If your baby has reached the stage of holding their head up on their own, it’s a great time to consider an activity table or exersaucer.
But just like with adults, ergonomics and safety should also be a priority for our little ones.
These tables come with toys and exciting activities that will keep your child engaged and stimulated.
In this review, we’ll pick out the safest and all round best activity tables on the market.
We also discuss some of the importance of these exersaucers, how to choose the right ones, and how to use them correctly.
Favorite Baby Activity Table
Fisher-Price 3-In-1 Sit-To-Stand Activity Center
- Highly adjustable
- Offers motor and sensory activities
- Convenient for storage
- Machine-washable mat and seat pad
Even at first glance, the Fisher price activity center looks delightful with its modern design.
It comes with a rattle, teeter totter, spinners and a removable crocodile. The play-mat can be used on its own, or placed conveniently below the device, secured to its legs.
This could be the perfect developmental activity center for your child, one that will follow its growth from baby to toddler.
Once your baby can hold its head place it inside the seat and let it have 360 degrees of fun, while learning and developing its brain.
As soon as your child learns how to climb out of the seat, remove it for safety. The exersaucer is convenient for storage; the legs come off so you can fold it for later use.
Once your children grow to toddler years, they can use the table as a play desk.
Second Favorite Baby Play Table
Skip Hop Silver Lining Baby's Interactive Activity Center
- Highly adjustable
- Made for children ages 4m+
- Seat rotates 360 degrees
- Designed for safety
If you’re highly concerned about safety, here’s an exersaucer that was designed with pediatrician’s help.
This brand’s motto is ‘Must Haves – Made Better’ and they create clean sturdy tables that are multifunctional.
Unlike our previous item on the list that only had one removable toy, the Skip Hop comes with toy clips system.
This means that all toys are removable and can be mixed for variety. This exersaucer comes in gender neutral color and has a clean look to it.
Just like the previous item, it follows the growth of your children and turns into a table when they get older.
The other thing this company specifies is their ‘discovery window’ on the table where the child can see its feet and step on musical notes located on the mat.
A word of caution, the owl figure is a finger jamming hazard.
Most Educational Table
Baby Einstein Neptune's Ocean Discovery Jumper
- Marine inspired 360 degree jumper
- Boosts vocabulary & aids language learning
- Baby bounce seat develops motor skills
This jumper is hands down the most loved item on Amazon, and there’s a reason why.
Almost all of the parents that got the Baby Einstein are thrilled with the seat’s bouncy function.
Being able to bounce while sitting helps babies learn how to use their legs while providing them with a playful activity.
The toys will keep them entertained for hours, but they will also educate the young ones.
There are 25 ocean themed activities, flash cards, and options to discover 3 languages, English, German and French.
Just like the other cases this one is safe to use from 6 months up to 12 months of age.
Once the seat pad gets dirty you can remove it and wash it. We would say this jumper is perfect, but there’s a tiny detail that needs improvement.
The seat is made of a solid material and tends to get hot after a while.
Best For 2 Year Olds
BurgKidz Kids 5-in-1 Multi Activity Table Set
- Double-sided play board
- 128 pieces of building bricks
- Versatile & Easy to maintain
- Made for children 2+ years
If your child has reached toddler years and you’re looking for a versatile play center, this one has got it all.
The tabletop can be used on both sides, choose between building blocks table, or flip it and you get a smooth surface.
The table comes with 128 pieces of bricks and is compatible with DUPLO.
If your head stood straight at the thought of countless building blocks scattered around the room, do not worry.
There is ample storage room underneath the table top and 4 plastic drawers that can be clipped on the sides.
Why not remove the table top completely and fill the table with sand or water to be used outside?
Once you’re finished you can place the entire table under a shower for easy cleaning and store it away.
The Importance Of Exersaucers
Benefits
As we mentioned in the beginning, the exersaucer is quite a versatile device that comes with a multitude of benefits for your child.
First of all the exersaucer helps develop visual motor skills that are essential for coordination between the eyes and the rest of the body.
Some activity tables are additionally educational with flash cards and language learning options, such as the Baby Einstein.
The adjustability option is another great thing, as the exersaucer grows as your child grows. Most of them turn into a drawing table once your little one grows up.
Finally, you as a parent can finally rest, or do some chores in peace knowing that your baby is entertained.
Difference between jumperoos & exersaucers
They look very similar with one big difference: Your child can bounce in the jumperoo while the exersaucer is static and doesn’t come with a bouncy option.
Generally speaking they’re both safe, but most moms feel that the exersaucer is safer.
With that being said, in our research we came across a dad that got a jumperoo for his special needs baby, and he was beyond happy seeing his daughter starting to use her legs for the first time.
We would say, as long as it’s a good quality product, and you follow the instructions your child should be fine.
Can they be bad for a baby?
Yes, there are some cheap options on the market that are liable to tip over and cause harm to the baby, so stay away from those.
Also some manufacturers might make a mistake sometimes (as Fisher Price’s finger-pinching owl) so make sure you check each and every toy before including in in the table set.
When it comes to age, the exersaucer should be bought after your infant learns to support its upper half. If they’re still dependent on you for balance, it is still early for an exersaucer.
Also it’s important to mention that exersaucers are not walkers, they are static and cannot be moved around. Keep your child a maximum of 30 minutes inside, and then let it have some ground time.
When do babies outgrow exersaucers?
Once your child gets old enough and starts getting out of the exersaucer on its own it is time to remove the seat and use the device as a drawing table. This usually happens at 12 months old.
Other Exersaucers To Consider
Manhattan Toy Tree Top Wooden Activity Center
If you’re looking for a fun and unique activity table for your toddler the Manhattan tree top might be a good choice.
It is made completely out of wood with a water based finish that’s safe for kids. The table top is packed full of activities divided into 4 quadrants, including animal themed gliders, spinning dials, and shape recognition among the rest.
The company is based in Canada and has been making children’s toys since 1979 and they ship to the US.
Their Manhattan toy is 22.5 inches tall and should be used by toddlers of 1 year, and up to five years old.
The only thing some parents hate about this toy – it is very difficult to put together and you will need a ratcheting offset screwdriver or an Allen wrench to spare you tons of frustration.
LeapFrog Learn & Groove Musical Table
For the future musical genius we present to you the LeapFrog musical table that comes with 70+ songs including the classics like Old Mc Donald, the ABC song and similar.
Also musical sounds are available such as drums, piano, the guitar, etc.
You can choose to only use the musical tabletop while your child is still crawling, or attach the legs for a toddler. It can be used by 6 months old babies, all the way up to 36 months old.
Aside from the musical notes there are also learning activities, and your child will learn about numbers, colors, shapes and letters in English or Spanish.
The only downside we could find: This item is much lighter than its predecessor and parents feel that could be a safety hazard.
Bright Starts 3-in-1 Around We Go Activity Center
This is another colorful activity center that will amuse and stimulate your infant/toddler over 6 months of age.
The bright stars center is divided into 2 parts. The static part is an activity table that can be used on its own when your child grows up. It comes with 15 activities to choose from and runs on 3 AA batteries.
The moving part is a walker attached to the table that rotates 360 degrees around it. The walker itself gives your child the opportunity to switch between sitting and standing. You simply have to remove the seat and your baby can play standing.
Little Tikes Spiralin' Seas Waterpark Play Table
If your little ones like playing with water, they will love the Little Tikes play table. It holds 7 gallons of water and comes with 5 submersible toys, to be used outdoors.
The central piece can be screwed in securely and the rest of the pieces can be popped in and out easily. Younger babies at 6-7 months of age love splashing the water and grabbing toys.
Once they get a bit older they will actually enjoy moving the balls around and pouring a glass of water down the central piece for a special effect.
This table could be the next big thing for the summer. One thing we didn’t like: The play table is super hard to clean, and the squirt balls hold water and get mildew inside if not dried properly.
Other than that, this table is a huge hit with children and they will spend hours playing in the yard.
