Buying Guide: Which Kick Scooter to Choose for My Child

The gift of movement is such a pivotal and important step in a child’s early life. I still fondly remember what mobility meant for me at 2 years old with my roller, 10 with my first scooter and, even 20 when I learnt how to drive, each experience giving more freedom and independence than the last.

Whether you are just beginning the search for your child’s first ever scooter or whether you are looking for the next set of wheels in your child’s scooting journey, BOLDCUBE has a kick scooter for you.  It can appear overwhelming when looking at the options available, but have no fear, here is a step by step guide to help you select the right scooter for you.

As your child develops, mobility helps to instill independence and confidence. Our range begins with the Baby Balance Ride On, all the way through to our Stunt scooter for the most confident of riders. 

There are several questions worth asking to help you make the decision of which scooter is the perfect fit for you.

1. The first question is, is my child ready to start riding a scooter?

The answer to this question is simple, any child who is able to walk steadily is able to learn to ride a scooter. Getting children to become active as early as possible is always advantageous to their physical development. The motor skill development that is required to ride a scooter is generally around the ages of 2 - 3 years of age. Our Baby Balance Ride on is the exception to this and is used as a tool to help promote balance and movement from the age of 12 months, or any baby who is able to hold themselves up, age varies massively as every baby is different in their speed of development. 

2. Should I buy a 2 or 3 wheel scooter, what is the difference?

There are two main differences between these scooters apart from the obvious number of wheels. The 3 wheel scooter is controlled by lean-to-steer, this is particularly helpful for young learners who have not yet mastered the twist to control movement similar to riding a bike. The 3 wheel scooter has added stability and is the perfect first ride for the less experienced or beginner riders. 

The 2 wheel scooter is controlled with a twist to steer mechanism, the same as directing a bicycle. This scooter is more suited to a child who has better balance and coordination and is perhaps moving from a 3 wheel to a 2 wheel scooter. It is the next step in the development of their skills. 

Both scooters are foldable which makes them compact to stow away and easy to transport.

3. Will the BOLDCUBE scooter fit my child as they grow?

Our scooters have adjustable handlebars. Our 3 wheel scooter can be adjusted up to the height of 89cm. The 2 wheel scooter can be adjusted to 82cms and our stunt scooter is fixed at the height of 82cms. Check out our product info to check average age suitability. It is just a general guide as every child is different.

The Specifics - (Still with us? Here are some further specifics to narrow down your search)

Lean to Steer 3 Wheel Scooters

This type of kick scooter is the easiest for the youngest of riders like toddlers because the scooter does half the work in balancing whilst riding. And when turning, leaning to steer feels the most intuitive, which is why they’ve become so popularised.

This riding style helps kids to quickly and intuitively understand the dynamic between the position of the rider's centre-of-mass and the speed of the turn. It also builds the rider's confidence to lean off-centre, knowing that they can recover. This confidence makes it easier for them to learn how to ride a 2-wheeled scooter or bicycle later on. 

Choose this type if your child is around 2 to 7/8 years old. To continue their development trajectory, we recommend after some time moving children onto a 2 wheel scooter or a bike.

So which 3 Wheel Scooter do I buy? Teeny or Flash

Depending on your riders age and weight, your decision will be between the: 

         Teeny 3 Wheel Scooter designed for toddlers, 2 - 5 year olds, with a rider weight maximum of 20 kg. 

         Or the Flash 3 Wheel Foldable designed for 5 + years, with a rider weight maximum of 50 kg.

Smaller children always benefit from a lightweight, smaller scooter. The more lightweight the scooter, the easier it is for a child to push themselves along. That is why we have designed our Teeny scooters! We have reduced the weight of the scooter by removing the folding mechanism to create a lightweight scooter that is suited to younger riders due to its ease of movement. This is the ideal first scooter for your child, with five height adjustment settings, it can grow alongside your toddler.

Two-wheeled scooters 

As Two-wheeled scooters do not self-balance they require a minimum speed to remain balanced, demanding more balancing skill from the rider in comparison to three-wheeled scooters. Like bicycles, all two-wheel scooters require the rider to lean toward the centre of the turn to counterbalance the centrifugal force.

This presents 2 challenges for young riders:

Challenge 1: reaching and maintaining minimum speed: the rider must be strong enough push the scooter up to the minimum speed to remain balanced upright, and have enough stamina to maintain that speed.

Challenge 2: continuous steering: they need to know how to actively and continuously steer the handle bar to maintain control.

Three-wheeled kick scooters remove Challenge 1, since they can remain balanced even when stationary. This allows the child to work on Challenge 2. In time, the child will also learn how to ride pretty fast (as many parents who have to chase after them will know). By that time, Challenge 1 will be easier to overcome.

If they cannot ride a bike without stabilisers and not au fait with a balance bike then chances are they wont be quite ready for a 2 wheeled scooter. 2 wheeled scooters rely on the balance of the child and are steered using the traditional ‘twist’ of the handlebars. There is therefore a lot to think about when riding on two wheels which can put off those who are less confident if it proves an initial challenge.

3 wheeled scooters offer a different approach and have a larger surface area, the 3 wheels mean they don’t drop to the floor without support and so illuminates the need for balance to ride the scooter. 3 wheeled scooters are great for boosting confidence and getting to grasps with scooting is incredibly easy, which is great for those less patient and for kids looking for independent travel.

Stunt Scooters

Stunt scooters are designed for the most capable of riders, the trickiest of tricksters. If you're noticing your child is starting to try performing jumps and tricks on their current 3 wheel scooter, it's time to upgrade them onto an stunt scooter. Due to the material composition of stunt scooters being aluminium and steel, they're far more robust in handling landings and pressure. 

Stunt scooters are most suited to a skatepark or path, and is built specifically to perform tricks and build speed. If you are looking for a scooter to commute and travel with, this scooter is not for you and the 2 wheel scooter would probably be the best fit for you. 

With its T Bar handle, a 360 degree swivel deck and fitted with a quad bolt collar clamp to ensure its securely fixed when riding. Our early stunt scooters offer the best mix between, safe secure riding and budget friendly should they still be early in their discovery journey. As your junior rider progresses, you can slowly upgrade the stunt scooter with aluminium high bearing wheels, fresh grip tape a new deck or even handlebar. The best thing about stunt scooters is they're completely customisable.

Quick tip! As standard stunt scooters are not designed to be foldable as it would compromise a safe riding experience, stability is key particularly if the rider is performing jumps. 

We hope this guide has been useful in your search for a scooter. We are here to help! At BOLDCUBE we pride ourselves on our customer service and we love to hear from you personally. For a one to one chat, if you have any further questions or are still unsure of which scooter to buy and would like our advice, please get in touch! 

You can contact us via our live chat on our website, or via our email info@boldcube.co.uk - One of our friendly team will always be on hand and happy to help you! 

Happy Scooting! 😊