Sizes for a 2 year old

Clothes, shoes, bike, scooter, helmet and bedtime sizes for a 2 year old, all on one page and taken from UK retailers' own charts.

Checked against UK retailer charts on 18 October 2026.

Clothes

Usually 2–3 years (cut for up to 98 cm at Boden)

Shoes

Typically around UK 5 to 7, but measure their feet

Bike

Balance bike or 12" wheels

Bike helmet

Toddlers size, about 44–50 cm head circumference

Duvet

Cot bed duvet (120 × 150 cm), 3–4.5 tog

Clothes

UK shops label children's clothes by age but cut them to a height. A label like "2–3 years" fits a child from their 2nd birthday up to their 3rd, so a 2 year old is usually in 2–3 years. Boden prints the maximum height for each label:

John Lewis uses single-age labels. Its "2 years" size is cut for the height a child reaches at 2, which is the same as Boden's "1–2". That is why one shop's 2 feels small next to another's 2–3.

If they're between sizes, go by height first, then chest for tops and waist for bottoms. More on this in kids’ clothes sizes by height.

Shoes

Two UK shoe shops publish an "average size by age". They don't quite agree, so you get a range:

Feet vary more than height does, so measure heel to longest toe in centimetres and use the kids’ shoe size chart by foot length. Buying a European brand? Use the EU to UK shoe size converter.

Bike

Most 2 year olds start on a balance bike rather than pedals. Hornit sizes its 12" balance bike for an inside leg of 30–46 cm, roughly 18 months to 5 years. Trek lists 12" pedal bikes for about 2–4 years and 86–102 cm tall.

Cycling UK's rule of thumb: the wheel diameter in inches should be no bigger than the child's inside leg in inches. Full tables in the kids’ bike size chart and the balance bike size guide.

Scooter

A three-wheel "mini" scooter. Micro designs its Mini for ages 2–5. Whatever the brand, the handlebar should sit somewhere between belly button and mid-chest. See scooter size by age.

Bike helmet

Halfords' guide puts 2 year olds in its Toddlers size (First years), 44–50 cm. Helmets are sized by head circumference, not age, so measure about two finger-widths above the eyebrows. Fit checks are in the helmet size guide.

Bed and duvet

Duvets and pillows are not for babies under 12 months (NHS). Once they are over 12 months and ready for a duvet, a cot bed or toddler bed takes a 120 × 150 cm duvet. Dunelm recommends a lightweight 3–4.5 tog for toddlers.

More detail in what tog duvet for a child and what to wear to bed by room temperature. Pyjamas follow the same age labels as clothes: see kids’ pyjama sizes.