I'm going to be straight with you: potty training was not on my list of "fun dad experiences." It was on my list right below "explaining why the dog ate the remote" and just above "finding out what that smell in the minivan was." We started the whole process with my daughter Rosie about six months ago, and I'll just say there were some very long afternoons involved.
⚡ Key Takeaways
- A comfortable, stable potty seat makes a bigger difference than you'd expect — kids will avoid an uncomfortable one.
- Sticker charts work, but only if the reward feels exciting to your specific kid. Know your audience.
- A step stool isn't optional if you're using the regular toilet — it's about comfort and confidence.
- Training pants are helpful, but don't over-rely on them or they can slow down the process.
Rosie, to her credit, had opinions about everything. Strong ones. The potty seat had to be pink. The step stool had to match. The rewards had to be "the good stickers, Daddy, not the boring ones." So between her very specific taste and my desperate need for something — anything — to actually work, we went through a lot of products.
Some of them were genuinely great. One was a waste of money. Most were somewhere in the middle. Here's the honest breakdown of what we actually used, what Rosie approved, and what I'd tell any dad standing in the baby aisle looking slightly panicked.
#1: BabyBjörn Potty Chair
This is the one item I'd buy again without hesitation. It's sturdy, easy to clean (the inner bowl just lifts out), and low enough to the ground that Rosie could get on and off it herself — which, as any parent knows, is half the battle. The only minor gripe is the price tag; it's more expensive than the basic plastic options at the big box store.
Rosie declared it "the comfy one" after trying two other chairs, which I'll take as a five-star review from our most demanding tester.
🧔 Dad's take: Worth every penny, and I say that as someone who initially balked at spending that much on a tiny plastic toilet.
#2: Toddler Potty Training Seat with Handles (toilet ring insert)
Once Rosie decided she wanted to use the "big potty like Daddy," this insert became essential. The handles on the sides gave her something to grip, which helped a lot with the whole sitting-still situation. It fits most standard toilet seats and stores fairly easily on the side of the toilet. The padding on the seat made it noticeably more comfortable than a bare ring.
She called it her "special seat" and would remind guests not to move it, which was an interesting social situation at Thanksgiving.
🧔 Dad's take: If your kid is ready to graduate to the full toilet, this is a smart, inexpensive bridge.
#3: Squatty Potty Kids Step Stool
Pair this with the toilet ring insert and suddenly using the big bathroom feels manageable to a two-and-a-half-year-old. The non-slip surface kept Rosie from sliding around, and the slight angled shape actually supports better posture for little ones — which apparently matters more than I realized. It does take up a decent chunk of floor space in a smaller bathroom, so fair warning there.
Rosie uses it independently now and honestly seems proud every single time she climbs up, which is one of those small dad moments that sneaks up on you.
🧔 Dad's take: Don't underestimate a good step stool — it turns the regular toilet from scary to accessible.
#4: Potty Training Reward Sticker Chart
We tried two different sticker chart sets, and honestly, the results were mixed. The charts themselves are fine — colorful, motivating in theory, and they did get some genuine excitement out of Rosie for the first week or so. The problem is that novelty wears off, and then you're back to negotiating from scratch. Some kids stay motivated by them a lot longer than others.
Rosie's verdict was enthusiastic at first — "MORE STICKERS, DADDY" — and then approximately twelve days later she was completely over it and wanted candy instead, which felt like a defeat I didn't see coming.
🧔 Dad's take: Cheap enough to try, but manage your expectations — it's a spark, not a long-term solution.
#5: Disposable Potty Training Pants (pull-ups style)
I know this is a controversial take, and yes, I know they have their place for nighttime and long car trips. But we made the mistake of leaning on pull-ups too heavily during daytime training, and they genuinely seemed to slow things down. They're comfortable enough that kids don't always register the feedback of having an accident, which is kind of the whole point of the discomfort. Multiple parents I've talked to had the same experience.
Rosie treated them basically like diapers with a fun character on the front, which is adorable and also entirely unhelpful when you're trying to potty train.
🧔 Dad's take: Save them for overnight and travel — using them during the day might be making your job harder.
If I had to give one piece of advice to a dad at the start of this process, it would be this: set up the environment for success before you even start. Get the right seat, the right stool, maybe a chart or a small reward system — and then let your kid lead the pace more than you think you should. The times I pushed too hard made things worse. The times I backed off and just made sure the tools were there, things moved forward on their own.
Rosie is mostly trained now, with the occasional dramatic nighttime exception, and looking back the products that worked were the ones that made the whole thing feel safer and more comfortable for her — not the ones that were supposed to make it faster for me. If you've found something that worked for your family, I'd genuinely love to hear it in the comments. We're all just out here figuring it out one accident at a time.