Toniebox from what age? The right age for Toniebox 1 and 2
From what age is the Toniebox suitable? It depends on the model: the Toniebox 2 is certified by tonies for children from one year, while the first Toniebox was intended for children from 3 years. Many older guides still say "from 3 years"; that applied to the first generation.
Here you will learn what your child can do with the Toniebox at what age, what the 1+ mode changes, which Tonies are suitable from 1 year, and how to set up the box for a toddler.
For transparency: We are Lenabo and we make our own speaker-equipped cuddly toys, which are designed for use from birth. This guide is about the Toniebox; we introduce our own product in the section before the first birthday and mention it in two answers to the frequently asked questions. All information about the Toniebox comes from tonies (as of November 2026), and the links are in the sources.
The most important things in brief
- Toniebox 2: from 1 year. tonies has certified it for this age and given it its own 1+ mode.
- First Toniebox: from 3 years. tonies no longer sells it; all Tonies work on both boxes.
- Under 1 year: There are no Tonieboxes or Tonies for babies. At this age, talking, singing, and reading aloud are most important, and quiet melodies for falling asleep.
- Tonies: Each figure has its own age recommendation. Specifically for 1- to 2-year-olds, there are the My First Tonies made of soft silicone.
From what age is the Toniebox suitable?
The Toniebox 2 has been available since September 2025. tonies designed it for children from 1 to 12+ years and certified it for children from one year. How exactly that is taken is shown by one detail: The included USB-C charging cable is only 22 cm long because of the age rating. For older children from 3 years, you can use a longer cable according to tonies.
The first Toniebox is aimed at children from 3 years according to the manufacturer. tonies no longer sells it, but it is still in use in many families. For children between 1 and 3 years, the manufacturer only recommends the Toniebox 2.
|
Model |
Age according to tonies |
For the youngest |
Tonies and games |
Available |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Toniebox 2 |
from 1 year (certified), designed up to 12+ |
1+ mode: no playback while charging, no rewinding by tilting; short charging cable |
all Tonies, plus Tonieplay games |
yes, since September 2025 |
|
Toniebox 1 |
from 3 years |
no own mode for toddlers |
all Tonies, no Tonieplay games |
no longer at tonies |
Information according to tonies, as of November 2026.
What can your child do at what age?
At one year, children hear songs and sounds above all, from three years on audio plays are added, and at school age knowledge and games. This is how tonies divides the age groups in its age guide, here supplemented by the first year of life:
Content by age, from birth to school:
- Under 1 year No Toniebox yet. Parents talk, sing, and look at picture books; for falling asleep, some play quiet melodies or sleep sounds.
- 1 to 3 years Toniebox 2 in 1+ mode with nursery rhymes, sounds, and short stories. Children place the figure themselves and press the ears for loud and quiet.
- 3 to 5 years Audio plays, mindfulness Tonies, and the Little Experts, plus the first Tonieplay games. Children increasingly choose their stories themselves.
- 5 to 12 years Book Tonies for reading promotion, Pocket Tonies for knowledge, Tonieplay games from 5 and from 7, and audio play series like The Three ???.
Our guide Audio plays for children explains from when audio plays are useful.
The 1+ mode of the Toniebox 2
So that even one-year-olds can listen with the box, the Toniebox 2 has two age modes: 1+ and 3+. You set the mode in the tonies app and can change it later. In the 1+ mode, tonies restricts some functions for safety reasons:
- The box does not play while it is charging.
- Tilting for fast-forwarding and rewinding is disabled.
The basic operation remains the same: placing the figure starts the content, the ears control the volume. If your child is older, you switch to 3+ in the app.
Which Tonies are suitable from 1 year?
Not every Tonie is intended for one-year-olds, the age recommendation is on every figure. For the youngest, tonies lists especially these in the age guide:
- My First Tonies: specially developed for children from 1 to 2 years, made of soft, wipeable silicone. Familiar sounds, simple songs, and short stories are intended to help with learning to speak. They are only available in a set of three figures, such as farm, ocean, or jungle.
- Sleepy Band: Tonies for the time before falling asleep.
- Leo's Day: accompanies everyday rituals like brushing teeth and tidying up.
- Familiar figures: a selection curated by tonies from 1 year, including Bobo the dormouse, Mickey Mouse, and Minnie Mouse.
Good to know: Some Tonies that used to be "from 3" are now recommended by tonies from 1 year. Nothing has changed about the figures, stories, and songs; because the first Toniebox was only certified from 3 years, tonies could not recommend it for younger children before. Therefore, look at the current information in the shop.
Toniebox from 1 year: Is it worth it?
For many families, yes, as long as the expectations match the age. At one year, it is about songs, sounds, and small rituals, long audio plays come later.
Strengths: The operation is so simple that many children can place a figure and start by themselves already at one year. The Toniebox 2 is certified for this age, and the 1+ mode restricts functions for safety reasons. Sleep timers with night light and Good Night mode help to incorporate the box into the evening ritual.
Limits: Many familiar audio play figures like PAW Patrol or Bibi Blocksberg are only assigned by tonies to the 3- to 5-year-olds; for one-year-olds, the selection is smaller. Every new Tonie must be downloaded once via WLAN, and in the 1+ mode, the box does not play while it is charging.
Good to know: An audio box does without a screen, but it does not replace the conversation with you. The World Health Organization advises not to give children under two any screen time, and recommends reading aloud and storytelling with a caregiver for quiet phases. In a longitudinal study, the number of conversational turns with 18 to 24 months was associated with vocabulary, language comprehension, and IQ around ten years later in 44 children. This is an association, not proof of cause and effect. Nevertheless, listen along and talk to your child about the stories.
Setting up the Toniebox for a toddler
Whether for the first birthday or Christmas: It is best to set up the box before you give it as a gift. Then your child can start listening right away, and the most important settings for the youngest are set.
- Take the Toniebox 2. Only it is certified from one year; the first Toniebox is only intended from 3 years.
- Set up with WLAN. For the setup, you need the tonies app with an account and a WLAN connection.
- Choose the 1+ mode. You set the age mode in the app. What it changes is explained above.
- Set the maximum volume. In the app, you limit how loud the box can get at most. It cannot be set louder even with the ears.
- Pre-load new Tonies. Place every new Tonie on the box via WLAN and wait until its content is fully downloaded. Only then will it work without WLAN, for example at the grandparents' or on vacation.
- Charge in time. Because the box does not play while charging in the 1+ mode, the battery should be full before the evening ritual begins.
Toniebox for babies under 1 year?
No: For babies under one year, no Toniebox is intended, and also Tonies are recommended by tonies at the earliest from one year. This also applies to the new Cuddle Tonies, cuddly toy and audio figure in one: tonies assigns them to kindergarten children in the age guide.
In the first year, your baby needs you above all: The WHO recommends reading aloud and storytelling with a caregiver even for babies, plus talking and singing in everyday life. For falling asleep, quiet sleep sounds like White Noise, quiet melodies, and fixed evening routines help. For this, there are music boxes and cuddly toys with speakers, which are designed from birth. Which audio systems these are is shown in our comparison of Toniebox alternatives by age.
Important for babies: Cuddly toys, also those with a music box or speaker, do not belong in the baby crib. This is advised by the Berlin health administration in its guidelines on safe baby sleep and the American Academy of Pediatrics AAP, which recommends a sleeping place without cuddly toys, pillows, and blankets for the first year of life. It is better to place the device next to it at a distance and play it quietly. What else belongs in bed and what does not is explained in our guide on the safe sleep environment.
Before the first birthday: Lenabo
For the time before the Toniebox is suitable, there is Lenabo: a speaker in a cuddly toy, which is designed from birth. In the first year, the Lenabie plays white noise and falling asleep melodies quietly and at a distance from the bed.
After that, the same cuddly toy grows with: with Aaron, the bear, nursery rhymes and good night stories are added from the 1st birthday, audio plays from 3, and learning content from 4, told in his own voice. Familiar licensed figures will be available at Lenabo from 2027. All existing and future characters are usable with the Lenabo Smart Speaker.
Price: The starter kit with speaker, one Lenabie of your choice and its content costs €99.99, with free shipping in Germany.
Frequently Asked Questions
Toniebox 1 or 2: Which is suitable for a toddler?
The Toniebox 2. It is certified by tonies from one year and has a 1+ mode, the first Toniebox is only intended from 3 years. Tonies work on both boxes.
Is the Toniebox suitable as a gift for the 1st birthday?
The Toniebox 2, yes: It is certified for this age, and there are starter sets with My First Tonies. Set it up before giving it as a gift, set the 1+ mode, and pre-download new Tonies via WLAN.
Are there Tonies for babies under 1 year?
No. The youngest age recommendation at tonies is from one year, for example for the My First Tonies. Music boxes or cuddly toys with speakers, which are designed from birth, are suitable for babies.
What is the difference between 1+ and 3+ mode?
In the 1+ mode, the Toniebox 2 does not play while it is charging, and tilting for fast-forwarding and rewinding is disabled. In the 3+ mode, it also plays while charging, and your child can rewind by tilting. You set the mode in the tonies app.
From when can my child operate the Toniebox alone?
Many children can already place a figure on the Toniebox 2 at one year and press the ears for loud and quiet. Rewinding by tilting is added in the 3+ mode. From about 3 years, children increasingly choose their stories themselves.
Do old Tonies work on the Toniebox 2?
Yes. According to tonies, all Tonies work on the Toniebox 2 just like on the first Toniebox. The opposite does not apply to Tonieplay: The games only work on the Toniebox 2.
How loud should the Toniebox be for small children?
As quiet as possible. In the tonies app, you set a maximum volume that cannot be exceeded with the ears. Why distance matters is shown by a study with 14 baby sleep devices: At a distance of 30 cm, at full volume, all were louder than 50 dB, the recommended limit for infant stations, three even louder than 85 dB. The American Academy of Pediatrics AAP advises to place such devices as far from the baby as possible, set them as quiet as possible, and only run them for a limited time, for example with the sleep timer.
Can I use the Toniebox from birth, and what alternatives are there?
No. The Toniebox 2 is certified by tonies only from one year, the first Toniebox from 3 years. For the time before, there are smart play systems like Lenabo, which you can even use in the last weeks of pregnancy. A small Finnish study found evidence that a melody that babies heard regularly in the last trimester of pregnancy still leaves traces in the memory at four months; brain waves were measured, not sleep or calming. After birth, the Lenabie grows with: initially as a music box and cuddly toy, later as a storyteller and falling asleep companion, and finally as a learning companion, each with age-appropriate content up to early school age.
Are Tonies also a full-fledged toy?
That depends on the figure. The classic Tonies are hand-painted figures made of plastic, which hold magnetically on the box. Children collect them and also play with them, but they are intended above all as carriers for the content. The My First Tonies made of soft silicone are made for children from 1 to 2 years, and the Cuddle Tonies are plush figures, with which children also play without a Toniebox according to tonies, but only from 3 years. A Lenabie is a full-fledged cuddly toy from birth, even without a speaker, and washable at 30 °C as soon as the speaker is outside. When it becomes an audio companion, you decide: only with the speaker in the pocket on the back does it play its content.
Sources and status
All information is according to the manufacturer's website as of November 10, 2026. Toniebox® and Tonies® are registered trademarks of tonies GmbH, Düsseldorf; all other product names are trademarks of their respective owners.
- tonies: Toniebox 2 compared to Toniebox 1, Press release on Toniebox 2 (August 27, 2025), Age guide from 1 to 12 years, My First Tonies, 1+ and 3+ modes, Toniebox 2 features, Setting up the Toniebox 2, Tonies reclassified from age 1, Adjusting the volume, Offline listening after download, Cuddle Tonies, Product information for a Tonie (material)
- Studies and recommendations: Moon et al. (AAP): Sleep-Related Infant Deaths, Pediatrics 2022, AAP summary on HealthyChildren.org (2022), Hugh et al.: Infant Sleep Machines and Hazardous Sound Pressure Levels, Pediatrics 2014, Gilkerson et al.: Language Experience in the Second Year of Life, Pediatrics 2018, WHO: Guidelines on physical activity, sitting and sleep in children under 5 years (2019), Partanen et al.: Prenatal Music Exposure Induces Long-Term Neural Effects, PLOS ONE 2013, AAP: Noise, information on sleep devices, Berlin Senate: Safe baby sleep (2024)
- Lenabo: FAQ, Starter Kits, Aaron Starter Kit, What is a Lenabie?
