LeapFrog
Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 3 November 2026 · 6 sources
VTech-owned brand of electronic learning toys and kids' tablets.
There's no proof LeapFrog pays more than the legal minimum, which in China and Malaysia is below a living wage, and it has no full independent audit.
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Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 2 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It has 3 red flags: no evidence of a living wage, unaudited production in high-risk countries and untraced high-risk mined materials. Two or more red flags means a poor grade.
- It isn't Harm on record, because there's no serious confirmed problem on its record.
- Lacks transparency is still a poor grade: in supply chains like this, workers who can't be seen to be treated fairly are usually underpaid or unprotected.
Good requirements 2 of 6
- Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
- Not met: Respects worker rightsMost of its products are made in China and Malaysia, where unions are heavily restricted, and it has no full supply chain audit.
- Not met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standards
- Met: No child or forced labour findings or links
- Met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that listMakes its products in its own factories
- Not met: Traces its cobalt, gold and other conflict minerals to the mine
Red flags 3
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
- Red flag: Made mostly in countries with poor worker rights, without a full independent audit of its supply chain
- Red flag: Relies on high-risk mined materials it can't traceShown to explain the grade. It isn't one of the 2 red flags that set it.
- Red flag: Fails its category's raw-material check (means Lacks transparency)
Stars it would earn as Good
None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
Where it's made
From VTech Holdings' supplier list, which covers LeapFrog and its sister brands. LeapFrog publishes no breakdown of its own, so the countries shown are the group's.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| Malaysia | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
Evidence
What we found
- Risk across the industry, not a finding about this company: cobalt, tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold mining carry child and forced labour risk (DR Congo, Indonesia), and assembly overtime is widespread.
- Owns or runs its own production
- Modern slavery statement
- Relies on metals such as cobalt, gold and tin from artisanal mines where miners, including children, face toxic dust, mercury exposure and deadly tunnel collapses. It hasn't shown any steps to trace these materials to the mine, so it's graded Lacks transparency until it does.
Research notes LeapFrog products are made in parent VTech's own factories in China and Malaysia; no shares by country are given. VTech says it has followed the Responsible Business Alliance code since 2012 and ran CSR audits on 135 suppliers in FY2026, but publishes no audit results, no supplier list and no independent audits of its own factories, and says only that pay meets or exceeds legal minimums. LeapFrog publishes nothing separately. No confirmed labour abuses were found.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| UK Modern Slavery Statement Registry | Listed | Covered by parent VTech's joint modern slavery statement, which names Leap Frog Toys (UK) Limited. View |
| Australian Modern Slavery Register | Listed | Covered by VTech Holdings' modern slavery statement filed with its Australian subsidiaries. View |
Sources and actions
Sources 6
Show all 6 sources
- VTech Holdings Annual Report 2026 (HKEX) · search the archive · Own factories in Dongguan and Qingyuan, China, and Muar and Penang, Malaysia; Muar expansion to double Malaysian capacity by 2027
- LeapFrog (Big W) · search the archive · LeapFrog toys sold by Big W in Australia
Published by LeapFrog or its owner
- About VTech · search the archive · Hong Kong-based maker of learning toys and phones with own manufacturing in mainland China, Malaysia, Germany and Mexico; owns LeapFrog
- VTech Modern Slavery Statement FY2021 (LeapFrog site) · search the archive · Statement covers Leap Frog Toys (UK); VTech factories in China, Malaysia and Mexico; in-house supplier audits all passed
- VTech Modern Slavery Statement FY2023 · search the archive · Over 20,000 staff; 182 suppliers audited in-house in FY2024, all passed; no forced labour found; pay meets or exceeds legal minimums
- VTech Sustainability Report 2026 · search the archive · Over 19,000 staff; factories in mainland China, Malaysia and Mexico; follows RBA code since 2012; CSR audits of 135 suppliers in FY2026, no results given
Company details
- Owned by
- VTech Holdings (Hong Kong)
- Headquarters
- United States
- Last researched
- 3 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is LeapFrog ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/leapfrog, last researched 3 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
Better-graded laptops and computers
Nothing new in laptops and computers that we've rated is better than Lacks transparency yet. Second-hand and refurbished goods create no new factory work, so they're Good by rule and come first.
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent LeapFrog.