The Best Playmat

What to Look For in a baby playmat

A baby playmat, at its most basic, is a soft, lightweight, and portable mat that lies on the floor creating an independent play area off the hard (and maybe dirty) floor. Most baby playmats feature bright contrasting colors and attached toys. Some have bars that criss-cross over the top with dangling attachments. Still others have crinkly fabrics, blinking lights, or toys that play music when a baby swats them. A few transform into a toy developmentally appropriate for an older baby or toddler. Top of the line models feature all of the above. Cheaper models don’t have quite as much. The playmat that will work for most parents lies somewhere in between.

We think any good playmat must possess these features:

• It should be safe. (Duh!) That means no reports of safety hazards or recalls. We also like for our products to be certified by the Juvenile Product Manufacturers Association. While the JPMA doesn’t offer product certifications in this particular category, spokesperson Julie Vallese says “As more and more parents and caregivers are learning and using best practices in safe sleep such as putting a baby to sleep on his or her back, playmats are a great way to practice “tummy time.” By using playmats infants get both visual and physical stimulation and are a great way to build neck and back control as they develop and grow.” And while tummy time has been touted as a required activity for healthy development, some experts are now suggesting to delay the practice until baby can roll over on his or her own.
• It should be large enough for a baby to wiggle and roll around. While parents of newborns might not think this is important, babies start moving quickly and you’ll want ample space for baby to play.
• Most importantly, a playmat needs to be washable. Babies are seriously messy. If you can’t wash the stink or stains out, you’ll trash it faster than you can say “blow-out.” And by wash, we mean machine-wash.

There are a few features that make some playmats better than others. The five moms we interviewed said playmats with lights, sounds and music seem to captivate their babies’ attention longer. We also like the versatility of playmats that come with a small pillow or wedge—to prop a baby up for tummy time.  While most playmats are pretty portable, it’s nice when one is designed to fold up with all of its parts contained inside itself or in a designated bag.

For us, the crowning feature that puts a playmat above its competitors is its longevity—that is, playmats that have toys or other features that babies can continue to enjoy and play with past the newborn stage. (Who wants to spend more money on something that a baby will outgrow in the blink of an eye?)

What features you should avoid when shopping for a playmat? There are a few. As I mentioned above, safety is always number 1. Avoid any product that has been recalled or has reported safety issues (as companies are not always quick to recall products, even if there have been problems). You want a mat that’s easy to keep clean, and “spot clean only” isn’t going to cut it. Lastly, any playmat that wasn’t easy to put together, take apart, or felt flimsy was crossed off of our list.

The baby playmat market is saturated by big-name baby brands and smaller companies alike. Mats can run parents anywhere from $25 to $150. But there’s no need to drop a ridiculous amount of money to get a playmat with lots of bells and whistles. As is often the case with baby gear, the best product seems to fit right into the middle. A reasonable price range is $30 to $45, with $60 being the absolute max we’d drop on a playmat.