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7 Best Coloring Books for Kids – Imaginative & Entertaining (2025 Reviews)

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Looking for an indoor activity that’ll entice your child away from screen time? A coloring book will allow your child to be creative while also improving their fine motor skills and keeping them off the TV or their tablet. Coloring is a great activity for both kids and adults alike and is something that you can do as a family.

There are thousands of coloring books on the market, so it can be challenging to figure out which one to buy for your child. I’ve found the 7 best coloring books for kids that’ll hold their interest and turn coloring into a favorite activity.

Best Coloring Books for Kids

  • 1. Mindful Coloring for Kids

    (Best for Older Kids — $$$)

    Why it’s great: This is a sizable coloring book with over 90 images for your child to fill in. Each one offers a calming and inspirational design that will help your kids to relax and be present in the moment. It has a good variety of pictures and designs to keep your child busy for hours. The more complex designs will help your child really develop their hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills as they work to fill in and color them. 

    Keep in mind: This is definitely geared towards older kids who can handle more complex designs. 

    Good for: Older kids who need a relaxing and calming coloring book.

    Mindful Coloring for Kids

    View on Amazon.com ➜

  • 2. Coloring Books for Kids Cool Coloring

    (Most Positive — $$)

    Why it’s great: This is a great coloring book with single-sided designs and a black page between each to minimize bleed through. It’s also easy to remove each page ahead of time, or after your child has finished coloring it, so you can hang it somewhere. Each design inspires kids to be better through unique designs and positive messages. They’ll learn to be kind, be a good friend, and help others, all while having a blast and coloring in designs for both boys and girls. This coloring book is designed for kids ages 6-12 years old and has a great variety of pictures, so your child never gets bored. 

    Keep in mind: Many of the pictures and designs contain words, so it’s best for kids who can read and don’t care as much about what they’re coloring. 

    Good for: Parents who want a coloring book that teaches kids positive messages.

    Coloring Books For Kids Cool Coloring

    View on Amazon.com ➜

  • 3. Marvel Heroes JUMBO Coloring Book

    (Best Jumbo Book — $$)

    Why it’s great: This jumbo coloring book has over 100 pages that your child can color. It uses high-quality stock paper with single-sided designs, so it can handle crayons, pencils, gel pens, or markers. However, the designs are geared more towards fine-tipped coloring instruments, which allows your child to add their own details. The designs are all Marvel action heroes that your little one will love coloring. The simple designs are good for young kids, and the heroes are still fun for older kids to color, too. 

    Keep in mind: Not all the characters on the cover are actually in the coloring book, so make sure your child doesn’t care which heroes they’re coloring. 

    Good for: Boys or girls who love coloring superheroes.

    Marvel Heroes JUMBO Coloring Book

    View on Amazon.com ➜

  • 4. Unicorn Coloring Book

    (Best for Little Girls — $)

    Why it’s great: This unicorn coloring book is every little girls’ dream. All the designs are centered around unicorns, rainbows, and stars. They’re geared towards younger kids ages 4-8 years old, and the larger designs are simple and fun for little ones to color. The pictures are all single-sided and easy to tear out, so your little girl should be able to use whatever kind of coloring instrument they wish, whether that’s crayons or markers. The cover is sturdy, and the book itself is well made. 

    Keep in mind: While this book does have 50 coloring pages, some of the designs repeat, so not all 50 are different. 

    Good for: Little girls who love coloring rainbows and unicorns.

    Unicorn Coloring Book

    View on Amazon.com ➜

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  • 5. Big Backyard: A Coloring Book (Bluey)

    (Best for Young Kids — $$)

    Why it’s great: If your child is a fan of the hit show Bluey, they’ll love this coloring book. It features pictures and designs of all their favorite characters from the show. It has 64 pages of pictures, offering hours of fun for your little one. The designs are geared towards younger children between the ages of 3 and 6 years old. The simple and fun pictures are easy for young ones to get creative and color. 

    Keep in mind: The pages are double-sided and thinner than most of the others on this list, so it’s best for crayons or colored pencils. 

    Good for: Younger kids who love Bluey and want to color their favorite characters.

    Big Backyard A Coloring Book

    View on Amazon.com ➜

  • 6. Super Mario Activity Book for Kids: Coloring, Mazes, Puzzles, and More

    (Most Versatile — $$$)

    Why it’s great: Nothing says fun for kids like Super Mario! This coloring book offers a variety of activities, from coloring to puzzles and mazes, providing some versatility. It has 70 pages of fun, and each one is single-sided to help prevent pen or marker bleed-through. The pictures are large, making it easier for younger kids to color, and a little more than half the book is coloring pages. 

    Keep in mind: This book has more simplistic designs, so older kids might get bored quickly. 

    Good for: Younger kids who love Mario and his friends.

    Super Mario Activity Book for Kids

    View on Amazon.com ➜

  • 7. Color by Number for Kids: Activity Book: 50 Animal Themed Coloring Pages for Children Ages 3-10

    (Most Educational — $)

    Why it’s great: This coloring book teaches your little one numbers and colors while they have fun. All the pictures are animal-themed and include fun facts about each animal. This is great for kids learning to read or kids who love learning about animals. It contains 50 pages for your little one to color, and the designs are simple enough for kids as young as 3 years old to color. The pages are thick and sturdy and have a black backing to prevent bleed-through if your child uses markers. 

    Keep in mind: Younger kids may need help reading the names of the colors, but they’re the same numbers throughout the book, so they’ll learn to recognize the words as they go. 

    Good for: Little kids who are learning their numbers and colors that need a coloring book that will help them.

    Color by Number for Kids

    View on Amazon.com ➜

Best Overall

Mindful Coloring for Kids

The Mindful Coloring for Kids is our overall top recommendation. It's the highest quality product we have found with the most affordable price making it the best value on our list..

Mindful Coloring for Kids

View on Amazon.com ➜

FAQs about Coloring Books for Kids

  • 1. What are the benefits of coloring books for kids?

    There are many reasons that coloring books are good for kids. They help them use their imagination and be creative. They also promote fine motor skills and focus. Coloring also helps kids and adults relax and provides stress relief.

  • 2. What ages of kids like coloring books?

    Kids as young as 15 months old can start to hold crayons and scribble. However, the love of coloring likely won’t start until about 3 years old, but this varies because everyone is different. Most kids enjoy coloring up into their teenage years. And, in fact, adult coloring books have become popular in the last few years due to their relaxing and stress relief properties.

  • 3. How can I encourage my child to color?

    The easiest way to encourage your child to color is to sit down and do it with them. Making it a family activity is not only fun but also builds in connection and quality time together. Make sure that you’re not putting any pressure on the activity and allow your child to make mistakes and color outside the lines. Choose books with themes that interest your child to attract them to it.

  • 4. How long should coloring sessions last?

    This depends on the age of your child and their attention span. Younger toddlers may only last a few minutes, but you should encourage them to color for at least 20 minutes at a time. This will help build in focus and learn to increase their attention span. You can let them color for up to 45 minutes or so, as you don’t want them to get tired or end up with cramps in their hands or fingers.

  • 5. What features should I look for in a coloring book?

    The most important thing is to find a coloring book that’s age-appropriate or at their skill level. Younger toddlers and children will need easier designs than older kids and teenagers. Also, check the quality of the pages. Thinner pages will bleed through if your child is using markers. Books with perforations that allow you to tear out pages may be a good idea if you have multiple kids who want to color at the same time.

Conclusion

Coloring is a relaxing activity that still keeps your child slightly active and helps to increase and improve their fine motor skills. When you’re looking for some quiet time or screen-free time, a coloring book can keep your child engaged and provide a fun activity for them to focus on. 

The books on this list offer a variety of themes and skill levels, so you should be able to find at least one that your child will love.