A yellow tape measure stretched across a dewy lawn toward a rolled-up bounce house, a hand holding the case at the right edge

Guides

Start with a tape measure.

By Chip H. · Updated

Plan the yard and the day first, then pick the bounce house. The guides below run in that order.

If you haven't measured yet, start with Yard Fit. Type in the lawn you can spare and it sorts every unit on GoJumps into the ones that fit with their clear zone added and the ones that don't. Read the safety guide before the first party, for the wind limits in the manuals and how the stakes go in, and the blower guide before you reach for an extension cord.

Still deciding what to own? The residential vs commercial guide sorts out nylon, vinyl and what "commercial grade" means on a listing, and the rent or buy calculator finds the play day where buying pays off, using your own rental quote and price. After that, the buying guides sort the picks by the yard they need and the kids they suit, from toddlers to big kids.

Plan it first.

The lawn, the stakes, the power and the budget, settled before anything ships.

Top-down view of a fenced backyard lawn with a bounce house and its slide along one side, a tree reaching over the corner Yard Fit Will it fit your yard? Type in your lawn and see which units fit once their clear zone is added, biggest first, with the near misses after them. Leave it blank and it reads as a size chart.
A black webbing strap running from the base of a coral and blue bounce house to a steel J-hook stake in the lawn Safety guide Anchoring, wind and the rules Wind limits from the manuals, how the stakes go in, concrete and indoor setups, and a two-minute check. A black electric blower on the lawn, its blue fabric tube running into a red, yellow and blue bounce house Blower guide Blowers, cords and rain The blower ratings printed for our units, extension cords and GFCI, run time and replacements. Close-up of a stitched seam where a coral fabric panel meets a glossy sky blue vinyl panel on an inflatable Materials guide Residential vs commercial Woven polyester or PVC vinyl, side by side: weight, blower, warranty and the safety standard. A tidy garage at golden hour, its door open onto the lawn, a bounce house in its carry bag on a shelf and a blower on the floor Rent or buy Rent it, or buy it? A break-even calculator on your rental quote and price, then what owning takes.

Then pick one.

Every pick is drawn to scale inside its clear zone, with its weight limit and ages from the spec table or the manual.

Two kids playing on a blue and coral bounce house with a slide in a fenced backyard at sunset Buying guide Backyard bounce houses The main shortlist in three groups: the backyard classics, smaller yards for younger kids, and bigger yards for bigger kids.
A backyard bounce house with an attached slide Bounce houses with slides From compact combos under 11 feet to long slides and double lanes. An inflatable water slide with a splash pool Water slides Racing lanes, climbing walls and splash pools for the hot days. A small, low-walled toddler bouncer Toddler and indoor Small bouncers, indoor units and play yards for ones and twos. A large combo bounce house built for older kids Big kids Higher limits for older kids, from big castles to commercial vinyl.