Kids learn through experience and imitation and giving them opportunities to emulate their surroundings safely is nurturing of their holistic development. Getting them an outdoor playhouse helps them learn and apply what they observe from adults while at home. It becomes their own little home where they can play pretend sorts of activities. An outside playhouse also allows them to engage in these activities using toys scaled to their height and age, making each activity safe and fit according to their level.
An outdoor playhouse is also an investment that grows with your child. A backyard playhouse gives them the freedom to play while learning through hands-on experience. giving them their own space gives them privacy, too, but within our supervisory limits since it is within our properties. Outdoor play, aside from supporting their mental and cognitive development, is also beneficial for their physical health because they get to play out in the sun, breathe fresh air, and get in tune with the environment.
Meanwhile, allowing them to engage in open-ended activities like what they can do in an outdoor play house can also help parents have more time to do their tasks. Play houses can bring hours of fun for a kid or toddler with their imagination as the only limit. It also helps them play without requiring your intervention or presence so it helps them work independently. In the same way, it also makes a great bonding activity between parents and kids as you can teach them home tasks without appearing as a chore for them.
We can create a separate article to provide you with all the possible benefits you can get from outdoor play, particularly, from the activities you can do inside and outside an outdoor playhouse. But for now, allow us to help you gauge and choose the best outdoor playhouse you can invest in for your kids and even toddlers. Here are the three childrens outdoor playhouse products that made it to our best list this year.
Best Outdoor Playhouse for Toddlers and Kids – (Comparison)
| Name | Key Feature | |
| Backyard Discovery Sweetwater All Cedar Wooden Playhouse – (Editor’s Choice) | Made of 100 percent cedarwood; panels are pre-drilled and ready to assemble | Check Price |
| Little Tikes Go Green! Playhouse | With themed activities to teach your kids about gardening, recycling, and renewable energy sources | Check Price |
| Lifetime Heavy Duty Plastic Outdoor Playhouse, 6ft x 6ft x 7 ft Tall | Large interior space | Check Price |
Backyard Discovery Sweetwater All Cedar Wooden Playhouse – Editor’s Choice
If you are keen on investing in the appropriate materials for the outdoors, then wood makes a good choice. It is weather-resistant, strong, durable, and essentially longer-lasting. It is also comfortable to be in as it does not absorb heat. If you do not have the skills to build one yourself, then getting a ready-made outdoor playhouse is possible.
This outdoor playhouse will arrive at your doorsteps in parts. It requires assembly, with 3D interactive assembly instructions found in the BILT app (free to download). This childrens wooden playhouse also comes with playable accessories like a sink, a stove with a pot, pan, and utensils, a real doorbell, and a pretend cordless phone.
The Backyard Discovery Sweetwater All Cedar Wooden Playhouse is made of 100 percent cedar wood wherein parts are pre-drilled and cut already to fit easily with each other during assembly. Parts come in panels and even novice builders can build it themselves.
This outdoor wooden playhouse is designed to maximize airflow and sunlight coming inside to provide your children with a comfortable place to play. This outdoor playhouse features open windows with one wall with a wide opening for safety. It also has a half door to easily open and close it, and for toddlers to reach and peek from.
The Backyard Discovery Sweetwater All Cedar Wooden Playhouse looks charming in your backyard or outdoor space, allowing itself to blend in your garden plants. This outdoor playhouse features two plant pot holders near the door where you can put real potted plants as accents. The wooden materials blend well in the natural surroundings, making it look like a miniature version of your home.
This wooden playhouse also features a snack window where your kids can serve you what they’ve been “cooking” inside. It also adds an activity they can do with it, translating to an extended independent playing time and more time for you to do your own work.
Pros
- Made of 100 percent cedarwood; panels are pre-drilled and ready to assemble
- With wide window openings and a half-door for safety and airflow
- Comes with accessories like a stove, pot, pan, and utensils set, sink, cordless toy telephone, and a real doorbell
- With side snack window
- With plant pot holders
Cons
- Needs to be anchored on the ground for additional stability
Conclusion
The Backyard Discovery Sweetwater All Cedar Wooden Playhouse is like a miniature home for your kids to play and learn with. This outdoor playhouse provides ample activities that do not occupy their time but also allow them to explore and learn at the same time. We love the accessories, particularly the working doorbell!
Little Tikes Go Green! Playhouse
Your plant-loving kid would definitely love this charming outdoor playhouse with a cute garden in front. More than that, this plastic outdoor playhouse is also themed to help you teach your kids about environmental care and preservation.
The Little Tikes Garden playhouse is made of plastic for durability and weather resistance. It utilizes 10 percent recycled plastic to keep up with its advocacy and purpose. It comes with many activities and features that translate to hours of fun activities and learning opportunities for your children. If you are a plant-momma and your kid loves to help Mommy or Daddy around, gifting them this outdoor playhouse allows them to nurture their own garden using your tips and under your guidance.
This Little Tikes outdoor playhouse features a roof where you can plant grass, serving as a natural insulator. Just fill it with soil and your choice of grass seeds and watch it grow and serve its purpose.
Meanwhile, this outdoor playhouse also comes with a garden box. Have your kids grow their favorite ornamental plants on it. You can also fill it with sand so it doubles as a sandbox, too. The set also comes with a rake, a shovel, and a watering can – no need to buy a separate set or borrow from Mommy!
Beside the garden box is a water barrel. It can serve as your outdoor playhouse’s rainwater collector so you can utilize the rain to water your plants. The water is collected at the gutter and goes straight to the water barrel.
This outdoor playhouse features a removable working sink. Your kid can pump water from the faucet, which is also connected to the water barrel. With this, you can teach your children about recycling water and where they can safely use them around the home.
You can also engage your children to practice recycling. This outdoor playhouse features segregation bins to teach them about common trash at home they can recycle. The bins are color-coded for easy type identification.
The coolest part of the Little Tikes Go Green! Playhouse for us is the solar lighting system. This outdoor playhouse has a built-in solar panel that powers the lights outside and inside the house. It is a thoughtful feature that modernizes the playhouse, as well as allows you to teach kids about natural light sources and renewable energy. Meanwhile, during the daytime, your kids can take advantage of the skylight at the roof that allows natural light from the sun to get in and illuminate the inside. It can also be opened to allow air to go through.
This outdoor playhouse is beautifully designed and features life-like details like a mailbox and a doorbell. It also has a shutter window and a Dutch door for easy access, even by smaller kids.
Pros
- With themed activities to teach your kids about gardening, recycling, and renewable energy sources
- With grass roof – can be filled with soil where you can plant grass
- With a garden bed where you can plant or fill soil in
- With a rainwater collector – a barrel with a faucet that also connects to a working pump-style removable sink; the water is collected at the house’s gutter
- With a solar light system
- With shutter windows and Dutch door for airflow and easy access
- Comes with a skylight that also opens for sunlight and air
- With recycling bins that come in two colors
- With a mailbox
- Comes with gardening accessories – rake, shovel, and watering can
Cons
- Most complaints from users involve missing parts upon delivery
Conclusion
The Little Tikes Go Green! Playhouse is a wonderful outdoor playhouse that introduces fun and new activities your children can enjoy doing while they are learning.
Lifetime Heavy Duty Plastic Outdoor Playhouse, 6ft x 6ft x 7 ft Tall
If you are looking for an outdoor playhouse that will fit bigger kids and at the same time, has a big room for everyone, this outdoor clubhouse is for you.
This outdoor playhouse features massive indoor space for versatility in terms of accessorizing and decorating the space. This set comes with vinyl stickers – a good starter for your children in personalizing their “home”. The sticker set comes with a wide range of shapes and designs like animals, furniture, home fixtures, and decorations. The stickers are reusable so you can move them around the playhouse, great for your children when playing interior designer.
This large outdoor playhouse features accessories like a mailbox slot on the door, a sink, a stove with pans, utensils, and play food, and a working doorbell. Yet, this outdoor playhouse still has generous space left where you can put your children’s toys to complete the setup.
The Lifetime Heavy Duty Plastic Outdoor Playhouse, 6ft x 6ft x 7 ft Tall is made of high-grade and durable materials (HDPE) that are built to last for years with less maintenance. No need to sand, repaint or re-stain your outdoor playhouse. This outdoor playhouse is weather-resistant – heat or snow.
This backyard clubhouse’s assembly requires drilling on your end so you have to prepare the necessary tools for building it. This outdoor playhouse has anchor points on the corners to secure it on the ground.
Pros
- Large interior space
- Comes with a reusable variety of vinyl stickers to personalize the space
- Equipped with a sink, a cooktop with pans, utensils, and play food, a mailbox slot, and a real doorbell
Cons
- Tends to be dark inside so you need to equip it with lights
- Parts need to be drilled for assembly
Conclusion
The Lifetime Heavy Duty Plastic Outdoor Playhouse, 6ft x 6ft x 7 ft Tall is made for your kids to grow with. If you have many kids or have friends of your kids constantly coming over, this outdoor playhouse can accommodate many kids at the same time.
Final Verdict
Childrens play houses make play time fun and enjoyable for your kids and at the same time, educate them about practical living. An outdoor playhouse allows your children to have their own little world where they can practice what they see in you in a safe and stimulating environment.
Whether you are looking for affordable wooden playhouses or a bigger outdoor playhouse that your kids and their friends can enjoy, you also have to consider other factors like your child’s interest, your backyard space, and your budget.
Our pick as the best on this list, considering features, durability, and long-term use, is the Backyard Discovery Sweetwater All Cedar Wooden Playhouse.
The Backyard Discovery Sweetwater All Cedar Wooden Playhouse is versatile and comes with features that toddlers and kids can enjoy. The cedar wood adds warmth to this outdoor playhouse making it beautiful with your garden or nature as its background.