If your child is growing and starting to climb, play and jump around, you may want to invest in a playhouse for them. Likely to last years, these playhouses can be a great way for your child to burn energy, learn more physical skills and all in all, have fun!
These small houses are usually plastic or wooden and can be indoor or outdoor, depending on your needs. You can also add lots of playhouse accessories to make them fresh and exciting.
Slides and swings are generally seen in children's parks, and now you can have one in your own garden that your child can play with to their heart's content. We've picked out the best outdoor playhouses with slides and/or swings so that your kids can play with them for years to come.
What is a kids playhouse?
Also known as 'wendy houses' here in the UK, children's playhouses are small toy houses generally put in your garden for your kids to play around in. They can have lots of different features, accessories and add-ons so it depends on what you're looking for. The more you add, the more expensive (and larger) they get, so think about the space you have and your overall budget.
Today, we're looking at the best playhouses you can find with swings and slides. Whether you want a value budget option or an impressive playhouse with all the best features, these are our top choices. Some of these have both a slide and swings, whereas other have just one or the other.
The best playhouses with slides and swings
This Discovery Skyfort II is a great playhouse if you're looking for durability, sustainability and lots of activities to last years and years. It's definitely one of our more expensive choices and you'll need plenty of room in your back yard to accomodate it, but it's a great investment if you're looking to splash out on a large playhouse.
Built to withstand the elements, we like that it's made out of cedar wood, which is naturally resistant to rot. It has everything you could possibly want in a garden playhouse, including an upper treehouse and lower play deck, monkey bars, two swings and a 10-foot slide. You'll be bringing the park straight to your house and this is great for a larger family with kids of different ages.
Customers know that this is going to take some time to assemble, and you'll need an extra pair of hands, but they seem to think it's worth the time and money, commenting positively on the durability. One reviewer said, "I can see us getting MANY years of good use out of this. I'm so happy I didn't get a smaller set. Truly... for the price, you get SO many options for them to play on, and kids of all sizes can fit. It is very very sturdy, and looks beautiful in the yard."
Pros
- Made from cedar wood that's naturally resistant to rot
- Built to withstand the elements
- Different levels to play on makes it suitable for different ages
- Plenty of activities and features for physical and imaginative play
- Slide has raised edges for safety
Cons
- You need a very big space in your garden
- Takes a long time to assemble with more than one person
- You need you own tools and clamps
| Age: | From 3 - 10+ years |
| Material: | Cedar Wood |
| Dimensions: | 668.02 x 510.54 x 375.92 cm |
- Raised clubhouse with a wooden roof
- Bay windows and a covered entryway
- Lower deck snack stand and table
- Crow's nest with a telescope
- 2 belt swings
- Trapeze bar
- Full-length monkey bars
- 10ft speedy slide with raised edges
- 100% FSC certified cedar wood
If you're looking for great value for money with all the fun bits included with a playhouse, this WICKEY wooden climbing frame is a good price point for a medium-sized playhouse. Including a climbing ladder and wall, a swing, slide and even a sand pit, this is an all-around favourite. Perfect for any child over the age of three.
Customers generally seem to think this playhouse is good quality. One reviewer said, "Kids love it, no issues so far after 3 months. Only caveat is that it can take a while to assemble and you're going to need a toolkit to do so." One customer pointed out that there are no pre-drilled holes either, and another said, "You will have to measure out most parts for where they need to be placed. There are only pre-drilled holes in the bracing parts which take the bolts."
We like that the playhouse has a sandpit, and that it's undercover to protect from wind and showers, although you'll have to purchase your sand for it separately. The playhouse itself has plenty of varioety to keep kids interested, and we like that you can adjust the rope length on the swing to suit your child.
Pros
- Plenty of variety and levels to keep kids interested
- Swing has adjustable rope to suit your child
- The sandpit area is undercover
Cons
- Need your own toolkit for assembly
- You have to buy sand separately
| Age: | From 3+ years |
| Materials: | Pressure-treated solid wood and plastic |
| Dimensions: | 440 x 253 x 245 cm |
- Wooden climbing frame with 2 levels
- Weatherproof tarpaulin
- Slide with water connection
- Swing seat with adjustable ropes
- 3 Swing hooks with plastic bearings
- 5 Climbing holds & 4 Plastic handles
- Rope ladder with wooden rungs
- Climbing wall
- Play tower accessories (like telescope & telephone)
- Integrated sandpit
This Feber Activities playhouse is great for a smaller garden as well as someone who's looking for a great deal. Customers love the vibrant kid-friendly colours, and they'll brighten up any garden. We like that the colours and plastic are resistant to sunlight and temperature changes too.
Although this playhouse is smaller, it still has loads going on. You've got a slide and a variety of shapes and ladders to climb in and up to access the slide from all sides. There's also two levels, with the lower level doubling up as a fun sheltered hideaway. We'd recommend this for younger children aged two and above, who are learning to enter, exit and climb. As well as this, the ladder is 100cm, perfect for any young children. One customer describes it as, "Just big enough for a toddler to gain confidence (...) My 15 month old grandson loves it."
This has easy assembly which makes it great if you don't want too much hassle, and it's easy to move around in your garden if you want to reposition it. It's still very sturdy though - one reviewer said, "This is the best present I could have ever got for my 2 year old. She loves it so much. It's made of quality hard plastic and fun colours the kids will like. It can take an incredible amount of weight on it (0-120kgs)". We also like that it's easy to hose down or wipe clean.
Pros
- Kid-friendly with bright colours and rounded design
- The colours and plastic are resistant to sunlight and temperature changes
- Kids can climb up any of the walls of the activity centre
- Easy access to slide from all sides
- There's a fun sheltered hideaway den space at the bottom
- Easy to assmble or move around in your garden
- Easy to hose down or wipe clean
- low enough for kids aged 2+ to play and cimb on
| Age: | 2+ years |
| Materials: | High and low temperature resistant plastic |
| Dimensions: | 2.9 x 10.3 x 7.9 cm |
- Fully plastic colourful playhouse
- 2 levels with hideaway den at the bottom
- climbing frame on all sides
- Slide
www.wayfair.co.uk
If you're looking for a pink playhouse to spoil your child, this UV and rust-resistant 'castle' with swings and slides is a great place to start. Your child will be queen or king of the castle soon enough, and if they manage to grow out of this baby rocker you can always change it out for a swing. Made from plastic, the playhouse is easy to hose down or wipe clean.
We like that it's easy and quick to assemble in just a few minutes, and if you have the sapce you can use it indoors and outdoors, making it an all-season toy for your kids to enjoy. There's plenty of space for siblings to play together. Unfortunately there are no customer reviews on the site yet, but we imagine customers will appreciate the fairy tale design and whimsical colours, as well as the lightweight but sturdy design.
Pros
- This pink and purple play fort has princess/knight vibes for imaginative play
- Easy and quick to assemble and disassemble in just a few minutes
- Can be used indoors or outdoors for all-season use
- Space for more than one child to play
- made from plastic so easy to hose down or wipe clean
- lightweight enough to move around but sturdy design for play
- Child-safty bar on swing can be removed for slightly older kids
Cons
- Unfortunately there are no customer reviews
| Age: | From 3+ years |
| Materials: | Plastic |
| Dimensions: | 234 H x 234 W x 146 D cm |
- Pink and purple play fort
- Slide
- Swing
- Ladder
- UV and rust-resistant
Best tree-house inspired playhouse on stilts with a slide
AmazonIf your little ones have dreamed of having a tree-house, this might be the next best thing! We love this Wendy-house on stilts. Because it's raised, kids get an extra space to hide out and play under the raised porch. The house has a half door and windows with shutters that open and close. Kids can climb up the ladder to get to the house, hang out on the porch or slide down the slide.
We like that the playhouse has been anti-UV treated for resistance and a better durability over time, and customers comment on the fact that the structure is strong and stable. Being easy to assemble and disassemble it's easy to move it indoors so kids can continue to enjoy playing all year round, if you have the space! Otherwise, leave it in the garden as it's easy to hose down or wipe clean if needed.
One reviewer said, "Built on my own in about 3-3.5 hours. Only drilling was for drain holes in base parts. 4mm drill through plastic so not much trouble. The big plastic cap type screws could be easily damaged with a screw driver. Looks like the instructions suggest using a larger coin but I used the round end of a Yale door key with success." They also mentioned, "Big screws and raw plugs provided for securing to concrete or solid ground but we intend to use some kind of tent peg critter to hold into the grass but does seem sturdy under its own weight."
Pros
- This Wendy-house on stilts makes a fun "tree-house" substitute
- The structure is strong and stable, safe for kids to play on with max weight of 50kg
- Anti-UV treated for resistance and a better durability over time.
- Suitable for indoor and outdoor use
- Easy to assemble and disassemble or move around in your pace
- Made from plastic and easy to hose down or wipe clean
- Plenty of space for more than one child to play
- Kids can also hide in the space underneath the porch of the house
Cons
- You have to drill your own holes to drain water away
| Age: | 24 months - 8 years |
| Materials: | Plastic |
| Dimensions: | 6 x 3 x 80 cm; 37.1 kg |
- Wendy house on stilts with a ladder and slide
- The house is decorated with animals on the walls
- The house has a half door, 2 windows and a porthole, with shutters
- anti-UV treated for resistance and a better durability over time.
Should my playhouse be indoor or outdoor?
You can get both indoor and outdoor playhouses or wendy houses for your children. Indoor playhouses are usually much smaller than outdoor playhouses, fitting into smaller rooms and compact spaces. These may be better for smaller and younger children, and may not come with large add-ons like slides and ladders.
If you're looking for a playhouse with a slide and swing, we'd recommend getting an outdoor playhouse to put in your garden for more space and to give your child space to play around on it. Most of the playhouses we've found are best for outdoor, but you can invest in indoor playhouses for children as well.
At what age should I get a children's playhouse for my child?
Although these playhouses are very fun, we wouldn't recommend putting your child onto a bigger playhouse until they're past 36 months old. After they reach three years, they should be old enough to play in the playhouses. You can get playhouses that work for children from two years, but they are much smaller and have fewer features.
It also depends on how tall your playhouse is, what features it has and whether your child is able to use these features. The larger playhouses are better for older kids or to grow into, whereas smaller playhouses without stairs and less height are better for younger kids. Either way, you should always have an adult supervise any children in or around a playhouse, especially if there are swings, slides and stairs on your playhouse.
How we test and choose recommended products
Our product recommendations are based on a combination of real-world testing from our burgeoning army of mum testers and the extensive knowledge of our experienced editorial team and product specialists. Where we can, we also consult experts who specialise in that field to ensure you get the right advice along with the right product, and we listen to what you say as well.
Our thriving mum community on our Facebook group #mumtribe consistently provides great insights into which products mums like best and why, helping us highlight the products that will meet your needs.
For essential products, our annual Mother&Baby Awards shortlist the top products tested. Full reviews from our mum testers can be found on our product pages. The winners and runners-up for each category will also appear in our top picks article for that product, along with other products that were rated highly by our team.
With a degree in journalism, Features & Reviews Editor Emily Gilbert has been a journalist since 2015 and has worked across a variety of specialist and lifestyle brands both in print and online. This includes four years on Mother&Baby magazine where she worked her way up to Senior Writer and wrote news, product pages, and features and interviewed celebrities such as Paloma Faith and Fearne Cotton.