How to Clean Children's Toys

There's no need to sterilise everything. For most families, a sensible routine is to wash the toys babies and toddlers mouth every few days, give other hard toys a clean every week or two, and wash soft toys every month or so. Clean toys straight away if they've been dropped somewhere dirty, been mouthed by a visiting child, or after someone has had a cold or stomach bug.

Toys shared at nurseries, playgroups and soft play centres are cleaned more often – usually daily – which is covered in our guide to nursery and childcare cleaning.

Hard plastic toys without batteries are the easiest. Wash them in warm water with washing-up liquid, using an old toothbrush for crevices, rinse in clean water and air dry. Many – such as stacking cups, rattles and building bricks – can go in the top rack of the dishwasher. Put small pieces in a mesh laundry bag or cutlery basket.

To disinfect after illness, use a child-safe disinfectant or a sterilising solution used for baby bottles, following the label, then rinse well with clean water. Avoid strong household disinfectants unless they're labelled safe for toys and you rinse thoroughly.

Check the label. Most soft toys can be washed at 30–40°C on a gentle cycle in a pillowcase or laundry bag. Dry them thoroughly – a tumble dryer on low with a towel, or outside on a dry day – making sure the stuffing is dry right through. Toys with music boxes, electronics or glued-on parts should be surface washed with a damp cloth instead.

For a child with dust mite allergies, putting a soft toy in a sealed bag in the freezer for 24 hours kills mites, then wash it to remove the allergens.

Squeezy bath toys with a hole in the bottom fill with water that can't drain, and black mould grows inside. Once mould is inside, it's very hard to remove. The best prevention is to choose bath toys without holes, or seal the holes with a dab of waterproof glue before first use.

If your toys do have holes, squeeze out all the water after every bath and leave them in a mesh bag to dry. Every week or two, soak them in a solution of one part white vinegar to one part hot water for an hour, squeezing the solution in and out, then rinse and dry. Throw away any toys with visible mould inside.

Wood shouldn't be soaked or put in the dishwasher – it swells and cracks. Wipe wooden toys with a cloth dampened in warm water and a little washing-up liquid, or a mild solution of white vinegar and water, and dry them straight away. Rub a little food-safe oil into unvarnished wooden toys occasionally to keep them from drying out.

Take the batteries out. Wipe the surface with a damp cloth or a baby-safe wipe, avoiding speaker holes and battery compartments, and use a cotton bud around buttons. Never submerge them. Check battery covers are secure after cleaning – button batteries are extremely dangerous if swallowed.

Foam play mats can be wiped with warm soapy water or taken outside and hosed down, then dried flat. Ride-on toys, scooters and outdoor plastic toys collect dirt and spider webs in the garden; a bucket of warm soapy water and a brush, followed by a rinse with the hose, does the job. Sand toys should be rinsed and dried before being stored so they don't go mouldy.

Busy parents often ask whether a domestic cleaner will clean toys. Many will wipe down hard toys or tidy them into storage if it's on the task list, but washing soft toys, sorting small pieces and dealing with toy clutter usually works best as a family job. Our guide to keeping a house clean with kids has practical routines.