After Reviewing 11 Brands, Mini Photogs Agree: These Are the 5 Best Kids’ Cameras

• Value: 19/20
• Ease of Setup/Use: 20/20
• Functionality/Responsiveness: 18/20
• Quality & Image Clarity: 19/20
• Durability: 18/100

TOTAL: 94/100

Kidamento’s line of fun, animal-themed cameras elicited the most high-pitched squeals from our under-10 testers. Beyond being ridiculously cute, the collection excels for its thoughtful attention to detail. Instead of bloating the camera with unnecessary games—as many kids’ cameras do (none of which made our list, BTW)—it features a streamlined, easy-to-use screen that kids 4 to 8 could easily navigate. Testers’ favorite of the bunch was the Model K (available in Meowie the Cat or Zippy the Sloth), which takes up to 18MP photos and 1080p videos that can rival your cell phone’s quality. The camera itself is compact, weighing about a quarter-pound, with a large, 3-inch LCD screen and 32 GB memory card. Our testers loved how easy it was to record videos and take selfies; parents loved smart features like the shock-absorbing silicone case and the fact that the lanyard doubles as the camera’s charger (!).

• Value: 19/20
• Ease of Setup/Use: 19/20
• Functionality/Responsiveness: 16/20
• Quality & Image Clarity: 16/20
• Durability: 18/20

TOTAL: 90/100

As far as instant-print cameras go, it’s hard to beat Photo_Creator’s value. It allows you to take photos and videos, all displayed on a large, two-inch LCD screen. PureWow’s 5- and 6-year-old testers only needed an adult’s help to learn how to install the photo paper the first time; after that, they could do everything themselves. The inkless printer takes black-and-white photos, which may seem like a bummer, but the kit comes with markers and stickers, encouraging kids to color them in and get creative. Our testers loved that—and the generous four rolls of photo paper that came with it—and spent hours acting out storylines, pasting them in sketchbooks and coloring in the images. Independent creative play that gives parents a break? We’re all about it.

I’d recommend getting an SD card, though. Without it, you have to wait three seconds to take a photo and have it print, which meant action shots could get blurry, fast.

The initial kit comes with four rolls of photo paper—good for about 280 photos—but if you need refills, it’s one of the more affordable options for “film.” A 10-pack of replacement rolls costs $10 on Amazon and comes with two sticker sheets.

• Value: 15/20
• Ease of Setup/Use: 19/20
• Functionality/Responsiveness: 19/20
• Quality & Image Clarity: 16/20
• Durability: 17/20

TOTAL: 86/100

Polaroid is back, baby, and this tiny camera was a hit with kids, tweens and teens alike. First, it’s like a miniaturized, more colorful version of the classic, which takes tiny, pocket-sized photos that are ideal for little hands. For younger kids, it’s an exercise in patience and curation, since each pack of film lets you take eight photos—and for ideal results, you should keep them facedown for six minutes to develop. (Admittedly, we found some testers immediately raced off into the sunlight with them, and while that resulted in more faded photos, they also had a ‘vintage’ feel that our tween testers preferred.)

The big drawback to this style of camera is that you have to continually buy more film, and it doesn’t come cheap (at $47 for 48 photos, you’re talking nearly a buck a pic). So this might be a better buy for older kids, who either earn an allowance for refills and/or can be a bit more judicious in snapping pics, so you don’t burn through a roll in eight seconds flat.

• Value: 17/20
• Ease of Setup/Use: 19/100
• Functionality/Responsiveness: 19/20
• Quality & Image Clarity: 18/20
• Durability: 18/20

TOTAL: 91/100

An instant-print camera that prints full-color sticker photos? Testers from elementary to middle school loved this option, which let them slap their art on everything from notebooks to lockers. The prints themselves are smudge-free and water-resistant too, offering sturdier, longer-lasting photos than other inkless instant print cameras we tried (many of which print on what’s more like receipt paper). The camera itself weighs less than half a pound and comes in a range of colors, from classic black to neon green, letting kids choose a hue that reflects their personality.

The 5MP camera isn’t the highest quality, but it’s powerful enough to take clear, relatively vibrant photos.

While refills are cheaper than Polaroid, they’ll still set you back $24 per 50 prints, and younger kids may struggle to limit the number of photos they take.

• Value: 18/20
• Ease of Setup/Use: 18/20
• Functionality/Responsiveness: 20/20
• Quality & Image Clarity: 20/20
• Durability: 18/20

TOTAL: 94/100

If you’re looking for a graduation gift or your kid’s an aspiring content creator (who’s seriously passionate about his TikToks), you’ll want to take a closer look at the Nikon Z 30. At $610+, it’s a serious investment, but the 20.9MP camera, which shoots crystal clear 4K video, lives up to its rave reviews. Its photos were crisper and more vibrant than anything I’ve seen shot on a cell phone (no matter what the billboards claim), and our testers found it surprisingly easy to use.

Yes, there’s a learning curve to figuring out f-stops and shutter speeds, but that’s part of the gift—it has the tech to execute photos on the automatic setting brilliantly, but aspiring photographers will appreciate how much they can customize their shots to get exactly the image they want. It seamlessly blends the latest tech, too, featuring a large LCD screen that you can touch to adjust the focus and brightness. Plus, it connects to the Nikon SnapBridge app, so you can easily transfer photos (and short video clips) to your phone or tablet.

It's also remarkably lightweight for a camera with all of these bells and whistles—clocking in at under 13 ounces—though testers did find that the battery tended to drain faster than reported. (The brand says it can capture about 75 minutes of video; it seems more like 60 to 65.)