Usually I would say 1/4 for these kind of sites but my little sister learned alot from this site, even some sutff I wish she didn't (now she bugs me that fairy's are real...) the pets are pricey and they rip you off with that pet of the month because I have overheard my sister being mad because she didn't some toy thing because she already had that pet and you had to activate it on that month.

They are pretty expensive but if you look at it like this. you only need to get one a year, they make easy to find and pretty cheap gifts that actually do something a bit useful (makes silence in the way they will leave you alone till they are bored).

Also like the guy below, the servers they use are old and don't work well, and customer service say that you need to update you flash player or system, and even after that it won't work so that is also why I dropped it from 3/4 to 2/4

I will admit we have spent about 300 dollars buying these stuffed animals but it is worth it. The pure joy my daughter gets when the POTM (pet of the month) virtual gift arrives is worth every penny. It also teaches her to do things like feed her pet and does teach responsibility. No fear of online predators while she is on this site as well. If you are new to webkinz, I would recommend going to their site and starting with the pet of the month for the extra goodies, the kids seem to love them.

So my family has been active on Webkinz.com since 2008. It has mostly been a very positive experience. I was skeptical about safety and security at first but learned that there are many safety measures in place to protect the kids who play on it. I also had worried that my kids would want the stuffed animals so that they could then just play with them online but the animals themselves are used all the time for play. They are a great value. The games on the site serve a range of children's ages and abilities. The rooms are cute and completely customizable. There are fun daily activities and one of my kids' favourite things are the monthly "music videos" that come out.

Many areas of the site come can be accessed with the purchase of an animal and entering its code but it is worth noting that some areas still need other purchases to be accessed (some virtual, some through other product...or specific product).

The one thing we *have* found frustrating over time is the difficulty involved in connecting with friends. You have to know what colour area they are in and if you do manage to connect, it is hit and miss as to whether you will actually get to visit for long or if you will get booted out or have the thing freeze up. If that feature worked more consistently, I would give Webkinz the 4th star hands-down as there is no doubt that we've gotten good value just from the stuffed animals alone: no doubt my kids will grow up and keep at least a few of them.

(I admitedly sneak into their accounts to play games too...and I know I'm not the only parent doing that. The games are easy enough for kids but still fun enough for grown ups ;)

I used to love this website. I mean, on it 4 hours a day kinda love. But 1 day, it wouldent let me go into my room! I had to by a whole new pet just to enter. Then it kicked me out again! I would love to acually play on there again, IF ONLY THEY WOULD LET ME!!!

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T N. i heard there were a lot of other bad things about this site too - like people try to trick users into giving them personal information in exchange for cheat codes??

3/15/11  •  Votes (0)

Luna B. Im sure that has happened, but I never heard anything.

3/31/11  •  Votes (0)

Angela M. TN: My kids have been on WebKinz for years. It is highly secure and they have controls in place that all but prevent people from giving away personal info in exchange for cheat codes, such as not making it possible to type words (you have drop-down menus of words...even in the more open clubhouse and in games that use words, many words aren't allowed to be typed), and ways to contact moderators who watch the site in areas where people can be found, plus only showing the first three letters of a username so that only people who know the *whole* username can add a person as a friend. I do know that there are cheat codes but the only places to find things like that are outside forums, and users who are caught using cheat codes lose their accounts if that activity is reported. I did not buy my oldest any WebKinz pets until I knew *for sure* that it was, and still is, one of the safest online kids sites around...I've worked behind the scenes online elsewhere so I knew what security risks came with letting my kids be online anywhere.

Also, Luna...they did have it for years that if you didn't access your account for one year that it would disable your going in unless you entered in a new pet code but they have since relaxed that. You should try going back in again...anyone with a pet and an account can get onto it.

7/29/11  •  Votes (0)

Love them or hate them...either way kids want these little things. You bring them into the toy store and it seems like they are all over these guys. I thought this was just a fad like those beenie babies but for some reason kids still want them, maybe for the online games. I will say if you introduce this to a child who has never seen it before, you will be a big hit with them and in the end that is the most important thing.

Complaints about Webkinz Site - Great idea but unfortunately the site rarely works! You can't reach a live person so forget customer support. The company's FAQ responses place the blame on the user's system - browser, etc.

When I first went on the site almost one year ago, I did not experience the problems I'm having now. I assume that the Web site can't handle the volume and the company seems to be doing little to resolve this issue. I've now found a lot of similar complaints going back to 2007.