Top 6 Best Electronic Drum Sets for Kids

When you’re the proud parent of a born drummer, there are only two things you can do. You can squash your child’s ambition to save your own sanity, or you can give in and celebrate the rhythm within. And what better way to do that than to buy your child a drum set?

If you’re a crafty parent, however, there’s one sneaky card you can play. Instead of an ear-splitting acoustic drum set destined to make you despise the instrument for life, go electronic. Getting your kid an electronic drum kit means you can be an ultra-cool parent while managing to keep the noise down.

So here’s my list of the best electronic drum sets for kids to make the decision of what’s the best option even easier…

Top 2 Best Electronic Drum Sets for Kids on the Market in 2021 Reriews

1 Best Choice Products: Kids Electronic Toy Drum Set – Best Cheap Electronic Drum Set for Kids

I’m going to start with the best toy drum kit I could find. This set from Best Choice Products is a toy and not a real drum set. Then again, it’s intended for kids from about 3 to 6 or 7 years old, when the emphasis is more on toys than anything.

Two snares?

The drum set is a four piece set featuring a bass drum, two snare drums on the left and right, and a cymbal. It comes with a cute little drum stool, too. Also, it comes with a microphone so that your little tyke can let loose, belting out tunes while playing the drums. As an alternative, a friend can sing while your child plays.

The module for this drum set, its electronic brain, in other words, is on top of the bass drum. It has five buttons that turn on background music for your child to bang along with. There are also four buttons to change the sounds of the drums themselves. And, of course, precious, precious volume control!

Something to keep in mind

This kit plays out of a speaker and has no headphone jack to keep the sound internal. At the same time, the volume control can help to keep it low enough not to drive you out of your head. It’s a very cheap drum set, and the sounds are, let’s say, trashy, to say the least.

The snares sound like garbage can lids being hit by cars, and the cymbal is like an electronic pie plate. At the same time, it’s really easy for tiny kids to play, and they get a huge kick out of it.

2 iWord: Electronic Roll-up Drum Pad – Best Lightweight Electronic Drum Pad for Kids

The next style of the electronic drum I want to show you is the drum pad. This type of product gives you the playability of a whole drum kit on a pad that can be laid out on any desk or table.

All in one…

The first drum pad we’ll look at is the iWord Electronic Roll-up Drum Pad. This pad has seven drum trigger zones or individual pads. They’re designated to hit-hat, snare, three toms, and two cymbals. But you can flip the snare and hi-hat pads to make it easier for a left-handed player to play on this machine like they would on a normal drum set.

The hi-hat open-and-close and the bass drum are controlled by pedals that plug into the back of the unit. You simply press down on these pedals to make the associated sounds. So sitting down with the pedals in place and the unit on a table feels like playing on a real drum kit.

How does it sound?

Honestly, the quality of the drum sounds isn’t fantastic when played through the pad’s built-in speaker. They do sound a lot better when they come through headphones which you can plug into the back of the pad, thus eliminating all external sound or when you connect it up to a keyboard amplifier or even a guitar amp if you happen to own one?

What’s cool is that you can switch between five different drum kits: rock, pop, Latin, electro, and percussion. This automatically changes the sound of each pad in the kit. It also has a built-in metronome that you can set to click along with 4/4 (standard), 3/4 (waltz), or 6/8 (swing) time.

Play along…

There’s also a demo button that lets your kid play along to different drum demo songs to practice their chops. On the downside, the pads are small and also not labeled. This makes it a bit difficult to play, especially for older and bigger kids. On the plus side, this pad is durable and can be rolled up to fit in a backpack and be carried anywhere.

3 Pimpimsky: 9 Pad Digital Drum Kit – Best Budget Electronic Drum Pad for Kids

The 9 Pad Digital Drum Kit from Pimpimsky is another roll-up style drum pad. This time with nine different strike zones or individual pads. It also has two outboard pedals, which, like the iWord, control the hi-hat open-close function and the bass drum. However, if you don’t want to use the pedals, you can strike the bass drum on its strike zone instead.

Just like the iWord, this pad can roll out onto any table, and with the pedals feels a lot like playing on a full drum kit. So what are the differences? The individual pads here are bigger and also labeled with the pictures of the drums and cymbals that they control. However, the sounds here are set – you can’t change to different sounding kits like on the iWord.

Loaded with fun functions

The speaker and module of this unit also have fun lights that are going to make things more exciting and fun for your child. For you, the excitement is that you can plug in headphones and keep the sound internalized. There are seven built-in rhythms to practice along to, and the lights flash along with them, which can be a real help in coordination.

Of course, if your kid wants to play along to any song, you can simply plug in any player like a smartphone to play MP3s through the device or play along to Youtube videos. Then your child can play along with their favorite songs. But for more practice, they can plug into some drum game apps via a phone or tablet. They can also record their own playing and play it back for you to listen to.

A fun-filled electronic drum extravaganza…

Once again, the drum sounds aren’t terrific, but for under $80, this is a smart and convenient little machine that’s as much fun as a full set of drums. An excellent choice for the best electronic drum sets for kids.

4 Pyle: PTED01 Table Top Digital Drum Kit – Best Table Top Electronic Drum Set for Kids

At this point, we’re going to step things up to a different level of quality. While the cheaper iWord and Pimpimsky drum pads are made of thin rubber that makes them portable and roll-up-able, Pyle’s Table Top Digital Drum Kit is a solid machine that’s a lot more professional.

Great choice of kits…

It’s a 7-pad unit, but that doesn’t mean it has just seven sounds. You can choose to play on one of the 25 pre-programmed drum kits available at the push of a button.

If those aren’t enough for you, there are 215 unique voices (or different sounds), and you can create and save your own kits instead. As a result, it’s one of the most versatile electronic drum kits for kids you can buy.

Not just for youngsters

The unit has two (left and right) built-in speakers if you want to play out loud. But for parents who need to keep their sanity, you can plug in headphones. You can also run the machine into a computer via USB. So, you can save, edit, and even mix sound on a software platform. If your kid is clever enough, anyway!

This is a tabletop electronic drum unit made for kids, adults, beginners, and intermediate players alike. As with the two previous machines I reviewed, this one also has outboard foot pedals to control the hi-hat and bass drum sounds. The strike zones themselves are thick, firm rubber, and this gives a real feeling of playing on a full drum kit.

What else do you get for the price?

You can record and play your tracks back. You can add effects like reverb. There’s also a click track to practice along with. This unit should last a long time and provide years of fun for kids and adults too.

5 Alesis: Debut Kit – Best Value for the Money Electronic Drum Set for Kids

Let’s move things up one more level. I’ve got a full electronic drum kit to show you. This is the Debut Kit from renowned electronic instrument maker Alesis. They make full-sized drum kits at all price levels. However, this is meant for kids.

With this unit, you get a 2-legged metal rack that supports four drums with mesh heads and three rubberized cymbals. As with the table-top sets, this one has two outboard pedals to control the hi-hat and bass drum. So overall, this is an 8-piece kit.

Or is it?

After all, with the Debut Drum Module (the electronic brain of the kit), you have access to 10 different pre-set drum kits. You can also use the 100 individual drum sounds to make your own kits.

These drum sounds are very accurate, most of them at least, and varied so your kids can play along with many different styles of music. The module also gives you a click track, tempo control, recording function, a built-in drum coach, and 30 play-along tracks.

On top of great sounds and a lot of controls, this drum set comes with a throne, a pair of sticks, and headphones that plug into the module to save everyone’s ears. It also comes with free access to an app that includes 60 beginner drum lessons that your child can watch and play along to. Making it one of the best electronic practice drum sets for kids on the market.

Make sure you have enough room

Of course, this is a bigger and more expensive option than what I’ve shown you so far. The price is over $250, and the kit takes up about eight square feet of floor space. But it also feels a lot like a real drum kit. And with the rack set at two feet off the ground, it’s really made for younger kids who are serious about drumming.

6 Donner: Beginner Kit – Best Premium Electronic Drum Set for Kids

Since we’ve already looked into the full-kit style of electronic drums, let’s peek at one more drum set to compare with the Alesis Debut. This time, it’s the 8-piece Donner Beginner Kit, and it’s one of the best electronic drum sets for kids available.

With this kit, you get five drums and three cymbals to bang on. The pedals here are much better quality than anything we’ve seen so far. Instead of just simple switches, these are strong and sturdy, and the bass drum pedal actually hits a bass drum. Therefore, it’s one of the most durable electronic drum kits for kids.

The sounds are extensive

You have 225 unique sounds that are combined to make 30 pre-set kits. But again, you can program your own kits to shake things up. You have an earphone output here, and the phones are included. So, your kid can bang away right away without driving you or the neighbors mad.

There’s a metronome here too to help them practice along with and keep in time. However, the module, the DED200, doesn’t have recording functions or pre-recorded play-along songs for practice purposes. This is a beginner drum kit, but honestly, it’s not specifically designed for kids like the Alesis Debut Kit is.

That said, this is a real treat to play on…

Just plop down on the included drum throne, choose a kit, pop on your headphones, and get playing. Older kids, at least over ten, will find the kit small enough to play on comfortably. But for anyone younger, or especially smaller kiddles, this kit will be too big.

Looking for Great Drums or other Instruments for Kids?

W can help you with that. Check out our in-depth reviews of the Best Beginner Drum Set, the Best Drum Set For Kids, the Best Cheap Beginner Electronic Drum Sets Under $500, the Best Jazz Drum Sets, and the Best Portable Drum Kits you can buy in 2021.

Also, have a look at our comprehensive reviews of the Best Drum Practice Pads, the Best Drumsticks, the Best Bongos, the Best Snare Drums, the Best Congas, and the Best Cajon Drums currently on the market.

And don’t miss our handy guides on Different Types of Drums – The Ultimate Guide for Beginners, How to Play Drums, and 5 Reasons Why Kids Should Play Drums for more useful information.

What are the Best Electronic Drum Sets for Kids?

I’ve shown you some great products. But when we’re talking about the best electronic drum kit for children, there can be only one. Of course, so much depends on the age and size of your children and their interest level in actually playing the drums seriously.

If it’s just a fun way to pass the time, try a roll-up drum pad. But for serious little tykes who have drumming in their blood, I have to recommend the…

Alesis: Debut Kit

It’s the right size for kids but has the versatility and feel of a full-sized electronic kit. It has play-along tracks and an app to get your kids to practice and have a great time achieving their drumming dream. And they play through earphones, so all you’ll hear is a faint tappity-tap and the sound of your own proud heart as your kid becomes the next drumming legend.

Until next time, may the beat go on.