Ethical Toys

Fair trade toys are toys made by people paid fairly and working in safe conditions. Most here are handmade: crochet and knit stuffed animals, cloth dolls, Guatemalan worry dolls, hand-carved wooden games and puzzles, and craft kits for kids. Every brand is vetted by The Labour Movement before it's listed.

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Ethical Games & Puzzles
Games & Puzzles
Ethical Baby Toys
Baby Toys

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Featured Baby Toys

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Why Buy Fair Trade Toys?

Most toys sold today are made in factories where low wages and long hours are common, and where the people making them are far from anyone who buys them. Handmade toys are different: a crochet animal or a cloth doll takes hours of skilled work by one person, and that person is easy to underpay.

Every brand in this collection is vetted by The Labour Movement before it's listed, so you know the people doing that work are paid fairly and work in safe conditions. Many of these toys come from women's cooperatives and small workshops in Armenia, Peru, Haiti, Uganda, Guatemala and India.

Toys are often kept for years and handed down. When you need one, a fair trade toy means the care that went into making it was paid for, too.

What are fair trade toys?

Fair trade toys are made by people who are paid fairly and work in safe conditions. Most of the toys here are handmade: crochet and knit animals from Armenia and Peru, cloth dolls from Haiti and Uganda, worry dolls from Guatemala, and hand-carved wooden games from India.

How do you know these toys are fair trade?

Every brand is vetted by The Labour Movement before it's listed. Many are members of or certified by fair trade organizations such as the Fair Trade Federation. Smaller makers send us documentation instead, such as supplier invoices and photos from visits. Each brand's page shows its credentials.

Which toys are right for babies and toddlers?

Check each listing for the recommended age and any small-parts warning. Several wooden games have small pieces and aren't meant for young children. For the youngest kids, start with our Baby Toys collection.

What are Guatemalan worry dolls?

Worry dolls are tiny handmade dolls from a Guatemalan tradition: you tell each doll a worry and set it aside, often under your pillow. Ours are made by hand from wood, thread and woven cotton by Upavim Crafts artisans in Guatemala.

Do you have fair trade games and puzzles?

Yes. Our Games & Puzzles collection has chess, mancala, cribbage, dominoes and brainteaser puzzles, most hand-carved from wood in India, plus family card and word games.

Verified ethically made

Every product on The Labour Movement meets our standards for Fair Trade production.

Learn more about our standards

Featured certifiers and membership organizations

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Brands in this department

8 brands make the products here. Each has a page with its story and full range.

Certifications and memberships these brands hold

A brand's credential doesn't always cover every product it makes. How we vet brands