New to Connetix? Here's Where to Start (and How to Keep Building)
If you've spent any time in our store, you'll have seen it — a small crowd of kids at the play table, quietly and completely absorbed, building something with Connetix magnetic tiles. It's one of those toys that earns its popularity the honest way: kids keep coming back to it, long after other toys have been forgotten in a cupboard.
We get asked about it almost daily, so we thought it was worth putting our answers in one place — for the family just discovering Connetix, and for the family wondering what to add next.
If you're just starting out
Our advice is always the same: start with one solid set rather than a handful of small ones. A proper starter pack gives a child enough pieces and shapes to actually build something — a house with a door, a simple car, a tower taller than they are — which is where the magic of this toy really clicks (literally). Too few pieces too early, and the play stalls before it starts.
Connetix is certified for ages 3 and up, due to the magnets, and from there the sets simply grow in complexity as the child does. It's rare to meet a Connetix kid who's outgrown it by school age — if anything, the building gets more ambitious.
If you're already a Connetix family
This is where it gets fun — and where we get asked the most questions. A few ways we'd point you, depending on what's already happening on your lounge floor:
If they've got a ball run going, the new Ball Run Launcher Pack is the easiest next add — it clips straight onto what's already built and adds that satisfying “3, 2, 1, go” moment. Younger kids love it purely for the drop; older kids (5+) are usually the ones who built the run in the first place, and this gives them a proper finale to design around.
If they love a “wow” moment, the new Light Rocket Pack and Ball Run Galaxy Pack bring genuine glow and shimmer to a build — especially good for a dark room and a torch.
If the collection needs to travel, the new Travel Mini Pack is small enough for the car, a grandparent's house, or a sibling who wants their own set to build alongside everyone else — fully compatible with what you've already got.
And if you're after something a little different this year, we've also brought in Tile Toppers — animal and letter pieces, plus road and rail tiles, that click straight onto your existing Connetix collection. It's a lovely way to add early learning or a bit of imaginative storytelling to a build without starting a new collection from scratch.
Every new Connetix release is designed to click straight into your existing collection, so nothing you've already bought becomes redundant. We think of it less as “buying more toys” and more as adding new tools to the same box.
A note from us
We've stocked Connetix for years now, and it remains one of the few toys we recommend without hesitation — to first-time parents, to grandparents after “something that will actually get played with,” and to families adding to a collection that's already years deep. If you're not sure where to start or what to add next, our team is always happy to help you figure it out, in-store or online.