The best games console for kids: top picks from Nintendo, PlayStation and Xbox

As far as Mumsnet parents are concerned, there really is only one winner of the title of best handheld games console, and that’s the Nintendo Switch OLED. While it comes in a variety of formats, the Nintendo Switch OLED gets our pick as the best games console you can buy today.

As well as hooking the console up to your TV, the Switch can be used in tabletop or handheld mode, meaning you can enjoy the home console experience pretty much anywhere - within reason. OLED is the newest member of the Nintendo Switch family, with improvements including a vibrant seven-inch OLED display screen (the standard model is 6.2 inches), a wide adjustable stand, double internal storage, and enhanced audio. The portability, coupled with a battery life of up to nine hours, makes the Switch OLED the ideal way to keep kids entertained on long car journeys.

The Switch has a huge variety of family-friendly games, such as Super Mario Odyssey, Mario Kart, Animal Crossing and Pokémon, and is a great way to keep the whole household entertained.

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If you’re looking for a budget-friendly games console for a fan of retro gaming, the Hyper Mega Tech Capcom Super Pocket comes at a really affordable price point.

Lightweight and portable, but with a surprisingly robust build, this affordable classic-Gameboy-vibes console is suitable for children aged 12 and above. It comes with twelve in-built games including Street Fighter II': Hyper Fighting, Final Fight, 1943, Strider, Ghouls 'n Ghosts and has an extensive library of additional games that are sold separately.

While the small screen doesn’t offer quite the high-quality graphics some gamers may be used to, this handheld console offers the perfect balance of classic and indie games whether at home or on the go. 

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The Nintendo Switch is great for holidays and long car journeys, but if you really want to streamline your tech, then the Nintendo Switch Lite comes highly recommended by Mumsnet parents - and at a cheaper price point than its larger counterpart, making it the best games console for on-the-go fun.

This handheld-only device has a 5.5-inch touch screen, integrated controls and can be synced up to no less than eight Nintendo Switch or Switch Lite consoles for local multiplay. However, as the Lite is designed to be taken out and about, there’s no controllers included and it can’t be hooked up to the TV, so you should consider an alternative if you’re after a family console for the home. It also only holds 32GB of storage, which is considerably less than other consoles, but it's still one of the best gaming consoles in terms of on-the-go capability.

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Smooth and speedy with sharp visuals, this sleek-looking console is the latest PlayStation to hit the market and thought to be one of the best games consoles around. The DualSense wireless controller gives physical feedback from the gameplay, such as weapon recoil in a shoot 'em up, while 3D audio makes the PlayStation 5 a truly immersive experience.

The controller’s built-in microphone also allows your kids to interface with friends online - although you only get one dual sense controller included, so you’ll probably need to buy more for playing as a group. Make sure to invest in some high-quality kids' headphones too.

It has a larger storage compared to the PlayStation 4 and it can stream rapidly for speedy loading. In terms of games, it’s not quite as family-friendly as the Nintendo Switch but younger children will enjoy playing Astro’s Playroom, Sackboy: A Big Adventure and the LEGO games. There are two versions of the PlayStation 5 - both offer the same gaming experience, but one is slightly cheaper and only runs games digitally, while the other you can also play gaming discs.

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The daddy of gaming consoles, the Xbox Series X is the fastest, most powerful Xbox to date. The console has a 1000GB (1TB) hard drive capacity and the loading speed is seriously impressive.

The Series X plays thousands of games from four generations of Xbox, including Xbox One, Xbox 360 and Original Xbox titles and, if that’s not enough, then you can splash out on an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for another 100-plus titles to keep everyone busy.

In terms of compatibility, games like Minecraft: Bedrock Edition can be played across multiple platforms too, so children can play against their friends no matter which platform they might be playing on. If you can get past the eye-watering price tag, the Xbox Series X is the best games console in terms of investment for the whole family.

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If you’re looking to purchase the best games console for use by younger children, then the Xbox Series S is a good fit. Considerably cheaper than the Xbox Series X, the Series S makes an ideal introduction to gaming. The free Xbox Family Settings app on Android and iOS makes it easy to manage your child’s screen time, block purchases and filter out age-inappropriate content.

The Series S doesn’t support 4K gaming though so you won’t get the same high-end visuals as you’d get on the X, and it also has less storage (around 500 GB), however it’s still a great gaming console for children. The Xbox Series S is entirely digital, so there are no discs required which means there’s less clutter and it can help cut back on costs of buying individual discs. But you do need to purchase a Xbox Game Pass, giving you access to thousands of new and classic games, to get the most out of your console.

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It doesn’t get any more retro than the Classic Mini Super Nintendo Entertainment System. The console has the same look and feel as the original SNES, which was first launched in 1992, but is more compact. It comes with 21 pre-loaded games, including Super Mario World, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Super Mario Kart and a host of other old-school favourites.

While there’s plenty of games to keep your child busy, it is a lot more limited compared to the likes of the Nintendo Switch, and not all that much cheaper. You also don’t have the same features as the other games consoles, such as online gaming. You will find two controllers in the box though, so this is definitely the best games console if you're looking to settle some 30-year-old scores.

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Due to its larger, brighter screen, we feel it’s worth investing in the Switch OLED if your kids are planning to play solo, however the original Nintendo Switch offers a very similar multiplayer experience with a slightly lower price tag, making it our pick for the best games console for larger groups.

By connecting the Switch to your TV or PC, the whole family can compete together in games such as Mario Party, Cooking Fever and Just Dance, battling it out with freedom of movement thanks to the wireless Joy-Con controllers.

When it’s time for their friends to go home, your child can quickly and easily attach the controllers to revert to handheld mode. At 32GB, it’s worth noting that the internal memory on the original Switch is half the size of the OLED, so you may want to purchase a separate SD card if they’re building up an extensive game library, especially when downloading games from the Nintendo store.

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If you’re buying for an older child or teenager who wants to take a step into virtual or mixed reality gaming, the MetaQuest3 is sure to be high on their wishlist, with huge leaps in processing power, resolution and performance when compared to the original MetaQuest 2.

The 4K infinite display completely fills the user's field of vision, while the dazzling graphics and 3D sounds can transport the user into a completely new virtual world. With super fast load times, gamers can get straight into the action - whether that’s playing board games, taking part in mortal combat, fitness training or simply learning new skills. 

The Meta Quest 3 comes with a fully adjustable headset and hand controllers included and while it’s certainly not cheap, it’s the most modern and immersive of gaming.