Baby Gear and Travel

Best Baby Play Mats 2024

If your baby hates tummy time, rest assured you and your little one are not alone. Few babies enjoy it. That’s why baby play mats are so popular. The best baby play mats can help make tummy time more tolerable and even fun. That’s good for babies and their parents, who might cringe at the idea of putting their little one down on a flat, hard floor.

Tummy time is “important for gross motor skill development, primitive reflex integration and sensory exploration,” says Marielle Marquez, a licensed pediatric occupational therapist. “It’s best on a firm flat surface. It’s okay to do some on your chest or with a pillow under baby, but as much as possible, it is best to put baby flat on the floor.”

Play mats are also useful long after your baby is rolling and even walking, because they can help soften a hard floor for the inevitable tumbles your tot will take. Invest in one of these, and your little ones will love playing on it long after tummy time is behind them.

This play mat wins the top spot on our list thanks to eco-friendly materials, a flexible design and ease of cleaning. While laid out flat, the mat measures a generous 80 x 38 inches, and is nearly 2 inches thick. It’s also easy to fold it up into shapes that can serve as a seat with a back or a little bench. While babies will have plenty of room for tummy time and learning to crawl on this mat, older kids can use it as a place lounge, do summersaults or as a pad under a sleeping bag. The main downside its the higher price, but we think it’s worth the cost considering how long it can be useful beyond the baby years.

We also like that the interior foam is both Certipur-US and Greenguard Gold certified, and up to 20% plant-based. It’s available in six rich solid colors that won’t look out of place outside the nursery, and the cover can be zipped off and cleaned in the washing machine. “My 2-year-old son loves folding this mat into a tent and crawling inside,” says Vetted commerce editor Margaret Badore. “It also makes the floor a much more comfortable place for adults to sit.”


Prosource Puzzle Solid Foam Play Mat

This puzzle play mat lets you piece together a cushion-y play surface that will grow with your baby. “You can put as few or as many pieces down as you like to fit your space well and to accommodate baby’s changing size and motor skills,” says Marquez, who recommends this affordable option. It covers 6 x 6 feet of floor, and is made of high-density, phthalate-free 0.75-inch thick EVA foam you can wipe down with soap and water. Its bright, engaging tiles have a gridded nonslip surface, and can be arranged in many different configurations.


This colorful mat has a hopscotch board on one side and a “keyboard” accompanied by farm animals on the other. It plays over 50 different songs and sounds, including ABCs, numbers, animal sounds and nursery rhymes. Tots can use their hands to play, or toddle across and activate the sounds with their feet. It folds up compactly for when playtime is over or if you want to travel with it. Note that the manufacturer recommends this mat for babies age 6 months and up, and it requires three AA batteries that are not included. 


MOST POPULAR

Lorena Canals Water Lily Play Mat

These adorable lily pad play mats are made with a cotton cover that’s certified by the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS), and filled with recycled polyester. There are three colors, and each pad comes with a cute crinkle/rattle toy—a green frog for the natural cream color, a dragonfly for the pink and a flower for the green lily pad shown here. This smaller mat is ideal for infants learning to roll, but one major drawback is that it’s handwash only.


3 Sprouts Play Mat Bag

See the handles on the sides of this play mat? They let you gather it up in one fell swoop. We say throw all the toys (and heck, diapers and other essentials) inside, scoop it up and head to grandma’s or to the park. Your diaper bag just got lighter. We love that it’s made of cotton canvas, so it’s easy to wipe off a lot of stains. It also folds up flat to fit in a suitcase. It’s not padded on the bottom, so you may want to set it up atop a rug or on a grassy area.


Splashin’kids Inflatable Tummy Time Water Mat

“Developmental therapists love water tummy time mats,” says Marquez. “They’re affordable, portable and great for getting baby to stay on their tummy longer. The little bit of movement the water inside provides helps to challenge baby’s coordination.” This one is made of BPA-free PVC. You blow up the outer ring, then fill the inner chamber with a little tap water. It’s designed for babies 3 months and older.


This half-inch thick foam mat comes in a wide range of attractive two-sided patterns. Many of the designs have a more sophisticated print on one side, and a kid-oriented design on the other to encourage imaginative play. We appreciate that it’s made of recycled materials and free of BPAs, EVAs, phthalates, latex and formaldehyde. It’s also easy to wipe down and nonskid. “I love this play mat from Baby Care because it is reversible and rolls up to easily store away,” says Marquez. “If you want something that blends in with your living room décor, this is a nice option and you can turn it over for a more baby-friendly option during floor time.”


Skip Hop Reversible Baby Play Mat

This large, padded mat is easy to wipe down, has lots of space, a nonslip surface and is reversible, making it great for outside play on the deck or patio. It measures 82 x 52 inches, and there are two designs—both feature a neutral pattern on one side and a playful, colorful design on the other. It’s easy to wipe off any spit-up or spills with a cloth, sponge or hose.

“I bought this mat because it covers a lot of floor space and it’s much less expensive than some of the other options out there,” says Badore. “During tummy time, I’d keep my son occupied by pushing a toy car over the printed railroad track. Sometimes I could get him to giggle and reach for it.” However, one drawback she notes is that even after a year, the edges still curl in the direction they were packaged in, so on that side it’s best when weighed down with furniture to keep it flat.


Why Trust Forbes Vetted

As parents ourselves, the writers and editors who cover kids and baby gear at Forbes Vetted have spent thousands of hours researching and testing parenting products. We closely follow the latest child health and safety research, and consult with health care professionals to inform our choices.

For this article, we interviewed KC Rickerd, a pediatric physical therapist, mother of three and founder of the blog Milestones & Motherhood, as well as Marielle Marquez, a licensed pediatric occupational therapist and founder of Thrive Little in Los Angeles.


How We Chose The Best Baby Play Mats

To learn more about what to look for in the best baby play mats, I first interviewed a pediatric physical therapist and a pediatric occupational therapist. With their guidance in hand, I then deeply researched the market, reviewing many popular play mats to see if they met our criteria. I also gathered input from other parents about their experiences with these products.

To make the final list, I considered the price, materials, any special care requirements and the overall ratings of each mat. I also sought to include mats that meet a range of different needs.


Do You Need A Mat For Tummy Time?

Not necessarily, but they can help. “A designated play mat can certainly be helpful if you want one,” says Rickerd. “Using ones that have play gym attachments can be a great way to encourage things like reaching for toys and playing with them.” However, she says that a play mat definitely isn’t a necessity. “A blanket on the floor works just fine too.”

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