During the first several weeks of your baby’s life, it is recommended to utilize a rear-facing infant car seat (1). While there are several car seat types, models, and brands to choose from, an infant car seat will most likely be the best option for your first trip with your child. Not only are infant car seats often smaller because your baby is still small, but they also work as a carrier to assist you with easily transporting your newest family member to and from the car.
Our Top Picks
- Best Overall Infant Car Seat: Graco SnugRide 35 Lite LX Infant Car Seat
- Best Car Seat And Stroller Combo: Doona Infant Car Seat & Latch Base
- Best Value Infant Car Seat: Safety 1st Onboard 35 LT
- Best Infant Car Seat With Extra Safety Features: UPPAbaby MESA
- Best Infant Car Seat For Small Cars: Britax B-Safe Gen2 Flexfit
In This Article
HappyBabyHub’s Best Infant Car Seats Picks
Graco SnugRide 35 Lite LX Infant Car Seat – Best Overall Infant Car Seat
- Installs very easily in multiple vehicles
- The seat and the base are both very lightweight
- The seat snaps into the base very well
- The harness fits a newborn well and feels secure
- The fabric on the seat cover feels cheap as it is only held on little pieces of plastic that tuck in
The Graco SnugRide 35 Lite LX Infant Car Seat is a lightweight and comfortable option for babies up to 35 pounds and 32 inches. It is effortless to transfer from car to stroller and has a 4-position adjustable base with a level indicator for precise installation. The two-piece infant head and body support keep your baby snug and comfy as they grow.
The car seat is compatible with Graco strollers and car seat bases, making it easy to create a travel system or switch between vehicles. It also has a movable canopy for extra comfort and protection. The seat can be installed using either the vehicle seat belt or the LATCH system.
Graco ProtectPlus Engineered car seats help protect your baby in all types of collisions, including frontal, side, rear, and rollover accidents.
- Stroller weight: 7.2 lbs
- Weight limit: 4-35 lbs
- Height limit: 18-32 inches
- Additional features: LATCH Compatible
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Doona Infant Car Seat & Latch Base – Best Car Seat And Stroller Combo
The Doona car seat and stroller combo are here to make your life as a parent much easier. This revolutionary travel system is the first of its kind, seamlessly converting from a car seat to a stroller with just a few easy steps.
But what sets the Doona apart from other car seats and strollers is its unmatched safety features. This innovative car seat is one of the safest on the market today, with a 3-layer side impact protection system, an anti-rebound bar crash technology, and an improved 5-point safety harness. Plus, it comes with an ergonomic infant insert to keep your little one comfortable and secure.
- Stroller weight: 10.3 lbs
- Weight limit: 4-35 lbs
- Height limit: 7-32 inches
- Additional features: Easily converts from Car Seat to Stroller and back again
Safety 1st Onboard 35 LT – Best Value Infant Car Seat
This car seat can accommodate children from 4 to 35 pounds in a rear-facing position, ensuring a safe and secure fit for your little one during travel.
In addition, this car seat also features side-impact protection and head and body inserts to provide extra comfort and support for your baby. You can easily adjust the fit of the car seat with four harness heights that are evenly spaced. The harness can also be adjusted with a single pull, providing a secure fit every time.
When you’re ready to hit the road, this car seat is ready to go. It’s even approved for use on airplanes. And if you need to connect it to a stroller, you can do so with a single click to any QuickClick-equipped stroller. Plus, the car seat pad is easy to clean and can be washed in the washing machine and dried in the dryer.
- Stroller weight: 14.99 lbs
- Weight limit: 4-35 lbs
- Height limit: 7-32 inches
- Additional features: 5-point safety harness
UPPAbaby MESA – Best Infant Car Seat With Extra Safety Features
The MESA is built with visible, straightforward advancements and features that eliminate uncertainty.
The SMARTSecure System combines auto-retracting LATCH connections with a visual signal that changes from red to green, making installation easy and precise. And with the front adjust no-rethread harness, integrated side impact protection, and one-handed release, the MESA offers an efficient and safe design that combines simplicity and security.
This car seat can hold infants weighing 4-35 pounds and up to 32″ tall, and it comes with an infant insert, wedge, and low harness position, making it perfect for preemies and tiny babies.
Your baby’s comfort is also essential, and the MESA delivers with its soft, breathable, and moisture-wicking materials, keeping your little one cool and comfortable. The adjustable headrest with side impact protection, two crotch buckle positions, and harness buckle storage pockets add additional features to ensure your child’s safety and comfort.
Cleaning the MESA is a breeze, with detachable and washable seat fabric and a UPF and hideaway canopy. It also easily attaches to VISTA and CRUZ strollers without the use of adapters.
- Stroller weight: 19.36 lbs
- Weight limit: 4-35 lbs
- Height limit: up to 32 inches
- Additional features: Included infant insert plus wedge and low harness position comfortably
Britax B-Safe Gen2 Flexfit – Best Infant Car Seat For Small Cars
This compact car seat is a solid choice, constructed with strong materials like a steel-reinforced base and a SafeCell crumple zone. Not only that, but it also offers two layers of side impact protection, safeguarding your baby’s head, neck, and body.
Cleaning the car seat is a breeze thanks to the SafeWash cover that is naturally flame retardant and can be easily machine washed and dried. As your baby grows, the 5-point harness can be easily adjusted with the headrest, ensuring the perfect fit every time. Plus, the exclusive SafeCenter LATCH system makes installation easy and secure with just a few clicks.
What’s more, this car seat also comes with a European Belt Guide for added stability when the base is not accessible. And when it’s time to hit the road, the car seat can be easily combined with any Britax single stroller, creating a seamless travel system for you and your baby.
- Stroller weight: 20.6 lbs
- Weight limit: 4-35 lbs
- Height limit: up to 32 inches
- Additional features: 5-point harness
Chicco KeyFit Infant Car Seat and Base
At only 9 pounds, this lightweight carrier easily attaches to the stay-in-car base, creating an unbeatable travel gear system that is both easy and efficient.
Your baby’s safety is a top priority with the KeyFit Infant Car Seat, which is why it comes equipped with a five-point harness that can be tightened with a single pull. Plus, the carrier shell is lined with EPS energy-absorbing foam, providing extra impact protection. The underside of the carrier is smooth, which helps protect your car seats from any damage.
The KeyFit stay-in-car base boasts a ReclineSure leveling foot and two RideRight bubble level indicators, making it easy to achieve the ideal seat angle. With high-quality LATCH connections and a SuperCinch tightener, the base ensures a snug fit with minimal effort. If you prefer to install the seat with the vehicle seat belt, the clear belt routing and integrated lock-offs make positioning, tightening, and locking the belt into place a breeze (2).
- Stroller weight: 20.6 lbs
- Weight limit: 4-22 lbs
- Height limit: up to 30 inches
- Additional features: Rear Facing Seat, Machine Washable Seat Pad, LATCH Compatible
Graco 4Ever DLX 4 in 1 Car Seat
With an impressive lifespan of up to 10 years, this car seat can be used from infancy through to childhood.
The RapidRemove cover makes cleaning up messes a breeze, while the integrated belt lock-off ensures a secure and quick installation. Plus, the rubberized Fuss Free harness storage keeps the harness straps out of the way when you’re placing your child in the seat.
Moreover, the Simply Safe Adjust Harness System and 10-position headrest make it easy to adjust the harness and headrest to accommodate your growing child without the need to rethread. And the 6-position recline ensures your little one is comfortable at all times, and the InRight LATCH mechanism allows for a quick and straightforward installation (3).
This versatile car seat transforms from a rear-facing harness for infants weighing between 4-40 pounds to a forward-facing harness (22-65 lbs), to a highback belt-positioning booster (40-100 lbs), and finally to a backless belt-positioning booster (40–120 lbs).
- Stroller weight: 22.8 lbs
- Weight limit: 4-120 lbs
- Height limit: up to 49 inches
- Additional features: 5-point harness
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LiteMax DLX Infant Car Seat
This seat is perfect for your newborn, weighing between 4-35 lbs and measuring 17-32 inches. Featuring FreeFlow technology, the seat is made with cooling mesh fabric that ensures constant air circulation, so your little one stays dry and happy, even on the hottest days.
But that’s not all – Evenflo’s commitment to safety is unmatched. The LiteMax DLX Infant Car Seat exceeds all federal safety regulations and has undergone rigorous testing. It has been put through its paces with rollover tests, temperature tests, and structural integrity tests at energy levels that are almost double those of the federal crash test standard.
- Stroller weight: 19.2 lbs
- Weight limit: 4-35 lbs
- Height limit: 17-32 inches
- Additional features: SafeZone Load Leg Technology stabilizes the car seat base and can reduce rotation up to 50% in the event of a frontal collision
Maxi-Cosi Mico Xp Max Infant Car Seat
With plush premium fabric and extra padding, this car seat will keep your baby cozy and supported on every journey. The curved handle provides a comfortable grip for parents, too.
One of the best features of the Mico XP Max is its PureCosi Fabrics. These materials are free of wool and fire retardant treatments, making them safe and comfortable for your baby. And if there’s a mess, no problem! The detachable seat pad is machine washable and dryer safe.
For smaller babies, the Mico XP Max comes with soft newborn cushions that provide extra support and comfort. Plus, with side impact protection, you can rest easy knowing your baby is safe on every trip.
The MaxiLock base provides even more security, with a secure locking mechanism, self-retracting one-click LATCH connections, and an anti-rotation stability leg.
- Stroller weight: 22.2 lbs
- Weight limit: 4-30 lbs
- Height limit: up to 32 inches
- Additional features: purecosi fabrics made without wool or added fire retardant treatment that are machine washable & dryer safe
Baby Trend 35 Infant Car Seat
This car seat weighs less than 12 lbs, making it easy to lift and grip while reducing pressure on your back. Chiropractors even recommend this lifting technique as an ergonomically acceptable approach to transporting your baby.
The car seat has a multi-position base with a level indicator to ensure it’s installed correctly, and a No-Twist Harness Indicator to let you know when the car seat straps are twisted. When the carrying handle is in the forward position, it acts as an anti-rebound bar. This innovative feature offers an extra layer of protection in case of an accident.
This also exceeds all federal safety criteria, ensuring you have peace of mind while on the go with your little ones.
- Stroller weight: 12 lbs
- Weight limit: 4-35 lbs
- Height limit: up to 32 inches
- Additional features: Base includes Flip Foot recline and bubble level indicator
How To Choose The Best Infant Car Seats?
A baby car seat is one of the key purchases you’ll make on your journey to parenthood. It’s important to choose a seat that is safe and comfortable for your child, and that will fit well in your car. Here are some of the criteria we used in determining the best infant car seats for every family.
- Safety is the most important consideration when choosing a car seat. Look for a seat that is certified by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The seat should also have a 5-point harness system, which will keep your child securely in place in the event of a collision.
- Comfort is also important for your child’s safety. A car seat that is too small or too large can be dangerous. Look for a seat that has adjustable straps and cushions, so that it can be customized to fit your child’s size.
- Ease of use is another important factor to consider. You want a car seat that is easy to install and use. Look for a seat that comes with clear, step-by-step instructions. And make sure the seat is compatible with your car’s safety features, such as the LATCH system.
- Cleaning: Babies and messes go hand in hand, yet a surprising percentage of car seats come with coverings that can’t be removed. Cleaning will be considerably easier with a detachable, machine-washable seat cover.
- Budget: Finally, consider your budget when choosing a car seat. There is a wide range of prices on the market, so you should be able to find a seat that fits your needs without breaking the bank.
What Is An Infant Car Seat?
An infant car seat is a type of car seat designed specifically for infants, typically newborns up to about 12 months old, depending on the weight and height limits of the seat. In fact, car seats are so important that they are required by law for the first several years of your child’s life (4).
Infant car seats are designed to be rear-facing and are secured in the back seat of a vehicle using either the car’s seat belt or a LATCH system (5). They typically have a handle for easy carrying and can be removed from the car to transport the baby without having to remove the baby from the seat.
Do I Need An Infant Car Seat Or Convertible Car Seat?
Infant car seats are designed primarily for infants and young babies. They attach to suitable strollers and click into and out of a base that stays in your car.
Convertible car seats are designed to be rear-facing at first but may be converted to a forward-facing seats after your child has outgrown the rear-facing size restrictions. From the moment your child is a newborn until they outgrow a front-facing car seat, you should be able to utilize a convertible car seat.
One reason to purchase a dedicated infant car seat rather than a convertible car seat is convenience. Infant car seats are comprised of two parts: a base that attaches to your vehicle and the actual car seat, which snaps into and out of the base. This eliminates the need to unharness your child every time you enter or exit the vehicle. Though your infant will be able to ride in the latter for a longer period of time, they are significantly heavier and less suited travel systems.
How Long Does A Baby Stay In An Infant Car Seat?
Your baby can use an infant car seat until he/she outgrows it, either in terms of height or weight. This often occurs between 10 and 13 months, although each child is different. Your youngster will most likely surpass the height restriction before the weight limit.
