The best electric toothbrushes for kids are fun, well made and most importantly useful for developing good brushing habits. After all, dental hygiene is hugely important but most parents are probably all too familiar with tired children reluctant to brush. So whether it’s a customizable option like the Philips Sonicare for Kids or the unusually-shaped AutoBrush Sonic Pro, a really good electric toothbrush can make all the difference, transforming a potential tantrum into a fun part of the evening routine.
Live Science spoke to Karen Coates, a dental nurse and oral health educator, who agreed that kid-friendly toothbrushes can be vital: ”Children’s toothbrushes have lots of colour and characters which can appeal to children and help get them more into looking after their teeth," she explained.
If you are concerned about how long to brush for, or whether electric is even the best option, then read our FAQs section below on the pros and cons of electric toothbrushes for kids.
We know that picking the right product is never easy, but when it comes to kids, it can seem doubly confusing and complicated. That’s why we have done the work for you. We’ve tried and tested an array of electric toothbrushes for kids to help you make the best choice for your little ones.
We’ve looked not just at the basics of design and battery life, but also any added features and price. Assessing all these, we’ve taken note of all the pros and cons you might want to know about before you purchase. If you’d like to know more about how we test, you can read more below about our testing protocol.
If reading this has made you realise it’s time to upgrade your own tired old toothbrush, then we also have tried and tested the best electric toothbrushes for adults.
The quick list
Best overall
With its excellent battery life, interchangeable brush heads, colorful child-friendly design and fun-filled app that guides children in improving their brushing technique, the Oral-B Kids electric toothbrush takes our top spot.
Best for monitoring progress
The app that accompanies the Philips Sonicare for kids is packed with personalized brushing tips as well as animated rewards, all encouraging children to brush properly. It also allows you as parent to monitor their progress.
Best looking
With its striking design and colourful silicone coating the Foreo Issa Kids certainly looks great on a bathroom shelf. However, it does come with a hefty price tag, and doesn't have any connected apps to monitor progress or encourage brushing.
Best for reluctant brushers
It takes only 30 seconds to brush teeth, has three light modes for added sanitation and it's certainly innovative and a quirky child-friendly shape. But the drawback is that the AutoBrush Sonic Pro may not reach some of the back teeth.
Best for interactive play
The BriteBrush comes with fun games that can be a real game-changer when it comes to transforming your child's dental hygiene. It's also affordably priced. However, its brush heads do fray quickly, and it can be quite loud.
The best electric toothbrushes for kids we recommend in 2025: Fully tested by our team with hands-on, real-world experience
Why you can trust Live Science Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best ones for you. Find out more about how we test.
The best electric toothbrush for kids
✅ You want to instill good brushing habits: The app is packed with fun challenges to encourage brushing.
✅ You are looking for a toothbrush for a younger child: It includes a sensitive mode that is easy on sensitive gums.
✅ You want excellent value: This affordable toothbrush boasts great performance, and it looks good, too.
❌ You need multiple spare brush heads included: Only one head is supplied.
❌ You want a feature-packed app: The app is a valuable addition, but it is fairly basic.
🔎 Oral-B Kids: This Disney-themed toothbrush won our seal of approval, combining great brushing performance, a customizable design and an affordable price. The only caveat? No spare brush heads. ★★★★½
The Oral-B Kids electric toothbrush is suitable for kids as young as three years old, and uses an oscillating-rotating movement to clean your children’s teeth. For our full Oral-B Kids Electric Toothbrush review, we tested the Frozen-themed toothbrush, but other available themes that will appeal to young children are the Star Wars, Disney Princesses and Pixar Kids options, though note that prices may vary.
The first thing we noticed on unboxing the Oral-B toothbrush is that the initial package comes with just the one toothbrush, so you will need to purchase refills fairly quickly - or straight away if you are buying for more than one child.
However, that really is the only drawback. The rechargeable toothbrush has an excellent battery life, lasting for around eight days between charges. That makes it holiday and sleepover friendly too. Some of the models, including the Frozen II model we tested, come with a free Disney Magic Timer app. To use this you simply download the app, scan the toothbrush and brush. Children can brush alongside some of their favourite Disney or Pixar characters, and collect stickers for good brushing technique.
The app issues a reminder every 30 seconds to prompt kids to switch the position of the brush in their mouth, while a 2 minute timer tells them when it is time to stop. Younger children may prefer to choose the Sensitive mode, while the Daily Clean mode may suit older children better.
We did find some negative reviews mentioning problems scanning the toothbrush in order to match kids favorite characters in the app, while some parents did report a build-up of mold and dirt on the toothbrush where the head connects with the handle. However, it’s worth pointing out that these negative reviews are few and far between.
- Read our full Oral-B Kids Electric Toothbrush review
| Attributes | Notes |
|---|---|
| Design | Small, round brush head with extra-soft bristles. |
| Performance | It is fairly noisy (65 dB), but provides a thorough clean. |
| Functionality | Easy to customize and use for toddlers. |
Best for monitoring brushing progress
✅ You want a customizable design: The toothbrush comes with 10 colorful stickers which can be wrapped around the handset.
✅ You want to monitor your child's brushing progress: Both the brush and the app store brushing history.
✅ You are looking for great brushing performance: It delivers a thorough clean that is easy on the gums.
❌ You are on a budget: The brush and particularly spare brush heads are on the expensive side.
❌ You have a very young child: The handset may be too big for little hands.
🔎 Philips Sonicare for Kids: This toothbrush is a great all-rounder: sturdy, reliable and packed with features that encourage good brushing habits. While not the cheapest, it offers good value for money. ★★★★★
In our full review of the Philips Sonicare for Kids we gave the brush a rare five star rating. We were impressed by its smart features, the customisable design and the interactive app which can make brushing sessions much more fun for young children.
The Philips Sonicare is suitable for children aged three and older. The app is simple to use and once downloaded to a phone or tablet it connects to the Bluetooth-enabled handset, offering personalized brushing tips as well as animated rewards. These can really help kids to make sure they brush in those tricky hard-to-reach and often neglected spots.
The app also keeps information on your child’s brushing history, so you can double check they are staying on track even if you aren’t able to supervise in person. The brush itself will store 20 brushing sessions before it runs out of space, so you don’t need to synch to the app constantly if your phone isn’t to hand.
A handy two minute timer encourages kids to brush for the recommended time, while timers every 30 seconds prompt them to move the brush around the four quadrants of the mouth, resulting in a thorough clean.
The Philips Sonicare for Kids has an appeaing, colorful and customizable design, coming with 10 stickers that wrap around the handset. That means your child can instantly update their toothbrush to the design of their choice.
The toothbrush also features 2 power modes - a low mode for younger children and a more powerful mode for older kids. You can also buy smaller toothbrush heads for younger children if the toothbrush head provided is too big for your little one.
- Read our full Philips Sonicare For Kids review
| Attributes | Notes |
|---|---|
| Design | Two brush heads: Standard for older children, Compact for toddlers. |
| Performance | It is relatively quiet (38 dB) and provides a thorough clean. |
| Functionality | Toddlers may struggle with gripping the toothbrush. |
Best looking electric toothbrush
✅ You want a stylish design: The toothbrush is soft to touch and features striking looks
✅ You are looking for soft bristles: Its shallow silicone bristles are easy on the gums.
✅ You want a long battery life: It offers up to a whopping 265 uses on a single charge.
❌ You are on a budget: It is one of the most expensive toothbrushes on the market.
❌ You want a dedicated app: There's no useful content to help encourage or improve brushing technique.
🔎 Foreo Issa Kids: This beautifully designed toothbrush boasts long battery life and an ergonomic handset. It is, however, quite expensive, and there is no app to encourage or reward good brushing technique. ★★★★
Foreo is a brand known for its beautifully designed sonic toothbrushes, and the Foreo Issa Kids model is no exception. Its design is truly distinctive and will stand out on any bathroom shelf. It also comes in four different colors.
As with all Foreo brushes, this model is made from silicone. That’s silicone not just for the toothbrush handle but the toothbrush heads too, which makes them all very easy to keep clean and hygienic. The shallow silicone bristles of the brush heads are particularly kind to growing gums. Foreo actually claim that their brushes remove 30% more plaque, giving your child’s oral hygiene a 140% boost.
During our full review of the Foreo ISSA Kids, we found that children certainly like the texture and soft silky feel of the ergonomically designed handset. Each different color of the brush comes with its own animal character, so you can choose from rose nose hippo, true blue pony, merry berry shark, or mellow yellow gator.
The handset also features a light-up smiling ‘Glee’ or sad ‘Glum’ face. The former appears if the child brushes for the recommended two minutes, while Glum appears if they switch off the toothbrush early, or if they haven’t used it for more than 12 hours.
The Foreo Issa Kids also features a 30-second quadrant pacer, alerting your child to switch position in their mouth and make sure they cover all their teeth. The rechargable battery is particularly impressive, offering up to 265 brushing sessions from just a single hour of charge. The brush also comes with a USB charger so is very easy and flexible when it comes to charging on the go.
There’s no doubt you get what you pay for with the Foreo Issa Kids, but it is still one of the most expensive kids’ toothbrushes on the market. Replacement toothbrush heads are near-impossible to track down in grocery stores or pharmacies, so you’ll almost certainly have to find and buy them online.
- Read our full Foreo ISSA Kids review
| Attributes | Notes |
|---|---|
| Design | Soft, flexible silicone bristles on an angled head. |
| Performance | It is quiet (35 dB) and suitable for kids with sensitive teeth. |
| Functionality | Toddler-friendly size. |
Best for reluctant brushers
✅ Your child really struggles with regular brushing: Its unique design allows for an ultra-quick clean.
✅ You want a brush that actively improves gum health: It features a gum massaging mode and LED light therapy.
❌ You are on a budget: It costs nearly $100.
❌ You are looking for a truly thorough clean: It may not be able to reach back teeth.
🔎 Autobrush Sonic Pro for Kids: With its innovative design, 30s brushing cycle and three light therapy modes, this fun-shaped toothbrush is a game-changer for truly reluctant brushers. However, its unusual shape may be tricky to get used to. ★★★★
The Autobrush Sonic Pro for Kids is a truly unusual and innovative design. Instead of the standard design of a single interchangeable brush head on a handset, it has U-shaped bristles. These are designed to reach and clean all the teeth simultaneously — hence only taking 30s to complete a full brushing cycle. If your child really struggles with brushing and hates having a brush in their mouth for the full recommended two minutes, this is a real game changer.
As well as being truly time-efficient, the Sonic Pro also looks great too. The colorful designs and catchy music tunes will certainly brighten up your child's dental routine. However, during our full AutoBrush Sonic Pro for Kids review we did find that its unusual shape may be tricky to get used to.
The AutoBrush Sonic Pro for Kids features three cleaning modes: Care mode for those with sensitive gums and teeth, a Deep Clean mode, and a Massage mode for gentle gum stimulation. It features BASS technology which uses up to 30,000 high-frequency vibrations per minute to remove plaque and leave the teeth squeaky clean, while its three LED light modes help to remove bacteria and boost gum health.
However, we found that due to its unique design, the AutoBrush Sonic Pro for kids may struggle to reach some of the back teeth. It can also be relatively noisy.
- Read our full AutoBrush Sonic Pro for Kids review
| Attributes | Notes |
|---|---|
| Design | Soft U-shaped bristles encased in waterproof rubber. |
| Performance | Time-efficient, but it does not provide a thorough clean.. |
| Functionality | Suitable for children aged up to 12. |
Best for interactive play
✅ You are on a budget: It is affordably priced, and unusually, so are the replacement brush heads.
✅ You want to instill good brushing habits: It is packed with fun features that encourage your child to brush regularly.
❌ You want sensitive sensors: The brush struggles to detect pressure.
❌ You are looking for a durable brush: Its bristles fray quickly.
🔎 BriteBrush: This colorful toothbrush is a real joy to use, but its durability and brushing performance fall short of expectations. ★★★
The BriteBrush comes with the options of three distinctive designs: Baby Shark, Sesame Elmo and Game Brush and is suitable for children as young as three. Whichever design you chose, it will come loaded with interactive, enjoyable games and music to really help encourage your child to brush thoroughly and effectively.
During our full BriteBrush GameBrush review, we found that the brush did a good job of encouraging children to brush up and down. However, the sensors didn't always manage to detect when the child was doing that already. This led to the game being interrupted by reminders to do something the child was already doing, which led to some understandable frustration.
The ‘side recognition technology’ didn’t appear to work at all. The games continued on, regardless of whether the children changed the side of their mouth they were cleaning or not. This means that parents may need to continue supervising their children to make sure they do cover the whole mouth.
Our verdict? It is affordably priced, and packed with fun features, so most kids will find the BriteBrush fun to use at first. However, the lack of all features working properly can lead to a frustrating experience for kids and parents alike.
- Read our full BriteBrush GameBrush review
| Attributes | Notes |
|---|---|
| Design | Two brush heads included in the pack. |
| Performance | Loud (70 dB) and under-performing. |
| Functionality | The brush head may be too big for toddlers. |
Best electric toothbrushes for kids: Comparison
| Model | Rating | ✅Pros | ❌Cons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oral-B Kids | ★★★★½ | Small brush head, soft bristles, connected app, affordable. | Relatively big handset, noisy. |
| Philips Sonicare for Kids | ★★★★★ | Customizable, excellent brushing performance, connected app. | Relatively large brush head, on the expensive side. |
| Foreo ISSA Kids | ★★★★ | Soft bristles, stylish, long battery life, quiet. | Relatively expensive, no connected app. |
| Autobrush Sonic Pro for Kids | ★★★★ | Time-efficient, LED light therapy, fun features. | Relatively expensive, quite noisy. |
| BriteBrush Game Brush | ★★★ | Fun features, affordable. | Frays quickly, noisy, weak pressure sensor. |
Our expert consultants
Dr. Roopali Kulkarni is an assistant professor of oral medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. She teaches predoctoral and postdoctoral students in the Oral Medicine clinic and lectures on topics within dentistry and public health. Dr. Kulkarni is also a consumer advisor spokesperson for the American Dental Association (ADA) and a peer reviewer for the Journal of the American Dental Association. She advised Live Science on when kids should best use an electric toothbrush.
Karen Coates is a registered dental nurse and oral health educator for the Oral Health Foundation, a UK-based charity which promotes the benefits of good oral hygiene. She is also a lead co-ordinator of the Tooth Whitening Action Group, a coalition of British dental societies and toothbrush industry representatives that provides tooth whitening guidance to the public and to healthcare professionals. For this piece, she gave advice on how to choose an electric toothbrush for kids.
Best electric toothbrushes for kids: Frequently Asked Questions
Should kids use an electric toothbrush?
While both electric and manual toothrbushes can be effective tools in keeping children's teeth clean and healthy, studies do show that electric can be best. A meta-analysis published in 2023 in the Dentistry Journal found that children who use an electric toothbrush may be able to remove more plaque than those brushing purely by hand with a manual toothbrush.
Are kids' electric toothbrushes different to adults?
Yes, children's brushes are different from the best electric toothbrushes for adults, not just in design but in features too. Children's toothbrushes usually feature smaller handles for smaller hands, as well as softer bristles for young gums. The apps they come with can also really help with motivation and technique. When it comes to effectiveness of brushing, they offer the same benefits as adult brushes, according to a 2023 meta-analysis published in the Dentistry Journal.
When can kids start using an electric toothbrush?
“Most children can begin using their own electric toothbrush from age three. However, they should be supervised by an adult until they are seven years old,” Coates said. That's because while young children may be enthusiastic brushers, they still need help in developing their technique, she explained.
Meanwhile children under the age of three should have their teeth brushed by their caregiver. "They should be using a pea-sized amount of fluoride toothpaste and whatever toothbrush best fits their specific needs," Kulkarni said.
How to choose an electric toothbrush for kids
When it comes to purchasing an electric toothbrush for your child, it's important to find the best age-appropriate model. There are plenty of options on the market, with some brushes designed for the youngest children and others designed with older children in mind.
It's a good idea to try and find a model that has a Seal of Acceptance from the American Dental Association (ADA). "The ADA Seal was established to help the public identify oral health products that have been independently reviewed by the ADA to ensure that they are safe and effective," Kulkarni explained.
Another thing to consider is how you will power the brush. Battery-powered brushes tend to be cheaper when it comes to the intial purchase, but the cost of replacement batteries can soon add up. There is also the risk that as battery levels start to dwindle, your child's toothbrush may start to slow down and clean less effectively. Electric rechargeable models may therefore end up being a cheaper investment in the long run.
However, if you’re not sure, you can always start with a cheaper battery-operated model and see how your child gets on with it, before investing in a more expensive rechargeable device.
Make sure the brush head is small enough to be used comfortably by your child. "Children may have difficulties with manual dexterity, so you should be looking at electric toothbrushes which have long thin necks that can easily reach the back of their mouth," Coates said. It's also important that the size of the handset fits your children's hands comfortably, as you want them to be able to use the brush for two minutes on each use.
Your next step may be to look for features that you think would help your child develop and maintain good brushing habits. These may include a two-minute timer and quadrant pacing. "This is a timer which helps you to spend equal time over all the parts of your mouth. Every thirty seconds it would send out a noise telling you to move to the next section or quarter of your mouth," Coates said.
An appealing design can really help. "Children may find that brushing with a powered toothbrush is fun; particularly with all of their colors, sparkles and cartoon characters," Kulkarni said. However, there is always the danger that your child may outgrow their current favorite TV character before they outgrow their brush, so you could find yourself needing a new brush sooner than you had hoped just to keep up their interest and enthusiasm for brushing.
The most important thing to remember is that even if they love their new brush, they still need adult supervision. Watching your child brush their teeth, helping them out to encourage thorough cleaning and improving their brushing technique, and praising them when they do a good job is what makes the biggest difference to their oral hygiene.
How we tested these electric toothbrushes for kids
How we test the best electric toothbrushes for kids
Our reviewers. We test the electric toothbrushes for kids on the people they are actually designed for — children. Supervised by a parent or guardian, our child testers will run the toothbrush on its various settings and modes to give their ultimate verdict. They have tested nearly a dozen different models over the years, so you can trust them when they say if something does the job well or falls behind expectations.
However, we know that children are occasionally not the most objective or experienced reviewers, so we naturally also rely on our adult testers to provide a detailed assessment of every toothbrush they, or their children, test. Each gadget is tested for at least a week before we rank it across the following categories:
Design. We thoroughly assess how well the toothbrush is made, looking at its size, appearance, durability, and ease of use. We give our verdict on its controls, brush head, handle and its general appeal to children. We also take note of any design tweaks that can help the children develop good brushing habits. We also note whether the brush comes with any accessories or spare brush heads.
Features. We test every single feature of the toothbrush, including many brushing modes and intensity levels it offers. We check and test any connected apps it comes with and assess any smart features. We also check if the toothbrush helps guide your children on their brushing technique and whether it allows you to track their brushing progress. We also assess how customizable it is.
Performance. We measure how loud the toothbrush is with a decibel counter app (such as the Sound Meter app). We then compare these results to similar appliances. We run and use the toothbrush on all its settings and modes, noting any differences in intensity and durations between settings. We also thoroughly test the charging process, including how long it takes to reach a full charge, and how long the toothbrush lasts before the battery depletes.
Value for money. Finally, we give our verdict on the most important issue: is it worth the money?
After testing, all feedback is collated to award electric toothbrushes a final star rating, with a maximum score of five.
