Buying An iPad For Your Kids? Here Are 4 Tablets To Consider Instead

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Amazon users consider Apple's iPad 11 to be the best tablet you can buy in 2026. It's also regularly listed by expert tech reviewers as one of the best tablets for kids, due to its user-friendliness, robust parental controls, lightweight design, and lengthy battery life. However, iPads have some limitations, and they're not inherently kid-focused tablets. Plus, the iPad 11's hefty price tag means it's not necessarily suited to parents looking for a more affordable kids' tablet.

Therefore, it may be worth considering alternative tablets that may better fit your family's needs before shelling out your hard-earned cash on an iPad. After all, the tablet that's right for your child depends on various factors, including the age of your kid, intended tablet use, required battery life, durability level, storage, and screen size. While an iPad may tick some of these boxes for you and your child, another tablet may be a better fit.

Here, we break down four alternative tablets you should consider buying for your kids instead of an iPad. The following devices are often recommended by experts and parents alike. We've tried to include tablets that cover a range of needs, including options for younger and older children.

The Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids Pro is considered by experts and parents to be one of the best tablets for kids. The Kids Pro is designed for kids aged from 6 to 12 and technically comes in a bundle, offering an Amazon Fire HD 10 tablet with a 10.1-inch screen and a durable case with a built-in kickstand. With the tablet, buyers also get a two-year warranty and a year-long subscription to Amazon Kids+ for $189.99.

Mumsnet lists this device as the best overall kids tablet to buy in 2026, with testers praising the device's 12-hour battery life, sturdy case, vibrant screen image quality, and robust parental controls through the Amazon Parent Dashboard. The Dashboard lets you remotely customize the device's settings, time limits, and content access. Experts also praise the tablet's kids-focused content, with Amazon Kids+ providing access to a wide variety of age-appropriate apps, books, and games. However, it's worth noting that, after the included Kids+ subscription period comes to an end, it costs $7.99 per month or $79.99 per year to keep.

If your kids aren't old enough for the Kids Pro, Amazon also offers the Fire HD 10 Kids tablet, which is aimed at 3- to 7-year-olds. This option costs $199.99 and includes a child-proof case and larger, image-based buttons better suited to younger children.

If you're looking for a tablet to support your child's school work — or just a cheaper Android tablet alternative to the iPad – the Lenovo Idea Tab 11-inch is worth considering. Lenovo's AI-powered Android tablet is aimed at students, so it may be more suitable for slightly older kids. It offers a relatively compact 11-inch 2.5K display, 8GB RAM, 128GB of storage, and "all-day battery life" (which Mumsnet testers found to be anywhere between 12 and 14 hours.)

Parents recommend this tablet due to its value, sharp display, and solid battery life. In addition, parental tools and controls are available through Google Family Link – considered to be one of the best parental control apps – which allows parents to set screen time limits; manage files, security, and privacy settings; and set up alerts to notify you when your child leaves or arrives at a specific location.

Made for Mums and Mumsnet both recommend purchasing the bundle that includes the Lenovo Tab Pen, which costs slightly more at $299.99. Mumsnet points out that this stylus makes handwritten notetaking and annotations feel more natural than typing on a touchscreen. The same model without the pen is also available for $229.99.

Launched in April 2026, and suitable for children aged 4 and up, the Samsung Galaxy Tab A11+ Kids Edition tablet is the newest release on our list. The Galaxy Tab A11+ Kids Edition is the successor to the A9+ Kids Edition that tech experts, including PCMag and Android Central, consider among the best kids tablets. Like the Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids Pro, this tablet comes as a bundle which includes the 11-inch Samsung Galaxy Tab A11+ Kids Edition tablet, a puffy protective case with a kickstand, a Crayo-Pen stylus (designed to look like a crayon) and tether, and stickers.

The A11+ Kids Edition offers many of the same features as the A9+, including a battery that'll last up to 15 hours, 1920x1200 video resolution, and a 90Hz refresh rate. It comes in the same dimensions, but the newer Kids Edition also boasts a faster processor, more storage (now 128GB), and better charging. But all of that also comes with a heftier price tag — the kids tablet actually costs $50 more than the standard Galaxy A11+, with a price of $349.99. The only major difference between the standard Galaxy A11+ and the Kids Edition is that the kids tablet is limited to Wi-Fi – so doesn't include a 5G option. Built-in parental controls are also available through the preloaded Samsung Kids app that lets parents manage their child's screen time, monitor their tablet usage, and approve apps they want to download.

This tablet has a 4.4 out of 5 rating on Amazon, with customers praising the easy-to-use parental controls, screen size, storage capacity, and tablet's performance. However, some users report being disappointed with the Samsung Kids experience and app selection.

If you're looking for a budget-friendly and educational tablet for your toddler or younger child, experts recommend the LeapFrog LeapPad Academy Kids Learning Tablet. This $120 tablet is designed for 3- to 8-year-olds and comes with a stylus, 7-inch shatter-safe screen, and a durable bumper case with a kickstand. Parents can use the tablet's built-in parent settings to control their kids' access to online experiences, manage screen time, and approve app access.

The tablet comes pre-loaded with 20 educational apps designed to help children develop their math, reading, writing, coding, problem-solving, and creativity skills. Additional apps can also be purchased from the LeapFrog App Center. Alongside the tablet, you get a three-month free trial to LeapFrog Academy, which features 2,000 games, activities, ebooks, videos, and more that you can filter by age group. After the trial ends, the subscription costs $7.99 per month or $39.99 a year.

Parents.com praises this tablet's durability, stable Wi-Fi connection, and user-friendly UI, but found the lack of parental control customization to be a drawback. Meanwhile, Amazon customers found the tablet to be educational and entertaining, but some criticized its meager five-hour battery life and build quality.