzle comes in a variety of options: 9 letters or less, 9 letters or less with pegs, 10-12 letters, and 10-12 letters with pegs.
3. Grimm’s Mini Rainbow Stacking Puzzle (6-Piece)
This classic, 6-piece Rainbow Stacking Toy is made by the famous Grimm’s Spiel and Holz Design. It’s an imaginative, multi-color stacking toy ideal for babies and toddlers that is sure to last for years. Another fantastic wooden puzzle toy that can double as nursery decor before becoming a beloved stacking toy puzzle.
4. Begin Again Jumbo Wooden Animal Alphabet Puzzle
26 Piece Jumbo Animal Alphabet Puzzle by Begin Again. Great for children ages 3-6 years old. Each animal has a letter with the uppercase version on one side and the lowercase version on the other side of an animal that starts with that letter, like the ‘O’ and ‘o’ on either side of the blue octopus.
5. Melissa & Doug Musical Instruments Wooden Sound Puzzle
This Melissa & Doug Wooden Musical Instruments Sound Puzzle is perfect for toddlers. It’s a peg puzzle that features musical instruments and even makes the sound the instruments make when they are pressed into the puzzle. Great puzzle for children ages 3-5 years old.
6. Hape Wooden Alphabet Puzzle
This Hape Wooden Alphabet Puzzle features colorful, chunky letters that fit into a wooden puzzle board. Great for children learning the alphabet ages 2-6-years-old. Learn more about this Hape Alphabet Puzzle on our product page that also shares a gift pairing idea that’s an ABC tracing book.
7. Petit Collage Wooden Safari Animal Puzzle
Petit Collage Wooden Safari Animal Puzzle features 9 Safari animals that are 1.5-2 inches thick and fit together like a puzzle in the wooden tray they come in. Great for little ones ages 2-5 years old. Learn more and see our gift pairing idea safari book on our Petit Collage Wooden Safari Puzzle product page.
8. Melissa & Doug Wooden Locks & Latches Board Toy
This item is more of an activity board, but it can also be considered a if just a slightly different idea of a puzzle. The locks and latches re puzzles themselves to toddlers, making this board toy a collection of four different and latch puzzles. Great wooden toy for children ages 3-5 years old. more about it on our Wooden Locks & Latches Board Toy product page plus see a similar board also made by Melissa & Doug that we suggest pairing it with.
9. PlanToys Stacking Rocket
This bright-colored, stacking toy by PlanToys features multicolored discs that stack together to form a rocketship. Bonus – the stacking discs also include a shape that fits within them that make the toy even more interactive and fun. Made from natural rubberwood trees. Great for little ones ages 6 months to 3 years old. See our gift pairing book idea (Roaring Rockets) for on the Stacking Rocket product page.
10. Tegu Pocket Pouch Magnetic Wooden Block Set (8 Pieces)
This Tegu Magnetic Wooden Block Set with travel-friendly felt pouch is a fun 8-piece block set that makes a variety of different shapes that snap together magnetically. Available in 7 different stain/color options. Learn more about this Tegu 8-Piece Set or view the smaller Tegu 6-Piece Set in our online store.
Chunky Puzzles for Toddlers
For toddlers ages 2-4 years old, chunky puzzles are a great option. By chunky puzzles, we mean puzzles with thicker pieces, which most often translates to wooden puzzles. Wood puzzles are a great option for toddlers because the pieces are stronger and more resilient to rougher play, and also because the pieces are easier to handle by small hands, and they more easily fit and stay in place when putting puzzles together.
How many peices are in the best toddler puzzles?
There is no exactly right equation for the right sized puzzles for because every child is different. It also depends on how the puzzled will be played with – Will you help them with their puzzle? Do you expect them to complete the puzzle or can they just play with the pieces? Below are general age ranges for different sized puzzles. Remember to use size age ranges loosely since all children are different. However, it is important that the puzzles aren’t too difficult for the little ones you gift them to, else they may get frustrated by not being able to complete them.
Best puzzles for 1-year-olds: For babies ages 6 months to 1-year-old, chunky wooden puzzles are the way to go. Especially with little ones this young, grasping puzzle pieces can be a difficult feat of its own. You can expect babies to simply play with the pieces, and help show them what to do with the pieces by playing with the puzzles together. Small stacking puzzles and peg puzzles, like Grimm’s Mini Rainbow Stacking Puzzle (puzzle #2 in our list) and the Personalized Wooden Name Puzzles (puzzle #3), are great options for little ones ages 6-months to 1-year-old. These options are also great puzzles for kids 2 years old as well, however, two-year-olds can handle more pieces.
Puzzles for kids 2-years-old: The toys listed above (best puzzles for 1-year-olds) are also great puzzles for kids 2 years old, too. In addition to those puzzles, the PlanToys Stacking Rocket (puzzle #9 in our list above), and the Petit Collage Wooden Safari Animal Puzzle (puzzle #7) are also fantastic wooden puzzles for toddlers 2 years of age. These puzzles are very thick and have a limited number of pieces. Like the puzzles above, they can be played with as well as stacking and the puzzle pieces put together.
Wooden puzzles for 3-year-olds: 3 years old is a great age for puzzling because this is the age that toddlers can really start sitting down on their own and putting them together as a self-affirming activity. Many of the wooden puzzles we list in this article are well-suited for 3-year-olds. The best puzzles for 3-year-olds would be the Melissa and Doug Chunky Puzzles (Puzzles #5 and #8) that are self-contained, board puzzles, and the Tegu Pocket Pouch Magnetic Wooden Block Set (Puzzle #10). The other puzzles listed for 1-year-olds and 2-year- are still great options for 3-year-olds as well.
Puzzles for kids 4-years-old: Children ages 4-years-old can start working with larger puzzles well. This is a great age for more educational puzzles like ABC puzzles and counting puzzles, to help little ones learn the alphabet and complete counting activities. Our favorite puzzles for 4-year-olds are the Counting Chameleon Puzzle (puzzle #1 in our list), the Jumbo Wooden Animal Alphabet Puzzle (puzzle #4) and the Hape Wooden Alphabet Puzzle (puzzle #6).
Puzzles for kids ages 5 years old and over: Many of the chunky wooden puzzles listed above are great options for kids that are 5-years-old, and some are still fitting for 6-years-old. However, at 5-years-old and over, children can make the switch to playing with jigsaw puzzles with more peices, and they don’t need to be chunky puzzles anymore, since their dexterity has improved by this time. For little ones 5-years-old, they can play with 24-peice puzzles up through 64-peice puzzles, the latter of which may be best played with an adult for help. 64-peice puzzles are great for little ones up to age 7.
To peruse our favorite jigsaw puzzles, take a look at our puzzles section for more options, including the search and find puzzles below. We LOVE these because not only are they a cute puzzle, but the perimeter of the puzzle shows the animals found within the puzzle, making them a 2-in-1 activity. First you put the puzzle together, then you search for the animals found within it!
Read our 3D Puzzles for Kids blog article to see a list of our favorite 3D Puzzles for Kids. (The Melissa and Doug Castle and Pirate Ship 3D puzzle is a great 3D option for younger children!)
All of the puzzles we share in this article are puzzles for toddlers available for purchase on Amazon. Many of which are very inexpensive gift options, like the Melissa and Doug board activity puzzles. In many of the puzzle’s product pages (linked to in blue link text in the puzzle’s description), we share gift pairing options, so you can easily make the puzzle you like into a thoughtful, curated gift set with ease. So, happy puzzling! We hope you have found our puzzles for toddlers blog helpful and that you find the perfect puzzles for the toddler in your life!
Tell us in the comments below, what is your favorite children’s puzzle? Or what is it you like about puzzling as an adult?