As parents, we all want our babies to have access to the best educational resources available. Monti Kids makes that easy with their bundled play sets that include toys designed to progress with each stage of your baby’s development.
The sets even come with a toy timeline and instructional videos to set you up for success when using each item.
That said, the Monti Kids brand is not the most affordable option, and at a whopping $275 for the first play set, it may be out of reach for a lot of families.
While I’ve tested this out and loved it, I’ve still made it my mission to find alternatives available on Amazon that can provide your baby with the same stimulating activities without ruining your budget.
The Activity Gym Alternative
The activity gym is the most important part of the first Monti Kids play set since everything in the kit – apart from the grasping toy and crochet ring – is meant to hang off of it.
The activity gym included is unique in that it has one single connection point at the top where you hang the toys one at a time. One focal point encourages your baby to be more engaged with each toy and explore it more deeply as the Montessori curriculum suggests.
The best activity gym alternative I found on Amazon is this wooden baby gym ($49.99, and it occasionally has a clickable 15% coupon). The reason I like it is that the included hanging toys come on easily removable rings so you can leave just one on at a time and easily interchange them just like the Monti Kids gym.
Plus, a couple of the toys that come with this activity gym would actually work as pretty good alternatives to some of the toys in the kit, too.
And the fact that this gym folds up nicely for easy storage when it’s not in use is a bonus and something I wish the Monti Kids gym did because it is on the bulkier side and not as easy to get out of the way.
Honorable mention: The brand Lalo has a very good alternative as well, but I’m not sure it’s going to save you money in the end. Its cost is $115, and it comes with a sensory ball, mirror prism, and silicone teether. Like Monti Kids, you can add on a tent that goes over the activity gym. Lalo’s tent is $60 whereas Monti Kids’ tent is $115.
The Mobiles
The Monti Kids kit comes with a series of 4 Montessori mobiles, each serving a very specific purpose. The mobiles, like everything else in the kit, follow a progression of difficulty, as your baby’s vision and concentration skills develop.
I wasn’t as intentional as I should have been about doing these mobiles in a particular order. I watched the online video course a little too late to realize how the progression follows your baby’s development. Oops! So learn from my mistake and make sure you do these mobiles in the proper order.
After looking for each mobile individually on Amazon, I came to the conclusion that the better way to purchase the mobiles is in a set of all four like this set of four classic Montessori visual mobiles ($79.99). These are basically identical to the Monti Kids mobiles, which is amazing!
The mobiles come already assembled and ready to hang.
My only concern with the mobiles and the activity gym alternative I found is the height. The Monti Kids activity gym is higher than the Amazon (and Lalo) version. It also has two adjustable lengths, meaning you can put grasping toys down low for playing and mobiles up high for viewing.
If you use these mobiles with the Amazon alternative in this post, you may have to find a way to make the gym a bit higher, perhaps by propping the legs up on a stack of books or something similar. We did not find any activity gym options on Google that have the unique height and shape of the Monti Kids version.
Grasping Toy Alternative
This is one of two toys in the kit that’s not meant to hang on the activity gym. It’s designed to be easy for babies to grab and hold, encouraging them to practice their grip strength and coordination.
Since it’s not meant to hang on the gym, you could even give it to your baby while doing tummy time to change things up.
These wooden car grasping toys ($18.99) are the perfect stand-in that would fit nicely in your baby’s hands. They are made with natural ecological wood so they could double as a teether as well which scores them bonus points.
Crochet Ring Alternative
We really loved the crochet ring. It was a toy we often put on baby’s lap during car rides, and he really loved tracking its movement when we waved it from left to right in front of him. It has little jingle bells around the edge, so when you shake it, your baby immediately tries to find it and track it.
This crochet baby rattle ($14.99) is a cute alternative to the crochet ring in the Monti Kids kit. It’s meant to encourage tactile exploration and catch your baby’s attention with a subtle rattle. It may not look exactly the same, but it has all of the same developmental benefits.
It comes in four fun different animals too so you can choose between a bunny, bear, fox, or lion.
A secondary option is this baby teether, which has the same shape as the Monti Kids crochet ring, but it’s a different material and doesn’t have the jingle feature. I still like it, and I’m sure babies love the silicone teethers!
Batting Ball Alternative
Going back to items that are meant to hang from the activity gym, the batting ball will introduce cause and effect to your baby. There is a little bell inside the Monti Kids batting ball, so when your baby swings their arms around and hits the ball, they will start to realize, “Oh, I did that!” and eventually piece together the fact that when they hit it, it moves and makes a sound.
If you end up getting the activity gym alternative I mentioned above, it comes with a hanging ball that has a bell in it which would save you from buying a separate one.
But if you already have an activity gym that doesn’t have one, or wanted to get a batting ball just on its own, these hanging bell toys ($22.99) would work perfectly.
While it’s not exactly a ball, there is a bell – more like a wind chime – inside that would get the same reaction.
Grasping Ring Alternative
After your baby gets used to the batting ball, he may be ready to reach out and grab onto it. Introducing the grasping ring is the next step. I remember cheering like a maniac when my son grasped the ring for the first time. That’s the excitement of these kits, which are designed to encourage those developmental milestones.
The Amazon activity gym alternative also comes with a grabbing ring that would work for this activity, or so would these baby pull rings ($18.32). They come in a set of four rings that are sturdy enough for your baby to pull on because they are actually made to hang off the side of the crib as a pull-up support.
You can adjust the height easily so that you can be sure to make it the right height for your little one to grab.
Hanging Disc Alternative
Though there are numerous Montessori-friendly grabbing disks on Amazon, unfortunately, I couldn’t find any that are made to hang. The hanging element is unique to the Monti Kids kit.
So your best bet would be to get these wooden interlocking discs ($11.99) and use them during tummy time or self-exploration time just like the grasping toy and the crochet ring.
They will still give your baby an extra challenge because of the complex shape which is ultimately the purpose of the Monti Kids’ hanging disks.
Kicking Ball Alternative
Similar to the batting ball, the kicking ball hangs from the gym, but this time, you will position your baby so that their legs can kick the ball to help build strength and coordination in their legs.
I had to get creative with the alternative for the kicking ball because it’s important that it hangs from the gym. After finding several Montessori kicking balls that are meant to roll around on the floor, I found this sensory ball ($19.99) which was exactly what I was looking for.
The reason I like that one is that it has a loop on top where the tag is so you’d be able to hang it from the gym. You can see an example of someone doing this in the review photos.
You could essentially use any kind of string to tie it up, but I would recommend something like these toy straps ($9.99) which would be easy to loop over the wooden dowel on your activity gym. Plus there are several holes in the straps making them height adjustable.
Monti Kids 0-3m Play Set vs Amazon Price Comparison
So, all-in-all, is it worth buying everything separately on Amazon? Let’s take a look at the price breakdown between the Monti Kids 0-3 month play set and the best Amazon alternatives:
- Activity gym alternative – $49.99
- The mobiles – $79.99
- Grasping toy alternative – $18.99
- Crochet ring alternative – $14.99
- Batting ball alternative – $22.99
- Grasping ring alternative – $18.32
- Hanging discs alternative – $11.99
- Kicking ball alternative – $19.99 (plus $9.99 for the toy straps)
That brings the Amazon alternatives to a total of $247.24 if you buy them all, which would save you about $28.
But, if you buy the activity gym alternative, you could skip the batting ball alternative and the grasping ring which would bring the grand total down to $205.93, saving you about $70.
I will say that aesthetically, the Monti Kids play set takes the cake over the Amazon alternatives. Everything in the set fits together cohesively which you won’t get by buying everything separately. That’s a big reason I gravitate towards these curated play sets vs self-curating.
Read my full review of this play set here: Monti Kids Program Level 1 Review for 0-3 Months
In addition, you’ll have to find a way to prop up the Amazon activity gym to accommodate the mobiles, while the Monti Kids activity gym has two heights.
And let’s not forget the educational videos that come with each Monti Kids age-based set. Those videos blew me away, and they really taught me how to use the toys and get the most out of them.
Monti Kids also has a Montessori expert available for questions and support, which you get access to when you buy any of their play sets. You can email, chat, or even schedule a video call with them anytime you have a question. I’ve reached out to them several times with questions and their answers are always super helpful!
Conclusion
So yes, you may save a few bucks by buying the Amazon alternatives, but you really can’t beat the quality of the Monti Kids play set, and the educational videos and expert support that come with it might just make the Monti Kids play set worth the extra $30-$70.
Let me know what you think in the comments below!
