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Okay, I get this question a ton every year! So I thought I would just put all my thoughts into one big post!
For those of you that aren’t familiar, Yoto and Tonie are story readers. My best explanation is that this is the new generation’s Walkman. You have a device that plays audiobooks, podcasts, or music that is portable.
We are a Yoto family. I LOVE buying toys for my kids and I do a lot of research when purchasing higher end toys. So when we decided to get a Yoto I looked at Yoto, Tonie, and Lunii (which doesn’t even compare to the others). These are my conclusions after looking at both of them and some reasons why I just love our Yoto.
For reference: I have 3 girls age 5, 3, & 5months, we have 2 Yoto originals, 2 yoto minis, we homeschool, are members of the yoto club, and have had these for a few years (so we purchased them when my girls were 1&3).
Both players are roughly the same cost (right around $100, the yoto mini is around $65) but the cards for Yoto are significantly cheaper than Tonie. Tonie figures go for about $15 at the low end, and the most expensive single yoto card I think is $13, with the median price being around $8. That was a huge factor for me.
When I originally purchased the variety of stories available on Tonie was abysmal. But they have come a long way, and I don’t see a ton of difference between the two now. Tonie has some titles that Yoto doesn’t have and Yoto has a few Tonie doesn’t have. I go back and forth on which one has the better selection of stories often. I feel like both have stories I just love and would wish the other had.
The Yoto player is listed for ages 0-14 where as the tonie (in my opinion) is geared more towards younger kids. So I like that the Yoto has a longer life span for my family.
One of the biggest differences, is that Yoto has a Make You Own card (MYO) that is fantastic. It can hold up to 6 HOURS worth of material, cost like $3, vs Tonie Creatives that hold 90 minutes and cost $10. Also the MYO for Yoto allows you to customize them so you can tell them apart, vs tonies where I have no clue how you would do that. But these MYO cards in my opinion allow Yoto to literally be ageless. There are parents who use Yoto minis as audiobook readers on long car rides. You can use audible with Yoto, if you purchase a $20 software (totally worth it). This was a make or break detail for me. We have done soooo many cool things with the MYO cards, which I’ll share a little but more about in a minute.
The Yoto has more portability. The Yoto minis are meant for travel. We love ours in the car. They have a 24 hour battery life, and are perfect for road trips or doctor visits. The Yoto original has a 10 hour battery life Tonie has a 7 hour battery life. The Yoto Mini is a great addition to our road trips!
I HATE that one of the functions of the Tonie is to hit it. I don’t want my kids to learn that hitting their super expensive electronics is okay. I wouldn’t want them to hit their tablet or tv so I don’t know why this would be any different. I understand it’s a tap, but doesn’t do it for me. Yoto has a two knob system, and I like that a lot more. My kids are ROUGH on things, so hitting it just not something I want to actively teach them.
Yoto is operated with a card. Tonie is operated by a figure that looks like a toy. My kids don’t play with their cards, they don’t find them interesting so they listen to them and put them away. The Tonie characters literally look like a toy. There is no way I could keep up with them. Plus I can carry our entire card collection (50+ cards) with me wherever we go, and I can’t do that with 50 Tonie characters. This was another big thing for me! I have absolutely no clue how parents keep up with Tonie characters, you are just a better parent than me!
The Yoto app and setup was a breeze. It was so easy and I had zero issues. I love the app because I can control the device from anywhere and I can play any card from my phone (which is nice if you lose a card, it’s not totally lost). I’m assuming Tonie has this same feature, but I’ve never gotten the chance to use it.
The Yoto club is really great. There are several options but for $90-150 a year and you get 1-2 cards (that you choose) every month. Plus 10% off your purchases for the year, and free shipping over $15. Tonie subscription they pick the Tonies they send you, and it’s $180 a year, paid monthly. Yoto also has a point system that is pretty lucrative! I don’t know if Tonie does.
I could honestly keep going. We love our Yoto, and do we need 4? No! But we do use them! One stays in their room and the other with our homeschool stuff. Then the minis go in the car.
Some of the ways I use our yoto:
Homeschool: Yoto has an interactive option. Like do this then click the button to move forward. So let’s say you have a spelling test. You can use a MYO card and record yourself to study or even give the test. (You can use the voice recorder on your phone). Something like “spell the word horse click the button when you are ready” then they spell it or write it down, click the button and it says “h-o-r-s-e” they can check their work or grade themselves. Could also work with any study guide, math questions memorizing, etc. This would be so awesome in a classroom for giving instructions.
Daily Tasks: do you have a kid that struggles to get ready in the morning? MYO card! Same idea as above. Go brush teeth, click button, put on clothes, click button etc. could work with lots of things! Could also work for doing chores! Make Bed-click, pick up clothes-click, take out trash-click, etc. Would be so handy!
Basic Features: works as a nightlight, alarm clock and a radio. Which is really cool! You can also make it work as an okay to wake clock.
Sentimental: my in-laws live several hours away and they can record stories they have read and we can put them on the MYO card for the girls to listen to. It’s so sweet to hear them listening to their aunts and grandparents before bed.
Bedtime routine: Gone are the days of “one more story! You’ve only read me 1847539852!” Now I can read my kids a dozen books and say nope your Yoto can read to you. My kids use it as a sound machine. They wake up every morning and it keeps them in their room for a bit longer.
Tummy Time/Independent Play: I don’t think that Yoto is worth the money for a baby, but we have a baby and a Yoto so we are going to use it! Its great for tummy time or independent play. I can put on some classical music, I can read her stories, or I can let it teach her words (even in other languages).
So that’s my review. I hope this was helpful. I’m not anti-Tonie the Yoto just really really fits our family. I have zero issues with it. We absolutely love it and will always use it. I would say these are great for ages 2+ although I could see uses for smaller babies too, I’m just not sure they justify the cost. We love ours and will probably have one for the foreseeable future! They are truly one of the best toys we have ever bought!
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