KidSay Trend Tracker

2026 5-7-Year-Olds

: Issue 1

WHY THIS REPORT MATTERS

Ages 5 to 7 are a blind spot in the kid market.

Too old for the preschool playbook. Too young for the big-kid one. Brands often miss this stretch because most research handles it worst.

These kids are mid-shift. They're forming real preferences, building daily habits, and negotiating with parents as they grow. The gap between what kids want and what parents allow is where brand resonance gets built or missed. The 2026 5-7 Year Old Kids Trend Tracker maps that gap with direct data from 600 U.S. kids ages 5 to 7.

Ages 5 to 7 are forming preferences faster than most brand strategies account for, and the gap between what these kids want and what parents allow is where brand resonance is being built or missed right now.

About this Report

This is the first of two annual 5-7 Year Olds Trend Trackers from KidSay, built around the stretch of childhood most research handles worst. Kids 5 to 7 are mid-shift, forming their own preferences, habits, and influence while parents still control much of the world around them. The report maps where that influence is forming, where parents still hold the line, and what both mean for brands trying to land with the youngest end of the kid market.

Issue 1 includes a 50+ page report with KidSay’s expert analysis: Executive Summary, “So What?” implications, KidProfiles, category snapshots, and trended data. Full data lives in the Trend Tracker dashboard in Tableau, where your team can filter by age, gender, race, and region, and explore the full open-ended responses behind every key question.

Key Categories & Report Features Include:

  • Favorite IP, characters, and the narrative themes driving resonance
  • Favorite TV shows, movies, and the screens kids choose for each
  • Tablet and phone ownership, frequency, and the role each device plays
  • Favorite video games and the top games inside Roblox
  • AI platform use, voice interaction, and how kids use AI with friends
  • Screen-free play, solo and with family
  • Sports, teams, and clubs with boy and girl participation gaps
  • Snack Purchase Journey: Discovery, Favorite snacks, off-limits snacks, and the negotiation tactics kids use
  • Favorite colors and aesthetic preferences
  • KidProfiles, category snapshots, and tracking charts

This Data Helps You

  • Identify where age, gender, and ethnicity behaviors, beliefs, and interests diverge.
  • Track shifts in platforms, habits, and everyday decision-making.
  • Understand how kids discover, choose, and influence brands.
  • Spot early signals with implications for content, product, partnerships, and marketing strategy.

Direct from Kids

The 2026 5-7 Year Olds Trend Tracker: Issue 1 includes a nationally representative sample of 600 U.S. kids ages 5 to 7, balanced across the four major U.S. Census regions.

KidSay’s surveys factor in current developmental psychology to ensure our syndicated studies align with kids’ cognitive abilities at each age and stage. To ensure the youngest kids in this cohort give real, valid responses, the survey is proctored by adults with explicit instructions not to interfere or suggest answers on the kids’ behalf.

Findings that impact how brands engage with young kids and families

58%

Name TV as their favorite screen for shows and movies, even though 61% own a tablet.

TV anchors where young kids watch, but the screen and the content have split. The shared screen looks like oversight while the content on it fragments.

45%

Say when it comes to snacks adults don’t want them to have, they’re learning how to work the gatekeeper.

Snacking is where these kids run their first real purchase journey. The report includes the off-limits snacks and the specific tactics kids use to get a yes.

27%

Name Roblox their favorite phone or tablet game, more than 3x Candy Crush at 9%.

Roblox is the platform. The question framing matters. When asked about “video games” instead of mobile games, the responses shift significantly.

→ See the full data preview for the methodology, full findings, and category breakouts.

Frequently Asked Questions

Common Questions About KidSay’s Trend Tracker

Answers to what teams most often want to know before they purchase or schedule a call.

Can I get a package of reports?2026-06-22T14:04:22-05:00

Yes. Most clients access the Trend Tracker through a multi-report subscription that includes dashboard access for two users and the option to add Early Trend Alerts. Talk to KidSay to find the right fit for your team’s questions and goals.

How is KidSay different from other kids and families research firms?2026-06-24T09:03:38-05:00

KidSay tracks four developmentally accurate cohorts (2-4, 5-7, 8-11, 12-15) and recruits primarily through a school-based network rather than online panels. Since the 2020 pandemic, parents and 5-7-year-olds have been surveyed using online panels as the sole recruitment source.

Tweens & Teens: Age breaks that make sense with kids’ development, not just generic ‘teen’ labels. Other firms often define “tween” as ages 8–12, which collapses 3rd graders who are in the midst of elementary school with 6th graders who have transitioned to middle school and socializing among 13 and 14-year-olds.

Families: We talk to both moms and dads. In 2026, the notion that moms are exclusively the gatekeeper of the family is just not true anymore. Dads are actively involved in many decisions about the household more broadly and impacting kids’ behaviors and preferences. KidSay’s Trend Tracker Family Report Study takes that into account and gives you a look at where parents’ influence is the same and where it diverges.

Our network extends beyond the family into the adults who know kids from an unbiased perspective, the educators with whom they spend 3/4 of the year in their schools.

Can I insert a list of key brands or other custom questions in the next reporting period?2026-06-22T13:10:43-05:00

Yes. Clients often add custom questions to get a nationally representative read on their brand and competitors, or to understand specific opportunities to engage with their audience. It’s a way to get bespoke insight alongside the breadth of value KidSay’s Trend Trackers already deliver. Talk to KidSay to learn more.

How does KidSay’s relationship with schools work?2026-06-22T13:39:30-05:00

KidSay’s incentive structure is built to help schools afford extra-budgetary expenses that improve the educational and developmental experience for students. In-school coordinators also receive an incentive for facilitating the research. Clients can feel good knowing their work with KidSay supports the environments where kids spend the most time in childhood outside of sleep.

Is dashboard access included with the Trend Tracker?2026-06-22T13:58:01-05:00

Yes. Every Trend Tracker purchase includes dashboard access for two users, with the ability to filter data by age, gender, and other key segments and explore open-ended responses directly.

What ages does the Trend Tracker cover?2026-06-22T13:40:04-05:00

KidSay’s Trend Tracker focuses on U.S. kids ages 8–15, broken out by age cohorts (tweens 8–11 and teens 12–15) and gender. KidSay also publishes a separate Young Kids Trend Tracker covering ages 5–7, and Family Reports covering moms and dads of kids ages 2–15.

How often does KidSay talk to this audience?2026-06-22T13:11:53-05:00

KidSay fields Trend Tracker research with kids ages 8–15 every quarter, with kids ages 5–7 twice annually, and with moms and dads of kids ages 2–15 twice annually. This cadence keeps clients close to behavioral and cultural shifts as they happen.

Does KidSay use panels?2026-06-22T13:12:36-05:00

Trend Tracker respondents are recruited first through KidSay’s exclusive network of schools across the U.S. When needed, panels are used to fill recruitment gaps, but real kids in real schools remain the primary source. Clients can trust they’re hearing from verified kids, not just AI-filled panels or proxies.

How long has KidSay been doing kids and families research?2026-06-24T09:04:51-05:00

KidSay has been studying kids and families since 1997, with the Trend Tracker study launching in 2000, giving us 26 years of trended data on the same audience. That longitudinal depth lets us separate what’s actually new from what’s been true about childhood for decades.

Related Reports

2026 5-7-Year-Olds Trend Tracker

Kids 5 to 7 are mid-shift, forming their own preferences, habits, and influence while parents still control much of the world around them. The report maps where that influence is forming across their lives and includes a Purchase Journey focused on snacks.

Q1 2026 Trend Tracker

Across many digital behaviors, the gap between tween (8–11) and teen (12–15) cohorts matters more than the gap between boys and girls. Platform behavior is fragmenting fast, AI is no longer emerging, and economic independence is arriving earlier than most brand strategies account for. The Q1 2026 Trend Tracker gives brand, insights, and strategy teams the age and gender breakouts they need to plan smarter content, partnerships, products, and marketing — without flattening the audience into a single “kids” bucket.

About KidSay

KidSay has been serving brands with timely audience intelligence on kids and families for more than 25 years. Our trend reports provide brands with a direct connection to kids’ lives from their own perspective. KidSay Trend Tracker is a US-based nationally representative syndicated survey that utilizes KidSay’s exclusive network of schools as its primary recruitment source.

Need more information on bundling this and other KidSay reports?

2026-08-07T14:13:21-05:00

KidSay is the leader in youth market research, trend reporting, and strategy for brands seeking to understand and engage kids, tweens, teens, and families.

Our nationwide network of 500+ schools provides a direct connection between brands and young people. We help our partners reveal the authentic values, behaviors, attitudes and aspirations of the target audience.

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