9 best climbing frames for hours of fun in the garden, tried and tested

We absolutely love the design of this climbing frame, which manages to squeeze loads of fantastic features into a nifty wooden pyramid construction. Made from FSC-certified pine (pre-treated to protect against rot and infestation), it’s a strong and sturdy build that looks and feels as though it can handle years of play and unpredictable weather.

We were pleasantly surprised at how straightforward assembly was, taking two of us just over three hours to put it all together. Suitable for children aged from three to 12, there’s plenty to keep them occupied, and it’s big enough for multiple kids to play on (or in) at once. It offers three climbing options – we found our younger testers managed the cargo net and metal bars with no problem, while our older, more intrepid explorers enjoyed scaling the climbing wall. There are also camouflage fabric side attachments, which create a huge den underneath the pyramid – we’ve found it nearly impossible to tempt the children out of it. Apparently, from now on, all lunches must be served inside the den. The only downside of this is your lawn won’t get any sunlight.

As well as all of this, there’s an 8ft wave slide, which our testers loved whizzing down, and it comes with a hose pipe attachment to transform it into a water slide on sunny days. If you have the space, there’s the option of a double swing add-on, which costs an extra £20.

From construction to play, we’re hard-pushed to find fault with this Plum climbing pyramid. It’s a most welcome addition to our garden and is sure to be loved and played with for a long time, whatever the weather.

This simple yet excellently thought-out plastic climbing cube has become something of a cult favourite among parents and carers of toddlers, and for good reason. It’s such a clever design, and it had our two- and three-year-old testers enthralled.

Setup was very simple – as with many other Little Tikes climbing frames and playhouses, it’s a case of slotting together chunky plastic parts and adding a few screws to secure. The idea is simple but some parts needed brute force to slot in place – we found jumping with our whole weight tended to get things into place quite easily. Once assembled, it’s a nicely compact size and lightweight enough to carry inside and outside – although, you’ll need two people to do this.

When we let our mini testers loose, it was clear Little Tikes had created a climbing frame that’s catnip to toddlers and pre-schoolers. With various portholes to crawl through and hide inside (with our more adventurous and older testers using these as foot holes to scale the sides of the cube) and a mini slide to whizz down, it’s perfectly designed to keep little children busy and active. It’s safe to use for children aged up to the age of four, so it is sure to get plenty of use over the years and is a worthwhile investment for families.

It’s rare that a child’s outdoor toy can make a stylish addition to your garden but the cool, minimalist Scandi-style of this PolarPlay climbing frame and swing set really makes this stand out in the best possible way.

Assembly was trickier than we expected, as none of the pieces were pre-drilled or marked with numbers to let us know quickly which part went where. This upped construction time to the best part of a day for two people – if the wood had been pre-drilled, assembly would have been pretty straightforward, so, if you’re a reluctant or nervous DIYer, it may be best to call in the experts to help you put this together. The wood is supplied untreated, so we’d recommend using a clear stain to protect your climbing frame once it’s assembled.

However, once we had built the frame and anchored it into the ground (with the metal anchors included) we were massively impressed. The climbing frame manages to pack a lot of features into relatively small dimensions, including two swings (ideal if you have more than one child to entertain and can’t face constant arguments over whose turn it is to go first), an 8ft wavy slide, chalkboard and mini sandpit with seating area. The climbing options are great, too – there’s the easy-to-use ramp or the trickier staggered ladder and climbing rope, which has been putting our five-year-old tester’s upper body strength to the test. We also love the addition of the wooden roof, which provides a bit of shelter on rainy days and – superficially – looks really nice.

Overall, the quality is fantastic, and we like the modern look and choice of three pastel shades for the swings. There’s also a wide choice of accessories, including trapeze bars (to replace one of the swings) and plastic telescopes, to up the play potential. It’s been a huge hit with our mini testers, and we’re more than happy to have it as a permanent fixture in the garden.

This has to be the ultimate rainy-day saviour. We are big fans of this fold-up, wooden, Pikler-style climbing triangle, which is a dream come true for parents of older babies and toddlers. Made from FSC-certified wood, the climbing triangle does require self-assembly, however, it’s very simple, with every piece of wood and each screw labelled, so you know exactly what goes where. We managed to put it together single-handedly in less than half an hour.

Designed for use from 12 months to five years old, it will see your little ones through from when they are just starting to pull themselves up to when they’re pre-schoolers practising their balancing skills. Our two-year-old tester absolutely loved this frame.

With anti-slip rubber foot ends and in a handy compact size, the climbing triangle is perfect for encouraging little children to flex those gross motor skills inside (or outside on a dry day). It’s easy to store, too – you simply pull the blue stopper to fold the frame in half, making it the perfect size for hiding behind the sofa or sliding behind a door.

There’s a range of add-ons you can choose from, including a double-sided slide/climbing bridge and a wooden climbing cube. It also transforms into an excellent, no-faff den – just chuck a sheet over the climbing triangle and reward yourself with a cup of tea, as we guarantee your toddler/pre-schooler will be hooked.

We think it offers great value for money and would make a fantastic first birthday present.

What’s better than a climbing frame? A pirate-themed climbing frame, obviously. Complete with a wooden stem, boat helm and telescope, the opportunity for some serious nautical-inspired imaginative play is huge with this epic offering from Jungle Gym.

With a choice to personalise your climbing frame with different slide colour options, or various configurations including swings and cargo nets, there’s the chance to really make this your own – which, when you’re spending this much, is a welcome touch. We love the standard setup, which was jam-packed with play opportunities, without completely taking over the garden. As you can imagine, with so many features, construction was time-consuming and, while the instructions were clear, it did take two of us a bit longer than the six hours suggested by the manufacturer.

This climbing frame is designed for children aged three to 10, and we found our youngest testers were more than happy to while away the hours playing in the built-in sandpit, while our older testers liked scrambling up the rope ladder to the telescope, to spot sharks and rival pirates. It’s fair to say this was an enormous hit – our testers loved it and we wish we were small enough to play on it too.

We think this fun offering from TP Toys is great value for money. It’s relatively simple to build – we managed it singlehandedly, although, an extra pair of hands is recommended and would have definitely brought the build time in at less than two hours. The end result? A very cool, steel frame design complete with an excellent den, in which we promptly lost our mini testers for the rest of the afternoon.

The den can be accessed from three sides, either up one of the metal bar steps or the cargo net. Once inside, it’s big enough for three, and our testers loved rolling down the door panels and spying through the peephole windows. In fact, they happily stayed in the den even when it was raining.

It’s a modular design, which you can add to with swings, a slide or even a basketball hoop, but we loved the simplicity and size of this setup. Thoughtful touches, such as the road map design on the floor of the den – perfect for some toy car play – were a hit with our younger testers. Underneath the den is a shaded play area, which can be used as a ball pool or sand pit. Alternatively, do as we did and chuck in some outdoor cushions and take the opportunity to relax while the kids have fun. Yes, it may be noisy but it’s pretty comfy in there.

Quadro is unlike any other kids’ climbing apparatus we’ve come across. It feels a bit like a giant Meccano set, with various tubes and connectors you can fix together to create all kinds of different designs. Included in the box is a set of coloured plastic screws, along with the tool you need to tighten them into place, to make sure your construction is safe and secure. We found it incredibly easy to assemble various frames single-handedly, and it was even quicker to take them apart – perfect if you have impatient children lining up to have a climb.

It’s suitable for ages one year and up, and our toddler’s eyes lit up as soon as they spotted it – the bright colours were an instant hit, as was the fun climbing pyramid design, which they launched themselves towards at speed. The pyramid uses a grid measuring 40cm x 40cm, which is the perfect size for younger children to tackle, and we were so impressed with how our littlest tester’s confidence and climbing skills grew when playing on it.

There’s plenty of scope for play here, with the option of buying various extension kits to transform your climbing frame with slides, panels and even a mini swimming pool.

Despite feeling lightweight, the high-density plastic tubes can withstand a hefty 100kg, so older kids can easily get involved – in fact, our five-year-old loved it as much as our two-and-a-half-year-old tester. The grown-ups were also big fans, and we enjoyed letting out our inner Meccano geek while trying the various model designs.

What is it about kids and monkey bars? Our older testers were delighted with this climbing frame and were queuing up after one another to swing along the bars, over and over again.

Made from pressure-treated, weather-resistant timber, with the addition of powder-coated steel brackets, we found this a simple enough build that felt reassuringly robust when finished. With a colourful climbing wall on one side of the monkey bars and a wooden ladder on the other, there was enough variation to keep the kids entertained, while the swing was the cherry on top. Because of the height of the monkey bars and swing, our pre-schooler couldn’t really get involved with the play, but, for primary school kids, we think this is a fantastic set.

We really like how you can pick and choose your own add-on adventure packs, featuring everything from cargo nets and climbing ropes to basketball nets and nest swings. If you do opt for a trickier build, you can choose the home installation service to save you the job of assembling it all yourself.

There were actual squeals of delight from our toddler testers when we finished putting together this colourful play house, slide and ladder. In fact, it could not be more perfect for little kids. There’s an easy-to-climb ladder, just right for developing their coordination, the slide height is not too terrifying for them to tackle on their own, plus there are doors and windows they can open and shut independently.

Although the instructions suggested it could be finished in one and a half hours, it took two of us just over two hours to complete – although, this was with constant interruptions from the toddlers to see if they could go down the slide yet, and in the rain, so not a bad effort, really.

We found the whole playset a great size for younger children to play independently – we’d suggest from two years to around six or seven – and the house was perfect for encouraging imaginative play. Yes, it’s colourful, but not at all in-your-face, and we liked that it’s all anti-UV treated, so won’t fade in the sun. The fact it’s on stilts means we can still easily mow the lawn underneath it and, come summer the hose pipe attachment on the slide is going to be a brilliant sunny day addition.