Yoto vs Tonies and a Third Option Parents Miss
Yoto and Tonies are both excellent screen-free audio players for kids: Tonies suits younger children with collectible figures and Disney titles, while Yoto scales better to older kids with chapter books and podcasts. But both share one limit: they only play what's been recorded or bought. If you want a fresh story every night in your own voice, that's a third option worth knowing about.
Tonies: best for younger children
Tonies pairs a soft, durable speaker (the Toniebox) with collectible character figures children place on top to play a story. It's tactile, intuitive for toddlers, and strong on well-known characters and Disney titles.
The trade-off is cost-per-story and finiteness: each figure is a fixed recording you buy, and the catalogue, while charming, doesn't change on its own.
Yoto: best for older kids and range
Yoto uses cards instead of figures and skews to a broader, older audience with audiobooks, chapter books, music, and podcasts. It has more functional features (clock, night light, radio) and a fast-growing card library.
Like Tonies, though, Yoto plays only what's on a card you own or what you've recorded yourself.
The third option: stories in your own voice
Both boxes let you record your own voice, but only story by story, word for word, a lot of effort for a fixed result. NinniTales takes a different approach: you record your voice once, and the app narrates gentle, human-crafted stories in that voice.
It's still screen-free and ad-free, but instead of a shelf of cards, your child gets a library of calm, human-crafted bedtime stories that sound like someone they love. It's the option to consider if you like the screen-free idea but want freshness and personalisation too.
At a glance
| Feature | Tonies | Yoto | Our pickNinniTales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best for age | Toddlers / preschool | Preschool to older kids | Ages 0-10 |
| Hardware required | Yes (Toniebox) | Yes (Yoto Player) | No (app) |
| Record every story yourself | Yes | Yes | No (record once) |
| Your own voice | Partly (record each) | Partly (record each) | Yes (record once) |
| Screen-free | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Frequently asked questions
Is Yoto or Tonies better?
Tonies is better for toddlers who love collectible character figures; Yoto is better for older children and range (chapter books, podcasts, extra features like a clock and night light).
Can I use my own voice on Yoto or Tonies?
Yes, both let you record audio onto a card or Tonie, but you must record each story yourself. NinniTales instead narrates its whole library in your voice after a one-time voice setup.
Is there a cheaper alternative to Tonies?
Tonies requires a Toniebox (~$100) plus figures you buy individually. NinniTales is an app with no hardware to buy and it's free during the current beta, so there's no upfront device cost and no per-story purchases.