The brand Xiaotiancai currently dominates the Chinese children's smartwatch market, holding a 27.8% share in sales volume and a 52.6% share in sales revenue. The company maintains its leading position by leveraging high-priced models and a closed social ecosystem that prevents users from adding friends across different brands.
Data from RUNTO shows that the top four brands in the Chinese online children's smartwatch market accounted for 57.1% of sales volume and 79.9% of sales revenue in August 2026. While Xiaotiancai remains the market leader, its sales volume saw a 6.0% year-on-year decline, with slight decreases in both volume and revenue market shares compared to the previous month.
The current social exclusivity of these devices is set to change. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has developed a mandatory national standard, the Safety Technical Requirements for Children's Watches, which is scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2027.
The upcoming standard will mandate that children's smartwatches allow users to add contacts across different brands, specifically enabling the exchange of phone numbers and nicknames. Additionally, the draft prohibits the pre-installation of AI voice Q&A applications on these devices.
