Handing the kids our technology is all too familiar. With a world of knowledge at their fingertips, the possibilities are infinite. That’s why we’ve found the best age-appropriate, fun, and educational Android apps for your kids. Be sure to also check out our 15 Top iPhone Apps for Kids by Age for Apple products.
Youngins (Ages 4-7)
Kids Socks Free
This fun matching game gives kids an assortment of unmatched, brightly patterned socks that they need to, well, match. A clothesline brings them one new sock at a time, kids drag one of their socks up to the clothesline to create a matching pair, and the pair then continues moving along the clothesline. A “baby” option lets them match by just touching the correct sock instead of dragging it. Better still, an option to match underwear instead of socks will please kids who are currently potty training or who just happen to think underwear is hilarious.
Pretty Pet Salon Free
Behold the cutest pet management game. Serve customers, earn money, and make your shop bigger and better! Grow your staff and hire new employees bursting with personality and cuteness! Just be sure to keep an eye out for two special celebrity guest customers…they’ll give your Pet Salon a real surprise!
Kids Piano Lite Free
Young kids are natural musicians, and most of them love to play toy pianos. This app gives them a colorful toy piano right on your phone screen. The bars are labeled with the notes (do, re, mi, and so on), and kids can either play free-form or choose a song with the app guiding them on which note to play. Two game modes let them play notes by hitting a pop-up mouse or play a matching game with musical notes. The free version gets you much of the same functionality, though with fewer song choices and other options.
Picasso- Mirror Draw! Free
The concept behind Picasso – Mirror Draw! is simple yet engaging. Kids draw a design on one side of the screen and the app reproduces the drawing in perfect mirror image on the other side in real-time. This fun technique can be used to create perfectly symmetrical snowflakes, butterflies, or whatever else the child’s imagination can come up with. Kids can import images and photos from the device’s gallery to edit them and then share the pictures through a variety of social media.
Wombi Helicopter Free
Wombi Helicopter is an entirely free introduction to their work as your child designs their own helicopter, then flies it through a city picking up passengers, and tries to avoid the attempts of a cheeky skunk to sabotage it. Playful and creative – a great combination.
Kids (Ages 8-12)
Doodle Jump Free
Tilt your phone to the left and right to guide your little doodle creature as it jumps onto higher and higher platforms. Avoid holes and doodle monsters; aim for springs, trampolines, and jet packs to help you go higher. The game has several modes, allowing kids to choose different backgrounds and details, such as a space theme or a jungle theme. All of them are cute and challenging enough to keep kids coming back to improve their scores.
PopMath Free
Kids love to pop bubbles. PopMath takes advantage of that natural interest by putting math equations and solutions on a bunch of floating, colorful bubbles of various sizes. The trick is that, of the several different equations and solutions floating around together, kids have to select the ones that match. When they do, those bubbles pop and disappear. When the level is cleared, kids can choose to move up a level in difficulty or continue at the same level. They can work on addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division so this app should please kids throughout most of elementary school.
Cut the Rope Free
Parents need to know that Cut the Rope is a charming physics-based puzzle game featuring a cute green monster named “Om Nom.” Players must cut dangling ropes that hold candy so that it falls into the monster’s mouth while collecting as many bonus stars as possible. There are 100 levels so far, with more promised in future updates to the app.
Alchemy-Genetics Free
Parents need to know that Alchemy-Genetics is an animal recombination game that uses basic characteristics and links to Wikipedia for scientific value. If your kid likes animals and has a sense of humor, this game will provide some entertainment. If they dig a little deeper, they may even enjoy reading some Wikipedia entries about the animals (though Simple English Wikipedia website entries would be more appropriate). Gameplay consists primarily of dragging or tapping animal icons and trying different sequences (rat, then mole, then ant; or ant, then mole, then rat), but the thrill of “creating” a new creature will keep some kids happy for quite a while – especially those who like collecting.
Pizza Shop Mania Free
Parents need to know that Pizza Shop Mania is a well-designed time management game that allows you to create pizzas and pasta to serve your customers. As you progress, you’ll unlock items to help you earn more money and save your shop from the bankers who are trying to take it away. The game has 48 levels, as well as a match-three mini-game.
Teens (13+)
Temple Run Oz $0.99
As in other Temple Run games, you’re constantly on the run – this time from the famous flying monkeys of Oz, but the game tosses in other hurdles such as biting plants. Swiping the screen from side to side turns corners while swiping backward or forward causes your character to jump or slide under obstacles. It’s not an advanced game, but rather one that tests the player’s reflexes. There’s also a hot air balloon mode, which lets you control a balloon in the skies over the land by tilting the screen left and right to gain coins.
Fruit Ninja Free
There’s something beautifully simple about FRUIT NINJA. Gorgeously rendered fruit gets tossed up in the air before you, and you swat at it to slice it up before it hits the ground. It’s the perfect way to release your aggressions and feel like an Iron Chef at the same time. As it begins with only one fruit at a time being tossed at you, you think, “What’s the big deal?” Then the fruit comes flying and you’re slashing like crazy, halting abruptly when you happen to catch glimpse of a bomb that’s been tossed into the mix. It’s the kind of game that makes you want to keep playing, trying to surpass your previous score each time.
Scrabble Free
Kids can learn vocabulary words and spelling as they strategically place their tiles to form words with the highest points. And they’ll need to use math to maximize their scores. The Scrabble app is an adaptation of the board game and can be even more enjoyable with its smart, intuitive design and features. A teacher feature can be turned on to recommend the word that would have gotten you the most points after each turn. Kids have the option of playing with friends using Facebook Connect or challenging random opponents. Scrabble improves upon the traditional board game for learning vocab and spelling.
Angry Birds Friends Free
Angry Birds Friends isn’t a new game, as such: it’s been available to play on Facebook for some time now. This is the new mobile version though: Angry Birds given a social refit so that you’re competing in weekly tournaments against your Facebook friends. Bragging and gifting is built in, as are in-app purchases.
Bejeweled Blitz Free
Another big freemium-game hit makes its way to Android courtesy of EA and PopCap. Bejeweled Blitz is a reengineered version of the classic match-three puzzle game, with rounds lasting 60 seconds each and the emphasis on power-ups and high-score tables of friends.
