What infant car seat should i buy

From deciding between an infant car seat or a convertible to features you should look out for, here's how to buy the right one. Choosing a car seat can be a stressful experience. Not only is it one of the most important purchases you'll make, but it's likely to be one of the most expensive. Here are a few basic tips to make the search a little easier, and to ensure you go home with the right one.

First things first: Read your vehicle's owners manual before buying a car seat. Car seats can be attached using either the seat belt or the LATCH system which stands for the Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children system, and which all new vehicles have. You can decide before buying which one you want to use and then look for a seat based on how you want to install it — belt or LATCH. If you decide to use LATCH, make sure you know where the LATCH attachments are in your vehicle — there may not be any in the middle, rear-seating position, which is the safest spot for a child.

Another tip? Measure your back seat to know how much room there is for a car seat. A car seat with a large base may not fit in a small car — you may have to opt for one with a narrower base instead. Also consider who'll be sitting in the back seat.

How many children do you have? How many are in car seats? Take back seat measurements before you go shopping and bring the measuring tape with you to the store to measure the base of the seats. Take it from us: Not having to invest in another car seat in the midst of that crazy first two years will be a blessing. Newborns can sit in two kinds of car seats : a rear-facing infant seat, or a convertible seat which faces the rear of the car at first, and later is turned toward the front.

Buying a convertible car seat saves money because it lasts through toddlerhood, and it's completely sound in terms of safety. The only drawback? The seat is also easy to click on and off the base, and it can be done with one hand. While safety is, of course, paramount when it comes to infant car seats, for many parents, aesthetics are a close second.

The newest iteration of the Peg Perego Primo Viaggio delivers on both fronts. The sleek and lightweight seat features a breathable jersey fabric that comes in a wide range of colors the Italian-based company manufactures 14 different shades! The seat also has a slim design that not only enhances its aesthetic, but also means it can fit better in small cars.

Despite its lightweight, the shell feels substantial. It also has adjustable side impact protection, an anti-rebound bar to reduce the car seat's motion in the event of a collision, and six harness positions. Also, both our babies have been very comfortable in the seat. I used one for my daughter and I'm going to buy one for this baby girl too. The educational health content on What To Expect is reviewed by our medical review board and team of experts to be up-to-date and in line with the latest evidence-based medical information and accepted health guidelines, including the medically reviewed What to Expect books by Heidi Murkoff.

This educational content is not medical or diagnostic advice. Use of this site is subject to our terms of use and privacy policy. Registry Builder New. Best Infant Car Seats. Medically Reviewed by Joyce Slaton, C. Medical Review Policy All What to Expect content that addresses health or safety is medically reviewed by a team of vetted health professionals.

What is an infant car seat? Why you might want an infant car seat vs. Or, you'll often be traveling with baby in cars that aren't your own. Infant car seats can usually be installed more easily than a convertible car seat. Plus, many infant car seats snap right onto your stoller so you can get in an out of the car without much fanfare.

The main seat of your stroller has a minimum weight or age requirement. Some strollers aren't suitable for newborns without a compatible infant car seat, particularly jogging strollers and those without a seat that can lay entirely flat. You want the flexibility to easily move your child from car to stroller.

Many infant car seats can be clipped into compatible full-size strollers, so you can go from car to stroller without unbuckling baby. And because they're generally more compact, infant car seats are also easier to pick up and move around. How long can babies use an infant car seat? What is the best infant car seat on the market? Check how easily your seat can be installed with this helpful chart from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration NHTSA , and consider meeting with a local certified child passenger safety technician to make sure you know how to properly install it before your little one arrives.

Ease of cleaning: Babies get messy, and you'll want an infant car seat that can easily be cleaned. Ideally, the fabric cover should come off and be machine-washable. Compatible strollers: Not every stroller can attach to every infant car seat.

If it's important that your car seat clips into your stroller, check with both manufacturers before settling on a stroller-car seat combo. Even if they can't be attached out of the box, some strollers have adapters for common car seats. To make the process easier, you can also purchase a travel system. Weight and height limits: You want to keep your baby rear-facing for as long as possible, and you'll also want to get the most time out of your investment. How we made our picks for the best infant car seats To come up with a list of the best infant car seats, we considered expert input from CPSTs, polled our editors and scoured the What to Expect community for recommendations.

See registry advice and a custom baby gear checklist Go to Registry Builder. Registry List: Amazon. Pros: Easy to install, performs well in safety tests. Regardless of which model they choose, parents should be reassured knowing that all infant car seats pass the rigorous NHTSA standards and crash tests. At only 25 inches in length, the Cybex Aton 2 Sensorsafe is an inch or two shorter than the most popular infant car seats on the market, making it ideal for fitting into vehicles lacking second-row legroom.

The alert also acts as a reminder that the baby is in the vehicle. Its relatively narrow Measure carefully, however, because its While it uses the same stroller adapters suitable for Maxi-Cosi, Nuna and Cybex infant car seats, it may not be compatible with some of the more budget-friendly mainstream stroller brands.

Parents trapsing through airports and frequently hopping in and out of Ubers will get a lot of mileage out of this all-in-one infant carrier seat and stroller because it eliminates the need to store and lug around a bulky separate stroller base.

It would also be a good choice for urban dwellers who use public transportation as their primary mode of transport. The Doona is the only combo stroller-infant car seat available in the U. But integrating the wheels with the infant car seat carrier does have drawbacks. The product weighs Its compact design also means you lose underneath storage for diaper bags, toys, or other overflows. The PegPerego is one of only two infant car seats that offer a reclining carrier that adjusts to a lie-flat position in the stroller to keep a napping baby comfortable during long walks the other is the Cybex Cloud Q.

It also features an infinitely adjustable knob rather than multiple fixed positions along with the weight-based level indicator to help caregivers find the appropriate recline angle to keep the carrier level to the ground as the infant grows. All infant child seats sold in the U. Because all models are suitable for babies between four and 35 pounds and up to 32 inches, parents may get a few more months of use out of it before switching to a convertible car seat.

Head and body inserts give newborns added comfort and support Adjust your child's fit in the seat with four harness heights, spaced for a better fit whether your child is tiny or tall. Everything you need to get Started - This set includes the Doona infant car seat, Doona bamboo infant insert, Doona bamboo head support, Doona vehicle seat protector, and our Doona base.

DO NOT use bleach or harsh detergents. In order to determine the best infant car seat for your vehicle, we considered the products most accessible to the widest swath of consumers in the U. We also considered a broad range of end-user ratings and evaluations by multiple testers. Selecting the right infant car seat carrier goes beyond compatibility with strollers and may vary depending on the vehicle and travel style of the buyers. Forbes Wheels evaluated infant car seat carriers based on dimensions, weight, safety features and user reviews to help select these products.

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