Family & Kids — tested rankings and reviews
Apps, services and products for parents — used with real children, scored on a public rubric, never paid for placement.
Family & Kids categories
Guides that send readers to these rankings
Car Seat Stages Explained: Infant, Convertible, Booster — and When to Switch
The AAP guidance in plain English, the limits of the eight seats we ranked, and the cheapest path through all the stages.
Parental Controls on iPhone: What Actually Works and What Apple Blocks
Why third-party apps are limited on iOS, what Screen Time does well, and how to combine the two.
Monitoring vs Filtering: Which Kind of Parental Control Does Your Child Need?
Filters stop content reaching the child; monitors tell you what the child is doing. Different ages need different mixes.
Which Learning App for Which Age: 2 to 14
Our picks by age band from the nine apps we tested, and the one thing to check at each stage.
How to Fit a School Backpack (and How Heavy Is Too Heavy)
The pediatrician's weight rule, the three fit checks, and which of the seven packs we tested fits each age.
The Five Car Seat Installation Mistakes a Technician Sees Most
From the CPST who installed every seat in our test: the errors that undo a seat's protection, and how each seat we ranked helps avoid them.
Stroller and Car Seat Compatibility: Which Seats Click Onto Which Strollers
The adapter map for the eight strollers and eight car seats we ranked, and why bundled travel systems are not always the best pairing.
The Right STEM Kit for Each Age, 5 to 14
Our picks by age band from eight tested kits, and the one mistake parents make with the age on the box.
Free vs Paid Learning Apps for Kids: What You Actually Get for the Money
Two free apps beat most paid ones in our test. Here is when paying is worth it.
STEM Subscription Box or One-Off Kit? What Two Weeks of Testing Showed
Cost per hour, return rate and learning depth for KiwiCo and MEL against Snap Circuits, chemistry sets and robots.
How to Choose a Stroller: The Four Questions That Decide It
Where you walk, how you travel, how many children, and your car boot — answered with the eight strollers we tested.
Baby Monitor Safety: Cords, Hacking and What the Alerts Actually Mean
The three real risks with monitors — cord strangulation, remote access, and false reassurance — and how to handle each.
WiFi vs Non-WiFi Baby Monitors: Which Should You Buy?
Reliability, privacy, range and features compared, with the dropout counts from our seven-night tests.
Fire Kids Tablet vs iPad: Which Should You Buy for Your Child?
Protection, controls, apps, longevity and real cost over three years, from our two-week tests with a 5- and a 9-year-old.