This post may contain affiliate links. See my full disclaimer here

If you are headed on vacation, or to the pool or beach, an important must-pack is your pool floatie. Bringing the ‘wrong’ swim floatie on your trip is a mistake you just don’t want to make (from experience!).  Before we discovered the best swim floatie for our toddler, we spent many a vacation suffering from a clingy toddler who had all of the sudden decided he was AFRAID OF ALL WATER.  After seven days straight of being held to for dear life, we knew we needed to find something that was going to give our little one some confidence in the water!   If you are headed to the water with your little ones check out my suggestions here for the best swim floaties for toddlers and babies:

Swim floaties give toddlers confidence in the waves

We’ve tried so many different floaties and swim vests for toddlers over the years, and have finally found the best toddler floatie around.  In this post, I’m going to cover our favorite toddler and baby flotation devices, and also review some of the important differences between a toddler lifejacket,  swim vest and ‘floatie’.

Lifejacket vs Swim Vest or Pool Floatie

A pool floatie or swim vest is NOT the same as a lifejacket. Lifejackets or PFDs (personal flotation devices) are lifesaving devices that are meant to keep your head above water if (God-forbid) you were ever in trouble. Life jackets keep you and your kids safe in the event of an on-water emergency and have many features to keep even toddlers safe in the water.

In fact, lifejackets specifically, are meant to be able to turn a person from the face-down position over to their back in the water. PFD’s (personal flotation devices) do not have this same feature and are only designed to keep you afloat. Lifejackets are absolutely what you need if you are going on a boat or watercraft as they keep you and your family safe.

This is a toddler lifejacket. Use an approved lifejacket when you are on a boat!

Please visit Red Cross to read more about Canadian standards for life jackets or the US Coast Guard lifejacket facts if you are in the US. In both of these countries, if a floatation device is approved, it will be clearly marked on the inside of the jackets with a weight and chest size approval. Look for approval by the US Coast Guard (or Canadian Coast Guard/Transport Canada if in Canada)

Look for approval from your local authorities

Life vests, floaties, swim-aids, puddle jumpers and other flotation devices all have some material that is meant to help you stay afloat. Whether these devices are ALSO lifejackets depend on the specific product.  In general, if it is not an approved lifejacket or PFD these will NOT save your life if you are at risk of drowning. They are simply an aid to make swimming easier. The difference between a swim vest and a floatie is related to the design. Swim vests are just as they sound, vests which give some extra floatation, whereas many toddler floaties often have an armband type design.

Swim vests for toddlers or other floatation devices can still be GREAT for little ones who are learning to swim but its important that an adult is still ALWAYS supervising kids (at arms length!) with pool floaties on. These shouldn’t be used on boats. The danger in the water can happen in a matter of seconds.

The Best Toddler Floatie: The Puddle Jumper 

Hands down the only floatie that you need for your toddler is a puddle jumper! Seriously, if we forgot our puddle jumper on vacation we would probably order amazon same day shipping just to get one at our hotel! These are absolutely the best swim floats for toddlers, and are perfect for most kids age 2 and up (it is rated between 30-50lbs).

What makes the puddle jumper so great is the design. These upgraded water wings have a genius chest strap that brings your toddlers face up and out of the water. What do toddlers hate about the water? Getting their eyes wet!! Once my son realized he wasn’t going to be gulping water when he used this thing he was sold.

In the US, the coast guard has actually approved this as a ‘learn to swim’ type V lifejacket. In Canada, the puddle jumper is considered a swim aid (aka it is not approved and shouldn’t be what you use on a boat!)

With the puddle jumper, my 3-year-old son can basically swim completely independently. He enters and exits the water, kicks, and paddles and this year even started really dunking his head with some epic pool jumps! The fact that my son is now fearless around the pool DEFINITELY means I have to keep an extra eye on him at all times. When we are on vacation he does NOT take the puddle jumper off when we are by the water.

Runner Ups:

Puddle Jumper was the ‘original’ but there are now a few puddle jumper spinoffs that are getting rave reviews from some of my friends. These may also be worthwhile checking out but I haven’t tried them personally:

Body Glove Paddle Pals:

This has a similar design to the original, with an added feature of a safety vest. The safety vest makes it more difficult for kids to slip out of the vest. It also comes in some super cute patterns that your toddler will love.

Puddle Jumper 2-in-1 Swim Suit:

Made by puddle jumper, this combines the original with a padded swimsuit. I’m not sure if the extra bulk is worth the extra space, or if the padded swimsuit does the same job of bringing the chest up that the original does.

The Best Baby Floatie: SwimWays Sun Canopy Baby Boat

For babies <12 months, the options for baby swimming floaties are a bit more limited. I can’t say I’ve gotten into the latest odd trend of these baby neck floaties, that seem umm, a bit dangerous. We tend to use a baby pool floaties that have a canopy, as for us the most important thing is keeping our babies out of the sun and protected from sunburn. We have tried a few inflatable baby floaties like this one that have been great in this regard.

The nice thing about an inflatable floatie is that these pack super well on vacation. We bought our two baby floaties when our first son was 8 months old and they have lasted three years and many trips back and forth on vacation. Our youngest is now 1 year old and still loves to use this type of baby flotation device.

Baby floating devices are absolutely not rated as a lifejacket or PFD. These devices all need DIRECT (hands-on) supervision. The main appeal of these devices is simply to be able to let your little one feel a little bit ‘free’ in the water and allow them to splash around a bit.

Chillin in his baby swim floatie

The Best Kids Floatie: The Swim Fin

After swimming a lot this year at our local gym, our four-year-old is actually starting to get quite comfortable in the water. Although the puddle jumper is still our go-to when we don’t want to worry, I did want to find something that would encourage my little guy to practice his swimming in a more realistic way. I had heard from some friends about this shark fin swimming aid and decided to give it a try.

The shark fin is definitely a ‘swim aid’. It should be used with DIRECT hands-on supervision if your child does not know how to swim. It is great for giving kids a little boost in the water who already have the basics of swimming down. In a pinch, it’s similar to a pool noodle tried around the waist or the chest. We like the shark fin, and let’s be honest, it’s also adorable!!

The big difference I notice with this compared to the puddle jumper is that it does not bring up the chest and head. This means you have to work to paddle and float to keep your head above water which is great for teaching swimming fundamentals. Our son (age 4.5) likes to try it out occasionally, but I don’t think he will be ready for it completely until he is age 5.

The Best Toddler Lifejacket: Hyperlite PFD

In the lifejacket category, the most important thing you should look for is to ensure that your lifejacket is ACTUALLY a certified lifesaving device. Again, check the label and make sure you look for approval in the country you live in. We have two toddler lifejackets at home that we use whenever we go on a boat with our little ones. We certainly don’t take any risks in this regard.

In choosing a lifejacket, fit and style are probably the most important features. You want to make sure that you choose a lifejacket that fits with your child’s weight and chest measurements. For our son, we went with a hyperlite pfd that was made of a soft neoprene material. This lifejacket was comfortable for my toddler and the few times that we did swim with it, it wasn’t riding up too much to bug him.

It’s probably a good idea to get your toddler used to swimming with a lifejacket on before a big boating trip. The first time my son swam with a life jacket on he was NOT impressed. The feeling was a lot different than the puddle jumper and he had to work to keep from flipping over. It took about 5 minutes of coaxing (and bribing, let’s face it!) before he was finally comfortable.

The Best Baby Lifejacket: O’Brien Baby Safe Infant Vest

In Canada, there are no lifejackets which are rated for babies under 20lbs. Small babies should always be held by their parents if they are traveling by boat. In the US, the US coast guard has several infant lifejackets which are approved for infants less than 30 lbs.  I have an O’Brien infant life jacket that I actually scored at a local thrift store!

The unique design is made to keep the infants head above water in a ‘back float’ type position. We have only used it once, as we don’t tend to be big boaters. But I feel great about having it on hand in case we need it.

Stay Safe and Have Fun!

I hope this post helps you to get out and enjoy the water with your little ones this summer. Since we’ve found the ‘right’ floaties for our kids going to the beach and the pool is always a blast. Don’t forget to also invest in the best ‘swimming aid’, SWIMMING LESSONS! Being a strong swimmer is number #1 on the ‘must-do’ list for my kids.

Now that you are all ready to float and enjoy the water on vacation be sure to check out some of my other posts for more ideas:

•  What to pack for the beach with kids for some of the best ‘kid-approved’ beach gear
• The best age to travel with a baby for my ultimate guide to when bringing a baby on vacation is ‘just right’
• How to vacation with your kids (and not hate your life) for keeping cool and ‘tear free’ on vacations with kids

If you have a favorite floatie that didn’t make the list, drop me a line in the comments and I will definitely check it out!