baby travel harness seat

The 11 Best Travel High Chairs If Your Take Your Kid Out for Meals Often

The portability will make feeding baby — sometimes a fraught endeavor to begin with — a bit easier.

If you buy something from the links on this page, we may earn a commission. Why Trust Us?

If you've never bought one before, you're probably overwhelmed by all of the options and don't know how to determine which travel high chair is best for you — but don't worry, we have you covered. They're a great thing to add to your registry because of their more affordable price point, and they make a great gift for new parents if you're shopping.

The Best Travel High Chairs

• Best Overall: Cozy Seat Cover
• Best Budget Soft Seat: Nuby Travel Seat
• Easiest to Set Up: Chicco Travel Seat
• Great Silicone Placemat: PandaEar Travel Seat
• Most Stable for Baby: Ingenuity 2-in-1

What to Consider

Buying a travel high chair isn't a huge task, but there are a few things that you should look at when you're considering buying one. First and foremost, take into account portability , how easy it is to clean, and cost.

Portability

You want a travel high chair that's lightweight, easy to fold, and easy to stow away. If it doesn't travel well, is it even a travel high chair? We don't think so. Some come with a carrying bag, some have a strap for easy travel, and some fold up tight for small spaces.

Cleanability

Cleaning fabric on high chairs can be a pain. Is it machine-washable ? Thankfully, most travel high chairs are a cinch to clean. The more parts involved, obviously, the trickier cleaning it is, so keep that in mind if you're going to be using it a lot.

You could go with a classic high chair that attaches directly to a table, with arms that serve as cantilevers to hold the baby up safely. You can also opt for booster-style seats that strap onto a regular chair at a restaurant or someone's home.

Another option is pop-out foldable boosters, which are suited best for older children who don't need as much lift to get to the table. Rounding out the list are travel high chairs that are compact versions of the real deal. These are generally made with rugged nylon and aluminum posts and conveniently fold up like an umbrella.

How We Chose

We chose these high chairs based on extensive testing and real-parent reviews. We compared prices, materials, and overall quality to determine usefulness, durability, and value. We put them through their paces with several young and messy humans, and these are the best. Check out these picks if you're shopping for travel high chairs.

Cozy Cover The Original Easy Seat Portable High Chair

Have a washing machine? Have a baby over six months or a toddler up to 35 pounds who wiggles a ton? Like to eat out and need a place to keep them contained? Meet the Cozy Cover Easy Seat.

It has a five-point removable harness for babies and a three-point strap for toddlers, and it just slides over a chair, secures at the bottom, and then you're off to the races. It comes with its own cover that is machine-washable (which is the biggest benefit that parents love about it), but they also remark on how durable it is. This chair can really take some abuse.

The only downside is that it doesn't work on all seats. Our tester noted that low backs on chairs or chairs of odd shapes don't work as well.

More: The Best Suitcases for Kids

Nuby Easy Go Safety Lightweight Travel High Chair Booster Seat

This is a toddler seat designed for kids from nine months to 55 pounds. It can be secured to most chairs, but it doesn't fold as compactly as a slip model. That's not to say it's not compact —you can easily fit this in a standard Skip Hop diaper bag — but it's just a little bit bulkier.

Another great little option is that the high-density foam seat can be removed for comfort. It features a wipe-clean oil and water-resistant fabric, and a three-point harness. It’s a great travel high chair and it’s nice to have “just in case” in your trunk or under your stroller.

Even when we repeatedly used Lysol wipes on this chair while testing it out, the slick finish of the seat remained strong and unwarped. Lysol wipes can deteriorate finishes — and they didn't on this one.

PandaEar Portable Baby Seat Travel High Chair

This product came as a personal recommendation from a few parents. It's a great option because it folds up tiny when you're not using it.

The chair itself is made of typical camp chair material that's easy to clean off. The tray has this wonderful silicone placemat that fits inside that you throw in your dishwasher. You could even throw the entire thing on the porch and hose it down with some dish soap.

Chicco Pocket Snack Booster Seat Travel High Chair

You can be on the go or just in your dining room with this Pocket snack booster seat from Chicco. It folds completely flat, and it has a carrying strap. So no matter where you are or where you're going, you'll have a place for your baby.

Chicco made this utterly washable, multi-height position chair with a removable tray so that it works as a booster as well. Suitable for babies from when they can sit up unassisted to 50 pounds. And the easy 3-point harness? It takes a ton of effort to get it gunked up. (Our testers said not even grits could take it down!

Fisher-Price Healthy Care Deluxe Washable Booster Seat Travel High Chair

If you are a major fan of Lysol or Clorox wipes , this is the travel high chair for you.

It's not as compact as some of the others, though it does fold up. But the whole thing can be wiped down easily. The straps are even easy to clean. Plus, it stays clean, thanks to having such few spaces for food to get trapped in.

And it is meant for the long haul. Two different tray options click together for storage: One is plain and flat and the other is portioned out. It goes from a high back travel high chair and also transforms into a booster, giving it a second life. It can be used for babies from six months old until they no longer need it.

Ciao! Baby Camping Travel High Chair

If you go camping, spend a lot of time outside, or just want an ultra-light, collapsible high chair that doesn't need a table and chairs, this is our favorite .

This chair has a five-point harness, so it can be used for babies as soon as they can sit up on their own. It's made of a vinyl-coated canvas, which means it can easily be sprayed off with a hose, wiped clean with a cloth, or sprayed down with your favorite cleaning spray. It also has a cup holder for babies, which may not completely prevent them from flinging their bottle, but it may help. It collapses into a small bag and only weighs about eight pounds.

Users note that this is the perfect choice for the beach, the woods, or the backyard, thanks to the fabric's ease of cleanup and durability. It's an outdoor fabric, and it can take a beating.

Baby Delight Go with Me Venture Travel High Chair

Your child can start using this chair starting at 3 months of age, and they can use it virtually until second or third grade or until they reach 75 pounds. It’s not just a high chair or camp chair with a canopy — it’s also a beach chair for kids .

It has a five-point harness, removable tray, and cup holder, but the sneaky part is that the whole top piece and footrest come off to make it into a shaded chair for your kids.

Even better, the entire thing fits into a sling bag, and the extremely durable polyester can be hosed or wiped off easily.

Wiggly-butt babies have something to push against with the footrest, and you can rest easy knowing it’s safe and stable because they’re so close to the ground.

Ingenuity Baby Base 2-in-1 Booster Feeding and Floor Travel High Chair

You get a lot of mileage out of this travel high chair that also happens to double as a baby floor seat . It's a soft seat molded to help keep the baby in a comfortable seated position with a removable dining tray and straps to affix it to the seat at a restaurant or home.

It has a luxe feel and keeps babies from wiggling around so much while they eat. It's sort of like a hug around the lower torso and legs, rooting them into the seat. Think of any assisted-sitting chair, and this is a little like that, but not quite as high-backed.

It's easy to clean thanks to the non-porous surface, and though it would be better if it were easier to carry around, it's overall a great product.

Phil & Teds Lobster Clip-On Travel High Chair

More than a few parents use this narrow travel high chair as their everyday high chair. It's suitable for use from six months or up to 37 pounds, and because it takes up such little room, it can be a great option for smaller spaces.

The chair itself is extremely durable. The cover is machine-washable and the tray is dishwasher-safe. The only drawback of this chair is that it doesn't work with round tables or glass.

Parents love how small it is, fitting well in tight kitchens. They also love how easy it is to attach, noting that the clasps are simple and durable.

Chicco QuickSeat Hook-On Travel High Chair

Chicco is good at making it easy for parents to remove their product covers for washing — and the Quick Seat is no different. With the unsnapping of just a few snaps, it's off and ready for the machine in a jiff.

It's suitable for babies from six months or up to 37 pounds, and the generously sized tray is also super easy to clean.

But that's not even the best part. Most claw-style chairs use some sort of twist or crank to attach them to the table. Not the Chicco — it does it with just a pull of a cinch in the back, making it the easiest travel high chair to set up by a mile.

And that's the biggest reason people love this chair: There's no guesswork. Users note they can hold the baby in one hand and easily get the seat attached using their other hand and their hip. (Your hip becomes a third hand when you're parenting a baby, it's true.)

Summer Infant Pop ‘n Sit Portable Travel High Chair

We get that a camp-style chair just doesn't cut it sometimes — so if you're on the hunt for one with a hard tray, this is the one for you.

It's good for babies six months or up to 35 pounds, and the fabric is removable and machine-washable.

It all folds up into a carrying case just slightly larger than an umbrella, save the tray. This chair has a fun zippered pocket on the side to hold whatever you want like plastic cutlery and wipes.

Parents love how much legroom this model has. It's good for chunky baby thighs or bulky sweatsuits. Plus, pretty much everyone loves the cheerful fabric and the grippy bottoms of the feet for stability.

Baby Essentials

The Best Baby Carriers of 2024

The Best Rotating Car Seats for Squirmy Kids

The 9 Best Travel Bottle Warmers

The Best Stretch Mark Removal Creams

The Best Double Strollers for Growing Families

The 15 Best Pacifiers to Soothe Your Baby

13 Best Jogging Strollers for Every Type of Runner

The Best Baby Gates for Safety and Style

13 Best Baby Bassinets for Safer Slumber

The Best Baby Swings to Soothe Your Little Ones

The 6 Best Car Seats of 2024

• Safety Equipment
• Safety Harnesses

Image Unavailable

• To view this video download Flash Player

liuliuby Travel Harness Seat - Fabric Baby Portable High Chair for Travel - Travel High Chair Seat Sack - Portable Baby Seat with Safety Harness – Parent Pouch Must Haves Baby Travel Essential

Return policy.

Tap on the category links below for the associated return window and exceptions (if any) for returns.

Returns Policy

You can return most new, unopened items fulfilled by Amazon AU within 30 days of receipt of delivery for a replacement or full refund of the price you paid for the item if you change your mind - see About Replacements and About Refunds .

In some cases, the nature of the item means that it is non-returnable, for example, due to hygiene/health and personal care/wellness/consumable nature of the product. In some circumstances, these items may be eligible for a refund or a replacement (for example, if you receive the wrong item due to an Amazon AU error or if the item is faulty). Please Contact Us and see About Items That Can’t Be Returned .

Unless otherwise stated, original shipping fees for change of mind returns are not refunded. This change of mind return policy is in addition to, and does not affect your rights under the Australian Consumer Law including any rights you may have in respect of faulty items.

To return faulty items see our Returning Faulty Items policy .

For items ordered on Amazon.com.au from a seller that fulfils and ships its own inventory (also called a third party seller), any returns will be in accordance with the returns policy set by that seller (not the Amazon AU returns policies). Please see About Marketplace Returns & Refunds for details on Seller returns policies.

Please see our Amazon Global Store Returns policy and Refunds policy for more information about returning Amazon Global Store items.

More details: About Our Returns Policies

Video Games and Music

Software and dvd, camera, electronics and pc.

New electronic items fulfilled by Amazon AU can be returned for change of mind, for a replacement or a full refund of the purchase cost of the item within 30 days of receipt of delivery.For information about returning faulty electronics please see Returning Faulty Items.

Office Products and Wireless

Musical instruments, home entertainment, homes and lawn & garden, automotive and tools, sports, toys and outdoors, kitchen and home improvement, grocery and pet products.

If fulfilled by Amazon AU, this item is non-returnable due to hygiene/health and personal care/wellness/consumable nature of the product. In some circumstances, these items may be eligible for a refund or a replacement (for example, if you receive the wrong item due to an Amazon AU error or if the item is faulty). Please Contact Us and see About Items That Can’t Be Returned .

This change of mind return policy is in addition to, and does not affect your rights under the Australian Consumer Law including any rights you may have in respect of faulty items. To return faulty items see our Returning Faulty Items policy.

Amazon AU does not accept returns for items sold and fulfilled by third-party sellers. To determine whether items sold and fulfilled by a third-party seller can be returned, check the returns policy set by that seller.

Baby Products

You may return most new, unopened baby items fulfilled by Amazon AU within 90 days of receipt of delivery for a replacement or full refund of the price you paid for the item if you change your mind - see About Replacements and About Refunds . Change of mind returns of baby items fulfilled by Amazon AU will qualify for Free Returns shipping if the item detail page includes "Free Returns" messaging. Otherwise original shipping fees for change of mind returns are not refunded.

Note: Breast pumps returned for change of mind must be unused in their original condition with the factory seal and packaging intact.

This change of mind return policy is in addition to, and does not affect your rights under the Australian Consumer Law including any rights you may have in respect of faulty items.

To return faulty items see our Returning Faulty Items policy.

Apparel, Jewelry and Watches

You may return most new, unopened items fulfilled by Amazon AU within 30 days of receipt of delivery for a replacement or full refund of the price you paid for the item if you change your mind - see About Replacements and About Refunds . Amazon AU offers free returns shipping for change of mind returns on eligible items. Look for the "Free Returns" messaging on the detail page of an item to confirm if it is eligible for free returns. Please also see About Free Returns . Otherwise, original shipping fees for change of mind returns are not refunded.

This change of mind return policy is in addition to, and does not affect your rights under the Australian Consumer Law including any rights you may have in respect of faulty items .

Beauty, Health and Personal Care

Drugstore and wine, purchase options and add-ons, about this item.

• 【 CONVENIENT 】Turn a regular chair into a high chair in the snap of a finger! Easy to use, lightweight and compact. Perfect for on the go. Velcro closure strap for quick access
• 【 FOR BABIES AND TODDLERS 】3 height adjustable harness straps for children 6 months and up. Child must be able to sit up unassisted. Additional side loops at waist provide extra security for smaller babies
• 【 STAYS PUT 】Anti-slip pads along the top seat strap prevents it from sliding/shifting on the chair back. The top closure strap comes with loops allowing for the chair straps to be looped through in the back
• 【 COMFORTABLE 】Padded with cushioning for baby’s extra comfort. Harness straps made from soft fabric to protect baby’s neck. Durable and machine washable
• 【 UNIVERSAL FIT 】Adjustable back straps ensure that the portable high chair fits a wide range of chairs – both tall and wide. Works with any height chair with a seat back up to 21” wide

Buy it with

Customers who viewed this item also viewed

Product Information

Technical details, additional information, product description.

Dine out with baby anywhere, anytime! This compact, easy to use, lightweight portable high chair is perfect to take along when eating on the go. Simply unfold and strap onto almost any dining chair. Assembly is super quick – just adjust the straps to accommodate the chair and the child and voila!

The 5 point harness is height adjustable and accommodates babies 6 months and up. It is nicely padded to ensure that baby is seated comfortably, and additional side loops at the waist ensure that smaller babies are extra secure. It also contains anti-slip pads along the top strap to keep the high chair in place.

The best part? There’s no need to worry about messes post dining – just throw it in the washing machine after mealtime is done!

• Accommodates babies 6 months and up (must be able to sit up unassisted)
• 2 seat straps and 1 waist strap
• Padded for baby’s comfort
• Anti-slip pads along the top seat strap prevents it from sliding/shifting
• 3 level-height adjustable harness
• Side loops to provide extra security for smaller babies
• Velcro closure strap for quick access
• Machine Washable
• 100% Polyester

Looking for specific info?

Customer reviews, review this product.

• Sort reviews by Top reviews Most recent Top reviews

Top reviews from Australia

Top reviews from other countries.

• Corporate Information
• Press Releases
• Amazon Science
• Protect and build your brand
• Independently Publish with Us
• Sell on Amazon
• Drive with Amazon Flex
• Advertise Your Products
• Associates Program
• Host an Amazon Hub
• COVID-19 and Amazon
• Your Account
• Your Orders
• Delivery Rates & Policies
• Returns & Replacements
• Manage Your Content and Devices
• Recalls and Product Safety Alerts
• Conditions of Use & Sale
• Privacy Notice
• Interest-Based Ads Notice

Dine out with baby anywhere, anytime!

This compact, easy to use, lightweight portable high chair is perfect to take along when eating on the go. Simply unfold and strap onto almost any dining chair. Assembly is super quick – just adjust the straps to accommodate the chair and the child and voila!

The 5 point harness is height adjustable and accommodates babies 6 months and up. It is nicely padded to ensure that baby is seated comfortably, and additional side loops at the waist ensure that smaller babies are extra secure. It also contains anti-slip pads along the top strap to keep the high chair in place.

The best part? There’s no need to worry about messes post dining – just throw it in the washing machine after mealtime is done!

Travel Harness Seat

Product info.

• Accommodates babies 6 months and up (must be able to sit up unassisted)
• 2 seat straps and 1 waist strap
• Padded for baby’s comfort
• Anti-slip pads along the top seat strap prevents it from sliding/shifting
• 3 level-height adjustable harness
• Side loops to provide extra security for smaller babies
• Velcro closure strap for quick access
• Machine Washable
• 100% Polyester

RETURN AND REFUND POLICY

• 30-day free return for a full refund

Advertisement

• Baby and kid

The Best Travel Car Seats

By Christina Szalinski and Rebecca Gale

Let’s face it: Traveling with little kids can be a slog. But a lightweight, compact, easy-to-install travel car seat is one tool that can make trips a bit easier.

We’ve tested 17 travel car seats for infants and up, and we examined how they performed in various circumstances, including during air travel and in rental cars. The Chicco KeyFit 35 , one of our picks for the best infant car seats , is an excellent choice for both travel and everyday use. For an affordable and easy-to-use convertible car seat for toddlers and preschoolers, we recommend traveling with the Cosco Scenera Next , which fits kids up to 40 inches tall for rear-facing or 43 inches for forward-facing. For kids bigger than that who still need a seat with a five-point harness, we recommend the Cosco Finale 2-in-1 , which also converts to a high-back booster. The backless, lightweight Cosco Rise is great for booster-age kids.

If you’ll be hopping in and out of taxis or ride shares with a baby, the Doona is a unique but expensive infant car seat that converts to a stroller. And instead of purchasing a dedicated convertible car seat for travel, another option is to bring yours along with the Britax Travel Cart .

Everything we recommend

Chicco KeyFit 35 ClearTex

The best infant car seat for travel.

If you’re a frequent traveler, the Chicco KeyFit 35 is easier than most infant car seats to install securely without its base.

Buying Options

An infant car seat and stroller in one

This unusual car seat has integrated wheels that pop out to turn it into a stroller. It’s best for parents who frequently need to move their car seat in and out of different vehicles.

Cosco Scenera Next

The best convertible car seat for travel.

This affordable and easy-to-use car seat weighs 6.8 pounds and can be used rear- and forward-facing. But kids can outgrow it quickly.

Cosco Finale 2-in-1 Booster Car Seat

The best harness booster car seat for travel.

This no-frills seat converts from a forward-facing five-point harness to a high-back booster. It weighs just 12 pounds.

Britax Travel Cart

A travel cart for lugging your own seat through the airport.

This sturdy, smooth-rolling travel cart helps you transport your own convertible car seat—and avoid buying a standalone travel seat. You can even strap your child into their seat and use it like a stroller.

The best backless booster seat for travel

This basic booster seat weighs only 2.2 pounds and can work for children as small as 40 pounds. But it has a rather large footprint and will be too big to fit in most carry-ons.

How we picked

A seat that’s lightweight is more manageable to carry between multiple locations. A more compact seat is also easier to pack.

We considered the seat’s comfort and ability to adjust straps and buckles.

Ease of installation is paramount, as the easier it is to do, the more likely it will be done properly.

We looked at crash-testing scores and ease-of-use ratings. Our infant, convertible, and harness booster picks are FAA-approved for use on a plane.

The Chicco KeyFit 35 is a great all-around infant car seat—and one of the ones we recommend for everyday use. But for travel it stands out: It has a European belt path that makes it easier to get a secure install without the base than for many car seats, and it’s cheaper than other seats that have this belt routing option.

Weight of seat: 10 pounds Orientation: rear-facing only Weight range: 4 to 35 pounds Height limit: 32 inches

Parents who can’t leave their infant seat base installed in a specific car but instead need to travel by taxi or rideshare frequently may find the innovative Doona to be a convenient option. This sleek infant car seat has integrated wheels and converts to a stroller that maneuvers easily, plus the seat is FAA-approved for use on an airplane. But the versatile Doona is much heavier and more expensive than a regular infant car seat.

Weight of seat: 14.3 pounds Orientation: rear-facing only Weight range: 4 to 35 pounds Height limit: 32 inches

The Cosco Scenera Next is a notably lightweight, affordable convertible car seat that is simple to install and carry on an airplane. It receives strong safety ratings from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and is FAA-approved for use on a plane. But many kids will outgrow it before they reach the height or weight limit because of the low position of the shoulder straps.

Weight of seat: 6.8 pounds Orientation: rear- or forward-facing Weight range: 5 to 40 pounds rear-facing; 22-40 pounds forward-facing Height range: 19-40 inches rear-facing; 29-43 inches forward-facing

For children using a forward-facing five-point harness, the Cosco Finale 2-in-1 is a lightweight and affordable travel option that is FAA-approved for use on a plane (in harness mode only). It also converts to a high-back booster. However, it has lower height limits than some boosters, so kids may not get as many years of use from it, in comparison with pricier options.

Weight of seat: 12 pounds Orientation: forward-facing only Weight range: 30 to 65 pounds for harness mode; 40 to 100 pounds for high-back mode Height range: 32 to 49 inches for harness mode; 43 to 52 inches for high-back mode

Bringing your own car seat to the airport has one big advantage—you don’t have to learn how to install yet another seat. But your own convertible car seat is likely to be heavy (our picks in our guide to convertible car seats range from 19 to 33 pounds). The Britax Travel Cart is compatible with most convertible seats, and when your car seat is secured to it with LATCH, you can use it like a stroller to push your toddler through the airport. The cart can then be stored in an overhead bin during your flight.

Weight of cart: 7.6 pounds

If you need a cheap, no-frills booster seat, we recommend the Cosco Rise . It’s a bit too large to fit into a carry-on suitcase or backpack, but it’s easy to attach with a bungee cord to a carry-on for plane travel. It’s also a great option if you just need a spare booster for carpools or to order ahead for use at the grandparents' house.

Weight of seat: 2.2 pounds Weight range: 40 to 100 pounds Height range: 43 to 57 inches

The research

Why you should trust us, who should get this, the best infant car seat for travel: chicco keyfit 35, an infant seat and stroller in one: doona, the best convertible car seat for travel: cosco scenera next, the best harness booster seat for travel: cosco finale 2-in-1, a great car seat caddy: britax travel cart, the best booster seat for travel: cosco rise, other good travel car seats, should a kid sit in a car seat on the airplane, what about checking a car seat, the competition, care, use, and maintenance.

The authors of this guide have collectively interviewed 40 industry experts, safety authorities, and physicians. Among them were certified Child Passenger Safety Technicians (CPSTs) such as Lani Harrison, who installs more than 300 car seats each year; Dr. Aditya Belwadi, a biomechanics research scientist who previously led the child passenger safety research team at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and now works at Tesla in Crash, Safety, and Occupant Protection/Biomechanics; and Bill Horn, head sled testing engineer at Calspan , one of the country’s top crash-testing facilities. The authors also talked with dozens of parents and representatives from leading car seat manufacturers.

The original version of this guide was written by Rebecca Gale, whose reporting on policy and parenting has appeared in outlets including The New York Times, Slate, and The Washington Post. Rebecca has also been certified as a CPST, completing a 40-hour training program through the Safe Kids Worldwide organization.

In 2022 and 2023, this guide was updated by Christina Szalinski, a science writer whose reporting on health and parenting has appeared in The Atlantic and Kaiser Health News . In addition to writing the most recent versions of Wirecutter’s infant and convertible car seat guides, Christina is responsible for Wirecutter’s guides to the Best Baby Formula and kids face masks .

Few people strictly need a separate car seat for travel as you can gate- or baggage-check any car seat for free with most airlines. But lugging your regular (likely heavy and bulky) seat in and out of the car and through the airport can be a major hassle. Investing in a smaller, lighter-weight option may be worthwhile, especially if you fly or use ridesharing services or taxis frequently.

Infant car seats for travel

If you’re traveling with an infant or baby, bringing along your usual infant car seat without its base (to cut down on weight and heft) is typically the best option. Our top infant car seat pick, the Graco SnugRide SnugFit 35 DLX , is relatively lightweight and, like other infant car seats, can be safely strapped in with a seatbelt only and no base.

There are two possible ways to install an infant car seat without a base: either with the belt directly across the top, called “American routing,” or with the shoulder belt placed around the back of the seat in addition to the top, called “European routing.” It’s easier to get a secure fit with European routing, and two seats we recommend in our guide to infant car seats, the Chicco KeyFit 35 and the Clek Liing , are designed to allow for that type of install. If you know you’ll be traveling with your infant often, it may be worthwhile to choose one of these as your baby’s first car seat.

Many infant car seats are compatible with easy-to-fold stroller frames, such as the Chicco KeyFit Caddy , which turns an infant car seat into a stroller and can be convenient for travel. Most infant seats are FAA-approved for airplane use, should you decide to purchase an airplane seat for your infant.

Convertible car seats for travel

When your child has outgrown their infant car seat, deciding on a car seat for travel can be trickier. Alisa Baer, a pediatrician, CPST, and co-founder of the website The Car Seat Lady , recommends bringing your own convertible car seat and using a travel cart . That way you have a seat that you’re already comfortable installing. But some people will prefer a dedicated travel car seat, as they can be significantly lighter than regular seats—as little as 7 pounds versus 20 to 30 pounds.

If you do buy a dedicated travel seat, it’s a good idea to practice installing it before your trip—you don’t want to be figuring it out for the first time when you, and your kid, are potentially jet lagged and feeling extra cranky. Installation can be the most time-consuming and frustrating part of using a car seat—and particularly a convertible car seat—and is often the point of failure for using a car seat correctly.

Booster seats for travel

If your everyday booster seat has a removable back (as with our top pick and runner-up pick, the Chicco KidFit ClearTex Plus and the Graco TurboBooster LX ), you may prefer to simply bring that seat for travel, leaving the bulky back at home. But like with convertible seats, it’s also an option to get a dedicated travel booster that may be significantly lighter and smaller than the one you rely on every day.

Jessica Jermakian, vice president for vehicle research at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, offered several tips for bringing along a backless booster, especially if it’s not one that’s compact: “I bungee cord them to my luggage while traversing the airport. On most flights, my kids could shove them under the seat in front of them and still have room to throw their backpack on top. On some flights, I’ve put them in a tote in the overhead compartment.”

Travel car seat alternatives

If you’re headed to a familiar destination, you could look into borrowing a seat from friends or relatives. Or, you may be able to rent one through a baby equipment rental service.

Many car rental companies also offer car seats for a daily fee, but it can cost up to $15 a day—adding up to much more than the cost of a travel car seat, which can be less than $50. And though you can reserve one in advance, rental car seats are subject to availability, so there’s no guarantee that one will be available when you arrive. The car seat provided may also be difficult to install properly, especially in an unfamiliar car. That said, you may be able to find discounts or other benefits through programs such as AAA, which offers one free car seat rental for members when they book a car through Hertz, Dollar, or Thrifty. Ridesharing and airport and town car services may also provide a car seat with advance reservations.

There are hundreds of travel car seat options for infants, toddlers, and older kids. We began the whittling down process by examining online customer reviews and existing media coverage, which included going to Car Seats for the Littles , Lucie’s List , and the Car Seat Lady . We found the travel car seat category to be sorely lacking in an abundance of great options, so we also considered some “regular” car seats and alternatives.

We knew from our expert interviews that proper installation is generally a far bigger problem than the level of protection that a seat inherently provides, so we searched the NHTSA ease-of-use installation database to help determine which seats offer easy installation and come with clear instructions. We also relied on the personal experience of Wirecutter staffers, volunteer testers, and car seat techs who had used the car seats in the past.

Our research led us to conclude that the ideal travel car seat should be:

Lightweight and compact: A travel car seat will likely need to be carried between multiple locations, sometimes with a baby inside (if we’re talking about an infant). The less the seat weighs, the easier it is to deal with when combined with children and carry-on items. A more compact seat can also fit more readily in a wide variety of vehicles.

FAA approved: For parents who want to use their infant seat, convertible car seat, or harness booster on a plane, FAA certification is crucial.

Easy to install: As with all of our car seat recommendations, ease of installation is paramount, as the easier it is to do, the more likely it is to be done properly.

Easy to use: Straps should be simple to adjust to get a snug but comfortable fit in a five-point harness. The buckles should be easy for parents to clip and unclip but difficult to impossible for children to mess with. We considered the experience of both parents and kids in using the seats, as well as how easy each seat was to clean.

Safe: When it comes to travel, convenience can trump a minor safety advantage; a seat that you can bring along with you is vastly superior to no seat at all. Still, we did take the relevant government safety data from NHTSA into consideration.

Over the past five years we’ve tested 17 car seats with travel specifically in mind.

If you’re shopping for an infant car seat with travel in mind, we recommend the FAA-approved Chicco KeyFit 35 , one of our picks in our guide to infant car seats . It is lightweight and easy to use, and it can be installed securely without its base using the European belt path, a method that generally provides a superior install. (Any infant seat can be installed without its base, so if you already have an infant seat, using what you already own is likely the easiest choice.)

You can save on weight and bulk by leaving a car seat base at home when traveling. There are two ways to install an infant seat without its base. The most common is American belt routing, in which the seat belt goes over the top of the infant seat and the baby’s knees. We’ve found that it can be very difficult to secure an infant seat in the car securely using this method.

A few seats also offer the option to rely on the European belt path, the method we prefer, in which the lap belt goes over the top of the infant seat and the shoulder belt goes around the back. It’s easier to get a secure install with the European belt path, but it’s only found on a few car seat models. Of the four infant car seats we recommend, only the Chicco KeyFit 35 and Clek Liing offer the option of using the European belt path.

Beyond the advantage of the European belt bath, the Chicco KeyFit 35 has everything we love about the more popular Chicco KeyFit 30 with a few bonus features, such as an anti-rebound base as an added safety option. The KeyFit 35 can also accommodate a slightly larger baby (up to 35 pounds) than the KeyFit 30.

Flaws but not dealbreakers

The KeyFit 35 is about $50 more than our top infant car seat choice, the Graco SnugRide SnugFit 35 DLX . It probably doesn’t make sense to buy this seat just for travel if you already own a similar infant car seat. But if you plan to be jet-setting with your baby, it may be worth the additional $50 or so to get a better on-the-go install from the start.

The Doona is an FAA-approved infant car seat (rear-facing only) with built-in wheels that allow it to convert to a stroller. For travel, this is about as convenient as it gets, allowing caregivers to rely on a single piece of equipment to accomplish two goals: avoid gate-checking a stroller—assuming an airline seat is purchased for the infant—and hop in and out of cabs without having to stow anything in the trunk.

Compared with a regular infant car seat, the Doona has some drawbacks. For one thing, it did not perform particularly well in Baby Gear Lab’s crash testing (there are no government crash tests available yet for this seat). For this reason, and because it’s tricky to install without its base (as most infant seats are), one of our car seat experts does not recommend this seat. At 14.3 pounds, it’s heavy and bulky to carry and maneuver when in car seat mode. The Doona also has the steepest price of any of the car seats (including infant, convertible, and boosters) that we’ve reviewed. It does come with a traditional infant car seat base that allows for an easy click in and out of a car, but the extra width means it could be impossible to fit three across in a backseat. And it would defeat the point to use that base for travel.

Switching the Doona from car seat mode to stroller mode and back requires “both hands and concentration,” said one tester, as well as “quite a bit of practice for me. It takes a rather specific, subtle motion to collapse it back and tuck the wheels.” It’s harder than taking a regular infant car seat off of a stroller with an infant seat attachment. Plus, once your child outgrows this seat, you’ll have to buy another stroller.

As a stroller, the Doona maneuvers easily, and the brake is intuitive and easy to use. But though it comes with an attached storage bag, the Doona lacks a storage basket.

The inexpensive Cosco Scenera Next weighs just 6.8 pounds, is relatively easy to carry and install, and can be used rear-facing from 5 to 40 pounds and forward-facing from 22 to 40 pounds. It’s FAA-certified and easy to install on an airplane (using the plane’s seatbelt).

The Cosco sells for $60, which is a bargain compared with many convertible car seats (the Graco Extend2Fit , our favorite convertible seat for everyday use, is a little over $200). The seat gets strong safety ratings from NHTSA, and given its low weight and heft and easy-enough install, we think it’s the best option available for an on-the-go or backup car seat. We strongly prefer the (heftier) Graco Extend2Fit for everyday use. That’s because it’s easier to get a safe, secure install with that seat and to adjust it to fit the child. Plus, it can be used forward-facing until a kid is 65 pounds and 49 inches tall—a much longer usable life than the Scenera Next.

Several Wirecutter staffers use or have used the Cosco Scenera Next, appreciating its low cost, low weight, and small size. They’ve found that the seat’s slim profile makes it a great option for smaller cars (specifically, a Prius or Renault Scenic). Senior editor Courtney Schley found that the Cosco allowed her to get three seats (two Coscos and one infant car seat) across in her family’s car.

The Scenera Next’s low shoulder straps mean that a child may outgrow this seat well before they are ready for a booster. ( Shoulder straps should hit at or below the shoulders when a child is rear-facing; when forward-facing the straps should hit at or above the shoulders.) The low straps mean that many 3-year-olds with longer torsos may outgrow the seat in forward-facing mode, even though the seat’s height and weight limits indicate that it should fit an average-size kid up to age 4. With a long torso, the straps end up hitting below the shoulders, a situation that can compromise safety.

Though the Scenera Next is simple to install compared with other lightweight convertible car seats we tested, some of our testers still found it difficult to get a tight, secure install. It has hook LATCH straps that aren’t particularly easy to use—you really have to tug on the LATCH straps to get a tight fit, and getting them off can be an even bigger challenge. We preferred installing the seat with a seat belt in unfamiliar cars, which was an easier way to get a tight install (try the inside/outside trick with the shoulder belt), and made it much easier to uninstall.

Our testers also found that the chest clip on the harness wasn’t as responsive or easy to use as those on more expensive seats. The Scenera Next also has less padding than many seats, though Baer points out that the padding on most seats is highly compressible, meaning that just because a seat looks fluffier doesn’t mean it provides much more cushion.

This seat also has a few downsides if you bring it on a plane. Like most convertible car seats, it’s wider than the aisle, so you have to carry it awkwardly down the plane to get to your seat, which can be quite a challenge if you’re on your own and have other carry-on items (plus your child). Additionally, the plane’s seat belt buckle is going to be pushing into your child’s back if the seat is oriented forward-facing. Alisa Baer, co-founder of The Car Seat Lady, recommends installing any seat with this issue rear-facing, even if a kid is used to forward-facing. Or you can put a diaper or other soft item over the buckle to make it a bit more comfortable.

The Cosco Finale 2-in-1 is a solid option for kids who are no longer rear-facing but still benefit from a five-point harness. It’s affordable, weighs just 12 pounds, and is relatively easy to install using the car’s seat belt while in harness mode (it also comes with LATCH straps, though we didn’t find these as easy to use). Like other boosters, when in booster mode, this seat relies on the car’s seat belt to secure the child, so there’s no need to install it.

This bigger-kid seat can see a growing child through years of travel: It can be used as a forward-facing five-point harness booster seat from 30 to 65 pounds and then as a regular (harness-free) booster from 40 to 100 pounds (up until a child is 52 inches tall).

As a five-point harness, it’s FAA-certified and easy to install on an airplane using the plane’s seatbelt. However, when it’s in booster mode, like all boosters, it cannot be used on an airplane.

In harness mode, the Cosco Finale 2-in-1 performed well in an NHTSA crash test. And several Wirecutter staffers use or have used the Cosco Finale 2-in-1 while traveling after their child outgrew the Cosco Scenera Next—they liked the price and straightforward install. Converting the seat to a booster is fairly straightforward , and the seat has storage for the harness, crotch buckle, and chest clip. Once the seat is in booster mode, your child can’t use it on an airplane, but many airlines will allow you to check a booster seat for free (you may wish to check with your airline in advance).

A more expensive version of the Cosco Finale 2-in-1, the Cosco Finale DX 2-in-1 , is also available. The only difference between the two is the fabric—the DX has a tiny bit more cushion and a slightly less slippery texture. We asked several children to try each seat and then report their favorite (they wore blindfolds, to remove color preference as a factor). There was no clear winner between the two seats, and our adult testers could hardly distinguish a difference in the cushioning. For this reason, we don’t think it’s worth the extra $20 for the DX.

When using the Finale 2-in-1 in harness mode, you first have to install it in the car, which you can do either with the seat’s LATCH straps or with the car’s seat belt. We found the Finale 2-in-1’s hook LATCH straps difficult to use—it’s hard to get a tight fit in the car, and getting them off can be a big challenge. As we did with the Cosco Scenera Next, we preferred installing the harnessed seat with a seat belt; this was an easier way to get a tight install (try the inside/outside trick with the shoulder belt) and also made it much easier to uninstall. (When the harness is removed and the seat is in booster mode, you do not need to install it in the car, since the car’s seat belt holds it in place and secures the child.)

Our testers also found that the chest clip on the harness was a bit more difficult to open compared to those on more expensive seats like the Graco Tranzitions 3-in-1 . The straps have to be manually threaded through the car seat, which isn’t particularly difficult or time consuming, but you have to remember to do it before you install the seat. It also has less padding than many seats, though our child testers didn’t complain (however, we didn’t take it on any long road trips).

This seat won’t have as many years of use as other travel options, like the Graco Tranzitions 3-in-1, because the Cosco has a maximum height of 52 inches (most boosters go to 57 inches) and does not convert to a backless booster.

If you need to travel with a convertible car seat, you can bring the one you already have to the airport and onto the airplane with the Britax Travel Cart . The main benefit of bringing your own is that you’ll have a seat that you (and your child) are comfortable with, and that you know how to install confidently.

There are a number of similar travel carts out there, but we think this one offers the most for the price. We like that when the car seat is strapped onto the cart using the car seat’s LATCH clips, you can use the whole thing like a stroller and push (or pull) your child through the airport. The frame is also studier than other models—it can hold a total of 100 pounds of car seat and child. Plus, when it’s time to get on the plane you can fold the cart to stow it in an overhead bin.

At about $100 for the cart, it is cheaper to purchase a budget convertible car seat like the Cosco Scenera Next. However, depending on your circumstances, the Britax Travel Cart may outlive the expiration of many car seats (which are between six and 10 years), and could be used for future car seats, or passed along without as much consideration as a used car seat.

For a cheap, no-frills booster seat, the Cosco Rise is a reliable option that weighs only 2.2 pounds. It’s simple to use: Like other backless booster seats, it does not need to be physically attached to the vehicle; a child simply sits in it and fastens the car’s lap belt over their knees (under the seat’s sides).

The Chicco GoFit Plus is our overall top pick for the best backless booster seat because it’s cushy, made with easy-to-clean materials, and includes two cup holders and a LATCH system to anchor the seat to the car. But it’s bulky, heavy, and not great for travel. The Cosco Rise has fewer bells and whistles, but it offers a key safety feature: Unlike many other boosters, this seat has a strap that attaches to a car’s shoulder belt to adjust the belt’s position for smaller riders (the shoulder belt should always rest on a child’s collarbone, and not against their neck).

The Cosco Rise can accommodate children as small as 40 pounds, as long as they are also 43 inches tall, meaning it will work for most kids 5 and up but may not accommodate some 4-year-olds.

This seat is a bit too large to fit easily into a carry-on suitcase or backpack (it takes up almost all the room top-to-bottom in a standard-sized carry-on, with only a little room left on the side). There is also almost no padding on this seat, merely a polyester cover, but for short rides, our testers didn’t complain.

If you want an upgraded infant seat that’s great for travel : We recommend the Clek Liing , one of our favorite infant seats . Like the Chicco KeyFit 35, the Clek Liing can be installed without its base using a European belt path, which is much easier to get secure than the standard American belt routing found on most infant car seats. And when you’re at home, we love how easy it is to install the Liing’s base, which includes an added safety feature: a load leg .

If you want a high-end infant seat and don’t own a car: The lightweight, easy-to-clean Clek Liingo is similar to the Clek Liing but without the base. In general, we think installing a seat with the base is an easier and more secure option with infant car seats. But if you don’t own a car, the Liingo can be installed without a base in several ways. It has the same European belt path that the Liing has, which routes the lap belt over the top and the shoulder belt around the back for more security than an install that just goes over the top of the seat. The Liingo also comes with a LATCH strap that routes in the same spot as the lap belt—though we found this was not nearly as secure as the European belt path routing.

If you want a longer-lasting five-point harness seat for older kids: The Graco Tranzitions 3-in-1 is a good choice. This forward-facing-only seat has a five-point harness that holds kids from 22 to 65 pounds and up to 49 inches tall, and it can be adjusted without rethreading it, so it is easier to modify as your child grows. When your child is ready for a regular booster, you can remove the harness and crotch buckle, converting the seat to a high-back booster that can hold a child from 40 to 100 pounds and up to 57 inches tall. Finally, you can remove the back and convert the seat to a lightweight backless booster that can also be used from 40 to 100 pounds and up to 57 inches tall.

First off, a car seat must be FAA-approved—as all of our recommended infant and convertible seats are—for a kid to ride in one on an airplane. (Booster seats are reserved for older children and not intended for use on airplane seats.)

Both the Federal Aviation Administration and CPSTs believe it is safer for kids under 2 to ride in a car seat aboard a plane rather than in their parents’ arms. In the event of turbulence or rough air, a child is much safer if strapped in. Being injured in turbulence , though very unlikely, does affect a handful of American flyers each year, and recent research indicates that turbulence is on the rise due to climate change.

Many parents find that air travel is easier when their child has their own seat (though of course you have to pay for that additional seat). Children are allowed to sit on caregivers’ laps on planes until age 2, but few toddlers can sit still for a long period of time, and that extra harness and recline (as well as familiarity) provided by the car seat may keep a child seated comfortably longer, especially once they are mobile but still too young to fully understand how to sit still in a lap belt.

There are a number of challenges to bringing a car seat, especially a convertible seat designed for a toddler, onto a plane. Some smaller planes may have seats that aren’t wide enough for many convertible car seats. And even if the car seat is narrow enough for the plane, not many seats are narrow enough to easily fit down the aisle. The Clek Foonf , one of our convertible car seat picks, is one of them, but it is pricey and heavy. (The Clek Fllo , Graco SlimFit3 LX , and Graco True3Fit also fit on an airplane seat, but we did not test them.) You’ll generally have to lift a car seat above the seats to carry it to the rear of a plane.

Finally, unlike a car seat buckle, which sits on your hip, a plane’s seat buckle sits right in the middle of your lap. That means for many car seats, once you install them on the plane, there’s going to be a large metal buckle below your child’s legs or behind their back (the Clek seats are among the few without this issue). Alisa Baer, co-founder of The Car Seat Lady, recommends using convertible seats with buckle-in-the-back issues rear-facing, even with a larger child—they’ll likely be more comfortable if their feet have a place to rest, plus they won’t be trying to rest their feet on the passenger’s seat in front of them. You can also put a diaper or spare T-shirt over the buckle to make it a bit more comfortable.

Some parents may find it simpler to use a CARES harness (Child Aviation Restraint System) to help keep kids in their seats on a plane (and their kids may prefer sitting in an airplane seat over a car seat); you install this four-point harness around the child’s seatback and under the tray behind it.

Most airlines allow at least one car seat to be checked for free but doing so has several potential problems . The luggage can be handled roughly and tossed, damaging the car seat in the process. Seats, like any piece of luggage, can also be lost or misplaced in transit. Ultimately, the main reason you may want to have your child use a car seat on the plane is so that you are absolutely confident you’ll have the car seat when you arrive at your destination.

For people who do check in their car seats, Harrison recommends—ideally—using the original box and styrofoam that the seat came with if they are available or using Bubble Wrap and a garbage bag if not. Examine the seat for visible damage when it comes out at baggage claim, and be prepared to replace the seat if it’s broken or bent.

Infant travel seats

The Chicco Fit2 can accommodate infants as small as 4 pounds and toddlers as large as 35 pounds or 35 inches. Like the Chicco KeyFit 35 we recommend as the best infant car seat for travel, it can be installed with a European belt path. But because of this seat’s large size, some seat belts are too short to route over the car seat securely.

Convertible travel seats

We previously recommended the lightweight, foldable, forward-facing WAYB Pico (rhymes with “baby”) as a good travel car seat for kids who are too big for the Cosco Scenera Next but still need a five-point harness. Its adjustable seat back allows it to accommodate taller kids, and its slim design means it takes up less room in the backseat than other car seats. The 8-pound seat is exceptionally convenient to install, uninstall, and carry around, including through airports and onto a plane. In September 2019, however, WAYB announced it was recalling 4,558 Pico car seats manufactured between March 1 and May 12, 2019, due to reports of breakage in the aluminum tube connecting the headrest to the seat. You can read NHSTA’s report (PDF)  for details about the recall, how to identify your car seat’s date of manufacture, and how to inspect your car seat for damage. Since the recall, there have not been further reports of problems. Like all car seats sold in the US, the Pico was self-certified by WAYB to pass NHTSA standards (PDF) for safety testing.

The EvenFlo Tribute is a lightweight seat (9 pounds) similar to the Cosco Scenera Next and also has a weight limit of 40 pounds, but as our convertible car seat guide testing showed us, it’s not as easy to get a good install with this seat. CPSTs like Harrison recommend using a towel or pool noodle when using the Tribute to address this. It’s also more expensive than the Cosco Scenera Next.

Booster travel seats

We previously recommended the BubbleBum , an inflatable, portable backless booster seat for older kids. However, in February 2022, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety raised concerns about the safety of inflatable boosters. A study using a computerized model determined that an inflatable booster may not have the stiffness required to keep a child from sliding out from under the lap belt upon impact in a car crash.

The backless Cosco Topside is too large to fit into a carry-on or a backpack. Unlike the Cosco Rise , our favorite backless booster for travel, this booster seat also doesn’t have a belt-positioning clip, which can help the shoulder belt fit better on a smaller rider.

We liked the Graco RightGuide booster seat because it was small enough to fit inside a carry-on or backpack. But it was recently discontinued.

The Immi Go is a booster car seat with a five-point harness that folds conveniently into its own carrying bag. Due to low sales, it is no longer for sale in the US, but you may see this seat if you travel abroad.

The MiFold backless booster seat (currently unavailable) is small enough to fit into the back pocket of some pants and weighs less than 2 pounds. It works by moving the seat belt down to fit the kid (as opposed to raising the kid to fit the belt, as other boosters do). However, our testers found its hard plastic shell uncomfortable to sit on for long periods of time and said that the seat was complicated and unintuitive to set up. Also, a car seat safety expert we consulted noted that the design of the seat may encourage a child to use bad posture while they’re sitting in it—in an effort to find a more comfortable position, the child may tend to scoot forward, moving the slick-bottomed seat along with them, which could pose a safety concern.

Travel carts

The Torevsior Car Seat Travel Cart is about $25 less than the Britax Travel Cart we recommend, but it’s also less robust—the frame just doesn’t feel as sturdy. The weight limit is also lower than the Britax’s, at 70 pounds versus Britax’s 100 pounds. Like the Britax travel cart, the Torevsior cart has hooks for LATCH straps, to secure a car seat onto the cart so that your child can ride in it as you’re moving through the airport. It’s 6.4 pounds (Britax is 7.6 pounds), and extends up to 46 inches (Britax to 42 inches).

All of the guidelines for car seat care, use, and maintenance in our other car seat guides apply to travel car seats as well.

This guide was edited by Ellen Lee, Amy Miller Kravetz and Kalee Thompson.

Jessica Jermakian, vice president for vehicle research at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety , email exchange , August 1, 2022

Alisa Baer, pediatrician, nationally certified child passenger safety instructor, and co-founder of The Car Seat Lady , phone interview, July 15, 2022 and January 9, 2023

Lani Harrison, CPST, Car Seats for the Littles , email interview , January 28, 2019

Meet your guides

Christina Szalinski

Christina Szalinski is a freelance science writer with a PhD in cell biology.

Rebecca Gale

Further reading

The Best Booster Car Seats

by Rebecca Gale

After researching over 50 booster car seats and testing 13, we’ve concluded that the convenient Chicco KidFit ClearTex Plus is the best overall choice.

The Best Infant Car Seats

by Christina Szalinski

After extensive research and field testing, we found that the Graco SnugRide SnugFit 35 DLX is the best infant car seat for most families.

The Best Travel Strollers

by Elise Czajkowski

After testing seven travel strollers on various trips and excursions, we’re confident that the Uppababy Minu V2 is the one to get.

Traveling With Little Kids Can Be Tough. The Right Gear Can Help.

by Kerry Davis McGuinness

From compact car seats and cribs to portable blackout shades and white noise machines, the right tools for travel can lead to less fuss—and more fun.

7 innovative products to make it easier to fly with kids

Make traveling with kids a breeze.

Updated November 15, 2023

Recommendations are independently chosen by Reviewed's editors. Purchases made through the links below may earn us and our publishing partners a commission.

If you’re a parent like me, you won’t find yourself casually reading a magazine while you wait at the gate or catching a quick nap on the flight because you’ll be too busy attempting to keep your children quiet, entertained, and safe. Thanks to these seven innovative products, keeping your child safe—and seated—until landing is now easier than ever.

1. A travel harness that helps eliminate stress

This harness keeps them safely strapped in during the flight and folds compactly to fit into any carry on bag.

Anyone who has ever flown with kids can attest to the stress of trying to get everyone and everything onto the plane without leaving anything or anyone behind. That’s what makes the Kids Fly Safe harness particularly helpful. Branded as being “designed for children old enough to be in their own seats, but too small for the seat belt alone," the travel harness is made for children age 1 to 5, who weigh between 22 and 44 pounds. It keeps children buckled into their seat on the plane much like they would be if they were buckled into their seat in the car.

Tucking nicely into the included travel bag that easily fits into your purse or carry-on, the harness itself weighs only 1 pound, fits airplane seats of all sizes, and takes less than a minute to install. Best of all, the harness is FAA-approved.

2. A seat that fits kids of almost every size and ability

Help keep older kids safely seated in the Strap&Safe seat.

There’s just something about being fully strapped into a car seat that for many kids, makes them aware that they are traveling and need to remain seated. That’s where Tiny Jump’s Strap&Safe- Child Protection Car Seat steps in to fill the void of leaving your full-size car seat at home. Designed with a five-point harness that looks similar to a typical car seat, the seat is lined with breathable cotton and polyester mesh and completed with cushioned straps to keep your child comfortable.

3. A seat that offers full-service travel accommodations

An easy-to-carry carseat for trips that include planes, trains, and automobiles.

Made of AreoWing space-grade aluminum alloy that absorbs energy forces in a crash, breathable AstroKnit fabric that is responsibly sourced, and available in five different colors, this high quality product justifies the higher price tag.

4. A product that turns your car seat into a travel seat

Easily transport your child—and their carseat—with the Britax rolling cart.

Some parents just feel more comfortable when their child is traveling in their own car seat, but it can be a real hassle lugging a full-size seat through the airport. That’s where Britax steps in with their Car Seat Travel Cart. Simple in design but genius in theory, the cart allows you to attach a car seat to it and essentially turn the seat into a stroller.

Made with a durable steel frame and easy-glide wheels, the cart features an adjustable handle to cater to your desired height, fits all Britax convertible seats and harnessed boosters (as well as most other brands), and is fully foldable to fit in nearly all overhead airplane compartments.

5. A seat that will hold your infant for you

The Doona is a stroller that turns into a carseat.

Everyone knows that babies travel on airplanes, too, and not all of them travel as lap passengers, which can pose an issue when many of the travel seats on the market are designed for children over 2 years old. Thankfully, the Doona Infant Car Seat is available to save the day.

A combination car seat and stroller system, the Doona Infant Car Seat has a truly innovative design that allows the seat to convert from a stroller in the airport, to an FAA-approved seat on the plane, and then into a car seat with no additional base needed. With a five-point harness, three sided impact protection, EPS energy absorbing foam, and a convenient sunshade, the seat can keep babies as small as 4 pounds or up to 35 pounds safe. Available in five different colors, this seat is sure to be your most stylish travel accessory.

6. A seat that keeps kids safe before the plane even arrives

No more complaints about tired legs or feet with the Lugabug seat.

Oftentimes the airport can be the most chaotic part of traveling, and losing a child while checking bags or getting a boarding pass isn’t unheard of, especially when kids are bored, cranky, and looking for something to do. Lugabug brands itself as a “snug seat for tired feet” and that’s exactly what it is. The hammock-style seat secures itself to almost any rolling suitcase, and allows your child to be securely belted in for a rolling ride to the gate or baggage check.

Weighing just 19 ounces and installing in seconds, the Lugabug is made of durable material that can be folded up when not in use, and truly doesn’t add much to the things you need to carry. It’s such an easy addition to any travel list and could definitely save you from a frantic situation.

7. It’s a suitcase and a bed in one

Make in-flight sleeping possible with the JetKids by Stokke Bedbox.

Although travel can be arduous, JetKids by Stokke Bedbox wants you to remember that this is still part of your vacation so you should relax and enjoy. Part suitcase, part bed, and a whole lot of fun, the JetkKids by Stokke Bedbox is a suitcase your child can ride through the airport, and once on the plane, easily converts into a bed. With a convenient top-opening storage compartment, Bedbox contains a rolled up mattress and room for your child’s personal items.

Sturdy and durable, Bedbox has a cradled seat at the center, foot rests on the side, and shock absorbing swivel wheels so that your child can be pulled through the airport by the parent strap, which doubles as a carry strap when not in use. Once on the plane it only takes five quick steps to convert the box to a bed, so whether you’re flying during nap time or flying all night for international travel, your little one will be well rested and ready for fun once the plane lands.

Fitting any economy-sized airplane seat, Bedbox comes in five different colors, and includes stickers for your child to personalize their box.

Related content

Prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time.

Sign up for our newsletter.

Enter your email:

Thanks for signing up.

CARES Harness Review – The Kids Airplane Restraint

My detailed CARES harness review covers the flight safety harness for children from Kids Fly Safe. It’s the only alternative to car seats approved by the FAA as a child aviation restraint for use in all phases of flight .

I’ve used CARES when flying with all 3 of my children at different ages and stages. This CARES review includes the pros and cons of the product, photos of CARES in use, tips for how to use CARES safety harness on airplanes and more.

Topics I cover in this post:

• When (& Why) I first used CARES with my kids
• What is the CARES harness?
• Buyer Beware

Who can use CARES?

• When can you use CARES?
• How to install CARES
• Flying with CARES vs. car seats
• Others you might consider

Final thoughts…

• You might also like…

But first… pin this to your travel board for future reference and to help others!

This review of CARES contains affiliate links to help fund this independent website at no cost to you.

Backstory: When (& Why) I First Used CARES with My Kids

The first time we used the CARES airplane safety harness, I was 7 months pregnant and traveling with two children under the age of 5 years. As you can see, CARES was a tremendous help and convenience to us all.

With each 1 lb. CARES harness stored in its small stuff sack, we were able to breeze through the airport with our kids and our carry-on bags without any special effort. As you can see from the photo, two CARES harnesses travel much more easily through the airport than two car seats!

Buy CARES online at: Amazon.com (thank you for supporting this site!)

Since then, I’ve gone on to use CARES with each of my 3 children at different times. I’ve also flown without CARES, depending on the trip and circumstances of our travels.

I hope this review of CARES will help you decide whether it’s the right option for flying with your own toddler or preschooler. I’ll start with a quick overview of the CARES flight safety harness.

What is the CARES airplane harness?

CARES stands for “Child Aviation Restraint System” and is an additional set of straps that fits over an airplane seat back, attaching to the standard lap seat belt. It converts the airplane’s lap belt into a 4-point harness, securing the child against the airplane seat back.

It’s the only child aviation safety device approved by the FAA as an in-flight alternative to car seats. What’s better, this flight safety harness weighs only 1 lb, and packs into a 6” stuff sack. So it easily tucks into your diaper bag or purse.

However, CARES can be used in airplanes only, not in automobiles. See How to Travel with a Car Seat (Without Losing Your Mind) for tips on how you might best manage your car seat needs for the rest of your particular trip. (Also check out other recommended Car Seat Alternatives for travel and the RideSafer Travel vest for use in automobiles .)

BUYER BEWARE: Quick note on counterfeit CARES knock offs

Watch out for the counterfeit CARES harnesses flooding the market for cheaper prices (especially on Amazon and eBay)! They are not made with the same materials and have not undergone the same rigorous testing as the original CARES by Kids Fly Safe. And they do NOT have FAA approval or certification.

CARES can be used by children who are at least one year old and weigh a minimum of 22 lbs. Toddlers and children weighing up to 44 lbs. can continue using the CARES harness until they’d be big enough to fly without a car seat.

Note: Children using CARES must have their own seats on the airplane.

When can you use CARES in airplanes?

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has approved CARES for use during all phases of flying, including taxiing, take-off, and landing. The CARES harness is not intended for use in cars or other motor vehicles however (please see the RideSafer Travel Vest and more tips in How to Travel with a Car Seat (Without Losing Your Mind).

Where to use CARES:

Since CARES does not block the passage of others onboard the aircraft any more than an airplane seat belt, CARES can be used in center and aisle seats. Car seats can only be installed in window seats or the center-most seats of jumbo jets with two aisles.

How to install CARES in your child’s airplane seat:

1. Lower the tray table on the back side of the seat where you want to use CARES. You might want to explain to your rear neighbor if he’s already seated!

2. Then slip the red cinch strap around the seat back with the black straps hanging down, buckles facing outward.

3. Slide the red strap down to where it is at or just above your child’s shoulders and tighten this strap. If necessary due to the seat shape, move up higher if necessary.

4. Next, feed the airplane seat belt through the loops at the lower ends of the two black CARES straps. Adjust their length as appropriate for your child.

6. Fasten, and tighten the airplane’s safety belt around your child. And lastly, don’t forget to raise your neighbor’s tray table back into place!

It’s not hard to install a CARES harness, and it really does only take a few minutes. However, we found that the specific shape and even upholstery of the airplane seat can present some challenges (and it was different for us on each flight).

For example, with an airplane seat that has sides curving forward from the back, it was easiest to install the main strap higher on the seat than at or just above the shoulders, as recommended.

Placed lower and closer to the shoulders, the seat’s shape worked against it; the red CARES strap would actually stick out from the seat center and kept sliding down. Moving it up higher did the trick and didn’t seem to be a problem for our 2-year-old.

Leather (or faux…) is more slippery, so we needed to adjust the main belt much more snugly around the seat back than we did when flying with a fuzzy, upholstered seat.

BACK TO TOP All content ©Shelly Rivoli / TravelswithBaby.com Review continues below.

Flying with CARES vs. Car Seats:

Are you still deciding between flying with CARES or flying with your child in a car seat? The main drawback we found using CARES instead of a car seat were that neither child could see out of her airplane window when seated. (A non-issue if they weren’t in window seats, hoping to look out.)

Also, when both girls were very tired and I hoped at least one would snooze, the harness straps did little to comfort or support them. In contrast, a car seat with deep side wings and a slight recline might have aided in the nodding off.

However, I’ve since discovered that some car seat strap cushions can be added to CARES to help support the cheek or chin during red-eye and nap-time flights (see The Cradler in Car Seat Travel Accessories ).

You can see from this photo how CARES gives children more legroom than most car seats installed on airplanes. While it was more difficult for both children to reach their trays, it made it impossible for them to kick the seats in front of them (bonus!).

Others you might consider:

As an alternative to using CARES during the flight, you might consider using the WAYB Pico lightweight and portable folding car seat (see my full review of the WAYB Pico here ). It’s not only has FAA approval for use in airplanes, but it’s also a highly rated car seat approved for use in motor vehicles, and it’s easy to install.

You might also look at my recommended convertible and forward-facing car seats for travel .

Final thoughts…CARES is a truly unique product for toddlers and young kids riding in their own airplane seats. No other car seat alternative is FAA-approved for use during all phases of air travel. (And as mentioned, watch out for the counterfeits NOT made by Kids Fly Safe.)

If you will be using CARES for your flight, you might also be interested in pairing it with the RideSafer Travel Vest to use in motor vehicles on the other end. Or consider these recommended Car Seat Travel Bags and Carriers to help bring your own car seat on the trip — just not into the airplane cabin. See more posts you might like below!

BACK TO TOP All content ©Shelly Rivoli / TravelswithBaby.com

You might also like:

Flying with a baby or toddler advice index (start here), how to travel with a car seat (without losing your mind), car seat alternatives for travel , review of the wayb pico folding car seat, seven easy ways to get your car seat through the airport, best lightweight travel strollers, worldwide directory of baby gear rentals, baby and toddler travel beds, convertible car seats for travel, how to plan your best vacation with baby, review of the bubble bum inflatable booster, airline-specific tips for flying with babies and toddlers, aer lingus with a baby or toddler, alaska airlines with a baby or toddler, american airlines with a baby or toddler, southwest airlines with a baby or toddler, china airlines with a baby or toddler, gulf air with a baby or toddler, ryanair with a baby or toddler, virgin atlantic with a baby or toddler, shelly rivoli.

Award-winning travel writer and photographer, mom of 3, and great admirer of anyone willing to cook her dinner.

Review of the WAYB Pico Folding Car Seat for Travel

Announcing my new “hiking with kids southern california” guidebook, you may also like..., eleven years of travels with baby tips &..., four reasons you should know about family travel..., pack this the kneeguard for long car trips..., ask shelly: car seat for three days in..., five things you should know before planning a..., dozens of great family travel ideas for 2017, five great gifts for traveling families, temperament and travel: advice for travel with the....

Want a folding car seat for travel? Here are your best choices by age (2023 reviews)

Want to get more personal advice? Join our  new Facebook group !

Sharing is caring!

This article about folding car seats for travel is written by certified Child Passenger Safety Technician Melissa Conn and may contain affiliate links.

The car seat game is changing quickly these days. Child safety seats for use at home are getting bigger and beefier with every new generation – steel frames, massive headwings, and extremely high weight and height limits.

But on the other end, there’s a new set of folding car seats for travel that are changing how families explore the world. Gone are the days when you had no choice but to stay within the confines of the US and Europe lest you risk your child’s safety on crazy roads (there are still places like that, for the record). No, in 2023 you have options .

There are some amazing foldable car seats for travel and car seat alternatives that will take you around the world and back again without breaking a sweat. Especially once your child is a mature enough, there’s now an entire ecosystem of foldable booster seat choices for you!

In this article will share our top picks for folding travel car seats at each stage, including the advantages and disadvantages of each. You’ll also learn what to consider when you’re choosing the right portable car seat for travel with your family.

Quick picks: which folding car seat for travel is right for you?

Read more: 10 things you NEED to know before flying with your car seat

How to choose a foldable car seat for travel

What should you look for in a collapsible car seat? In reality, you don’t have nearly the same choices as you do in more “traditional” car seats.

The most important feature to look at is what stage the car seat is and how that matches up with your child’s age and size. After all, it’s not safe to put a 2 or 3 year old on a backless booster no matter how convenient! Likewise, your 6 year old who still sleeps in the car might not fit into the folding car seat with a 5 point harness option.

Since this article is all about folding car seats, portability is the name of the game! You want a car seat that folds small enough to take out for the day so that you have it when you need it. So some of the options on this list may not be the lightest in their classes, but they’re the best for putting in the overhead bin of an airplane or toting around the city.

In the picture at the beginning of this article, you can see how our family rocks folding travel car seats (and car seat alternatives). That photo was taken at the beginning of our family’s gap year – we needed to travel extremely light while keeping our kids as safe as possible. We’re fortunate to live in an era when we could make that happen!

Reviewing the best foldable travel car seat options

Doona infant car seat stroller review.

*Ideal for birth to age 1-1.5 years old

Key stats: -Weight 16.5lbs -Rear-facing size limits: 4-35lbs, up to 32”

Pros: ✔ Integrated car seat/stroller ✔ Several installation options ✔ Car seat handle doubles as anti-rebound bar

Cons: ✘ High price ✘ Heavy ✘ Need to buy a new car seat and travel stroller when it’s outgrown

Do you want the Swiss Army knife of baby travel gear? You’ll find it in the Doona infant car seat stroller , one of the coolest baby products I’ve ever seen. In just a matter of seconds your very capable infant car seat deploys its own wheels and converts into a perfectly serviceable baby-friendly stroller! I’ve had the opportunity to play around with it in person (though it was released after our youngest was born) and I definitely let out a few “WOW”s during my test drive.

This is the perfect foldable baby car seat for families who live in or travel to big cities and need to hop in and out of taxis. You’ll never have to worry about your baby being safe on the road, but you also won’t have to wonder what to do with your car seat while you hit a museum or go into a store.

Likewise, a foldable car seat stroller is an easier solution than a two-piece travel system that has to be separated and stored in the car trunk. The Doona is even FAA-approved and you can just wheel is straight down the airplane aisle. (While this isn’t truly a “foldable” car seat for a 1 year old, it’s the closest option out there – not including the extremely unsafe unapproved knock-off contraptions you’ll find online).

So why wouldn’t every family put this foldable carseat on their baby registry ? There are three downsides to consider with the Doona, and it’s up to you how important they are.

First, it’s heavy compared to other infant car seats. The official Doona weight listing is 14lbs (some reviewers say it’s more like 16lbs). Most infant carriers weigh more like 10lbs, but of course they don’t have a whole stroller built in. If you prefer a lightweight infant car seat, you’ll find great options here .

Second, it ain’t cheap . The price tag may make it a non-starter for many families, though once you add the cost of a well-respected infant car seat and a car seat stroller frame the sticker shock might subside a little.

Third, once your baby outgrows the Doona as a car seat around 1 year old you’ll be on the hook to buy a new car seat and a new stroller. Obviously that’s a tough nut to swallow financially. But many families find that the stroller they love for the newborn and infant stage just isn’t ideal for the toddler stage and they wind up wanting a new stroller anyway. Especially if you’re focusing on lightweight, travel friendly products you’ll find that many of the best ultralight strollers aren’t ideal until at least 6-12 months anyway.

All those cons aside, the Doona really is an incredible option for families who want to travel extensively with a young baby. It’s the only collapsible car seat that rear faces to keep the littlest travelers safe!

Evenflo Shyft DualRide review

*Ideal for preemie to age 1.5 years old

Key stats: -Weight 8-9lbs without wheels, ~19lbs with wheels -Rear-facing size limits: 3-35lbs, up to 32”

Pros: ✔ Integrated car seat/stroller ✔ Several installation options ✔ Approved down to 3lbs ✔ Option to leave the wheels in the car if you want to carry the car seat alone ✔ Tensioning panel on base for easy seatbelt installation ✔ Anti-rebound panel on base ✔ Approved in Canada

Cons: ✘ High price ✘ Requires 1.5″ between car seat and front seats if not installing in the center ✘ Can’t be used with other strollers ✘ Need to buy a new car seat and travel stroller when it’s outgrown

The Evenflo Shyft DualRide integrated infant car seat/stroller is brand new for 2023. If it looks similar to the Doona above, that’s because it is. But the Evenflo has a few nifty tricks up its sleeve that are worth mentioning.

First, the Evenflo Shyft DualRide is approved for newborns as small as 3 pounds (just like most Evenflo infant car seats). No one outside of Evenflo has gotten to test one out with such a tiny baby so we’ll need to see how the fit is for preemies in the real world – sometimes the beefy headrests of no-rethread harnesses like this one can be challenging for newborn head positioning. Hopefully the fit will be just as good as it is with this excellent preemie car seat .

On the other end, many kids can use it until 15-18 months thanks to the extended headrest. It’s a very convenient option for travel with toddlers!

Second, while the Doona always brings its wheels (and their weight) the Evenflo Shyft DualRide can leave the wheels behind on the car seat base or at home if you don’t anticipate needing them. That brings the weight of the car seat itself down to just 8-9 pounds – in line with many other car seats on the market. But it’s nice to have the flexibility to use the wheels when you want them and leave them behind when you don’t.

Third, the base has an integrated anti-rebound panel to help manage crash energy and a tensioning arm for easy seatbelt installation. You still need to lock the seatbelt when you install – always read your manual – but you don’t have to worry about putting much force into installing it.

As with all products, the Shyft DualRide isn’t perfect. For starters, the Evenflo Shyft DualRide is not compatible with any of the company’s strollers. That’s a bummer since many parents with an older child might like the flexibility to sometimes use the car seat with the Evenflo Pivot Xpand single-to-double stroller .

Like all Evenflo car seats, the manufacturer wants 1.5″ of clearance between the car seat and the vehicle seat in front of it. Practically speaking this rules it out for some compact cars unless you will always install it in the center seat (where the rule doesn’t apply). Keep that in mind if you’re planning on installing it by the window so that you can install another car seat on the other side!

The 10lb weight of the wheel assembly is surprisingly high. Families already sometimes complain that the Doona is too heavy, and the Evenflo car seat stroller combo is even heaver; the trade-off, of course, is that if you plan to hand carry it you can leave the wheels behind… unless you’re traveling and taking a taxi followed by a lovely walk over cobblestones.

Moment of truth here: I’m also surprised by the price point of the Evenflo Shyft DualRide. There are several versions with slightly different features/accessories and they range from $500-600. Thankfully you can get a discount when you buy direct and sign up for the email list, and Evenflo runs frequent sales as well. There’s also a slightly less expensive Walmart version , which lacks the carry-all bag and leather accents.

It’s great to see more innovation in this space, and finally a competitor to the Doona. The Evenflo Shyft DualRide has a lot going for it and will definitely be a contender for car-free city dwellers and travelers alike!

Read next: Best portable car seats for a 1 year old

Wayb Pico review

*Ideal for ages 2-5

Key stats: -Weight 8lbs -Max harness height 16.5″ -Forward-facing size limits: 22-50lbs, 30-45″, recommended 2+ years old minimum

Pros: ✔ Compact ✔ Easy to install ✔ Keeps kids harnessed ✔ FAA-approved to use on flights ✔ Can install without top tether ✔ Narrowest car seat on the market

Cons: ✘ High price ✘ Low height limit ✘ Crotch strap too short for some kids ✘ Top tether strap too short for some cars (can request an extension)

One of the coolest kid travel products we’ve seen in a loooong time is the new Wayb Pico collapsible car seat. It was hard to miss as they plastered their Indiegogo campaign all over Facebook in 2018! The promise? An ultra-light, ultra-compact folding car seat with 5-point harness. Families would be able to travel with world with this foldable toddler car seat without compromising safety.

In many ways their promise has come true. For certain families the Pico is the perfect solution to a really tough question of what to do when they need a travel 5-point harness, while for others it isn’t quite the right fit. Read our in-depth expert Wayb Pico review here .

I’ll start with the advantages: the Wayb Pico is small and easy to use. The weight is about the same as the Cosco Scenera Next, but the genius is in how small it folds up (and even packs into its own backpack!) so that you can lug it around and have it when you need it for spur-of-the-moment taxi rides.

The Wayb Pico is by far the best foldable car seat for a 3 year old if you plan on lots of international travel. Why? The concept of a folding forward-facing harnessed car seat isn’t new. They’ve actually been made for years , including the current car seat used by Uber Family . The downside of prior seats is that they required use of a top tether. Without it, the seats don’t stay upright! If you’re traveling within the US, Canada or Western Europe that’s no problem.

But if you plan to venture outside those areas you may have an extremely hard time using those car seats. We’ve encountered so many cars in South America, Morocco, Thailand and more that don’t have top tethers – rendering a fold up car seat like the IMMI Go completely useless. While you’d ideally use the top tether all the time with the Wayb Pico , at least you have the option to use it without the top tether if absolutely necessary.

Because it doesn’t require a top tether, the Wayb Pico is also the only foldable car seat for airplane use. Your kids can even fully use the tray table, unlike most forward-facing travel car seats, since it’s so low-profile.

The major disadvantage of the Wayb Pico foldable child car seat is that the 45″ upper height limit and 16.5″ harness slots aren’t high enough for some families. Many kids will outgrow it around 5-5.5 years old, though if you’re buying it at 2 or 3 years old that’s a few years of good usage (and more if you can pass it down to a younger sibling). If you’re a family that prioritizes extended rear-facing and then you want an extended forward-facing harness, this isn’t the car seat for you! But if you’ll be doing a ton of traveling with a 2 or 3 year old (like our family gap year) then the Wayb Pico fold up travel car seat is the best option to keep your kid safe without lugging a full-size model. On the small end, the Pico is approved for kids at least 1 year old – but that’s not recommended, and in some places (like California and New York) it’s not even legal.

Finally, the price tag of the Pico may be tough for some families to swallow for a portable car seat for 3 year old. Of course, some families opt to use it at home too though it doesn’t offer the same creature comforts as typical forward facing car seats.

Is the Wayb Pico right for everyone? Maybe not. But if your family is going on an extended trip or relying on lots of taxis in your daily life and a folding travel car seat is on your must-have list, give the Wayb Pico a serious look once it’s available again.

Read next: Best travel car seats for a 2 year old

Ride Safer Travel Vest review

*Ideal for ages 3.5-6

Key stats: -Weight 2lbs -Size small: minimum age 3, fits best for 30+ lbs and 35-47″ -Size large: minimum age 4, fits best for 50+ lbs and 45-57″

Pros: ✔ Rolls up to the size of a 2L soda bottle ✔ Perfect for taxi rides ✔ Lowers seat belt to provide an appropriate fit for young children ✔ Keeps kids properly seated better than a traditional booster seat – even when sleeping ✔ Easy to fit 3-across since it’s only as wide as the child ✔ 5 year expiration

Cons: ✘ No side impact protection like a highback booster seat ✘ Takes practice to get belt fit right ✘ NOT permitted for use on planes

Several years ago the kind folks at Safe Ride 4 Kids sent us a Ride Safer Delight travel vest to review, and it hasn’t left our travel kit since. The Ride Safer travel vest (“Delight” has been dropped with the latest Ride Safer travel vest Gen 5 release) is completely different than the travel car seats above.

You could say that the Ride Safer travel vest is sort of in between a booster seat and a traditional forward-facing car seat. It relies on the car’s seat belt to handle most of the restraint, but also has an optional-but-pease-use-it-always top tether that minimizes head movement in an accident and keeps your child in the correct position even if they fall asleep (or drop a toy). While we won’t put our youngest child in a booster seat yet since she’s a car sleeper – especially when jet-lagged – we’re comfortable with her riding in the Ride Safer vest.

So comfortable, in fact, that we brought our Ride Safer vest on our year-long trip around the world! It’s seen action on six continents and served us well the whole time. Once we practiced a few times, we got very fast at putting her in the vest and getting her secured in the car. The biggest change from the Ride Safer Delight to the Gen 5 is an easier buckle in the front, so that should help many parents.

The Ride Safer Gen 5 is rated for kids beginning at 3 years old and 30lbs, but honestly we felt that the fit was better starting at 4 years old and other parents agree with us. Fortunately size small should last most kids until 6 or even 7 thanks to the adjustable shoulder strap length. Because there’s no side impact protection, it’s a good idea to put your Ride Safer in the middle seat if it has a top tether available. Read our in-depth Ride Safer review .

For families going on extended journeys like ours who just can’t take a traditional car seat or those heading somewhere like NYC or Paris, where they’ll mostly rely on public transportation but need an occasional taxi ride, the Ride Safer travel vest is a fantastic option. It is not approved for use on an airplane, so you may want to pair it with the CARES harness ( full review here ) to use on the plane.

For a more typical trip that involves flying and then renting a car for a week or two, we sometimes opt to bring our other travel car seat . But if you’re choosing between the Ride Safer travel vest or a backless booster seat, the vest is the better choice for younger kids and/or car sleepers .

While we generally think of the Ride Safer as one of the travel car seat alternatives, we also use it at home often. I keep it in my trunk at all times so that we can fit 3-across in our car for those unexpected carpools or for when Grandma comes for a visit! Since the vest is as narrow as the child in it, there’s no trouble fitting it between two big car seats in our compact SUV.

Read next: Best travel car seats for a 3 year old Best travel car seats for a 4 year old

Key stats: -Weight 10lbs -Highback booster size limit 4yo, 40-100lbs, 40-59″ -Belt guide 14-20″

Pros: ✔ Tons of size adjustments for great fit ✔ Folds down small ✔ Legal to use everywhere except Australia (in progress) ✔ Extremely narrow ✔ 7 year expiration

Cons: ✘ Expensive if you will only use for a few years ✘ No cup holders included ✘ Bigger than some of the other travel-specific car seats

Bubblebum booster seat review

*Ideal for ages 5+

Key stats: -Weight under 1 lbs ( really! ) -Backless booster size limit 40-100lbs, age 4+

Pros: ✔ Lightest booster seat ✔ Extremely narrow ✔ Good seatbelt fit in lots of cars

Cons: ✘ Can slide around if kids are wiggly ✘ 4 year expiration (from first use)

The best backless booster seat for travel is one with which we’re extremely familiar: the Bubblebum inflatable booster seat . We traveled full-time with this booster seat for the better part of two years. It’s my favorite folding travel booster seat!

The Bubblebum is a pretty amazing collapsible booster seat. It weighs about one pound and deflates/rolls to the size of a soda bottle. Setting it up takes just a few seconds, and there’s even a shoulder belt guide to give a great fit for kids of different sizes in all different vehicles.

Read more: My in-depth Bubblebum review

If you’re a family with a mature kid who doesn’t sleep in the car the Bubblebum gives you the paragon of portability. It’s the perfect option for taking around on days in a city when you think you might hop in a taxi to get home at night or if you’re taking lots of planes and trains for an extended trip.

The Bubblebum is so light that it may shift if your kid is very wiggly. But if your kid is very wiggly, they may not be ready for a backless booster yet. In that case, I’d go with the RideSafer travel vest for an ultra-portable option or the hifold folding booster seat . We also had an issue with one of our Bubblebums deflating after we left it inflated in a hot car for a month (oops!); we reached out to customer service and they sent us a whole new one for just the $7 shipping charge!

We started using this booster seat at 6 years old, and we think that’s about right. But it’s approved for 4 years old/40lbs and there are plenty of 5 year olds who can use it successfully, especially if your drives are short. This is a judgement call for each family and also depends on the specifics of your travels.

Read next: Best travel car seats for a 6 year old and best travel booster seat

hiccapop Uberboost booster seat review

*Ideal for ages 7+

Key stats: -Weight 1.25 lbs -Backless booster size limit 40-110lbs and 38-62″

Pros: ✔ Extremely light and compact ✔ Very narrow ✔ More stable than other ultra-portable booster seats

Cons: ✘ Frustrating shoulder belt adjuster clip

If you like the idea of an inflatable booster seat for travel, there’s a new option to consider these days. The newish hiccapop Uberboost follows the same basic concept as the Bubblebum but with a few pros and cons.

Read more: My in-depth hiccapop Uberboos t review

The hiccapop packs down slightly smaller than the Bubblebum but inflates to offer a larger seating seating area. Score! It also has a grippy layer on the bottom to prevent it from sliding around.

The biggest downside for us is that our leggy 48″ rider needs the shoulder adjuster clip in most seating positions but finds it very uncomfortable. The clip is much bulkier than on our other travel booster seats.

If your child is 48″+ or has a longer torso, you might be able to avoid using the clip – just be sure that the shoulder belt makes nice, complete contact with the middle of the collar bone. In that case the hiccapop Uberboost is a great choice for a traveling booster seat. For a smaller child, I’d stick with the Bubblebum for now.

Graco RightGuide

Key stats: -Weight 2 lbs -Backless booster size limit 50-120lbs, 43-60″, age 5+

Pros: ✔ Extremely light booster seat ✔ Very compact booster seat when folded ✔ Narrow option for 3-across with big kids ✔ Inconspicuous option for tweens ✔ 10 year expiration

Cons: ✘ Belt guide may not stay in place securely ✘ Incompatible with some seatbelt designs

If you have a big kid or tween who’s approaching readiness for the adult seatbelt (usually 10-12 years old) but not quite there, check out the Graco RightGuide . It’s ultra low profile and easy to throw in a backpack or clip to the outside of a carry-on suitcase. It does require that kids be at least 5 years old, 43″ and 50lbs – a weight many kids don’t achieve until they’re around 7 or even older.

The RightGuide offers a wonderful seatbelt fit even for kids at the bottom of the stated size range. It can be problematic with certain types of seatbelts, so be sure to read my Graco RightGuide review to know what you need to look out for.

Foldable Car Seat for Travel FAQs

Yes. All car seats sold in the US have to pass the same Federal testing. The most important factors in keeping your child safe in the car are choosing an age-appropriate car seat for and using it correctly 100% of the time.

The best car seat for traveling is the one that fits your child properly and that you’ll use every time you’re in the car. Check this list to find the best choices by age.

Need more ideas? Check out the best travel car seats for every age

What’s your favorite folding car seat for travel? Tell us in the comments below!

2 thoughts on “Want a folding car seat for travel? Here are your best choices by age (2023 reviews)”

Hi! I am just trying to clarify- can the WayB Pico car seat be used on international flights that don’t adhere to FAA regulations? Has anyone done this or had a problem? Specifically I am most concerned with TAP Portugal. Do they allow? Thanks!

TAP allows a car seat for children up to 5 years old as long as it’s FAA-approved (which WAYB is) and the bottom of the seat is physically small enough (which WAYB’s is as well).

Safe travels,

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed .

Best Baby Carriers of 2024, According to Parents and Experts

The best wraps, slings, structured carriers and hybrids, according to parents and experts., by jen labracio | medically reviewed by krupa playforth m.d..

No matter how cozy a swing or bouncy seat is, most babies like being cradled in your arms best. But toting your little one around all day isn’t really feasible unless you have arms of steel and an army of helpers to do your daily tasks.

That’s where a baby carrier comes in. Most Babylist parents add at least one to their registry. That’s because a good baby carrier does two key things: helps comfort and soothe a fussy little one and frees up your hands so you can get things done while still staying close to your new addition.

Spend just five minutes diving into the world of baby carriers and you’ll quickly realize that there’s a LOT to learn. Feeling overwhelmed? Don’t; we can help. We’re walking you through Baby Carriers 101, how to choose the best baby carrier for you plus the expert-tested, parent-approved picks.

Babylist’s Top Picks for the Best Baby Carriers

Wraps and slings.

• Best Baby Wrap: Solly Baby Wrap Carrier
• Best Ring Sling: Wildbird Linen Ring Sling
• Babylist Parent Favorite: Boba Baby Wrap Carrier
• Easiest to Use: Baby K’Tan Original Baby Wrap Carrier
• Best Luxury Ring Sling: Sakura Bloom Linen Ring Sling
• Best Hybrid: Boppy ComfyFit Adjust Hybrid Baby Carrier
• New Twist on an Old Favorite: Moby Easy Wrap Carrier

Structured carriers

• Best for Newborns: BabyBjorn Baby Carrier Mini
• Best Lightweight: Happy! Original Baby Carrier
• Best for Hot Weather: Ergobaby Omni Breeze Baby Carrier
• Best Ergonomic: Babybjorn Baby Carrier Harmony
• Best Affordable: Infantino 4-in-1 Flip Convertible Carrier
• Best for Toddlers: Baby Tula Explore Carrier
• Most Stylish: Artipoppe Zeitgeist Baby Carrier
• Best for All Seasons: Lillebaby Complete All Seasons 6-in-1 Carrier
• Best for Twins: TwinGo Original Baby Carrier
• Best for Hiking: Deuter Kid Comfort Child Carrier and Backpack
• Best Hip Carrier: tushbaby Hip Seat Carrier

In This Article

How we chose the best baby carriers.

• Our Top Picks

Is a Baby Carrier Worth It?

How to choose a baby carrier, baby carrier safety, frequently asked questions, babylist’s picks for the best baby carriers, best wraps and ring slings for babies, best baby wrap carrier.

Solly Baby Wrap Carrier - Rhubarb

• Great for the first few months (and beyond)
• Perennial parent favorite
• Lightweight, super soft sustainable fabric
• Universal fit

What Our Experts Think

Over and over again we hear parents swooning over their Solly wrap—and we couldn’t agree more. The Solly is a wrap you’ll reach for again and again thanks to its super soft, lightweight fabric, ease of use and comfort factor, especially during those first few months of your baby’s life. It’s made in the USA from sustainably sourced material from Austrian Beechwood trees and uses environmentally friendly dyes for its (many) beautiful colors and patterns. It’s easy to fold up compactly in its self-enclosing pocket to store in your stroller or diaper bag.

What’s Worth Considering

The Solly only offers one carry position: front-inward. Although it works with babies up to 25 pounds, many parents like to use it while their baby is still young and then move onto a carrier with more positioning options as their little one grows. And while it is pretty easy to use, there is a learning curve for most parents. We recommend watching a few videos to help you get the hang of it.

What Babylist Parents Say

“Lightweight, washable, easy to learn, cute, packable…everything about this is great! I bought a second one even. It’s really not complicated, don’t be intimidated!” -Diana

Additional Specs

Best Ring Sling

WildBird Linen Ring Sling - Spizella With Rose Gold Ring, Standard 74"

• Simple and stylish
• Hand-sewn from heirloom-quality linen fabric
• Fully adjustable

Ring slings are a popular choice for many babywearing parents because they’re adjustable, fit most body types are pretty easy to get the hang of and wear comfortably. Wildbird slings are some of the best (and most beautiful) around. They’re made from premium Belgian linen that gets softer and softer after each wash and are made using low-impact, all-natural environmentally friendly dyes. This baby sling can be worn four ways and comes in two lengths: standard (74 inches) and long (90 inches) for plus-size wearers or parents over six feet tall.

There is a bit of a learning curve with ring slings. Wildbird has a great collection of video tutorials that will help you get the hang of wearing your baby in no time. For another popular ring sling, check out the Kyte Baby . It’s made from pre-washed linen, rose gold rings and two pockets and will cost you about $70.

“It is beautiful, my baby loves it. Easy to care for and clean. The community built around it is also amazing and supportive.” -Bethany

Babylist Parent Favorite Baby Carrier

Boba Baby Wrap Carrier - Grey

• Popular wrap among Babylist parents
• Good price point
• Snug fit helps baby feel secure

The Boba wrap is a popular pick among Babylist parents. It’s made from one large piece of fabric and can be used in one position: front-inward. Because it’s made from five percent spandex, it does a great job of helping babies feel snug and secure. (This is especially great for newborns who love skin-to-skin.) We love that it fits parents of all sizes and can grow with your little one up to about 35 pounds.

One-piece wraps can get hot. If you live in a warmer climate or run hot, consider Boba’s Serenity Baby Wrap Carrier . It’s a lighter, more breathable version of the brand’s classic wrap made from a soft bamboo fabric blend.

Like lots of other wraps, this one takes a little getting used to; this video tutorial can help.

“This wrap is great! Our baby loves it and settles down to people-watch while being held against me. She gets the safety of me being nearby and the tightness of a warm swaddle. Watch a video and read the instructions on how to tie it before tying it. There’s a bit of a learning curve but it’s a great product once you’ve figured it out.” -Lyssa

Easiest to Use Baby Wrap

Baby K'tan Original Baby Wrap Carrier - Black, Small

• Easy to get on and off
• Soft, stretchy fabric
• Sized for wearer

There’s no getting around the learning curve that comes with most baby wraps. We love the Baby K’Tan because it has all the benefits of a wrap without requiring you to actually do any of the wrapping. (Win!) Made of a 100% natural cotton with a bit of stretch, the double-loop design evenly distributes weight across your shoulders and back in any of the carrying positions. Better yet, there isn’t an overwhelming amount of fabric to figure out—it goes on like a T-shirt in three easy steps. The included sash adds extra support and does double duty as a carrier storage bag.

The K’Tan comes in sizes ranging from 0-24, so you can find a good fit for your body. But the downside is that you can’t share it with a caregiver that isn’t your size. Some parents say the fabric gets a little too stretchy (but goes back to normal after it’s washed), so you may want to go down a size to ensure a snug fit.

In addition to the OG style, Baby K’tan wraps come in many other fabric styles for different preferences and climates. There’s a lightweight cotton style and a wrap made from wicking fabric , among others.

“Baby K’Tan is super easy to use and the baby feels snug and comfortable. It’s convenient to use even with a newborn with the ‘Kangaroo’ position. Even now that my daughter is getting heavier I feel that the support is great and there is minimal strain on my back.” -Mirena

Best Luxury Ring Sling

Sakura Bloom Oat Ring Sling

• Handcrafted in small batches by local artisans
• Available in several different fabrics (including silk!)
• Soft and luxurious

Sakura Bloom ring slings are just as beautiful as they are functional. Made in California and crafted in small batches, these slings come in a variety of fabrics including bamboo, linen and even ultra-luxe silk. They work from the newborn days through the toddler years and are easy to store in your bag or stroller when you’re on the go with your little one.

Sakura Bloom has a whole section of their website dedicated to tutorials , packed with both tips for wearing your wrap as well as care and washing.

Ready to Add a Carrier to Your Registry?

With Babylist, you can add any item from any store onto ONE registry. Start your registry today and get a Hello Baby Box full of free (amazing!) goodies.

Best Hybrid Baby Carriers

Best hybrid baby carrier.

Boppy ComfyFit Adjust Hybrid Baby Carrier - Heather Gray

• Wrap + structured carrier hybrid
• Made from comfy but supportive fabric
• Adjustable waist belt and arm straps

If you’re struggling with mastering a baby wrap but are still looking for a carrier that provides similar closeness, check out the ComfyFit Adjust from Boppy. It’s a hybrid carrier that combines the comfort of a wrap with the ease and support of a more structured carrier and is a good option for many parents. The carrier is made from soft, breathable fabric with a touch of spandex and goes on in three simple steps (we promise). There’s a padded waist belt for extra support and wide shoulder straps to help distribute weight. We also like the zippered pocket for stashing away essentials.

Unlike the OG ComfyFit, the Adjust features an adjustable waist belt and arm straps to fit more bodies.

We also love the Stokke Limas Carrier . This wrap/carrier hybrid is soft, easy to use and supports newborns from seven pounds up to 33.

“As a mom of seven, all 11 years and under, I feel like I’ve used every baby carrier on the market. Each of them have their own appeals and benefits. This particular one does a great job. Blending key features into one carrier. The fabric is stretchy and breathable and accommodates both my husband and myself, in the style is easy to put on. I like the wrap style for baby carriers, but I never could get the hang of putting them on quickly or trusting they were secure. This carrier makes it easy to get your arms in the right place, the baby in the right place, and then wrap both of you together in a secure snug fit that is comfortable for both. The best feature for me is the shoulder straps that can easily be pulled toward your neck or outward to change. Where are you carry the baby weight to make it more comfortable.” -Momof7squad

New Twist on an Old Favorite

Moby easy wrap carrier - smoked pearl.

• Closeness of wrap + ease of a more structured carrier
• Fits many sizes
• Can be used from 8-33 pounds

The Moby Classic Wrap has been a parent favorite and a popular choice among babywearers for years; however, since it’s just one long piece of fabric, it can be tricky to get the hang of and frustrating for some parents. The brand’s Easy Wrap solves for this issue.

This 100% cotton T-shirt style hybrid carrier combines the closeness of a wrap with the ease of a more structured carrier. There are simple buckles on the sides to adjust the fit and padded back support for extra comfort if you’re babywearing for an extended period of time. It works for all size wearers, and supports baby in both the inward and outward-facing positions.

Some users complain that the side buckles dig into their back and sides a bit.

“I’m on my fourth child, and have tried every baby carrier under the sun. This one is definitely the easiest and doesn’t require two people to put it on. While hubby is at work, bambino and I can have our dance sessions and get housework done together. Moby, thank you for creating something so safe yet so comfy.” -AmyBaby260

Best Soft Structured Carriers for Babies

Best baby carrier for newborn, babybjörn baby carrier mini - black cotton.

• Quick and foolproof
• Geared toward needs of newborns and their parents
• Inward and outward carry positions

Ease is the name of the game here as the last thing you need to deal with when your newborn is screaming is fumbling around with a complicated baby carrier. The BabyBjorn Mini is simple, straightforward and brilliant and perfect for parents who want a quick, secure way to carry their baby during the early months. All it takes is a few buckles and you’re on your way. (It’s even simple to get your baby in and out if they’re asleep.) It’s also light enough to toss in your diaper bag or store in your stroller basket.

Larger babies may outgrow the Mini sooner than you’d like. There’s no waistband, which some say leads to back and shoulder strain when wearing it for too long. (Check out the BabyBjorn Carrier One for a carrier with a waistband that offers more carry positions.)

For another foolproof carrier that’s just right for those first few months (and beyond), take a look at the Ergobaby Embrace .

“So easy to use. Not a lot of bells and whistles, but it’s easy for first-time parents to figure out.” -Mel

Best Lightweight Baby Carrier

Happy original baby carrier.

• 30-50% lighter than most SSCs on the market
• Eco-friendly linen
• Gorgeous patterns and colors

Just as stylish as they are useful, Happy! carriers are emerging as one of the favorite new(ish) brands in the SSC universe. This carrier’s best feature is its weight—or lack thereof. It’s made from linen and is about 30-50% lighter than other similarly-styled carriers on the market, which makes a big difference if you live in a warmer climate or are someone who easily overheats when you’re babywearing. Other features we love include the easy-to-adjust fit, comfort factor and that they’re handmade in the USA.

Less bulk and padding is what makes this carrier great, but also what some parents complain about—it can be a little less comfortable for longer babywearing sessions or with heavier babies.

Happy Baby also makes several other (just as beautiful) styles of carriers including the Revolution (forward-facing option), a toddler carrier, a stretchy wrap and an Onbuhimo (a Japanese-inspired waistless carrier).

“This carrier is so supportive, my hands are free to take care of my other children, and it fits easily inside my diaper bag.” -Kim

Best Baby Carrier for Hot Weather

Ergobaby omni breeze baby carrier - pearl grey.

• Lightweight and breathable
• 4 carry positions
• Works through toddlerhood

The Omni Breeze has so many great features going for it that it’s hard to choose just one. The first thing you’ll notice is probably the incredibly soft, lightweight fabric that Ergobaby used here. Covered in a special mesh, the Breeze is super breathable and comfortable to wear even when the temperatures start to rise. (Trust us, we tried!) That’s not the case with lots of other SSCs, so it’s a pretty big perk.

Just as amazing are all the carry positions the Breeze offers. Front-inward, front-outward, back and hip carries are all doable with this carrier. It works from the newborn days well through toddlerhood and, like all Ergobaby carriers, is really comfortable for both babies and babywearers thanks to the ergonomic design and tons of adjustment options.

SSCs can be tricky to get on by yourself, especially in certain carry positions, so keep that in mind.

You may also want to check out the brand’s Omni Dream Baby Carrier . Although not specifically designed for warm climates, it’s made from the brand’s softest fabric, a SoftTouch Cotton, and is incredibly comfortable for both you and your little one.

“This carrier is 100x better than the previous one I was using. I love the lumbar support and the cool mesh (especially living in Florida). It was a bit of a learning curve compared to my previous carrier but I cannot recommend this enough! 10/10!” - Julie

Best Ergonomic Baby Carrier

Babybjörn baby carrier harmony - dark green.

• So soft and comfortable
• 3 carry positions
• Ergonomic design

Well known (and loved) for their baby carriers, the Harmony carrier from Babybjörn does not disappoint. It’s one of the softest, most comfortable structured carrier that we’ve tried, made from a unique 3D mesh that’s both breathable yet supportive.

Like other Babybjörn carriers, the Harmony is ergonomic and easy to wear for lots of different body types. It has a wide seat, which helps to put your baby in the correct position by keeping their bottom low and their legs wide apart. There are three different carry positions and lots of padding so you can wear your baby for an extended period of time without feeling pressure on your shoulders or back, including a pressure-relieving waist belt.

There’s no hip carry option with this carrier. It also has a bit of a lower weight limit than some other SSCs at 40 pounds.

“Easy to assemble and fit snugly. The straps adjust quickly to make changes when needed. Carrying my baby is actually quite comfortable with this carrier. When it fits appropriately, all the weight rests on my hips and doesn’t strain my back or shoulders. This is a great carrier that I highly recommend!” -Mimi

Best Affordable Baby Carrier

Infantino flip 4-in-1 convertible carrier - gray.

• Incredibly well-priced

You don’t always need to part with a ton of cash for a great baby product. At under $40, the Infantino Flip is a fantastic deal and a fantastic carrier for the price. It fits kids and parents of all sizes thanks to the numerous points where you can adjust straps and buckles. The convertible seat can be narrow for newborns or made wider for bigger kids to keep legs in a hip-healthy position. And, there’s no overheating in this carrier—it’s lightweight and breathable for both you and your little one.

The only way to get your child into the back-carry position is with someone’s help. Also, some parents find this carrier works better for newborns when you add a rolled up towel or blanket to the bottom of the seat to act as a booster.

“Affordable, easy to put on, distributes baby’s weight pretty well, has a removable bib to catch spit up and drool.” -C.B.

Best Toddler Baby Carrier

Baby tula explore carrier - sedona.

• Can be used from day one through toddler years
• Three carry positions
• Fun prints and patterns

The Tula has extra padding around the leg openings and a wide base and high back to keep bigger kids comfy while babywearing. There’s also a high weight limit—45 pounds—so you’ll be able to use it well into toddlerhood and beyond.

These carriers come in some of the most fun, modern prints around. They’re versatile, long-lasting SSCs that are easy to use, comfortable and have three different carry positions. The Explore is lightweight and can be adjusted in several different spots for a personalized fit. It’s made from 100% cotton and is machine washable so you can toss it right in the wash when it starts to get icky. Just note that some parents mention it can be tough to get on solo if you’re doing a back carry.

We love the Explore because it works well both for younger babies and toddlers. If you’re looking for a toddler-only baby carrier, try the Tula Toddler Carrier . It’s specifically designed for kids ages two to six and can be used up to 60 pounds, and offers either a front or back carry option.

“It’s easy to use and comfortable for long stretches. Also very easy to adjust, so my husband and I can swap back and forth with minimal hassle. I hesitated to spend this much on a carrier, but I haven’t been disappointed. Plus, it has a lot of versatility, so I’m hoping it’ll be the only one we ever need.” -Emily

Most Stylish Baby Carrier

Artipoppe zeitgeist baby carrier.

• Beautiful, unique designs
• Easy to use

Looking for a baby carrier that’s also a fashion statement? Look no further than the Artipoppe Zeitgeist. From denim and fringe to clouds and leopard , you simply won’t find anything that compares style-wise to this unique carrier. And thankfully, these carriers boast more than just good looks. The Zeitgeist is super easy to put on (making it ideal even for the early days of babywearing) and can be used from seven pounds up until your little one is about two years old. There are also three carry positions and padding on the shoulder straps, waistband and around each leg opening.

These carriers are really, really expensive, especially considering you can get a similar style—that’s just as comfortable and easy to use—for less than half the price. Some of the styles and fabrics can be tricky to clean.

Best Baby Carrier for All Seasons

Lillebaby complete all seasons 6-1 baby carrier - stone.

• Six carry positions
• Mesh panel for temperature regulation
• Works from newborn to toddlerhood

This all-seasons, six-position carrier has a unique feature to keep your baby comfortable, no matter the outside temperature. When the back panel is zipped up, the carrier creates a cozy cocoon. Getting hot outside? Unzip it and the inner mesh lining keeps your baby cool by increasing air flow. With a 45-pound weight limit and top-notch lumbar support, this carrier is a great investment that will last well into toddlerhood.

This carrier has a wider seat than most, which improves weight distribution and really comes in handy (for both of you!) as your kiddo grows. It also has a longer torso, which may not be the best fit if you’re petite.

“The Lillebaby complete is amazing. I love the lumbar support, the head support for baby, the fact that you don’t need an infant insert and that it grows with your child. It’s easy to adjust between people wearing baby as well. Love it.” -Lauren

Best Twin Baby Carrier

Twingo original baby carrier.

• Works for babies and toddlers
• Storage pockets and sleep hoods

Need to haul double the load? The TwinGo is our baby carrier of choice for parents of twins. This carrier is so versatile. It can be used as one twin baby carrier, two independent front carriers, two independent back carriers or one independent hip carrier. It also features XL storage pockets (you can never have enough of those, especially when you’re babywearing twice the fun), a waistband that adjusts up to 100 inches and shoulder straps that work for parents and caregivers up to 6’5”, sleep hoods and lots more.

In order to do the dual carry, babies must be at least four months old, have well-developed head and neck control and be tall enough that their heads are outside the carrier and their legs are long enough to straddle the carrier’s panel. For a twin baby carrier better suited for the first six months, check out the WeeGo .

Best Baby Carrier for Hiking

Deuter kid comfort child carrier and backpack.

• Tops for fit, comfort and storage
• Works well for hikers of different heights

Fit, comfort and storage space put this hiking baby carrier at the top of the list if you’re hitting the trails with the littlest member of your family. The aluminum frame pack features a fully adjustable hip belt and shoulder straps and an adjustable torso section so it can be used by wearers of different heights. It’s also really, really comfortable; users rave about the way the carrier distributes weight. (The arched design helps put most of your child’s weight on your hips, making it easier to carry them comfortably even for long stretches of time.) Other extras include a built-in daypack, mesh ventilation, ergonomic cushioning and a safety harness system with color-coded buckles for ease of use.

Hiking carriers are an investment, so be sure to either try a few out before you buy or purchase the carrier from a store or website with a good return policy.

Best Baby Hip Carrier

Tushbaby hip seat carrier - grey/standard polyester.

• Carrier alternative for babies who love to be held
• Built-in pocket to stash diapers, wipes, etc.
• Still need arm around baby

Have a baby or toddler who loves to be carried but isn’t a fan of babywearing? Need something to help a grandparent or older caregiver carry your little one? A relatively new and unique addition to the babywearing scene, hip seat carriers are simple, straightforward and particularly useful in certain situations. Tushbaby positions your toddler in a natural carry position on your hip—but with a little help. It features a support belt that distributes your little one’s weight, lumbar support to help your back and a memory foam-lined seat where your child’s bum rests. There are also storage pockets to hold your phone, keys and wallet.

You won’t be able to go hands-free with a hip seat carrier; you’ll need an arm around your little one at all times. If your waist is larger than 44 inches, you’ll need to add the Waistband Extender .

“I am a grandma of a 2-year-old girl; she weighs 31 pounds and this item has saved my back!!! I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT!! I wear it on our walks because she gets tired and wants to be picked up. I wear it at stores, restaurants, everywhere!! I can put my phone, her water bottle and my wallet in it.” -Maria

• We analyzed results from Babylist’s Best Baby Products survey, which polled 6,000 Babylist users and asked them to share the baby products they love the most and why.
• We utilized insight from the Babylist editorial team, including Gear Editor Jen LaBracio, an expert in the baby space for over six years and a mom of two who has written hundreds of baby gear guides and personally researched and tested hundreds of baby products, including many baby carriers.
• We reviewed customer reviews from hundreds of real Babylist parents.

Types of Baby Carriers

Baby carriers come in four basic styles: wraps, slings, hybrids and structured carriers. Each type has its own pros and cons, and not all baby carriers work for all babies—or for all parents.

• Wraps. A wrap is a super-long piece of stretchy fabric you tie around your body, usually over your shoulders and around your midsection, to create a carrier for your baby. Wraps mimic the feel of the womb and are especially loved by newborns. Most come in one-size-fits-all and easily adjust to different body types, but can take a bit of practice to get the hang of.
• Slings. A sling is a wide piece of fabric that goes over one shoulder and across your torso to create a pouch for your baby to sit in. Slings are generally easy to use. They’re also good for hotter climates as they are generally fairly lightweight. Since they rest on one shoulder, slings don’t distribute weight evenly, making them uncomfortable for long-term wear.
• Structured Carriers: Also called soft structured carriers or SSCs, structured carriers are worn like a backpack with straps over the shoulder and a padded carrying “pack” that can be placed on your chest or back. SSCs are usually designed with older babies in mind but many can be worn with younger babies, too. They offer lots of support and carry options (front, back, hip etc.) and many can be used well through toddlerhood.
• Hybrids. Hybrid carriers provide the best of two baby-carrying worlds: a wrap and a soft structured carrier. Parents like hybrids because they are generally very easy to use and comfortable to wear, however, it can sometimes be tricky to find the right fit for every body type.

A baby carrier isn’t a necessity. You can use a stroller when you’re out and about and a bouncy seat or swing at home. But if you ask parents, many will tell you that their baby carrier is one of their favorite pieces of baby gear, regardless of the type of brand.

Baby carriers free up your hands to do other things while your baby is safely resting against you. They’re great for calming down a fussy baby, especially during the first few months of your little one’s life when seemingly nothing else will do the trick, but many can work well into the toddler years, too. Carriers can help you keep your baby close while you navigate crowded spaces like airports, museums or stadiums. They’re also great if you like hiking and want to bring your little one along. And most are small enough to fit easily in a tote, under a stroller or even in a diaper bag.

The world of babywearing can feel overwhelming, especially if you’re a first-time parent. If you’re trying to figure out how to choose a baby carrier or wondering which one(s) to add to your baby registry, consider the following:

• Longevity: How long do you plan to use your baby carrier? If you want to use your carrier through the toddler years, look for one with a high weight limit and different carry positions. If you plan to babywear mainly during infancy, consider one that creates a cozy environment for your little one.
• Fit: If you plan on sharing your baby carrier with a partner or caregiver, you’ll need one that easily adjusts to different body sizes. Comfort: Be sure the seat of any carrier allows your baby’s legs to be in the hip-healthy “M” position. For you, think about comfort features like back and shoulder support.
• Ease of use: Putting on a wrap is a multi-step process, while a structured carrier is much more straightforward. Be sure you’re willing to put in the work if you choose a more complex wrap or carrier. Also, think about the size of your baby carrier. A wrap or a sling easily tucks into a diaper bag, while a soft structured carrier will take up more space.
• Material: If you live in a warm climate, or just run hot, choose a baby carrier made from lightweight, breathable fabric.
• Care: Babies are messy, but not all carriers are machine washable. Check labels for washing instructions.

Keep in mind that there is a learning curve with baby carriers, especially depending on which style of carrier you choose. Try not to get discouraged if you can’t figure things out on the first try (or two, or three). Get familiar with the world of babywearing , utilize your carrier brand’s video tutorials and practice, practice, practice—it will pay off.

Also check out some of the most frequently asked questions about baby carriers and the baby carrier glossary for carrier and babywearing lingo.

Babywearing is one of the best ways to keep your baby calm and close to you. But it’s important to educate yourself on baby carrier safety and learn how to properly use whichever baby carrier you choose. 

The acronym TICKS is a helpful place to start when you’re using a baby carrier.

• I. In view at all times
• C. Close enough to kiss
• K. Keep chin off the chest
• S. Supported back

Always be sure you’re using your baby carrier exactly as directed. (For example, ensure your baby is facing the correct direction for their age). Double-check that all buckles and knots are securely fastened. And, most importantly, be sure you’re monitoring your little one’s breathing at all times. Always keep your baby’s face in view and ensure their chin never touches their chest.

Learning about the proper hip position for your baby when using a carrier is also essential for safety. When done properly, babywearing can actually encourage your baby’s healthy hip development. But when done incorrectly, it can have the opposite outcome, causing hip dysplasia, a condition where your baby’s hip joint may become partially or completely dislocated.

The M-position is recommended for hip-healthy babywearing. Be sure your baby’s thighs are spread around your torso and baby’s hips are bent so that their thighs are supported and their knees are slightly higher than their bottom. Thighs should be:

• Spread apart

Less spread with more flex is healthy, and slightly more spread with less flex is fine as your little one grows. Consult the International Hip Dysplasia Institute for a full list of all hip-healthy baby carriers .

When can a baby face forward in a baby carrier?

The International Hip Displaysia Institute recommends inward-facing carrying during the first six months of infancy. This is because this time period is one of rapid hip development, and facing your baby toward you in their carrier can actually promote optimum hip development. After the first six months, turning your baby to face out in their carrier is fine; however, you still may want to consider inward-facing through the first year as it’s considered the more hip-healthy positioning.

Are baby carriers good for newborns?

Baby carriers can be beneficial to children for years, but especially good for newborns. Newborns love skin-to-skin contact and thrive off of feeling snug and secure—and a baby carrier is a safe and comfortable way for you to provide this. Baby carriers also give your arms a break and free up your hands if you need to get other things done. However, it is important to choose a carrier that is appropriate for your baby’s age and development and to follow safety guidelines when using it, especially with a very young baby. It is also recommended to consult with a healthcare professional before using a carrier with a newborn.

How long can a baby stay in a carrier?

While there’s no set time limit on how long a baby can stay in a baby carrier, most healthcare professionals advise that babies shouldn’t spend more than about 45 minutes to two hours at a time in a carrier. That’s because your baby needs time to move freely (especially their hips). Always monitor your baby’s comfort and safety while in the carrier and take plenty of breaks.

Which baby carrier is easiest to breastfeed in?

When looking for a baby carrier that’s breastfeeding-friendly, focus on options that allow easy access to your breast and are easily adjustable. Popular options include ring-sling or wrap-style carriers and certain structured carriers that have adjustable straps or panels. And remember, nursing + babywearing may not be easy at first—try not to get too stressed out and practice, practice, practice. 

Which baby carrier is safest for my back?

If you have a bad back or are concerned about putting too much stress on your back while babywearing, look for a carrier that distributes your baby’s weight over both shoulders and around your waist. Focus on features like wide, padded shoulder straps, an ample waist/hip support belt and plenty of adjustable straps and buckles. Avoid any baby carrier that doesn’t have a waistband or that only goes over one shoulder (such as ring slings, onbuhimos or any hip carrier).

Stretchy wraps fit the bill for the newborn days because you can spread the fabric wide across your shoulders and back, which will help with weight distribution. However, once baby reaches about 15-20 pounds, stretchy wraps aren’t as supportive and it’s best to move to a well-fitting soft structured carrier.

How many baby carriers do I need?

How many baby carriers do you NEED? None. But how many will you WANT? That’s another story. Most parents choose to add at least one baby carrier to their baby registry. Many add two: a soft, stretchy wrap for the newborn days and a structured carrier for toddlerhood and beyond. And if you’ve completely fallen in love with babywearing? The world of baby carriers offers so many fabrics, colors and styles—have fun!

Jen LaBracio

Senior gear editor.

Jen LaBracio is Babylist’s Senior Gear Editor, a role that perfectly combines her love of all things baby gear with her love of (obsessive) research. When she’s not testing out a new high chair or pushing the latest stroller model around her neighborhood, she likes to run, spin, listen to podcasts, read and spend time at the beach. In her past life, she worked for over a decade in children’s publishing. She lives outside of Chicago with her husband and their two boys, Will and Ben.