{This post may contain affiliate links. You can read our Disclosure Policy HERE.}

My Honest Review of 4 Different Kiwi Co. Subscription Boxes

As a parent, you want to invest in high-quality products for your family that is not only fun but also educational. That is not always easy to find. I have heard about Kiwi Co. Subscription boxes for a long time and wondered if they were worth all of the hype. Are they worth the money and time? Will they keep your child’s interest? This school year, I decided to budget for each child to receive their very own Kiwi Co subscription box. I’ll give you my honest review of 4 different Kiwi Co. Subscription Boxes: Tinker Crate, Doodle Crate, Kiwi Crate, and the Koala Crate. What we liked and what we didn’t like about each of them. The kids also share which crates were their favorites.

Before we jump into the review, I want to start by saying that science is not my favorite subject to teach. I think it is a REALLY COOL SUBJECT, but when life gets busy and time is tight, I skip science and try to get to it later in the week. That leaves me missing lessons and feeling guilty that I am not doing enough.  I also don’t like how a lot of Science Curriculums have you running around searching for miscellaneous items and then the experiments do not work out after all the trouble you went through. I want my science to be hands-on, engaging, fun, and most of all open and go. That’s the kinda homeschool mom I am.

In the past, we have used a few different science kits and also received a subscription to Steve Spranger Science Kits. Those kits did not keep my children’s interest and kept me as a mom searching for something more. I hope this honest review helps you decide if Kiwi Co Subscription boxes are right for you and your family!

Who is Kiwi Co and What’s with all the Crates?

Kiwi Co is a company that creates and sells education subscription boxes for ages 0-16+. According to their website, “KiwiCo was created to celebrate kids’ natural creativity and curiosity while helping parents who want to bring enriching experiences to their children.”

• Panda Crate (ages 0-24 months)
• Koala Crate (ages 2-4)
• Kiwi Crate (ages 5-8)
• Atlas Crate (ages 6-11)
• Yummy Crate (ages 6-14)
• Tinker Crate (ages 9-16+)
• Doodle Crate (ages 9-16+)
• Eureka Crate (ages 14+)
• Maker Crate (ages 14+)

Every crate includes all the materials needed for the projects, an instructional book, a magazine or storybook which expands on the topic, and extra enrichment activities. Video tutorials are also available to help you set up the crates. They always send extra parts in case you lose something. We never had a subscription box that was missing items or that we were unsuccessful in completing.

Most of the crates are $19.95 -$24.95 per month with free US Shipping. An exception for the Eureka Crate which is $29.95 and the Panda Crate which is $39.95. They often have discount codes and you can always save by purchasing a 3, 6, or 12-month subscription.

How Box Day Usually Goes For us

Kiwi Co. box day is ALWAYS an exciting day at our house. It also can be a little crazy for mom. Most of the time the kids want to jump right in and start their crates. I have learned to wait until we have completed our subjects for the day and use box day as an incentive. Sometimes we hold onto them for a week or two until we have sufficient time to work on them. I let the kids open the boxes together and they like to share what their box is about. I then start helping my youngest first (sometimes only doing his first project) and then moving over to help my 6-year-old with her Kiwi Crate. My 10-year-old daughter, who does the Doodle Crate, usually reads through her booklet and waits for me to help her. While my oldest son, who requires little to no help from me,  jumps right into his Tinker Crate.

You can watch the fun above. P.S. The frosting in the Baking Koala Crate is not real! It says right on the package that it is clay but I did not read it.

My Honest Review of the 4 Different Kiwi Co Subscription Boxes:

Tinker Crate (for Ages 9-16+)

I am going to start with my 11-year-old son’s subscription box first.  My son starting received Tinker Crate boxes the year before and LOVED THEM! His curious mind needed something to explore and they have been a hit for him. He learned a whole bunch of science topics that I felt I was lacking in teaching. He also can do these mostly independently, which was a BIG help for me because I can work with my younger children while he completed his box.

The Tinker Crates come with all the project pieces and a Blueprint for the child to follow to complete their projects. I think this is a great touch for the older ages. It also has a Tinker Zine, which explains the STEM Science Topic and brings up “real life” situations where this can be seen, and has extra activities for your child to do to expand on the topic. There are also online tutorials to help your child if they are a visual learner.  Book suggestions are also given at the end of the Tinker Zine, which I love.

Pros: Everything comes in the box for me! He can work on this independently. The STEM topics are always interesting and engaging. I could not come up with these projects on my own. They are great!

Con’s: I do not have any for this crate. I think they are amazing and my child is learning A LOT! If your child is not an independent learner, you may need to help them put the crate together or use the video tutorials to help them. Our son had trouble with the first few boxes but has now figured out how to follow the instructions and ask us for help if he is not sure about something.

His favorite past crates: Alarm System, Camera Obscura, Spin Art Machine, the Hydraulic Claw, and the Air Cannon. (Some of these boxes are available to purchase from the Store individually).

Doodle Crate (for Ages 9-16+)

My artistic 10-year-old daughter is doing this one. Doodle Crate helps your child explore their creativity while learning various art and design techniques.

The box includes all needed art supplies and any additional equipment to go with the projects, such as pencils or a journal.  The instructional book is very visual and has easy to follow instructions. In the instructional booklet, you can also find a “Get Inspired” section, which gives the child more ways to get creative. This crate does not include a magazine. The Doodle Crate includes an address to a video tutorial to walk your child through the project.

Pros: Everything comes in the box. The projects are always really pretty and it gives your child the freedom to style them in several different ways. Even if you had 2 children doing the same box, the completed project would be unique to the child. The instructions are very visual. Most of the projects are unique and useful such as desk organizers and room decor. I could not come up with these crafts on my own.

Cons: I feel that Doodle Crates are more time-consuming. The projects usually have to dry overnight and then my child has to come back to it on a different day. Some children may not have the patience for that. My daughter does need a little more hand-holding from me to complete these on her own. This may just be her personality, she is a perfectionist and is not confident in following instructions on her own just yet. Her crates tend to take the longest. In the future, I plan to have her watch the video instructions for her crate while I work with the younger children on their crates. I think this may give her more confidence to continue without my hand-holding.

Note: I see the number of days to complete the project as a con, but you may feel that it is a pro because you get more time to work on the project and more bang for your buck.

Her favorite past Crates: Succulent Garden, Handmade Soap, Faux Leather Portfolio, and the Punched Metal Dry Erase Board. (Some of these boxes may be available to purchase from the Store individually).

Kiwi Crate (for Ages 5-8)

My eager 6-year-old daughter receives the Kiwi Crate. Kiwi Crates are geared for ages 5-8 and include hands-on projects that let your child explore art, science, and engineering.  The projects give your child lots of ideas to be creative and explore. They are fun and engaging. The subscription boxes include everything needed to complete the project (nicely bagged up with additional supplies included). The instructional book has easy-to-understand pictures, making it easy for them to follow along with.

The box comes with an Explore Magazine that tells a short story about Steve the Kiwi and his friends. They always have an adventure and learn about the subscription box topic. The magazine also includes real-life applications, enrichment activities (including yummy snacks), and book suggestions.

Pros: Kiwi Crate boxes cover some really interesting topics for this age group! All needed supplies are nicely bagged up in the box with extra pieces in case you lose any. The Explore Magazine brings the topic to life and includes a few book suggestions. It may not seem like your child is learning the advanced topics in the subscription box, but they are! Capillary action was one of our latest boxes and I did not think my daughter was understanding it, until a few days later she explained the entire process to me. The supplies are sturdy and the kits stay together for longer than an hour.

Con’s: The Kiwi Crate boxes may contain a lot of little pieces and take about an hour to put together. Your child may not have the patience for this at this age. Or you, as the parent, may be putting it together on your own. Good news, once it is completed, your child will play with it for hours! This is just something to consider.

Her Favorite Past Crates: Treasure Chest (this one was an IMMEDIATE FAVORITE), Pinball, Marble Timer, Rainbow Optics, and the Archade (or Claw). (Some of these boxes may be available to purchase from the Store individually).

Koala Crate (for Ages 3-4)

My 4-year-old son is receiving the Koala Crates this year. I LOVE teaching this age! I could spend all day making kids’ art projects, reading children’s books, and exploring outside. At this age, everything is new and creative play is key. For this reason, Koala Crates are MY FAVORITE of all of the boxes! I love seeing my son’s eyes light up when he sees what he is going to be making. Each Koala Crate comes with 3 different themed projects, an instructional book with simple pictures that are easy for your child to follow, and an Imagine Magazine. The magazine tells a short story about Kellan the Koala and his friends, has additional activities, and some additional book suggestions to go with the theme.

I have not yet added the additional book kit. I can see how it would be beneficial to add some fun books at this age. We have been homeschooling for several years now and I have a pretty extensive library. For that reason alone, I have skipped on the addition of the book.  If you do not have a large home library, I think that an added book would be a great addition to the kit and would really bring the concept that they were learning about to life.

Pros: I really LOVE the Koala Crate! Each box contains fun, age-appropriate themes like Rainforest, Castles & Dragons, and glow-in-the-dark animals. These projects are simple enough that your child can help you put them together in less than an hour and then he runs off and plays with it while I work with the other kids. The projects are made of sturdy cardboard that holds up for a few weeks or months (depending on your kids). I love that each kit encourages creative play and usually, my other kids join in to make it extra special. He loves showing off his project to the older kids!

Cons: If I had more time, I may be able to come up with these projects on my own. That is frugal me talking. However, it would take A TON of time and effort and I would not be able to match the quality of the Koala Crate. This has the pieces all ready to go and I do not have to do the work of printing, planning, gluing, etc. I think the creativity it inspires and my sanity is well worth the $20 a month.

His Favorite Past Crates: Camping, Dinosaurs, Farm, Rainbows, Glowing Nature, and Music & Rhythm. (Some of these boxes may be available to purchase from the Store individually).

My Honest Review as a Parent

As a parent, I get notifications of when my crates are going to be shipped and can see the name or topic of each crate. If I wanted to, I could search our library system for additional books to use to make these boxes more of a unit study. I have not done that as of yet. I do wish that I would have books on hand for the Koala Crate because the projects are really fun and my son is always interested in the theme. But, I have 3 other children that I am teaching and my time is limited.

Some of the Crates require more parental involvement than others. This can vary for each child. My oldest son is very independent and after completing a few crates he has learned to follow the instructions better and learn from his mistakes. My second child wants me to be there when she is doing her Doodle Crate and because she wants my guidance, it tends to take her a longer amount of time to get them done.

If you are a parent who likes to have control over the educational themes your children are learning, these subscription boxes may not be for you. Kiwi Co. does send the parent an e-mail when the crates are being shipped and you can see a brief explanation of what the box is going to contain. Besides that, the crates will be a surprise for you too.  I sometimes find that hard because I want to have books and extra resources on hand while we are doing the crate. This may be a personal flaw that I need to work on.

I would also suggest that you wait until all your schoolwork and chores are done for the day before opening them. Or even just open one box at a time. It can get a little crazy with 4 different boxes. The kids are always so excited to do them and because each box is so different, you never know what may happen.  We’ve had a lot of spontaneous learning days that I would not have been able to predict. Such as the front yard County Fair my children decided to put on after receiving the Archade Kiwi Crate, also known as “The Claw.” You can see a few pictures of our Fair above. It was a really fun day!

Would I Recommend Kiwi Co Subscription Boxes?

Yes! Yes, I surely would! Out of all the subscription boxes we have received in the past, these are BY FAR MY FAVORITE. I feel like they are fun, educational, and best of all my kids always complete them! They teach the children the importance of following instructions and have different age-appropriate boxes. They are easy on the parent because all the pieces come right in the box (with extra pieces if needed).  And they are learning topics that I would not dream of mentioning. Especially in the Tinker Crate. Each of the boxes lets the kids explore and use creativity to the topics that interest them.

In Conclusion

If you have the extra funds and feel like you would like your children to have some fun, hands-on STEM projects delivered right to your door, Kiwi Co. boxes would be a great fit!  Because they have so many different boxes available, you are sure to find one that would fit your child. I am blown away by the topics that my kids are learning about and after months of receiving them, they are still excited for box day. I feel that each box is worth the money and plan to continue to add this as an addition to our homeschool education.

They also make a great gift. I hope your family likes them as much as ours does! Thank you for reading my review on Tinker Crate, Doodle Crate, Kiwi Crate, and Koala Crate.

You can see what other resources we are using for our 2019-2020 Homeschool Curriculum (5th, 4th, 1st, and 4K) or check out this fun flower art project we did last year with bubble wrap  Books & Art: Miss Rumphius and a Lupine Art Project.

Pin Me!

We’d love to have you follow along with us! You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. I have been adding A LOT of ideas from Pinterest here and hope to squeeze in a few cute projects this season. And sign up for our newsletter below.

Thank you for visiting!

-Lindsay from Life on Misty Acres

Please follow and like us: