If you’re thinking of buying a playset, but you’re worried that you won’t get your money’s worth out of it, you are not alone. You’ve probably been burned before, purchasing a pricey, highly coveted toy for your child to lose interest in the toy rather quickly. You might even remember doing something similar yourself as a child.
So, are playsets worth the money? Playsets can absolutely be worth the money. How much value you get out of playset will depend on the size of your family, age of your children, and the type of playset you purchase.
Continue reading to get all the details on how a playset can be worth the cost as well as some factors to consider to be sure your family gets the most out of a playset.
Related: How Much Do Playsets Cost?
The Benefits of a Playset
There are many ways that a playset will benefit your family, and I have outlined them below. But every family is different. Only you can know if they are reason enough for you to buy a playset.
Gets Kids Outside
The main reason most families want to get a playset is that it gives kids a good reason to go outside and play. Playing outside is great for kids as it aids in the production of vitamin D and it encourages exercise.
A playset will give more energetic children an appropriate outlet for all that energy. It provides something other than the living room furniture for kids to climb up, jump on, and run around. Your sofa will thank you.
Convenience
Playgrounds are fantastic, but for a busy family, it isn’t always possible to make frequent trips to one. A playset offers a lot of the fun of a playground but at far greater convenience. You can’t get much more convenient than your own backyard.
A playset will be there for your family on the days where a trip to the playground just doesn’t fit into the schedule, or when one kid is under the weather and the others have got a case of cabin fever.
Attracts friends
Kids love playsets and having one in your backyard will attract all the kids from your neighborhood. This will give your children plenty of opportunities to form lifelong friendships and practice valuable social skills.
Imaginative play
With a little imagination, a playset with a raised platform can become Rapunzel’s tower, a rocket ship, a pirate’s hideout, or any other location your child can think up. Imaginative play is one of the many ways children learn and grow.
Clubhouses with an upper and lower platform lend themselves to this kind play by creating multiple clearly defined spaces. It provides a dynamic “stage” for children to act out their imaginations on.
A playset doesn’t need any fancy equipment to encourage imaginative play. A paper towel tube can be a telescope and a carefully draped blanket can provide a door to a secret clubhouse. The less defined the space is the more open it is to your child’s creative and imaginative play.
Sensory Input
All children have sensory needs, some more than others, and a swing can provide a quality sensory experience. Swinging can help strengthen the vestibular system and provide enough sensory input to improve focus in children who struggle with it.
If you have a child that craves sensory input, swinging can really benefit them.
Factors that Impact the Value of a Playset
A playset is almost always a good idea and will always add value to your family’s life, but there are some factors that will increase or decrease how much you get out of a playset.
When making the decision to put up a playset you may want to consider the number of children you have, their age, you space, and few other factors that can impact what a playset can add to your family’s life.
Number of Children
The more children you have in your family, or in your yard, the more use you will get out of the playset. If you buy your playset when your youngest is 3 years old and you have two more children after that, your playset could be in daily use for 15-20 years.
Age of Children
It is recommended that if you want to get the most out of your playset that you purchase it when your children are on the younger end of the recommended age. This will allow them to grow into the playset.
As your children age, they will not get bored with the playset, instead, they will simply find new and developmentally appropriate ways to play with it. Even after a child masters the physical aspects of climbing up the ladders and such, they will continue to find new ways to play with a playset over time.
If you wait to purchase a playset until your children are older, they will grow out of it sooner, and if they are past the point of imaginative play, it may be difficult for them to find novel ways of playing on it.
The Climate
Playsets can be used in any season so long as it isn’t covered in ice or snow. However, if you live in an area with cold winters or overbearingly hot summers, there will be seasons where your playset will get less use simply because it is unpleasant outside.
Your children will play more on the playset during school vacations, but the prime seasons for playing on a playset are usually spring and fall when the weather is mild. This depends on the particular climate where you live.
Yard space
If you have a large sprawling backyard, you can get any size playset you’d like and still have ample room for cartwheels, picnics, and gardening.
But your playset won’t seem as valuable if your backyard is tiny and the playset takes up most of it. The good news is that playsets come in all sizes. If you have a smaller yard, you might want to get a smaller playset so that you still have plenty of room for other activities.
Features
The two main features of playsets are the clubhouse or tower and the swings set, and they serve different purposes. The clubhouse provides a location for imaginative play, while the swings provide a more physical variety of fun.
If the playset you purchase only has one or the other, your family might not get as much use out of it. On the other hand, if you’re kids aren’t fond of swings, you might not need them.
Your Kids’ Interests
Young kids are usually more than happy to go outside and play if they have a playset in the backyard, but as kids get older, they will develop a variety of other interests, as you would want them to.
A kid who loves drawing and painting might want to set up an easel in the shade of the clubhouse. A kid who loves to read might turn the clubhouse into a reading nook. They will still enjoy their playset, but it won’t always be the only thing they want to do outside.
This is why it is recommended to get a playset while your children are young enough to grow into and get as much use out of it as possible.
Maintenance
If you do not maintain the playset, it will not last half as long as it should. The best way to get the most out of your investment in a playset is to keep it in good condition.
Carefully maintaining the playset will not only prevent it from becoming damaged or becoming unsafe, but it will also ensure that the playset continues to be an enticing play space for your children.
Generally, kids are not too excited about playing on a splintery, spider-infested playset.
If your kids are old enough, include them in the maintenance duties associated with the playset to give them a sense of ownership over it.
Reducing the Cost of a Playset
The more you spend on a playset the more it will take for it to seem like it was worth it for your family. Depending on the kind of playset you are looking at, it can cost several thousand dollars to purchase and properly install a playset.
Thankfully it doesn’t have to cost that much. Here are some tips for reducing the cost of putting up a playset in your backyard.
Prepare the Ground
In order to install a playset in your backyard, the ground must be level. You can save a good chunk of cash by doing this work yourself. It takes some hard work and a good amount of time to dig out the grass and rake out the dirt, but it can really save you in the long run.
Installing the Playset Yourself
The average cost of having a playset installed is between $355 and $693. This price is for building the playset only and does not usually include leveling the ground or creating the mulch pit.
You can save this money by doing it yourself if you feel up to it. This project is not for the faint of heart, especially if you purchase a large playset. The assembly instructions for playsets are thick but putting it together yourself will significantly reduce costs.
Wait for a Sale
Playsets tend to go on sale at the end of the summer season and into the fall. This is because playsets are bulky, and many stores are ready to have the space they are sitting in back for other purposes. If you’re lucky, you can get a quality playset at half the price.
DIY Playset
There are plenty of plans available online or even at home improvement stores that take you step-by-step through constructing your own playset. You will need to have your own tools, but this can be a fun DIY project.
Buying Second Hand
Buying a playset second hand through a website like Craigslist is a great way to get a high-quality product at a fraction of the cost. Occasionally, you can even score a playset for free from someone whose kids have grown out of it.
Of course, you will probably need to dismantle and reassemble the playset on your own.
Not all playsets are worth buying second hand. Inspect the playset before you agree to buy it. If the playset is already well past its prime, you might want to keep looking.
Selling Your Playset You can recoup some of the costs of the playset by selling it when your kids outgrow it. Save the instruction manual to help its future owners reassemble it.