🎮 Learning games and sites · 🔠Science, nature and the world
NASA Space Place
By NASA (produced at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory). Visit NASA Space Place
Desk research from the maker's own pages. Not yet tried by us. Checked 2026-10-24.
NASA's free science site for upper-elementary kids, running since 1998, in English and Spanish. Kids play space games (such as talking to spacecraft with the Deep Space Network), read short explainers on the Moon, Sun and planets, try crafts, watch videos and look up words in a glossary. A monthly art challenge invites drawings, which a grown-up emails in with a release form.
Our take: A trustworthy free science corner for curious 8-12-year-olds; not a full course.
Checked in a browser
A browser check on 2026-10-25: what loads, the ads and trackers we saw, and what a child meets first. Not a hands-on test.
| Child safety: 5 out of 5 | No ads, no chat and no links to outside sites in the first screen. |
|---|---|
| Data: 4 out of 5 | Only analytics: Google Analytics/Tag Manager through the U.S. government's Digital Analytics Program (digitalgov.gov) and Parse.ly content analytics; no ad or tracking networks. |
| Ease: 4 out of 5 | A clear list of topics with icons (Space, Sun, Earth, Explore, Do, Play), though the small-caps text on black is small. |
| Cost honesty: 5 out of 5 | Free; no price shown. |
What we found
- 8 third-party hosts on 5 sites (google-analytics.com, googletagmanager.com, digitalgov.gov, parsely.com, googleapis.com).
- 11 cookies, none set by a third-party domain.
- 0 ad frames and no links to outside sites.
From the test: A clean, ad-free government site; a child can start from the Play or Explore buttons.
| Ages it suits | about 8-12 (upper elementary) |
|---|---|
| What its terms say about age | Not stated in terms. NASA's privacy policy follows COPPA and says any NASA page that collects information about a child under 13 will give its own notice and instructions. (terms) |
| Price | Free. Free (Oct 2026); a U.S. government site. |
| Works on | Web |
| Account | No account needed |
| Ads | None |
| In-app purchases | None |
| The AI in it | No AI. |
What's good
- Free, ad-free, no account
- Accurate science straight from NASA
- Spanish versions of many pages
- Hands-on crafts and activities, not just screens
Watch for
- Games are short and few
- Art challenge publishes kids' first names and ages
- No progress tracking or learning path
Data and privacy
NASA says it collects no information about you or your child beyond standard visit data unless you choose to send it, uses Google Analytics, and never creates individual profiles. Art challenge entries include the child's first name and age, which appear on the site with the artwork. Read the privacy policy.
Does it work?
The maker's own claims only; we found no independent study of the site.
In the Big Index
- On the list Top 50 free game sites for kids (2026)
- On the list 20 best free learning game sites for kids
- On the list 16 best science games and simulations for kids
- On the list Top 50 free learning sites for kids (2026)
- On the list 20 best sites for STEM projects at home
- NASA Space Place
Alternatives to NASA Space Place
Desk researchFree, with paid extrasNo ads
99math
99math (Estonia) · ages about 5-14 (grades K-8)
A low-effort, free way for teachers to make fact practice lively; parents of kids who dislike timed competition may want a calmer tool.
Desk researchFree, with paid extras
ABCya
ABCya.com LLC (a division of IXL Learning) · ages about 4-12 (pre-K to grade 6+)
Handy for quick grade-level practice in class or at home; skip if you want an ad-free experience without paying.
Desk researchPaidNo ads
Adventure Academy
Age of Learning, Inc. · ages grades 3-8 (about 8-13)
Good for kids who love online games and need a nudge toward school subjects; families wanting no social contact should set chat to off or choose a solo app.
Desk researchFree, with paid extras
Arcademics
Arcademics · ages about 6-14 (grades 1-8)
Fine for quick fact-fluency races at school or home; families who want no ad tracking or who have a child anxious about speed should skip it.
Desk researchFreeNo ads
Be Internet Awesome: Interland
Google · ages about 7-12
A good free starting point for online safety with kids 7-12, best paired with family talks since the game alone did not change behavior in testing.
Desk researchFreeNo ads
Blob Opera
David Li with Google Arts & Culture · ages about 4 and up
A delightful five-minute music toy for any age; not a music course.
Where these facts come from
- https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/
- https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/about-us/en/
- https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/menu/play/
- https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/art-challenge/en/
- https://www.nasa.gov/privacy/
Prices, terms and features change. Nobody paid to be listed, nothing here is an affiliate link, and Peabody never rates itself. Where we and the maker disagree, the maker's own pages are the ones to trust.