I was looking at vitamins for kids recently when a brand stopped me in my tracks. It wasn’t the brightly colored packaging that caught my attention. It was something I’d never noticed before. First Day had three separate formulas, one for toddlers, one for school-age kids, and one for teens. Each had its own nutrient profile.
It seemed so logical. I’d never even thought about it before. “If I wouldn’t take a supplement made for every adult between 18 and 65, why should a children’s vitamin company try to cover toddlers and tweens with the same dose?”
I’ve been researching supplements long enough to have a short list of trusted brands, and Hiya was always near the top. So I pulled both labels and compared them side by side. Here’s what stood out.
Vitamins for Kids: Hiya vs. First Day at a Glance
Before breaking down the details, here’s a quick snapshot of how these two brands compare.
Hiya Kids Daily Multivitamin | First Day Organic Multivitamin | |
|---|---|---|
Age Range | One formula: ages 2 through mid-teens* | Three formulas: Toddlers (2–3), Kids (4–12), Teens (13–17) |
Nutrients per Formula | 15+ | 10 (Toddlers), 9 (Kids), 12 (Teens) |
Added Sugar | 0g (sweetened with monk fruit extract and mannitol, a sugar alcohol) | 2g per serving (organic cane sugar) |
Form | Chewable tablet | Gummy |
Dosing Approach | Fixed dose | Calibrated to close common nutrient gaps at each stage without stacking on top of a normal diet |
Price | $30/mo; $15 for the first month (50% off), $30/mo after | $39/mo; $23.40/mo on subscription, up to 52% off the first order |
*Hiya’s stated age range varies by page. The FAQ page says “age 2 through mid-teens,” while some product listings say “ages 2–12.” Neither version offers a formula built specifically for older teens (13–17).
One Formula for All Ages vs. One for Each Stage
Hiya’s model is genuinely convenient. One tablet, subscription, and bottle for the household. If your kids are close in age and you want one fewer decision in the morning, that simplicity is real, and it’s worth giving credit where it’s due.
But convenience is only half the story. The National Academies divide pediatric nutrient needs into four age bands, covering 1–3, 4–8, 9–13, and 14–18, in their published Dietary Reference Intakes, because a toddler’s needs and tolerances look nothing like a preteen’s. First Day builds its three formulas around that same logic, even though its own age cutoffs (2–3, 4–12, 13–17) don’t map onto the DRI bands exactly.
Stage by Stage: What the Labels Show
Even well-fed kids can run short on specific nutrients, which is part of why choosing the right vitamins for kids requires more than scanning the label. Researchers call this hidden hunger, a micronutrient gap that shows up even on an otherwise healthy diet.
A 2025 nutrition survey analysis gives this some real shape. For instance, vitamin D and choline came up short across every age group studied, from toddlers through teens. But the specific gaps shift as kids get older. Roughly three in five toddlers fall short on choline, while about one in three kids ages 9 to 14 and one in two older teens miss the mark on folate, a gap that widens rather than stays flat.
The Linus Pauling Institute recommends a multivitamin/mineral supplement providing 100% of the Daily Value for most vitamins and essential minerals for children ages 4 and older. I compared the same nine nutrients across all three developmental stages against that standard.
Note: Hiya uses one fixed-dose tablet for every age, while First Day adjusts the milligram amounts stage by stage. That difference is what drives the percentages in the tables below.
Toddlers (Ages 2–3)
Hiya % Daily Value | First Day Toddlers’ % Daily Value | |
|---|---|---|
Vitamin A | 120% | 24% |
Vitamin C | 267% | 73% |
Vitamin D3 | 167% | 67% |
Vitamin B1 | 100% | 40% |
Vitamin B2 | 120% | 48% |
Vitamin B6 | Not included | 64% |
Folate | 133% | 25% |
Vitamin B12 | 222% | 89% |
Choline | Not included | 5% |
Vitamin K2 | DV not established | DV not established |
Zinc | 100% | Not included |
Note: K2 works alongside vitamin D3 to help direct calcium to bones, which is why both brands include it even though it has no established Daily Value.
Toddlers have smaller bodies, developing digestive systems, and lower nutrient thresholds. Some get extra nutrients from fortified cereal or milk; others go through weeks of eating almost nothing but a handful of foods, a pattern common enough that picky eating affects an estimated 22% of children under 30 months. Either way, a fixed dose built for a much wider age range doesn’t know which toddler it’s talking to.
First Day’s toddler formula stays at or below 100% of the Daily Value for every nutrient in the table above, leaving room for what toddlers already get from fortified foods and a normal diet.
Hiya delivers 100% of a toddler’s Daily Value for zinc; First Day leaves it out since it’s not a recognized toddler gap. First Day puts its attention on choline instead. It supports early brain development during the first 1,000 days of life, a window overlapping the start of this stage, and the 2025 DGAC flags it as underconsumed in infants and young children.
First Day also adds vitamin B6, which the body uses to make neurotransmitters. Unlike choline, it’s not addressing a documented gap, just a nutrient First Day chooses to include. Hiya doesn’t include B6 at any age.
Kids (Ages 4–12)
Hiya % Daily Value | First Day Kids’ % Daily Value | |
|---|---|---|
Vitamin A | 40% | 14% |
Vitamin C | 44% | 22% |
Vitamin D3 | 125% | 50% |
Vitamin B1 | 42% | 25% |
Vitamin B2 | 46% | 26% |
Folate | 50% | 20% |
Vitamin B12 | 83% | 75% |
Vitamin K2 | DV not established | DV not established |
Zinc | 27% | Not included |
Vitamin B6 | Not included | 22% |
School-age kids are growing steadily, but they aren’t yet facing puberty’s spike in nutrient demand. Most get some zinc and B vitamins from dairy, meat, and fortified grains, though the federal nutrition data cited earlier still shows real gaps at this age for vitamin D and folate.
Hiya’s vitamin D3 still exceeds 100% at this stage.
First Day’s “No Junk”™ Kids’ Multi stays below the 100% ceiling here, too. Folate and B12 percentages look lower than the Toddlers’ formula (25% to 20% and 89% to 75%), but the actual amounts increase; the drop is just the reference value climbing faster than the dose does at this age.
Hiya delivers 27% of a school-age child’s Daily Value for zinc; First Day leaves it out at this stage, too, the same call it makes for toddlers.
Teens (Ages 13–17)
Hiya % Daily Value | First Day Teens’ % Daily Value | |
|---|---|---|
Vitamin A | 40% | 26% |
Vitamin C | 44% | 72% |
Vitamin D3 | 125% | 60% |
Vitamin E | 23% | 47% |
Vitamin B1 | 42% | 32% |
Vitamin B2 | 46% | 35% |
Vitamin B6 | Not included | 47% |
Folate | 50% | 86% |
Vitamin B12 | 83% | 88% |
Magnesium | Not included | 7% |
Zinc | 27% | 18% |
Vitamin K2 | DV not established | DV not established |
Puberty changes everything. Rapid cell division drives higher demand for folate, growth spurts increase the need for B12 and vitamin C, and zinc and vitamin E become critical for hormonal development. A one-size-fits-all formula faces its hardest test here.
First Day’s “No Junk”™ Teens’ Multi ramps up folate to 86%, up from 20% in the Kids’ formula, and raises vitamin C to 72% and B12 to 88%.
Magnesium appears in First Day’s formula for the first time, matching a teenager’s hormonal development needs. First Day also bumps vitamin E to 47%, well above Hiya’s 23%, and introduces zinc conservatively at 18%, since most teens already get enough zinc from food.
With Hiya, the same dose that hit 267% of a toddler’s vitamin C reference now covers just 44% of what’s recommended for a teenager, and zinc drops from 100% to 27% over that same span.
Which Kids’ Vitamin Fits Your Family
Hiya is a solid option if your kids are close in age and you value a streamlined, sugar-free routine. It also covers a handful of nutrients First Day doesn’t, including iodine, selenium, manganese, biotin, and pantothenic acid.
But if you choose your own supplement based on what your body needs right now, First Day applies that same logic to vitamins for kids. Each formula is calibrated to close the specific hidden-hunger gaps common at that stage without stacking more on top of what a normal diet already provides.
On subscription, First Day runs about $23.40 per month, compared to Hiya’s $30. First Day also offers up to 52% off your first order with free shipping included.
This content is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice. Consult your child’s pediatrician before starting any supplement. All product details, pricing, and availability were verified at the time of publication and are subject to change without notice.
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