Best Squishy Coloring Apps for Kids in 2026
Published September 18, 2026
Reviewed by BestColoringApps Editorial Team
App testing & reviews · See our review methodology
Squishy toys are, by a wide margin, the biggest toy trend of 2026 — U.S. sales hit roughly $297 million through June, about four times what they were a year earlier, with unit sales up nearly 200% to 58.6 million. Dumplings and gummy-bear-style squishables are specifically among the hottest shapes, driven by the same appeal that made fidget toys and slime viral before them: bright colors, soft rounded shapes, and the small dopamine hit of squeezing something satisfying. That trend has started showing up in the App Store too, and it’s exactly the aesthetic behind Dumpling Squishy Coloring Book, the one app in our testing rotation built specifically around it.
Why “Squishy” Works as a Coloring App Theme
The squishy toy trend isn’t really about squeezing on its own — it’s about soft, rounded, exaggerated shapes that read as huggable and non-threatening, the same visual language that makes kawaii art appealing. A coloring app can’t replicate the physical squish, but it can borrow the shape language: oversized, rounded characters with no sharp edges, food-inspired designs (dumplings, mochi, gyoza) that already look soft in real life, and a low-stakes, collectible discovery format that mirrors how kids actually engage with physical squishy toys — opening a mystery pack to see which one you got.
Our Pick
Dumpling Squishy Coloring Book applies that exact format to coloring: kids open a blind box to reveal a new squishy, food-inspired character to color, rather than picking from a flat gallery. In our testing it scored 8.3 overall, with particularly strong marks for safety (9.0) and ease of use (8.8). The blind-box mechanic adds a small sense of discovery without introducing timers or competition — closer in spirit to a surprise toy pack than a game with a win condition.
The theme is genuinely distinctive within our lineup — squishy dumplings, gyoza and other food characters rendered in a soft kawaii style we haven’t seen duplicated in any other app we’ve tested. That said, it’s a narrower niche than a general animal or fantasy app, and the mystery-box format is worth previewing yourself if you’d rather your kid pick a specific page than open a surprise one.
How We Chose
We looked for apps where the squishy, soft-shape aesthetic is genuinely built into the app’s core design — the theme of every page, not a single bonus pack — alongside our standard eight-criteria BCA Score framework. We’ll expand this list as we test more squishy-themed apps, which is likely given how fast this trend has grown over the past year.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are squishy toys so popular with kids right now? Squishy toys combine bright colors, soft textures and mystery-pack collecting — a combination that’s made them one of the fastest-growing toy categories of 2026, with U.S. sales roughly quadrupling year over year. The same soft, rounded shape language is a big part of why kawaii-style art in general appeals to the same audience.
Is a squishy-themed coloring app the same as an actual squishy toy? No — a coloring app can’t replicate the physical squeeze of a real squishy toy. What it can do is borrow the same soft, rounded visual style and the low-stakes “mystery pack” discovery format that makes physical squishy collecting appealing, applied to a coloring activity instead.
Is the blind-box mechanic in Dumpling Squishy Coloring Book a paid feature? The blind-box format determines which character you color next, not a purchase mechanic — check the app’s current App Store listing for any in-app purchase details, since pricing and store listings can change between updates.
What if my kid likes the squishy aesthetic but wants more variety? Our best kawaii coloring apps roundup covers the broader soft, rounded art style across animals and fantasy themes as well as food characters, if one squishy-food app isn’t enough variety.
Final Recommendation
If your kid is already into the squishy toy trend — or just drawn to soft, rounded, food-shaped characters — Dumpling Squishy Coloring Book is currently the clearest match for that aesthetic in our testing rotation, with strong safety and ease-of-use scores backing up the theme. Read the full Dumpling Squishy Coloring Book review for more detail.
Sources: The toy industry’s latest craze is cheap, colorful and very squishy (CNBC)
Quick Comparison
| App | Award | BCA Score | Ad-Free | Offline | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Dumpling Squishy Coloring Book | Best Squishy Coloring App | 8.3 | ✓ | ✓ | Dumpling Squishy Coloring Book is currently the only dedicated squishy-themed app in our testing rotation, and it commits fully to the niche rather than treating it as one pack among many — every character is rendered in the same soft, rounded, squishable style that's driving the toy aisle in 2026 |
Dumpling Squishy Coloring Book
A genuinely distinctive squishy-food theme — dumplings, gyoza, bao and mochi — with a low-pressure blind-box discovery mechanic.
Why we picked it: Dumpling Squishy Coloring Book is currently the only dedicated squishy-themed app in our testing rotation, and it commits fully to the niche rather than treating it as one pack among many — every character is rendered in the same soft, rounded, squishable style that's driving the toy aisle in 2026.