The best magazines for kids match your child’s age and interests: Highlights Hello, Babybug and Ranger Rick Cub for babies and toddlers, High Five and Ladybug for preschoolers, Highlights, Spider and Ranger Rick for early readers, and Cricket, The Week Junior and Science News Explores for ages 8 to 14.
Looking for the best magazines for kids? Below are 18 current titles, from wipe-clean baby magazines to weekly news for tweens, with each age range and format checked on the publisher’s own site in November 2026.
We also cover what changed recently (several Cricket Media titles merged), how to choose by interest, how to gift a subscription, and how to try titles free at your library first.
Key Takeaways
Use the publisher’s stated age range and lean young for new readers.
Babies and toddlers: Highlights Hello, Babybug or Ranger Rick Cub. Preschool: High Five, Ladybug or Nat Geo Little Kids.
Ages 6 to 12: Highlights, Spider, Nat Geo Kids, Ranger Rick or brainPLAY. Ages 8 to 14: Cricket, The Week Junior or Science News Explores.
Click, Ask, Muse, Faces and Cobblestone no longer publish separately; their content moved into Ladybug, Spider and Cricket.
The AAP encourages shared print reading from birth; try titles free at your library before subscribing.
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Table of Contents
Best Magazines for Kids at a Glance
Quick Answer
The best magazines for kids match your child’s age and interests. For babies and toddlers: Highlights Hello, Babybug or Ranger Rick Cub. For preschoolers: High Five, Ladybug, Nat Geo Little Kids or Ranger Rick Jr. For ages 6 to 9: Highlights, Spider, Nat Geo Kids or Ranger Rick. For ages 8 to 14: Cricket, The Week Junior, Science News Explores, Kazoo (for girls 5 to 12) or the all-puzzle brainPLAY.
Every title, age range and format below was checked on the publisher’s own website in November 2026. Confirm on the subscription page before you buy.
18 kids’ magazines compared by age, focus and format, from publisher pages checked November 2026.
Best Magazines for Babies and Toddlers (0 to 3)
At this age a magazine is a thin, sturdy picture book that arrives by mail. Look for wipe-clean pages, big simple images and short rhymes you can read together.
Highlights Hello (ages 0 to 2): Made to be shared between a caregiver and a little one, each 16-page issue follows one theme (such as sounds, food or farm animals) with read-aloud stories, poems, simple activities and a Find It seek-and-find page. The pages are described as durable, wipe-clean, moisture-resistant and sized for little hands.
Babybug (ages 0 to 3): From Cricket Media, Babybug offers brightly illustrated stories, rhymes and simple activities for early learners. It is published 6 times a year, and you can choose print, digital or a print plus digital bundle.
Ranger Rick Cub (ages 0 to 4): The National Wildlife Federation’s toddler title comes in a smaller size for tiny hands and is designed for reading together on your lap,.
Even sturdy pages can tear, so treat a baby magazine like a board book: read it together and keep it in a basket with your favorite read-aloud books rather than in the crib. If you are building a first library, our board books guide covers the most durable formats.
Best Magazines for Preschoolers (3 to 5)
Preschoolers want stories, simple puzzles and something to do with their hands, and these titles mix all three.
High Five (ages 2 to 6): Highlights says High Five is created for preschoolers and kindergartners and is packed with read-aloud stories, crafts, recipes and puzzles, plus explorations of science, nature and art. A new 36-page issue arrives every month. Highlights also offers High Five Bilingüe, a separate edition for helping young children learn a second language, whether English or Spanish.
Ladybug (ages 3 to 6): Cricket Media’s Ladybug has read-aloud stories, poems and nonfiction about animals, nature and space, in print, digital or both. Cricket Media says Ladybug has been expanded to include the science content of its former preschool title, Click.
Nat Geo Little Kids (ages 3 to 5): National Geographic lists 6 issues a year packed with animals, fun facts and pull-out activity sheets, designed to nurture a love of nature, science and discovery.
Ranger Rick Jr. (ages 4 to 7): Wildlife photos with simple text that introduce animals to young readers.
Ranger Rick Dinosaurs (ages 4 to 7): A National Wildlife Federation title about dinosaur habitats and facts, led by Ranger Rick and friends.
This is the sweet spot for kids’ magazines: short articles, comics and puzzles feel far less daunting than a chapter book to a new reader.
Highlights (ages 6 to 12): The flagship Highlights magazine is crafted for kids 6 to 12, with stories, puzzles, science experiments, jokes and crafts in a 44-page issue every month.
Spider (ages 6 to 9): Cricket Media describes Spider as ideal for newly independent readers, with stories, poems, science and activities illustrated by well-known children’s authors and artists. Print, digital or both. Cricket Media says Spider now also includes content from its former science, history and arts title, Ask.
Nat Geo Kids (ages 6 to 8): National Geographic’s U.S. subscription page lists this title for ages 6 to 8, with 10 issues a year of wild animals, science, nature and history, plus features called Dare to Explore and So You Wanna Be.
Ranger Rick (ages 7 to 12): The National Wildlife Federation’s flagship kids’ title has exciting animal stories, photos, puzzles and games about the natural world.
Tweens want real writing, real news and real science, not just activity pages.
Cricket (ages 9 to 14): Cricket Media calls Cricket an award-winning mix of fiction, nonfiction and poetry covering culture, history, science and the arts, published 6 times a year in print, digital or both. Cricket Media says it now also includes content from Muse, Faces and Cobblestone, which are no longer sold as separate subscriptions on its store.
The Week Junior (ages 8 to 14): A weekly news magazine from Future US that launched in the U.S. in March 2020. Each 32-page issue covers news, science, animals, nature, sports, entertainment and puzzles, plus a Big Debate feature where kids weigh both sides of a question.
Science News Explores (reading level ages 9 to 14): Published by the nonprofit Society for Science, it covers current science, technology, engineering and math. The publisher says stories use vocabulary and sentence structure that work for readers 9 to 14, and that the magazine is also popular with teens and adults. It prints 10 issues a year and offers a digital option.
Ranger Rick Zoobooks (ages 7 and up): A National Wildlife Federation title built to grow children’s curiosity about animals.
brainPLAY (ages 7 and up): Highlights’ all-puzzle magazine: 32 pages of Hidden Pictures scenes, logic puzzles, brain-teasers, photo puzzles and riddles, arriving every other month in a 7.5 by 10 inch size that is easy to pack.
Most kids’ magazine publishers set their top age at 12 or 14. Cricket, The Week Junior and Science News Explores all reach 14, and Society for Science says Science News Explores is also popular with teens and adults, which makes it a natural bridge for a science-minded teen. After about 14, the best pick is usually a general-audience magazine about something your teen already loves, from a sport to cooking to current events. Let them choose, and sample titles free at the library first.
Best Kids’ Magazines by Interest
If your child loves…
Magazines to try
Ages
Animals and nature
Ranger Rick family, Nat Geo Little Kids, Nat Geo Kids
Kazoo (girls 5 to 12) is an independent, ad-free print magazine published quarterly from Brooklyn, New York, with a stated mission of celebrating girls for being strong, smart, fierce and true to themselves. History fans who loved Cobblestone will now find its content inside Cricket. For science lovers, pair an issue with a project from our science experiments for kids guide.
Why Magazines Help Kids Read
In its 2024 literacy promotion policy statement, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) encourages reading aloud with children from birth through at least kindergarten. It links shared reading to stronger relationships and to social-emotional, cognitive, language and literacy development, and emphasizes print, noting that digital books do not foster the same parent-child interaction.
We are not aware of strong research showing that magazines beat books, so we will not claim that. But a magazine is an easy way to add print to your child’s week, and it has practical strengths:
It arrives with their name on it: Mail addressed to a child is exciting, and that thrill can make reading something to look forward to.
It is short: An article or comic takes a few minutes, which suits reluctant readers.
It gives you something to talk about: Ask your child to read you the weirdest fact. That back-and-forth is what the AAP describes.
How to Choose a Magazine Subscription for Your Child
Use the publisher’s age range: Check the ages on the publisher’s page, not a retailer’s, and lean young for a new reader. A magazine that feels easy gets read.
Follow the obsession: An animal lover will read Ranger Rick cover to cover; a puzzle fan may skip stories but devour brainPLAY.
Check frequency: Titles range from weekly (The Week Junior) to monthly (Highlights, High Five) to every other month or quarterly.
Pick print, digital or both: Cricket Media titles come in print, digital or a bundle. For young children, print fits the AAP’s emphasis on shared print reading.
Read the renewal terms: Many subscriptions renew automatically, so note the renewal date when you subscribe.
Gifting a Magazine Subscription
A subscription keeps arriving long after the wrapping paper is gone, which makes it a great gift from grandparents far away.
Add something to unwrap: Pair the gift card with a small item, like a pencil set for a puzzle magazine. Our stocking stuffers for kids list has ideas.
Order early for the holidays: The first issue can take several weeks to arrive, so tell the parents it is coming.
Ask the parents first: Make sure the family does not already subscribe, and ask about reading level and interests.
Grow it with the child: Give the next title in a family each year: Hello to High Five to Highlights, Babybug to Ladybug to Spider to Cricket, or Ranger Rick Cub to Ranger Rick Jr. to Ranger Rick.
Free Kids’ Magazines at Your Library and a Screen-Free Reading Habit
Before paying for a year, check your library. Many libraries keep children’s magazines on the shelf, and many offer digital magazine apps free with a library card. Ask a children’s librarian what your branch carries.
At home, keep the newest issue in a reading basket by the couch or bed, let your child open the mail on arrival day, and offer a short magazine story instead of a screen in the hour before bed.
The best magazines for kids are the ones your child is excited to open. Start with the publisher’s stated age range, follow your child’s interests, borrow a few titles from the library to test them, and pick print for the youngest readers so you can read together. Recheck the publisher’s page before you subscribe, because titles and ages change.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best magazines for kids?
It depends on age. For babies and toddlers, try Highlights Hello, Babybug or Ranger Rick Cub. Preschoolers enjoy High Five, Ladybug and Nat Geo Little Kids. Early readers do well with Highlights, Spider, Nat Geo Kids and Ranger Rick. For ages 8 to 14, try Cricket, The Week Junior or Science News Explores.
What age is Highlights magazine for?
Highlights lists its flagship Highlights magazine for ages 6 to 12. For younger children, the same publisher makes Hello for ages 0 to 2 and High Five for ages 2 to 6. Its all-puzzle magazine, brainPLAY, is listed for ages 7 and up.
What is a good magazine for a toddler?
Look for sturdy pages and short rhymes. Highlights Hello (ages 0 to 2) has wipe-clean, moisture-resistant pages, Babybug (ages 0 to 3) offers illustrated stories and rhymes, and Ranger Rick Cub (ages 0 to 4) comes in a smaller size designed for lap reading about animals.
What magazine is good for a 10 year old?
Popular choices for a 10 year old include Highlights (ages 6 to 12), Ranger Rick (7 to 12), Cricket (9 to 14), The Week Junior (8 to 14) and Science News Explores, which its publisher writes for readers 9 to 14. Puzzle fans may prefer brainPLAY.
Is Muse magazine still published?
Not as a separate subscription. Cricket Media says Muse content, along with Faces and Cobblestone content, is now part of Cricket magazine for ages 9 to 14. Its former preschool science title Click now lives inside Ladybug, and Ask content now appears in Spider.
Are magazines good for kids’ reading?
Magazines are one easy way to add print reading to a child’s week. The AAP encourages shared reading from birth and notes that digital books do not foster the same parent-child interaction as print. Short articles and comics also suit reluctant readers.
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National Wildlife Federation. Magazines (Ranger Rick, Ranger Rick Jr., Ranger Rick Cub, Ranger Rick Zoobooks, Ranger Rick Dinosaurs). https://www.nwf.org/Magazines
