Apps for Preschool Kids

I’ve spent countless hours searching for quality apps for my two preschool-aged kids. Besides being fun and interesting, I look for apps that have:

1. No ads. Ads often get in the way of having fun, but also may be completely inappropriate for children. Advertising targeted at kids has its own set of issues.
2. No In-App Purchases (IAPs). I don’t want my kids playing games where you have to pay to win or to get “special” items. Some apps are designed to be as addictive as possible and carefully crafted to prompt for an IAP when you’re most likely to pay. These are to be absolutely avoided. I make one exception: some apps are free to install, but have a one-off IAP to unlock the full functionality or set of levels — that’s fine by me.

I’d like to recommend a list of publishers whose child-targeted apps I have installed and kept. I’ll also mention which apps I think my kids have enjoyed the most.

1. Avokiddo (avokiddo.com)
   Most played: Avokiddo ABC Ride, Thinkrolls, Thinkrolls 2 and Thinkrolls: Kings & Queens.
2. Ahoiii Entertainment (ahoiii.com)
   Most played: Fiete Islands, Fiete Farm and Fiete Math.
3. DragonBox (dragonbox.com)
   Most played: Numbers, Big Numbers and Algebra 5+.
4. Filimundus (www.filimundus.com)
   Most played: Pettson’s Inventions — Deluxe, Pettsons Inventions 2 and Inventioneers.
5. Dr. Panda (drpanda.com)
   Most played: Dr. Panda’s Veggie Garden, Dr. Panda’s Restaurant and Dr. Panda’s Daycare.
6. Monkey Preschool (monkeypreschool.com)
   Most played: Monkey Preschool Lunchbox and Monkey Math School Sunshine.
7. 22LEARN (www.22learn.com)
   Most played: Phonics Island and Letter Quiz.
8. Duck Duck Moose (www.duckduckmoose.com)
   Most played: Itsy Bitsy Spider and Moose Math.
9. Toca Boca (tocaboca.com)
   Most played: Toca Blocks, Toca Nature and Toca Pet Doctor.
10. Bini Bambini (binibambini.com)
    It’s hard to describe how excited my son was the first time he drew a cat and saw it come to life in Drawing for Kids and Toddlers.

If you’re looking for apps for preschoolers I hope you find this list useful!

If I’ve missed a publisher you think is worth a mention, please leave a comment.

Updates: check out Apps for 5–7 Year Olds and Apps for Tweens.