Top Rated Infant Car Seats
A quality infant car seat is a necessity, and not all car seats are made in the same way. The most effective ones have features that increase crash test performance, like load legs, which are shock-absorbing parts on the base or car seat that limit movement in collisions.
Chicco KeyFit is a favorite of CPST instructors. It features an upper-right rear-facing weight and a the height limit is high and a bubble-level indicator and a spring loaded foot that can recline to make it easy to install.
Graco Mesa Max
The Graco Mesa Max ranks as one of the most simple infant car seats to use. It has an easy design and excellent fabrics. It also has an innovative feature that lets you connect the harness of your child directly to the headrest. It has a large canopy that can be put away to keep your child shaded when they travel. The only drawback is that it is slightly heavier than the average, which might be an issue if you plan to lug it around or want to use it with your UPPAbaby stroller, which is a winner.
Mesa Max's impressive crash test results reflect its commitment to safety at the highest level. It scored a high mark in the frontal impact test and a high score in the side impact test, which means that your baby is protected from both sides in a collision.
Another important safety feature is the Graco's anti-rebound panel, which reduces the forces of rebound in the event of a crash, and also safeguards your child's head. This feature is unique among infant car seats, and makes the Mesa Max standout among its rivals.
Graco Mesa Max can easily and securely be mounted in your vehicle using LATCH when used with the base included. The load leg, the recline angle adjustment as well as the indicator of tightness help ensure a fast, accurate installation. The base weighs 12.6 It is a little more than the average infant car seats but not enough to cause a problem.
The UPPAbaby Mesa V2 uses the same double-knit fabric that was used in its predecessor. It is free of chemicals that are fire-resistant. It also comes with an infinitely adjustable headrest and an extremely durable infant insert that improves the body's fit and positioning for babies approximately 4-11 lbs. The fabrics are GREENGUARD gold certified, which means they test for low chemical emissions and low VOCs.
The UPPAbaby Mesa Max is slightly more expensive than some other models, but it has premium features and advanced safety technologies for an optimal traveling experience. The base included and a range of stylish colors enhance the value proposition. Its thoughtful design and strong features provide peace of mind for parents on every trip.
Britax Boulevard ClickTight
The Britax Boulevard ClickTight is an excellent choice for anyone who wants a car seat that can expand with their child. The weight limit for rear-facing is 40 pounds, which is more than most infant car seats. It can be used forward-facing up to the point that your child is 65 pounds.
The ClickTight Installation System is its major selling point. It is the safest, most simple and secure system on the market. It allows you to tighten the seat belt by pushing an orange release button and pulling the harness strap without the need to untie it and then re-thread it. This minimizes the chance of not tightening the correct belt which is the main cause of car seat failure.
Another security feature is the EZ-Buckle Pad, which keeps the buckle away from the way when you're placing your child in the car seat. This feature, as well as beltpath cutouts on the sides of your child's seat, make it easy to get them in and out of the vehicle.
All three ClickTight convertible seat models (Boulevard CT, Marathon CT, Advocate CT) share the same features. ClickTight Installation System is one of them. Also included is an impact-absorbing frame that has 7 recline positions.
The seat is fairly heavy, but you may want to consider an alternative that is lighter if you plan to use it for travel or frequent swaps of cars. The seat is also large, which means it might not be a good fit in smaller vehicles, particularly if it's installed in the rear of the vehicle.
If you're looking for a budget-friendly option with similar quality take a look at the 4Ever DLX by Graco. The seat has lower crash test analysis scores than the Boulevard but it's an excellent choice for your child.
The Graco also has push-on connectors for LATCH, which makes it easier to remove the seat. infant car seat uk use an alternative release system that requires you to pull on the webbing, then press the gray button. This can be difficult if the webbing is tight. However this seat comes with a convenient storage cubby for the belt straps when they are not in use.
Clek Liing
If you're looking for a baby car seat that offers all of it -style, safety, convenience and luxury -- you'll love the Clek Liing. This rear-facing car seat has a high crash test score, an impressive variety of features, and is simple to install on most vehicles.
The Liing is designed to safeguard infants with features that meet or exceed both US and Canadian safety standards. It's designed for a simple, secure installation - at any seat position. It's equipped with the latest safety features like an energy-absorbing metal load leg and two-piece shells lined with EPP foam to provide greater side-impact protection. The base comes with 7 recline positions and an indicator bubble that tells you that the seat is just the perfect angle for your child.
The Liing is modern, sleek stroller that parents love. It has innovative safety features like rigid lower anchors that are easier to attach than hook-and loop connectors. The Liing comes with a single-handed release, making it simple to remove the base and use it with strollers that are compatible with it. It's also slim enough to fit three across in several vehicles, and can be easily inserted into a convertible car seats as an extra boost for travel.
The Liing infant seat earns an impressive 1st place in terms of ease of installation with its unique rigid-LATCH system. Lower anchors of the Liing snap into the seat belt slots of the vehicle and the top tether strap snaps on to the vehicle headrest. This ensures a tight and secure fit that reduces the risk that the child will be thrown around during an accident.
The seat is light, with the base weighing 9 pounds and the carrier itself at an easy 10.5 lbs. Other rear-facing only seats have a much heavier weight, but if you're planning on taking this car seat and its base everywhere the slight difference will not be too noticeable (especially once you add a baby to the mix! ).
Parents appreciate the Liing's built-in canopy and 100+spf sun-protection with a mesh peekaboo window. Caregivers love the merino cover that keeps baby warm and they also love the seat's handle's ability to pivot away from the canopy, making it more comfortable to grab whenever they need.
Graco Trio Grow SnugLock LX
The Graco Trio SnugLock LX is a 3-in-1 car seat that converts from rear-facing infant to forward-facing harness, and finally to highback booster. It has the SnugLock system that allows for a simple and smooth installation using lower anchors or vehicle seat belts. It also has the option to use the top tether when in booster mode (although we recommend using the lower anchors in all times for greater security).
We love that this chair is suitable for children of different ages. It has an infant insert designed for younger babies that supports their backs and necks. As they grow older, the insert can be removed and the seat used as a normal car seat for toddlers. This car seat is one of the few that allows you to use the top tether in booster mode, which is what we recommend.
Its base is fairly compact from front to back, which means it shouldn't pose a problem fitting into most vehicles. The headrest has to be raised to allow for the lower anchor webbing to pass through. Luckily, there's a headrest adjustment knob to easily accomplish this, and you'll be able to see the headrest position in the display window.
One of the coolest things about this seat is the SnugLock installation system that is a bar that's within the belt path. This makes installing this car seat with the lower anchors a breeze and is almost as easy as using the vehicle seat belt.
The manual also provides a great illustration of how to properly connect the lower anchor connectors when traversing them along the new belt path which may be confusing initially. Keep them away from the chest clip and crotch loop to prevent interference with the buckle system.
The Graco Trio Grow is part of the Protect Plus Engineered family, which means it's been tested to some of the most rigorous crash tests in the market. This includes tests for side, rear, and rollover crashes and frontal impact.