Yoto vs Toniebox

I LOVE how popular these items have gotten for children recently. It is a wonderful alternative to screen time and a great way to compliment your reading routine at home.

Yoto Player

They are wonderful to use for quiet time, when children transition to beds or you can even use them for travel! A lot of times, we truthfully just play them when we are playing. It’s great “background noise.”

So before I begin, I just want to say if you have either of these, that’s amazing. You made the choice to support your child’s reading journey. Your child is so thankful for that. I also want to say that truthfully, everyone has their own preferences and I am simply sharing mine :)

Toniebox

I am a former teacher and reading specialist so I may have high standards for reading tools. We have both of them and truly love them, but I wish I did a little more research before deciding. I think I was just so excited these were invented, I just wanted to get it right away!

Here is the pricing breakdown: The Yoto and Toniebox are both $99. The Yoto mini is $69.

Yoto card

They are both speakers that play stories. The Yoto uses cards to play stories and the Toniebox uses characters that represent a character from the story.

Elsa tonie

The Toniebox has different characters that have stories and songs that go along with them. These characters are generally around $17.99 and the content is between 30 and 90 minutes long. The characters are super adorable and definitely cater to a younger audience. I love how the characters can bring the stories to life and you feel like you are listening to the character tell the story. The speaker is very durable and great for those littles to toss around, but after about age 6, there isn’t much content for them. The content is also either created by Tonies or centered around TV/Disney characters with a few classic stories that are featured. When it comes to the Toniebox, there are a few things that I don’t love- the storage, the setup and the content. I find it hard to keep track of all these characters and it can get quite expensive to buy a character for just one story. I wish that more tonies were created based on children’s literature so children can have access to more audio versions of amazing books. And lastly, it was very hard for us to figure out setup! Once it is setup, it is very easy for a child to use, but it is not easy for an adult to get it going.

The Yoto uses cards to play all of its stories. There are two sizes and they both generally do the same thing. However the regular size Yoto has a digital image in front that displays the character of the story when it’s being played. I love the card idea. They are very easy to store and fun to flip through to see what story you want to listen to next. It is also easy for the child to place the card in and take out. The accessories they offer are also really neat!

Yoto Player Stand

The prices of the cards range from about $7-$30. It depends on how many cards are included and how long of a story it is. The Yoto can be used from a young age but can be geared towards much older children as well because of the stories they carry. Because of this, some of the cards are 6 hrs long! They have a wide variety of cards through Yoto. They have learning songs, TV and Disney character stories, classic literature, popular books, and even cards related to Legos! They also have a club you can join for $8.25 a month. It includes two cards, 10 percent off other items and free domestic shipping. The Yoto has an ok-to-wake clock, a daily podcast and family radio stations! To be honest, we haven’t even tried those yet because we love the cards so much, but I heard they’re wonderful. The only complaint I have about the Yoto is you really can’t get many of the cards outside of their website. But with tonies, you can get them almost anywhere.

So where do I stand with this comparison? You may have already guessed it, but I am a Yoto mama. However, you might like one of these (or not like!) for a different reason! So what are your thoughts on these speakers? I’d love to hear your thoughts below!

And at this point you might be thinking, well now I think I want one, but I don’t know where to start! Our book guide is perfect for guidance with this, I would be happy to help you start your audiobook journey at home!