9 Tonies starter bundles to kickstart your collection

With five million Tonieboxes and 58 million Tonies sold between 2016 and 2022, there's no denying the appeal of these audio devices. And if you are keen to jump on the bandwagon, then a Tonie starter bundle is a great way to kickstart your collection.

If you're fresh to the world of Tonies, here's a quick lowdown. Tonieboxes are screen-free and wireless audio devices suitable and simple enough for kids age three and over to operate themselves. They help to encourage children to play and learn independently and can foster language skills too, especially when used from an early age - check out our picks of the best Tonies for preschoolers. To play character-themed stories and songs, you'll need Tonies, which are hand-painted magnetic characters that sit on top of the Toniebox. There are more than 700 Tonies in the collection, with the most popular Tonies including fan favourites from Peppa Pig, The Gruffalo and Disney.

Before buying, you might want to weigh up Yoto versus Tonies to see which audio box is right for you and your child, or read our Toniebox review to see if they really are worth the money. But if you settle on Tonies, then we've found some great bundles to get you started, including some brilliant bargains.

Is a Toniebox bundle good value for money?

When you consider that the Toniebox (which comes with the creative Tonie as standard) is £79.95, and each Tonie character is roughly £15, then it's relatively easy to work out whether a bundle is giving you value for money or not. You can maximise value for money by buying a bundle if you see it on offer.

For example, if you bought a Toniebox and three audio characters separately, it would set you back just under £125. However, at the time of writing, you could buy a bundle including the same products for just over £86 on Amazon, which is a saving of about £39 (which could be put towards another couple of Tonies, with money left over).

GoodtoKnow's Consumer Editor and mum-of-three Heidi Scrimgeour adds: "Buying a Toniebox is a decision you’ll probably want to take a bit of time to think about, because it’s a fairly hefty amount of money to part with when you’re new to the world of screen-free devices for kids.

"As I've had a Toniebox for years, I can happily say this is an investment that’s worth every penny. As well as the device’s storytelling features, it also encourages interactive play and comes in a super durable format that even the most rambunctious toddler can’t easily destroy - I’ve lost count of the number of times ours has been dropped, including once down the stairs!

"When it comes to the long-term benefits of owning a Toniebox, it’s easy to see that it ends up offering excellent value for money. I like to think of value for money in terms of price-per-use. If you use a Toniebox every day even just for a couple of years (and we used ours for many, many years) then it’ll effectively only cost you a few pence per day, all things considered. Much cheaper than an audiobook subscription or buying new books to read over the same period of time. Add all the ‘extra’ functionality, like the option to record your own stories and build your collection of Tonie characters as your child’s interests change and develop, and it’s clear that a Toniebox is a worthwhile investment in screen-free educational entertainment for your child."

For more screen-free fun for the little ones in your life, you might also like the best dinosaur toys, these mix and make toys or this year's top toys.