Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in Please refresh your browser to be logged in
The Independent’s journalism is supported by our readers. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn commission.
From interactive electrics to biodegradable options, these will keep their pearly whites healthy and clean
Find your bookmarks in your Independent Premium section, under my profile
From babies right up to teens, rest assured we’ve got the top scrubbers for every age group
Two minutes, twice a day. That’s the dentist-recommended brushing time to aim for, as a minimum. Yet, as any parent knows, two minutes can feel like an awfully long time when you’re trying to convince your tiny person to brush their teeth.
Thankfully, the humble toothbrush has come a long way, and there are now a huge number of child-friendly brushes on the market designed to make brushing their teeth fun. From manual brushes with softer bristles, to interactive electric toothbrushes loaded up with games, there’s never been a better reason to upgrade your bog-standard brush.
Regardless of the brush you choose, children will still need supervising while they’re brushing their teeth, especially if it’s the first time they’ve used an electric brush. It’s a good idea to check the recommended brushing technique for the specific brush you’re buying – for example whether you still need to actively brush with an electric model, or slowly move it over the teeth as it oscillates. And look for a brushing coach or brushing feedback feature, which is a useful extra on top of parental supervision.
Our testers ranged from 18-months to 13-years in age and tried out a whole range of toothbrushes including both manual and electric, battery-powered and rechargeable models. We looked for things like ease of use, extra features like a two-minute timer, price, biodegradability and durability – including how easy it was to find replacement heads for electric models.
Our two most important ranking factors, though, were how clean each brush left our tester’s teeth after a week of brushing, and how long it took for the fun factor to wear off. Suffice to say our testers have never had such sparkling clean gnashers, and we won’t be going back to “normal” brushes any time soon.
It was a close call between this brush and both the Playbrush smart sonic and Philips Sonicare, but in the end Oral-B’s junior electric toothbrush won for its simplicity and durability. Admittedly it doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of an interactive brush, but ultimately, we liked the fact there’s no subscription or screen required.
A more grown-up version of Oral-B’s three-plus model, which also features on our list, this brush (for ages six and up) has done away with the stickers and cartoon characters, and what’s left is just a really solid, brightly coloured brush that left our tester’s teeth looking noticeably cleaner and plaque-free. The brush head also lasted the longest of all the brushes we tested, and replacements were easy to find in normal shops.
The brush buzzes after two minutes so your child knows when they’ve hit the mark, and the battery life is good – as per the claims on the packaging, it did indeed last 10 days with twice-daily brushing. If you’re looking for a step up from this one for an older child or teenage sibling, we’d also recommend the Oral-B pro 3000. It gives the same super-clean feel with a firmer brush head and some more grown-up features, including a pressure control sensor to stop you brushing too hard.
Best: For tiny tech fans
Our seven-year-old tester was very enamoured with Sparkly, the cute interactive character linked to this brush. Indeed, the app functionality was the best of all those we tested, and she loved being able to win food and accessories for her fuzzy purple friend in return for good brushing habits.
Our tester also liked the fact it came with stickers to customise the handle, and the oval brush head, which felt more familiar than the circular Oral-B heads. She used the full-size brush head that came with the brush, although there’s a second, smaller brush head in the pack, which is best for children under five.
The brush has a built-in two-minute timer, and plays a few musical notes every 30 seconds to remind kids to switch sides. It’s quite subtle and quiet, which is welcome at bedtime when you’re trying to wind them down. Although the battery lasted a long time – ten days when we tested – it did seem to take longer to charge than some other electric brushes we tried, which was a bit of a pain for our impatient tester. That was our one and only niggle, and this is otherwise a fantastic brush that left our tester’s teeth lovely and clean – partly because she liked Sparkly so much she would often do an extra clean.
If you’re after an all-singing, all-dancing toothbrush with lots of interactivity, the Playbrush smart sonic is a lot of fun. You’ll need to download the Playbrush app and set up an account to get started, then kids can access all the games and a really useful brushing coach that shows you how well you’re doing in real-time. This was easily our nine-year-old tester’s favourite feature.
Once we figured out we’d accidentally set up the adult Playbrush app rather than the kids’ one, it was easy to make an account, add profiles, and switch between them. Our brother-and-sister testers soon turned teeth-brushing into a competitive exercise, and particularly liked the fact there were games they could play together – like a racing game where the best brusher wins.
Out of the box at £44.99, the brush comes with access to four games and the brushing coach, or you can upgrade by subscribing to a monthly or half-yearly payment plan. The upgrade reduces the price of the brush, includes two replacement heads delivered every six months (usually £14.99), and gives you access to 12 games. You also get a weekly brushing report by email that breaks down things like brushing duration and coverage for everyone with a profile in the app – a nice feature if you want to keep track of their brushing habits from afar.
Best: For their first teeth
If you’re looking for a manual brush for tiny tots, the Jack N’ Jill biodegradable baby toothbrush was a hit with our tester. This clever biodegradable brush is made from corn starch, which means it decomposes when you’re done with it. Just break off the head and recycle the nylon bristles, then the handle will break down in 90 days.
Age-wise it’s designed for babies from around six-months-old and upwards, and our toddler tester found the smaller size of the handle easy to hold – so it’s great for little ones determined to have a go at everything themselves. Dentists recommend brushing your baby’s teeth as soon as they start to cut through, and this is a lovely soft, greppable, and chewable brush for teething little ones. Plus, it’s BPA and PVC free – so you know there are no hidden nasties.
This is another great Oral-B brush in our list, this time for kids age three-plus. It has just the right number of child-friendly elements to make brushing fun – that’s a Spiderman design, non-slip handle and a set of interchangeable stickers – but not so many that it becomes gimmicky.
The two-minute buzzer tells them when they’ve brushed for long enough, and you can use it along with the Disney magic timer app. Start the timer in the app and an image gradually reveals itself on the screen as your child brushes, and you can unlock extra images when you scan the character on your brush. We found the timer app worked a treat with manual brushes, too, and our testers often request it regardless of the brush they’re using.
The brush itself is a standard size that does come up quite large in toddler hands, although the bristles are very soft, and sensitive mode gave a gentle clean that wasn’t too ferocious for our little tester. There’s only the one head included in the box, so we’d recommend also purchasing the replacement heads – the brush will tell you when it’s time to change.
If only the toothbrush Mo Farah uses will do, it’s got to be the iO8. Admittedly, the full price is a ridiculously steep £450, which seems an awful lot for a toothbrush – regardless of which shiny-toothed celebrity it’s endorsed by. But if you can find it on offer, it’s an excellent brush that gives an impressive clean, and our teen tester particularly approved of the sleek black design and carry case.
Looks aside, the brush has various tech-heavy features like an interactive colour display, and an AI-guided brushing coach that shows you how well you’re brushing in the app (as long as you have the app open while you’re brushing, which was a bit disappointing for a brush of this price). There are also six different brushing modes, although we didn’t notice a vast difference between them, and a pressure sensor that glows red if you’re brushing too hard.
The magnetic charger gives a full charge in three hours, and the battery lasts a week, so you’ll need to take the charger if you’re travelling any longer than that. Where this brush really stood out though, was the super-clean mouth feel – it really is as good as Mo says. It’s still expensive even on sale, and the replacement heads are tricky to find, but it certainly feels like you’re getting a far superior clean.
This battery-operated brush is a nice option for little ones keen to use an electric brush like their older siblings or parents. It’s also well worth a try if you’re struggling with battles at bedtime. Designed for kids aged 0-three-years – it includes a baby brush head for tots up to 18 months, as well as a second head for 18-months to three-years – it has a two-minute timer, with a pulse every 30 seconds to switch sides, so your little one can settle into good brushing habits from day one.
Our tiny tester liked the small size and light-up brush head, which allowed him to look at his baby teeth in the mirror as he brushed – just bear in mind the replacement heads are not hugely easy to get hold of. The bristles are super soft, the vibrations are nice and gentle, and there’s an option to just turn on the light without the vibrations if your tot takes a little while to get used to an electric brush. We particularly liked the suction cup at the bottom, which means it stands up on its own and dries quickly. And the fact the AAA battery was included was the icing on the cake.
This battery-powered electric brush cuts out the need for a charger or adapter, and all the games and interactive features are in the brush itself – so you don’t need to download an app or relinquish your phone every time they want to brush their teeth. It comes with seven built-in brushing games, which are controlled by a button on the side. You can zap aliens, race a rally car, or jam like a rockstar as you brush, with a smart brush head that can sense when you’re brushing correctly.
It’s all accompanied by a slightly overbearing voice that tells you when you need to switch sides or change your brushing style, a handle that vibrates on and off repeatedly, and flashing disco lights. That’s all great for a morning wake-up routine, but absolutely bonkers at bedtime. We thought we’d found a solution by holding down the button while the brush is off to select the low volume mode, but every time the brush is turned on again it defaults to extra loud. Nevertheless, our younger testers certainly didn’t mind the noise and our toddler tester absolutely loved the Baby Shark version.
This silicone brush from Swedish beauty brand Foreo claims to remove up to 30 per cent more plaque than a normal toothbrush, and it was certainly met with approval from our sensitive-toothed tester. He liked the fact the brush head – which has soft silicone, not nylon bristles – doesn’t rotate, and instead uses sonic pulsations to give a much gentler, calmer clean.
The whole thing is made from silicone, which the makers claim repels 10,000 times more bacteria than a nylon-bristled brush. It’s waterproof, it vibrates every 30 seconds to remind kids to switch to a new area, and it will reward you with a smiley face when your two-minute brushing time is up.
Where this brush wins extra points, beyond the super-stylish design and mould-breaking materials, is the charge time. With just a one-hour charge it lasts for an impressive 265 days, and it uses a USB charger – so there’s no need to hunt around for a 2-to-3 pin adapter.
Another clever manual brush crafted from corn starch that’s made it onto our list, the Natural Family Co biodegradable toothbrush and stand is a good option for older children. It’s a standard size brush, so it’s suitable for adults, too. And the stand means there’s no excuse for it to be lying in a pool of water on the sink.
The main benefit we found was the feel of the brush in the mouth – our tester wasn’t keen on bamboo brushes because they felt rough, whereas this feels like a normal toothbrush. Admittedly it’s not as cheap as a bog-standard plastic brush, but when you consider the average person uses around 300 toothbrushes in their lifetime, there’s huge satisfaction in knowing this one’s not going to end up in landfill.
Our testers were blown away by the app that came with the Philips Sonicare connected toothbrush, and the games that came with the PlayBrush smart sonic. But ultimately, the Oral-B junior electric toothbrush won for an excellent clean at a reasonable price – without having to set up a subscription or download an app. Special mention goes to the Foreo ISSA kids silicone sonic toothbrush for the incredible charge time, too.
For the latest discounts on kids’ clothing and other essentials, try the links below:
Make tub time more fun with our edit of the best bath toys for babies and toddlers
Registration is a free and easy way to support our truly independent journalism
By registering, you will also enjoy limited access to Premium articles, exclusive newsletters, commenting, and virtual events with our leading journalists
{{#verifyErrors}} {{message}} {{/verifyErrors}} {{^verifyErrors}} {{message}} {{/verifyErrors}}
By clicking ‘Create my account’ you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use, Cookie policy and Privacy notice.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy policy and Terms of service apply.
Already have an account? sign in
By clicking ‘Register’ you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use, Cookie policy and Privacy notice.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy policy and Terms of service apply.
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in Please refresh your browser to be logged in
Or if you would prefer: