Best Cubby Houses Australia 2026:
Cedar, Timber and Plastic, and What the Weather Does

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Cedar, treated timber or plastic

Cubby houses on Amazon AU come in three materials, and the material decides most of what you'll be doing to it for the next five years. Three of the five picks are Backyard Discovery cedar cubbies, sold by Backyard Discovery Australia, the brand's local storefront. One is a Lifespan Kids cubby in treated timber, sold by Amazon AU, and the last is a Fisher-Price cubby, also sold by Amazon AU, whose listing doesn't actually name what it's made from.

Cedar's appeal is that it handles damp weather and resists rot without much help, and all three Backyard Discovery listings lean on that. It's also a soft timber, so it dents and scratches, and the stain on it fades in Australian sun faster than the photos suggest. Treated timber, like the Lifespan Teddy's, is protected against insects, rot and fungal decay by the treatment, according to its listing, and it usually needs paint or stain kept up on the outside to stop it splitting and greying.

Moulded plastic cubbies are a different thing to own. There's nothing to rot or stain, they wipe clean and they're light enough to move around the yard, but UV is hard on plastic, and after a few summers in full sun the colour fades and the walls go brittle around the clips and hinges. At about 13kg in Amazon's item data, the Fisher-Price is almost certainly plastic, but its listing only says sturdy construction, so check the photos before you order.

I've kept the picks to ground-level cubbies between $299 and $849. Raised cubbies on stilts with slides and ladders are a bigger build, with footings and fall heights to think about, and the ones on Amazon AU sit well above that range. Indoor play tents, sandpits with roofs and climbing sets are left out too. If the slide is really what your kids want, a cubby is the wrong starting place, and a play centre is a separate buy with its own checks.

Size, footprint and where it goes

Measure the spot before you look at photos, because cubby listings are hard to compare on size. Amazon's item data puts the Sweetwater at about 107cm wide, 117cm long and 140cm high, the Mystic at about 132cm square and 171cm high, and the Aspen at about 200 by 124cm with its snack bar attached, also 171cm high. The Fisher-Price lists about 104cm square and 178cm high, and the Lifespan Teddy's listing gives no assembled size at all, so that one needs checking with the maker.

Leave a clear strip around the cubby, a metre or so if you can, so a door can swing, a child can run past without catching a corner and you can get in with a brush and a tin of stain later. Keep it off the fence line, because a cubby hard against a fence traps leaves and moisture on that side, and a back wall nobody can reach is usually the wall that rots first. Overhanging trees drop sap, leaves and the odd branch on the roof.

Height matters more than people expect. A 140cm cubby suits toddlers and young kids, and most adults will be bent double to get inside it, while a 171cm cubby lets a parent duck in to fix something without crawling. Sun is the other thing to plan for, because a cubby in full afternoon sun gets hot inside and fades faster. A spot with afternoon shade, or one of the shade options in our outdoor umbrella and gazebo guide, helps with both.

Timber, stain and what the weather does to it

All three Backyard Discovery cubbies arrive pre-stained: light brown with black trim on the Sweetwater, light brown and slate with white trim on the Mystic, and light brown with white trim on the Aspen. Each listing warns that stain saturation and colour may vary, which is normal for stained timber and worth knowing if you're matching a fence or a deck. A factory stain is a starting coat rather than a finish for life, and in Australian sun I'd expect it to want a fresh coat within a couple of years.

Rot starts where water sits. The bottom of each wall panel, the joins at the roof and the floor where it meets the ground are where moisture stays longest, and cedar's natural resistance slows rot rather than stopping it. Keep the base off wet soil, keep the roof clear of leaves and check the bottom edges of the panels every autumn for soft spots you can push a fingernail into. Catching soft timber early usually means a sand and a recoat, not a new panel.

Treated timber behaves a little differently. The Lifespan Teddy's listing says its timber is treated against insects, rot and fungal decay and finished in a matte stain, and that treatment protects the wood inside while the outside still weathers like any other board. If you cut or drill it to add a shelf or a hook, seal the cut end with exterior paint or stain, because a raw cut is where water gets in. Our steel vs timber garden bed guide covers the same question for beds.

Splinters come from weathered, dry timber more than from new boards. Run a hand over the door edges, window frames and anything a child grips every few months, and give rough spots a light sand before they lift. Don't pressure wash a stained cubby, because a hard jet strips the stain and raises the grain, which is how a smooth panel turns furry and rough in one afternoon. Keep the pressure washer for the driveway, and use a soft brush, soapy water and a gentle hose.

Assembly and the first weekend

Every pick arrives flat-packed, and a timber cubby is a two-adult job, mostly because wall panels and roof sections need holding square while the other person drives screws. The three Backyard Discovery listings say the pieces are pre-cut, pre-drilled and pre-stained, which saves a lot of measuring. Amazon's item data puts the Sweetwater at about 35kg and the Mystic at about 50kg, so check how far the courier will carry it and plan to unpack the boxes close to where the cubby will stand.

Lay every panel and bag of screws out on a tarp before you start, and count them against the parts list. A missing bracket is far easier to chase up with the seller on day one than halfway through the roof. A cordless drill with the clutch set low saves soft cedar from stripped screw holes, which is the assembly mistake I hear about most, and the first screw into each pre-drilled hole is best started by hand for a couple of turns so it finds the hole straight.

Give yourself most of a day for the bigger cedar cubbies and a few hours for the Sweetwater or the Fisher-Price. Once it's built, go round and nip up every screw a week later, because timber settles and screws loosen as the panels take up moisture. Keep the instructions and the parts list in a zip bag somewhere you'll find them again, because they're what you'll need when a hinge or a window piece needs replacing in a couple of years and the model has changed.

Ground, levelling and anchoring

A cubby is only as square as the ground under it. On a slope or soft lawn the frame twists, doors stop closing and windows bind, and that twist is what loosens screws and splits panels over time. Level the spot first. Pavers bedded on crusher dust, a few treated sleepers or a small timber deck give a flat, firm base that also keeps the floor off wet grass, and in my experience they're worth an afternoon even on a yard that looks level.

Wind is the other force to plan for, especially on the coast. A cubby has big flat walls and a light floor, and a strong gust can push or tip a lighter one, so anchor it to the base or the ground with brackets or ground anchors suited to your soil. None of the five listings sets out an anchoring kit, so ask the seller what the cubby was designed to be fixed down with before you buy, and allow for the brackets in what you spend.

Plastic cubbies need anchoring more than timber ones, because they're so much lighter. At about 13kg in Amazon's item data, the Fisher-Price can shift in a gust that wouldn't move a 50kg cedar cubby, and a cubby that tumbles across the yard in a storm usually cracks its walls or its clips on the way. Sandbags in the corners work for a weekend, but pegs or straps into the ground are the proper fix if it's staying out on the lawn for the summer.

Doors, windows and small hands

Doors are where kids and cubbies meet hardest. The Mystic and the Aspen have hinged Dutch doors with a knob and latch, and the Sweetwater has a hinged half door. Hinges on a kids' door get swung on, hung off and slammed far more than any house door, so check their screws every month or so, and fix a stripped hole with a slightly longer screw or a glued dowel. A door that sags drags on the floor and pulls its own hinge screws out faster.

Fingers are what I'd watch most on any hinged door. The gap on the hinge side closes like a pair of pliers, and a door caught by the wind can shut faster than a child can pull a hand back. A simple door stop or a hook to hold the door open on windy days helps a lot, and so does showing kids where not to put their hands. Check what any window inserts are made of before assembly, and if there are any, make sure they're acrylic or polycarbonate rather than glass.

Toy accessories wear fastest of anything in the box. The cedar cubbies come with play kitchens, cookware and utensils, and depending on the model a letterbox, a doorbell and toy lights, and the small plastic pieces tend to end up in the garden and the mower. Bring the loose kitchen bits inside over winter and keep the spare screws for the play kitchen, because the sink and cooktop panels take more weight from leaning toddlers than they look designed for.

Tablets, toys and batteries in the cubby

This is the part an electronics workshop actually sees. A cubby becomes a second home for tablets, walkie talkies, torches, speakers and baby monitors, and none of those is built for a timber box that's cold and damp overnight. The Mystic lists toy wall lights and a doorbell, the Aspen lists decorative lights and the Sweetwater has a working doorbell, and none of the listings says what powers them, so check for batteries before they go up on the wall.

Condensation is the quiet one. A cubby warms up during the day and cools at night, and moisture settles on anything left inside, including a tablet on the floor or a speaker on the shelf. Over a few weeks that's enough to corrode charging ports and battery contacts. A device that's been left out overnight and now won't charge properly, or has a crackly speaker, is showing the same early signs we describe in our water damage explainer.

The fix is a habit more than a gadget. Make it a rule that screens and anything with a battery come inside by dinner time, pull batteries out of toy doorbells and lights over winter, and never run an indoor extension lead out to a cubby, because outdoor power is a job for a licensed electrician. If a tablet or phone does spend a wet night out there, switch it off, don't charge it, and bring it to our Erina workshop before the corrosion spreads.

Warranties, standards and the yearly check

Most cubbies last about as long as the yearly check-over they get. Once a year, ideally before summer, go round every screw and bracket, look at the bottom edges of the panels and the roof joins for soft timber, and re-stain anything that's gone grey or furry. On a plastic cubby, look for cracks around the clips and hinges and white chalky patches where UV has started breaking the surface down, which is usually the first sign it's getting brittle.

Warranty is worth reading before you buy. The Mystic and the Sweetwater both list a 5-year guarantee, and the Aspen, Lifespan Teddy and Fisher-Price listings don't state a warranty at all. Keep the order email and a photo of the parts list, and register the cubby with the maker if they offer it, because a warranty claim on a split panel usually needs proof of purchase and the model number. All five picks show a part or model number on their listings.

On standards, the Lifespan Teddy states it complies with AS/NZS ISO 8124, the Australian and New Zealand toy safety standard. The Mystic and the Sweetwater say they're engineered to meet or exceed EN-71, the European toy standard, the Aspen adds ASTM, and the Fisher-Price listing doesn't mention a standard. A standard covers the cubby as it's supplied, so the base, the anchoring and the yearly check are still up to you, the same as the kart in our kids go kart guide.

The 5 picks, $299 to $849

Prices are Amazon AU at time of writing (2026-11-13) and move week to week. Ranks are Amazon AU category sales ranks, checked the same day, with the overall Amazon AU rank alongside because the five picks sit in three different categories.

Side-by-side comparison

What we see fail in the workshop: electronics in the cubby

Cubbies themselves don't come into an electronics workshop, but what kids take into them does. Tablets, walkie talkies, torches, speakers and baby monitors spend whole afternoons and sometimes whole nights in a timber box that's warm in the day and damp by morning. The faults are the same ones we see from phones left in a car or a bathroom, and nearly all of them come back to moisture and batteries.

Decision tree: which one should you actually buy?

• Want a full-height cedar cubby a parent can get inside? → The Backyard Discovery Mystic at $799 is 171cm high, has a hinged Dutch door and a play kitchen, lists a 5-year guarantee and is the best-ranked of the five picks.
• Buying a first cedar cubby for a toddler in a smaller yard? → The Backyard Discovery Sweetwater at $499 is about 107 by 117cm and 140cm high, with a play kitchen, a working doorbell and a 5-year guarantee.
• Want a cubby with a table and bench built on? → The Backyard Discovery Aspen at $849 has a snack bar station with a bench, a fence and a mailbox, and it needs about 2m of level ground.
• Want a stated Australian toy standard and a floor? → The Lifespan Kids Teddy at $598 states AS/NZS ISO 8124, uses treated timber and comes with a floor, according to its title.
• Want something light you can move around the yard? → The Fisher-Price Kids Cubby House at $299 is about 13kg in Amazon's item data, so it moves easily, but peg it down on an open lawn.
• Tablet or phone spent a wet night in the cubby? → Switch it off and don't charge it. Bring it into our Erina workshop and we'll check the port and board for corrosion and tell you what it needs before you spend anything.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best timber for a cubby house?

Cedar and treated timber are the two you'll see most on Amazon AU. Cedar handles damp weather and resists rot naturally, which is why the three Backyard Discovery picks use it, but it's soft, so it dents and its stain fades in strong sun. Treated timber, like the Lifespan Kids Teddy's, is protected against insects, rot and fungal decay by the treatment, according to its listing. Both need an exterior stain or paint kept up on the outside every couple of years, and both last longer kept off wet ground.

How long does a cubby house take to put together?

Plan on most of a day for a big cedar cubby like the Mystic or the Aspen, with two adults, and a few hours for the smaller Sweetwater or a plastic cubby. The Backyard Discovery listings say the pieces come pre-cut, pre-drilled and pre-stained, which saves measuring but not the lifting. Lay out every part and count it against the parts list first, use a drill with the clutch set low so the soft timber doesn't strip, and go back a week later to tighten every screw once the timber settles.

Does a cubby house need a base?

It's worth it. A cubby on soft or sloping ground twists, and that twist jams doors, binds windows and loosens screws over time. Pavers bedded on crusher dust, a few treated sleepers or a small timber deck give a level, firm base that also keeps the floor off wet grass, which slows rot along the bottom of the panels. Level the base before the cubby goes on it, because packing up a finished cubby later is a fiddly job that rarely stays square for long.

Should a cubby house be anchored?

Yes, especially on the coast or on an open lawn. A cubby has big flat walls and a light floor, so a strong gust can push or tip a lighter one, and a plastic cubby at around 13kg can move in wind that wouldn't shift a 50kg cedar cubby. None of the five listings sets out an anchoring kit, so ask the seller what it was designed to be fixed down with, and use brackets into the base or ground anchors suited to your soil.

What safety standard should a cubby house meet in Australia?

The Australian and New Zealand toy safety standard is AS/NZS ISO 8124, and of the five picks the Lifespan Kids Teddy states it complies. The Backyard Discovery Mystic and Sweetwater say they're engineered to meet or exceed EN-71, the European toy standard, and the Aspen adds ASTM, while the Fisher-Price listing doesn't mention a standard. A standard covers the cubby as it's supplied, so a level base, anchoring, hinge checks and a yearly look at the timber are still up to you.

Can you leave a tablet or toys in a cubby house overnight?

I wouldn't. A cubby warms during the day and cools at night, and moisture settles on anything left inside, including tablets, speakers and walkie talkies. Over a few weeks that's enough to corrode charging ports and battery contacts. Bring screens and anything with a battery inside by dinner time, take the batteries out of toy doorbells and lights over winter, and if a device does get damp, switch it off and don't charge it until it's been checked.

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