It's perhaps the most dreaded of our first major parental duties. We're talking about potty training. The mess, the frustration, the doubt. "Is he ready and am I doing the right thing"? you may ask yourself. For most of us, it doesn't come easy. One thing is for sure though, you'll need the right equipment (ahem) to get started. Here are our top ten potties that won't assault the visual senses (as for the olfactory, that's another story). They all have various attributes, and you may even have to try a couple to see what works best.
Parents, for us newbies, do you have any suggestions for what works? Did you have multiple receptacles, or use an insert on the family toilet? Were you able to make potty training fun? Please do share your tips!
1. Hoppop Donut - The minimalist's answer. Small and lovely, best for a beginner. The top is removable for easy cleaning. ($25)
2. Boon Potty Bench - A sleek, modern 2-in-1 potty that doubles as a step stool. The most elegant option if you're trying to impress company. ($40)
3. Baby Bjorn Little Potty - As is evidenced by this roundup, Baby Bjorn has cornered the market here. We love their Little Potty because it's light and relatively inexpensive. You could put one of these in every room. ($9-$15)
4. Baby Bjorn Potty Chair - For graduates of the Little Potty or those training a little older, this potty chair may be your answer. Good if the toilet itself is scary, we actually like the white one best because it looks like the one the grownups use. ($28)
5.Trendykid BecoPotty - None of us want to contribute to the landfill. Feel good about your purchase with this eco-friendly biodegradable option, made from bamboo and rice! ($13)
6. Baby Bjorn Smart Potty - Similar in function to the Hoppop, this petite potty also has a removable bowl. For small bottoms only. ($20)
7. Baby Bjorn Toilet Trainer - Our ultimate solution wound up being a topper to the regular toilet. They need this to feel secure so they don't fall in(!) ($25)
8. Prince Lionheart Weepod - Prince Lionheart also makes a viable option in a range of pearlescent colors. ($33)
9. Potette Plus - Potty training is all the more important when you're on the go. This genius invention by Potette fits in the car, can be used with baggies on its own, and fits over a public toilet. ($15)
10. Once Upon a Potty - A classic by Alona Frankel, your child may be able to relate to Prudence or Joshua's trials and tribulations. Parents will get a kick out of the 70s illustrations too. The potty in this kit is light and ergonomic, but the book could be invaluable. ($20)
Did your favorite make our list?
Coming to Terms with a Knockoff: Original vs. Reproduction Furniture Design
Monica & Austin's Charming Bungalow
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Ercol Bar Stool
True Greek Recipe: Paximadi Bread Salad with Tomatoes, Feta and Capers
True Greek Recipe: Paximadi Bread Salad with Tomatoes, Feta and Capers
We tried a few for my daughter, and she is tall for her age, but we found the baby bjorn to be uncomfortably little and low to the ground for her. I have to say most of the ones pictured in this post look like they would have the same problem. She much preferred a less attractive one we got at walmart or some such place, that was taller and had a flip lid so that it can also be used as a step stool--sorry I don't have the name of it. Just wanted to advise newcomers to potty training that this may be an issue. The step stool one also came in handy because we only used these little potties for a few months, then we switched to the seats that go on the regular toilet (like #7 & 8--so much nicer not to have to dump/clean out a potty!!), but she still needed the stool to climb up there.
Oh, and my daughter was totally potty trained by 2.5, so I'm talking about these potties being too small for a young 2 year old, not an older kid!
Ikea makes a great little potty too and its SUPER CHEAP!
That Baby Bjorn toilet-top trainer is the greatest invention on earth for potty training. It has a great fit on the toilet, almost like a seal, and it feels incredibly secure for cautious kids. We started with the bigger bjorn potty chair, which is awesome too, since my son had a hard time climbing onto the toilet.
Our younger son has chosen to just go straight to the toilet-top trainer seat and I am happy with that since emptying out those little potty-pots is, well, grosser than diapers I personally think.
Ikea or a Safety First (gasp) for the height of it, even if it is ugly. I feel like this list is the "attractive" expensive cool potties.
A shield on the front of the potty must be pretty big. Also, the whole thing must come apart to be cleaned because the pee gets everywhere. The single piece Ikea potty worked well to start with, and that was with 2 boys and a girl. I have found that the kids like using the toilet early on. That makes it easier for me. Just putting them on the toilet backwards (facing the tank) works too. Then you don't have to clean any extra stuff. Just clorx wipe the toilet often.
I like ALL of the Bjorn potties. We start "traditionally" (I refuse to say "early") at around 18m and although both kids were done by 2 the potty seats linger.
The bjorn little potty is great for really small kids or little ones (18m) and once they outgrew it went to the car for emergencies.
The regular bjorn is great for a large range of sizes. My four year old has really poor balance and at 45 pounds he still prefers it to the regular potty, seat or no. And when he was learning we carried the potty seat everywhere because it was the ONLY thing that made him feel secure.
Plus, early on you can move them anywhere.
The best advice ever was to start early and have a lot of potty options because different things click for different kids.
And the boon and hoppop are TERRIBLE. Nasty to clean, tip over, and small.
I've heard good things about that frog shaped one that I think is from Fischer Price. It has rave reviews on Amazon, too. One of my friends said she much preferred it to her first purchase, the Bjorn one.
We use a Safety First potty. The only thing I don't like about it is that one side of the seat cushion is textured and has all these little ridges. After my boy did a number two then moved to stand up...yeah...that was hard to clean.
We had a Boon potty, but we have higher than builders standard sinks in our bathroom, so using it as a step stool didn't work. We loved our bjorn potty chair.
don't waste your money and time on anything but #7 the Baby Bjorn Toilet Trainer!!! its the only thing that my daughter would use (after buying 3 different ones!). also with the dial on the bottom you can get it to fit most toilets!
The Ikea potty was the best one we tried, hands down. Very easy to clean it, and the "lip" in front comes up high enough to prevent spills for a little guy. I didn't appreciate the value of having a potty with no removable parts until I had to try to empty one with several parts. Ugh!
We just used our toilet with a toilet seat and step-stool. Our ds learned to pee standing up by age 2yo, and learned "toilet etiquette" of putting the seat back down.
When we first bought a potty, I totally wanted one of those cute ones from toys r us, but my partner insisted on the baby bjorn potty chair. He liked that it was simple and I liked that it looked easier to clean. It has been awesome for us: it doesn't tip, the pee shield is large enough for our son and the opening is wide enough for him to just sit down and do his business. Our parents bought potties for him to use at their homes and they all have really small openings. When he would sit on them he has to carefully arrange himself so he doesn't pee everywhere! And the "fancy" potties with sounds and cute stuff have so many pieces to clean. I'm so glad we bought the baby bjorn. We've also bought a simple, plastic seat (fisher price, not one shown) for on the actual toilet because it's a lot nicer than cleaning stuff out of a plastic potty.
We have the Safety First Potty, the 3-in-1, comfy cushy seat one with the light green top and white base. Not bad looking really. My mom got it for us. I'm not sure what I would have gotten had I chosen myself, but we've liked this one. It can be a step stool, which I like because than you don't have to have both in a small bathroom, like ours. The seat can go on the toilet which is a nice double-duty feature, and the cushy seat makes it comfortable to sit on for awhile. It's not hard to clean, and my daughter is really tall for her age, (43 inches at age 2 1/2), and she still fits on it quite comfortably. So, all that to say that this one gets good reviews from me.
i bought a cheap o one then realized i could just train straight to the big potty. so that training potty never was used and is now a step stool!
Ikea makes a 0,99 euros potty that fits the bill. I plan on donating it once my children are through training, so everyone's happy for almost no money.
We have the hop pop and my daughter loves it! Best potty I ever tried!
We tried to move pretty quickly to the regular potty and a step-stool. But then we were constantly taking off and putting on a child-sized seat, which was also an annoyance.
Finally we got this two-in-one seat which has been completely fabulous.
We are HUGE fans of the Fisher Price Frog. Its the only thing my son would use and it was like a magnet for every kid who set foot in our house - even my nephew who would only train on a real toilet.
A big thumbs up for the Prince Lionheart potty seat....super cushy for his skinny little butt. Transitioned from standalone potty to this seat immediately, so we only used his standalone potty twice!
oh btw, our standalone potty was a baby bjorn, and my son didn't like it at all....
We are casually EC-ing our daughter and have the #7 the Baby Bjorn Toilet Trainer (our bathroom is really tiny). It is a good fit and there is no mess, just a flush. She feels secure sitting on it and she is 9 months/17 pounds.
We've taken a break as she goes through some major teething, but getting her on the potty when she wakes up (especially if her diaper is dry) has been a pretty successful routine and we hope it helps her from being intimidated by the toilet later on.
I agree with Bobbystwin. It's like the attractive list of potties that are better looking for adults. Anyone who has potty trained a child, knows that it's a difficult task. If it's made easier by some gaudy looking brightly colored monstrosity, and it works for the CHILD, then I think that should be taken into consideration. Not that it goes with your home decor. We had to try a few, before we found one for our son, which was a fisher-price frog potty. Similar in design to the once a upon a potty, it was green and blue, and had eyes on the front, and little "feet." It wasn't horribly offensive, and it worked really well, as it took him a long time before he understood that he had to push his boy bits DOWN. My 2.5 year old daughter could care less about this design, which means, I'll most likely end up with something pink, frilly, with princesses on it. It'll probably be ugly as sin, but if it gets her out of diapers, then I will gladly have it in my house.
We have the 'frog potty' as well. My daughter loves sitting on it, but refuses to pee. She'll do it when she's good and ready.
We have three different potties -- started with the larger Baby Bjorn seat (removable 'inner'), then moved up to the Bjorn toilet seat -- which is great -- we have two, one for each of our bathrooms. My 4-year old girls still use it - it is definitely required in our house (we've had a couple of 'falling into the toilet' incidents) - the seat is very secure on the toilet, so no slipping when getting on & off. It's also really easy for the kids to put on & off the toilet (we keep it on a hook next to the toilet). We also have a Potette - perfect for on the go. I just use regular trash bags, sometimes lined with a diaper to absorb the pee. I have 3 young kids, and this has been a lifesaver when out running errands, on a road trip, or at the park. It has been so nice not to either a) try to find a washroom, or b) drag all 3 kids to a dirty/germy bathroom, especially when out a the playground or in the car. It's a little low to the ground, so not good for a 'regular' potty, but fine for the occasional emergency when out of the house. Highly recommend!!
We have accumulated four potties, but the frog potty (my least favorite) is the only one my daughter likes. She'll go potty by herself with no prompting in that one.
We have the ikea one (pretty good esp. for under $5), the bjorn that goes over the toilet (better), and eventually when we needed to change the toilet seat anyway a built in Mayfair seat (great). The built in one seat is great because there's no on and off, it's very unobtrusive and looks nice enough, and no apologizing to guests when you realize they went into the bathroom with the topper on!