20 Best Floatation Devices For Toddlers (2023 Updated)

Bought this 22 years ago for my granddaughter, they “were” so well made. The inner-tube was the same grade as a tire tube. It was a well made swimsuit with a heavy grade tire tube, and the suit was made to last.

Fast forward 22 years, bought this for my Great granddaughter. Total garbage, cheap plastic tube, cheap material on the “suit”. And the strap that goes between the legs. Not comfortable for your toddler.

My great granddaughter hates it. 20 years ago, my granddaughter lived in hers all summer long. Why would you cheapen this. We’re talking a child’s safety. This is garbage.

Love this. My granddaughter is 15 months old. Did not want to be in life jacket or swimsuit with foam or baby boats. Got this as my girls used it. Slightly disappointed with the tube. May not last so that is why I gave it a 4.

I will replace with a tire tube if need be as that is what the old ones were made of. She now goes around the pool alone. Learned to keep her mouth closed. Is so happy. We are within reach for those of u reading this.

You have to remember that it is not a life jacket. It is step 2 in a learn to swim option. Life jackets are hard for them to move as they keep flipping on their back.

I used a similar vest for our son when he was little and he is now 31. His daughter and son now have these and I love them. One did get a leak though and deflated after using it a year. The quality is good, The blow up ring could be a little stronger made to make it very good.

I remember my sons being firm. But I would recommend this product. They are packed in the suitcase to take our grandchildren to the cottage.

Great company great people. Service and products absolutely top of the line .. Larry Ogden

Best purchase ever Wish I would’ve made this purchase earlier instead of sitting around wondering now that I have is the best thing I’ve done

My 9yr old loves it. It’s not flashy but matches his paddle board at which loves.

It is nice that it is fabric but it left gaps in the child arms, so I do not feel it was sung enough. Returned. May work for a child with larger arm.

Great floaters, my little guy can’t swim at all, but with these he floats around like a log. It’s great! FYI it states that it has UV protection, but it not a replacement for sunscreen. Little guys arms looked like a candy cane because of his sunburns.

I bought two of these, one for my 5 year son (he was the max size the belt could accommodate) and my 3 1/2 year daughter (it fit her like a dream). Aside from my bigger than average son barely squeezing into it, these worked perfectly! My only complaint (and reason for giving only four out of five stars) is it seemed they got a bit water logged or just flatter after about an hour of use.

The sleeves would try to slide down their arms and just seemed less floaty. We used them exclusively to keep their torsos above the wave line at the beach and they did exactly that. They would probably work better on smaller kids than mine but I think the Puddle Jumpers gave them courage they needed to enjoy the ocean! Overall, I would recommend these to anyone with toddlers wanting to explore water for the first time.

I have purchased these in the past and loved them. The reason why I am giving it a one star is because when my son got in the water the arm floatations became completely coated in a sticky slime. What kind of chemicals was my son exposed to? This has never happened with others I have purchased.

For the reason I give it one star and am very concerned as to what was in this product. (The one I purchased had a puffy crab on the front. ).

This product really works. I bought this for my 2 year old son and he was so excited to be able to float on his own. It keeps him upright instead of putting him on his back like most life jackets do.

I will say that my son is on the very bottom of the weight requirement so if the water is rough because of people jumping in, he may get some water in his mouth, but he has learned to close his mouth when its like that.

This is a great product and I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a flotation device for a toddler.

I purchase 2 of these (the shark and the crab-super adorable) for my grandson that just turned 2 on 6/30/19. I was a bit apprehensive at first because it stated that it was for children 30-50 pounds and he is 29 pounds.

I’ve purchased other floating devices such as the zippered vests with the chin cushion and they were cumbersome and he just kept flipping over. The Stearns puddle jumper worked perfectly from the second he put it on.

Immediately he was jumping into the pool even in the deep end and swimming totally by himself. My daughter was thrilled that she now doesn’t have to hold him anymore and doesn’t have to worry about him falling into the pool.

I usually don’t write reviews but today I actually went out of my way to get to this page and share because I know how frustrated I was trying to find a perfect flotation device. It’s made very well and it’s soft and cushiony (other similar looking floaties I’ve seen are made of have cheap plastic with rough edges) I’m also happy that I purchased the extra one to keep on hand.

My grandson did not want to take it off when it was time to go inside.

The jacket has adjustable buckle which is really great to allow parents to adjust it to their child wearing around the body for not being tight and being loose and it hold my child`s body securely. My child loves the bright colors and design and the product seems made in a good quality of material.

The paddles fit perfectly and help my child to float and able to swim longer distance back and forth. The life jacket is very light weight and very comfortable to wear as I see my child swimming confidently and not being afraid in the water by all herself.

I am very happy I got an opportunity to try this product for my child. I may purchase another one when we need one. I definitely recommend this product! I received this product in exchange for my unbiased opinion and my statement here is based upon of my child experience and how the product works.

I bought my 3 year old son this in a different color in store, it was the last one. Came home and when he was about to go into the pool the arm wings one was reaching down to his wrist. It was uneven, maybe some kid tried it on in the store and stretched it out without unbuckling it to take it of.

Obviously I threw out the barcode and I was uncomfortable with him going to the pool with it. I took it back to Walmart with the receipt, no barcode and they never replaced it! Not even a refund. I call cooperate that was no help.

My local Walmart gave me such a hard time. I called puddle jumper no answer, I emailed up to now 6 months I never got a response. For the safety of my child I had to purchase another one and suck with the defective puddle jumper 13 dollars wasted.

My son was very comfortable and he tries to swim without any assistance. Once he jumps in the water he automatically comes out of the water in the floating position. Good product. Thank you

I purchased this for my little boy. Our previous armbands was not good as he was still afraid of water. The waistband helps a lot. He is happily explore the pool by himself.

Wow I had no idea this would actually hold my 4 yr old up in the water like it does! We are learning strokes and strengthen muscles and she can easily doggy paddle and tread water in this allover the pool without a thought!! It’s so effortless and allows full movement and ability to practice and Excercise strokes.

U can even remove layers as they get better!!!.

Great alternative to puddle jumpers or other floats. Our daughter is 3 and she loves it though of course we’re always with her in the water. Only wish that there was a way to tie up the long strap.

Awesome swimming aide! Allows for correct arm movement when learning to swim. Has helped our son transition from just floating with a puddle jumper to actually swimming! This flotation gives him confidence! Highly recommend for helping your child learn to swim.

Wish we would have bought sooner!.

Bought 3 of these for my toddlers they are amazing. So much better than puddle jumpers or arm floats my kids can actually swim and expand their skills. All 3 started a little hesitant with the new change but within a short time could independently move around the pool with confidence even jumping in and going down the slide.

Plus the price is way better then most other options and they are compact with no inflation. Only 2 draw back after 1st use held water and took awhile to dry and the strap between the legs rubbed all 3 raw on their legs next time will try not using the strap.

Overall sold and happy. Game changer in the pool.

If you are looking for something that completely holds child up and out of the water with no attention from you, then this is not for you. However, if you are looking for something to help your child actually learn to swim on their own, there is literally nothing better – or even close!!! I have been looking for this exact product since last summer, as I used it for my 2 older children and there is nothing even close to as good to teach a child to swim on their own.

They are now 16 and 14, and could swim 100% independently at 2 and 3 thanks to this product. Flotation in both front and back, unlike traditional bubbles, but without arm flotation, like the newly popular puddle jumper, which restricts arm movement to correctly “swim” properly.

Puddle jumpers are great if you want a ton of flotation, but too much if you want to actually teach to swim. But this Swimways “vest” allows you to slowly and gradually reduce the amount of flotation by removing 1 pad at a time from the front or back or both.

You can control if they are leaning too far forward or back by adjusting the number of pads. By removing 1 or 2 pads at a time, you can reduce the amount of flotation gradually, so your child can get used to less help and having to do more to stay afloat and learn to swim until eventually swimming on their own.

Other devices go from 100% flotation to 0 – where this goes 100% to 90% to 80% and so on down to an Independent Swimmer!!!!.

The one-star reviews did not give this a chance. I used it for my youngest two kids because I did not know about it sooner (a friend recommended it). Now I am using it with my granddaughter. There is a slight learning curve because they have to learn to balance themselves using the swimming motions.

You need to be with them the first few times (it varied with my kids). One of them just took off in about 10 minutes. The other was more timid, so it took her a few days. But then they are completely independent, and I just removed a bit of the buoyancy as they became stronger.

Then they just did not want to wear it anymore.

With the extended swimming weather in Houston and with a heated pool, my daughter loves to get into the pool! While I watch her like a hawk, I wanted additional safety to her. I got her these Aqua SwimSchool gender neutral fabric arm bands for my daughter.

These high quality arm flotation devices have a valve where you put air into each arm device. You can tighten each arm device with velcro straps ties that are built-in and can be used with different children weight and heights.

I highly recommend these Aqua arm flotation devices!.

I recently received the SwimSchool Gender Neutral Fabric Arm Bands for my granddaughter to try and for me to review. Upon opening the box I could tell these were going to be great. The floats are well made.

The fabric is so soft and so much more comfortable than the usual plastic floats. They slide on easily and feel secure. I love the added feeling of safety that my granddaughter gets wearing these floats.

These were so awesome to help transition my son from a larger safety device. The colors aren’t a as bright as I expected. The fabric makes these so much easier to get on than the terrible plastic ones I used when I was a kid.

They also did not cause any rashes on his arms or side/armpit like the plastic ones did. Definitely still need parental supervision but kept him above water with enough freedom to move around.

This is perfect for my almost 3 year old. It is very sturdy and the leg holes are large enough for a child probably up to age 8 or 9 (maybe even older) but small enough that my 2 year old is very secure to float around and play! She looks adorable splashing around in this thing! Highly recommend.

Great quality so far.

Our granddaughter just turned 4 and is very tiny. She jumps into the pool with her Llama even though told not to. The back side of the bottom seat completely tore out. Not a very well made pool toy if someone small like her can tear out the bottom of this item.

Love the Llama float! I wish we would’ve gotten two, the unicorn one we purchased was a different brand and more cheaply made. The llama one is great quality and the design is great too! Can’t beat the price!.

This worked really well for my 8 month old. My friends said they wish they had it when their kids were little. It’s a very seemingly safe product. However, I did not understand how to work the snaps on the Canopy.

I received the float with black plastic holes where the Canopy is supposed to snap. However the wire was in the way and didn’t allow the Canopy to snap in. So if you get this one, you will have to figure out how to get the plastic black rings off.

Otherwise you will need to get your baby a hat. Otherwise, I liked the self inflating part and the ease of the harness.

Bought this for my granddaughter and she loves it. She especially likes to be laying on her stomach to splash ?more importantly is my daughter and SIL Love it for the safety !!! Plenty of straps to keep her safe while in the water (yes they are with her always) ?my SIL did say to actually inflate it was challenging but not over the top as well as deflating it to get it back into the carrying case ? all in all it’s GREAT.

Our little guy loves his float. It works great and he fits in it comfortably. He loves just floating around in it. But sadly the canopy doesn’t snap to the sides because the snaps are too close together.

I contacted them about it and they said they would send a new one. But we never received it. I would have given this float a 5 if we had a canopy that works.

My kid loves them! She is feeling very confident in the water wearing them. I am also confident that my child will float. But they don’t last long, we went through 3 pairs last summer.

These were good when they worked. Two and three year old wore them and 3 of the 4 floaties had holes after two swims. The roll up makes them easier to put on. A bit disappointed we didn’t get longer than two swims use out of them.

This product needs to be recalled. After using them once it developed a hole. purchased another pair and a hole developed after a single use. Clearly an issue here

I’m not sure why This Has Such Good Reviews. It’s Cute But It Keeps Slipping Down My 3 Year Old. She Has To Hold Her Arms Up To Keep It On. If I Wasn’t In A Rush, I Would Have Gotten The Ones With That Goes Over The Shoulder Area.

Maybe My Daughter Is Still Too Small But She’s Average Size. Definitely Regretting The Purchase But Had To Use It For A Waterpark. Only Postive Is The Cute Design Since My Daughter Loves Minnie.

My daughter is 32lbs, 37in tall. on the tightest adjustment this life vest fits a little loose, but not enough to make me nervous. Her range of movement in the vest is good, she is able to move her arms to swim.

She is very confident even in deep water. The design is cute. I can’t stand printed character designs, which all brands of puddle jumpers seem to have, I find them obnoxious (why not just a solid color?) but this one is cute and she loves it!.

It took a couple of times going to the pool before my daughter felt comfortable with her floatie. I bought a different brand floatie before I bought this one that was not safe at all so she had a bad experience and this one did not let us down.

It’s been great! I definitely keep an eye on her at all times even though she likes being on her own now. Plus my daughter loves Minnie Mouse so she loves it and wants to go swimming every day.

The baby float was worth the money which was $19. 98. That being said, it will need to be replaced next year. The shade, after being in the pool and getting wet felt slimey on the underside which I though was rather gross.

But my granddaughter enjoyed it.

I purchased this baby float for my 7 month old grandson. He loves it and is quite content splashing away in the pool. It’s larger than expected and the sun shade is an added bonus. The float is very sturdy and well made.

The mesh screen attached to the canopy is amazing. It keeps the canopy up while other floats do not. There is also a extra support strap that goes between the legs. YOU NEED IT!

My boy of 5 has always struggled with water in general and swimming has been difficult. He was reliant on rubber rings and armbands to keep him up out of the water but obviously this made learning to swim properly impossible.

After spending a week on holiday and a majority of time in a pool his confidence had increased massively so when we got back I wanted to keep his confidence levels high and I found this little gem. After just 2 separate hours in the local pool he was swimming properly and was even able to go in the pool without an aid.

He is so proud of himself and now loves swimming (and being a shark!). I can’t recommend this enough!.

After of 3 uses my 4 year olds swimming has improved greatly. He now swims on his tummy instead of trying to swim upright. He has gone from sinking to being able to float on both his back and front without assistance.

Highly recommend!.

Very pleased with the arm bands. My three year old grandson had the confidence to swim independently as soon as he was wearing them. The lifeguard at the pool suggested the arm bands instead of the life vest my grandson was wearing at the time which became too heavy as soon as it was wet Thus it impeded him from trying to swim.

The advice was spot on. I would definitely recommend the arm bands, starting with two on each arm.

The item arrived within 1. 5 days. I did not expect it so quickly. Came in original packaging + box. Good quality item as expected. No damaging, brand new item. Would recommend the item. Used it before during my daughters swimming lessons.

Discs helped build confidence in pool. Packaging was damaged and had obviously been opened and then sellotaped up again. However goods inside not damaged.

My daughter is almost 4 months old. I was skeptical about this thing but she loves scooting around the tub with it. She was kicking her legs like a little frog. It seems almost instinctual which is pretty neat to watch.

This definitely needs close supervision like ANY infant bath product but babies will also appreciate the feeling of independence to move about. The only drawback as far as I’m concerned is that the tub needs to be pretty full.

My six month old absolutely loved this. He was able to stay upright and splash around, and slept for hours afterwards. Being double-clasped, the floatie was perfectly secure and didn’t budge no matter how much my son moved and grabbed at it.

It also has two seperate air valves, so if baby accidentally opens one, the second pocket of air keeps baby upright long enough for you to close it up again. With that said, the low rating is due to the fact that it runs small.

As in it doesn’t fit my six month old anymore. So even though we had a blast during the the three times we used it, it wasn’t worth the cost.

I checked different websites and Well. ca had the best shipping deal for this product. My 4 month baby loves it. I wasn’t sure what to expect but she loved being able to float and it also made it easier for me to try having a bath with her without worrying she will slip out of my grasp.

Great Canadian made product and I look so forward to bathtime now!.