Why you should trust this review

Emma Thompson is a pediatric occupational therapist (OTR/L) with 9 years of clinical experience working with infants and toddlers in feeding therapy. She holds a Master of Science in Occupational Therapy from the University of Southern California and is a member of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA). Her clinical work includes feeding evaluations for infants with oral-motor delays, late starters on solids, and children transitioning from purees to table food.

For this review, Emma researched seven silicone self-feeding spoons across a six-month period with four families whose infants ranged from 6 to 22 months old at the start of testing. Spoons were rotated weekly. Each set was put through a structured observation protocol covering grip pattern, food loading, bowl-to-mouth transfer success rate, and post-meal cleanup time.

This review is not sponsored by any brand. Two spoon sets were purchased at retail price; five were sent by brands for review. Brand contact did not influence scores. We follow the Kiddopicks testing methodology.

Not a substitute for professional medical advice. If your child has feeding difficulties or oral-motor concerns, consult a pediatric occupational therapist or speech-language pathologist.

Safety overview

Baby spoons are a lower-risk feeding category than items with small parts or complex mechanical components, but a few genuine safety considerations apply to products designed for infants 6 months and older.

Material safety. Food-grade silicone meets the FDA standard under 21 CFR 177.2600 for rubber articles used in repeated food contact. This means a qualifying product can withstand repeated dishwasher cycles and hot food temperatures without leaching detectable chemicals. All products in this review are labeled food-grade and BPA-free per their manufacturer spec sheets. “BPA-free” is not a regulated term, so we cross-referenced manufacturer documentation rather than relying on label claims alone.

Choking and breakage risk. The CPSC applies the small-parts choking standard (16 CFR 1501) to objects that can fit entirely in the cylindrical test fixture used for children under 3. A full-length baby spoon will not pass through this fixture, but a broken-off silicone bowl tip could. We checked each spoon for structural integrity after 180 days of use. The NumNum GOOtensils, Olababy, and Grabease spoons showed no separation or tearing at the neck joint. One plastic-handled set from a lesser-known brand developed a crack at the neck by week 10 and was removed from testing.

Age range. The products in this review are appropriate starting at 6 months when developmental readiness for solid food introduction begins, per AAP guidance on starting solid foods. Do not introduce spoon self-feeding before a baby can sit supported and shows interest in food. For a complete overview, read the AAP’s guidance on starting solid foods.

Recall status. As of publication, no active CPSC recalls apply to the NumNum GOOtensils, Grabease Double Sided Spoon, or Olababy Training Spoon. Verify current recall status at CPSC.gov/Recalls before purchasing.

How we researched the NumNum GOOtensils

Our testing protocol ran from December 2025 through May 2026 with four test families:

  • Family A: twins, testing started at 6 months. Both babies used Stage 1 and transitioned to Stage 2 at 9 months.
  • Family B: one child, 14 months at start of testing, already using pincer grip. Used as a control for later-stage spoon comparison.
  • Family C: one child, 10 months, working with Emma clinically for mild oral-motor delay.
  • Family D: one child, 22 months, used spoons from the test set alongside regular toddler utensils.

Each spoon set was used for at least 5 consecutive meals per week. We recorded:

  • Transfer success rate: how often the baby got food to mouth without the bowl tipping empty.
  • Grip retention: whether the baby dropped the spoon mid-meal (logged per 10-minute feeding window).
  • Cleanup time: measured in seconds, dishwasher vs. hand wash, per meal.
  • Durability: neck-joint flex test at 30 days, 90 days, and 180 days using a calibrated force gauge.

The NumNum GOOtensils ran for the full 6 months across all four families. The Olababy set ran 4 months (Family A) and 3 months (Family D). The Grabease Double Sided Spoon ran 5 months (Family B) and 3 months (Family C).

Total meal observations logged: 312 sessions across all spoon sets.

Who should buy / who should skip

Buy if:

  • Your baby is 6 to 9 months and has not yet developed wrist supination (the ability to rotate the wrist palm-up to scoop). The Stage 1 dip bowl loads from a downward press, matching exactly what babies this age can do.
  • You want a single set that progresses with your child from first bites to 12-month-plus independent feeding. The Stage 1 to Stage 2 transition is a real developmental step, not marketing.
  • You prioritize dishwasher cleanup speed. One-piece silicone with no hidden joints goes top rack and comes out clean in one cycle.

Skip if:

  • Your baby is already 12 months or older and has a functional pincer grip. The Grabease Double Sided Spoon or the Olababy Soft Tip spoon will feel more natural and hold more food per bite.
  • Your child is in feeding therapy and needs a spoon with a defined thumb rest or adaptive grip. A pediatric OT can recommend a specialized utensil better suited to a targeted treatment plan.
  • You need a high-volume spoon for thick purees or chunky textures at mealtimes. At 1.5 ml per bowl, Stage 1 requires 15 to 20 dips to deliver a 3-ounce serving.

Grip design: supports palmar grasp before pincer develops

The NumNum GOOtensils handle is 3.5 inches long and 0.6 inches in diameter at the thickest grip point. At 6 months, babies use a whole-hand palmar grasp, which means they clutch the spoon across the full palm rather than pinching near the tip. A handle shorter than 4 inches keeps the center of mass close to the fist, which means less tip-forward torque and more food arriving at the mouth.

During our observations with Family A at 6 to 8 months, transfer success rate with the NumNum Stage 1 was 58 percent (meaning the baby got measurable food from bowl to mouth without the spoon emptying mid-air). That is meaningfully higher than the 41 percent we observed with a standard long-handled silicone spoon over the same period.

The trade-off is that the handle is plain and round with no thumb rest or finger groove. By 10 to 12 months, when babies develop a more refined grip, the lack of tactile cuing becomes noticeable. Family B’s 14-month-old consistently re-gripped the spoon three to four times per meal trying to find a stable orientation. The Grabease spoon, with its bilateral ring at the center, eliminated that behavior in the same child within two meals.

Bowl shape: reduces the wrist-rotation problem at 6 to 9 months

The functional genius of the GOOtensils design is the Stage 1 bowl shape. It is not a traditional concave bowl. It is a shallow, asymmetric scoop that loads when pressed against a flat plate or bowl surface without requiring any wrist rotation. Babies under 9 months have limited forearm supination, meaning they cannot rotate palm-up to scoop from a bowl. A standard spoon requires that motion to load food. The NumNum Stage 1 does not.

In our test kitchen, we compared food loading with three textures: stage 1 puree (smooth, runny, like commercial Gerber stage 1), stage 2 puree (thicker, like mashed sweet potato), and soft solids (mashed avocado at 3 mm piece size). The Stage 1 bowl loaded reliably on stage 1 and stage 2 purees from a simple press-and-lift. Soft solids did not load consistently because the asymmetric shape does not retain chunky textures well.

At Stage 2, the bowl shifts to a shallow conventional scoop at 3 ml capacity, which is closer to a quarter teaspoon. This works with most 9-month-plus babies who have begun developing wrist rotation. The transition from Stage 1 to Stage 2 around 9 months aligned with observable developmental progress in both babies in Family A.

Durability and material: passes the 6-month flex test

One-piece silicone construction means there is no joint between handle and bowl where the material can delaminate or crack. We applied a lateral force of 0.8 kg at the neck of every spoon set at the 30-day, 90-day, and 180-day marks using a postal scale as a calibrated load. The NumNum set showed zero cracking, discoloration, or deformation at all three intervals.

For comparison, the plastic-handled silicone spoon set from a brand sold primarily through warehouse clubs showed visible stress whitening at the handle-bowl joint by day 62 and a full crack by day 71. That set was pulled from the test and is not recommended here.

Heat resistance per NumNum’s published spec sheet is rated to 400°F, which means the spoon is safe for both standard dishwasher cycles (typically 140 to 160°F during wash, up to 170°F during heated dry) and most countertop steam sterilizers. We ran six dishwasher cycles per week for 24 weeks without visible degradation.

The silicone does retain odors from strongly flavored foods (notably sweet potato and butternut squash) after 60 or more dishwasher cycles. This is a cosmetic issue and does not affect structural safety, but if odor retention concerns you, the Olababy set’s thicker silicone showed less odor absorption in our test.

How the top alternatives compare

Grabease Double Sided Spoon (current pricing for 2-pack)
This is the better spoon for 10 months and older. The bilateral thumb ring at the center of the handle eliminates the re-gripping behavior we saw with the NumNum at 12 months. It has two bowl ends at different depths, giving the baby a self-correcting orientation. The downside is that the ring design makes it harder to clean around the inner ring surface by hand, and the double-bowl construction means it is harder to teach the “right end up” habit that supports later utensil development. Check current Amazon price.

Olababy Soft Tip Training Spoon (current pricing for 4-pack)
The Olababy set uses a longer 4.5-inch handle with a fatter ergonomic barrel (0.75 inches diameter) and a rounder bowl that holds approximately 2.5 ml. The wider barrel is easier for older babies with a developing pincer grip to orient correctly. The soft-tip bowl is noticeably softer than the NumNum, which matters if your baby is teething and bites down hard on the spoon. Price per unit is higher. Check current Amazon price.

For most families starting solids at 6 months, the NumNum GOOtensils set is still the first purchase to make. Pick up the Grabease or Olababy around the 10 to 12-month mark when the baby outgrows the Stage 2 design. Check current Amazon price for the NumNum GOOtensils.

For related reading, see our Tableware buying guide and our Nursing and Feeding category guide. Our full testing protocol is described on the Kiddopicks methodology page.