If the global success of open-ended games like Minecraft have taught the kids digital media community anything, it’s that creativity knows no bounds.

At least that rings true when it comes to the latest stats from analytics database App Annie, which shows that Dr. Panda’s Toy Cars from TribePlay is currently the number-one educational iPad app across the US, Canada, France, Japan, Italy, South Korea, Russia, China, Netherlands, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK.

Global appetites for similar play-based apps also mean Toca Boca’s Toca Hair Salon 2 also falls within the top-five apps in more than half of these countries.

China-based TribePlay’s suite of Dr. Panda games, which surpassed a total of 22 million downloads last week after launching Toy Cars on May 8, share striking similarities to Toca Boca’s role-play model, as both games hinge on honing kids’ creative skills, as opposed to being steeped in math and languages.

Read on for the most recent snapshot of the global app charts.

Top five paid educational iPad apps

US

Dr. Panda’s Toy Cars – TribePlay

Wallykazam! Letter and Word Magic HD – Nickelodeon

Stack the States – Freecloud Design

Toca Hair Salon 2 – Toca Boca

Wild Kratts World Adventure – PBS KIDS

Canada

Dr. Panda’s Toy Cars – TribePlay

Toca Hair Salon 2 – Toca Boca

Explain Everything – MorrisCooke

Playtime With Dora the Explorer – Viacom International

Dinosaur Train A to Z – PBS KIDS

Australia

Explain Everything – MorrisCooke

Dr. Panda’s Toy Cars – TribePlay

Rainbow Loom Designs Pro – Guide for Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced & Charms – Sapphire Apps

Toca Hair Salon 2 – Toca Boca

Eggy 250 HD – Blake eLearning

Netherlands

Dr. Panda’s Toy Cars – TribePlay

Dr. Panda’s Airport – TribePlay

Playtime With Dora the Explorer – Viacom International

Dr. Panda’s Supermarket – TribePlay

Letters leren lezen – Juf Jannie Shoto

Singapore

Dr. Panda’s Toy Cars – TribePlay

Toca Hair Salon 2 – Toca Boca

Toca Cars – Toca Boca

Toca Train – Toca Boca

Team Umizoomi: Zoom into Numbers HD – Viacom International Inc.

UK

Dr. Panda’s Toy Cars – TribePlay

Theory Test UK HD, Driving Test Success – Focus Multimedia

Toca Hair Salon 2 – Toca Boca

Star Walk HD – 5 Stars Astronomy Guide – Vito Technology

Explain Everything – MorrisCooke