A quality infant car seat is a necessity, and not all car seats are made equal. The top seats come with features that improve the performance of crash tests. For instance, load legs are shock-absorbing components that are attached to the seat or base and help to reduce the movement of the seat during a collision.
A favorite among CPST instructors is the Chicco KeyFit, which has a large rear-facing weight limit and height limit as well as a bubble level indicator, and a spring-loaded reclining foot that allows for easy installation.
Graco Mesa Max
The Graco Mesa Max is one of the top infant car seats due to its convenience of use. It features an easy-to-use design and top rated infant car seats fabrics. It also has a handy feature that allows you to attach the harness of your child directly to the headrest. It also comes with an enormous canopy that allows you to keep your baby shaded when traveling. It’s a bit heavier than the typical stroller, which is a problem if you want to carry it around or use it with your award-winning UPPAbaby.
The Mesa Max’s impressive crash test results demonstrate its commitment to safety at the highest level. It received a high score in the frontal test and a high score in the side impact test, which means that your baby is protected from both sides in an accident.
The anti-rebound panel is another notable safety feature. It helps reduce rebound forces in a crash and also protects the child’s head. This feature is not common in infant car seats and makes the Mesa Max stand out among its rivals.
Graco Mesa Max can easily and securely be fitted into your vehicle with LATCH when it is used in conjunction with the base. The load leg, recline angle adjustment, and tightness indicator all help ensure a quick, accurate installation. The base weighs 12.6, which is slightly higher than the typical car seat for infants however not enough to cause any issues.
Like its predecessor, the UPPAbaby Mesa V2, the Mesa Max uses dual-knit fabric that’s free of fire-retardant chemicals. It comes with an infinitely adjustable backrest, as well as an extremely durable insert for infants who weigh between 4 and 11 pounds. The fabrics are GREENGUARD gold certified, which tests for low chemical emissions and low VOCs.
The UPPAbaby UPPAmax Mesa Max may be slightly more expensive than other models, but offers premium features and modern technology for a safe travel experience. The base is included and is available in a variety of fashionable colors. This is a great addition to the value proposition. Its thoughtful features and sturdy design give parents peace of mind on every journey.
Britax Boulevard ClickTight
The Britax Boulevard ClickTight is an excellent choice for parents who want an automobile seat that can grow with their child. Its rear-facing weight limit is 40 pounds, which is higher than many infant car seats. It can also be used forward-facing until your child reaches 65 pounds.
Its main selling factor is the ClickTight Installation System, which is the safest and easiest to use available. It allows you to tighten the seat belt by pushing an orange release button and pulling the harness strap, without having to loosen it and re-thread it. This reduces the risk of not tightening the correct belt, which is the leading cause of car seat failure.
The EZ-Buckle Pad is a further safety feature that keeps the buckle out the way as you put your child in the car seat. This feature along with beltpath cutouts on the sides of the seat, makes it easy to get your child into and out of the car.
All three of the ClickTight convertible seats (Boulevard, Marathon CT, and Advocate CT) have the same features. These include the ClickTight Installation System with an impact-absorbing base that has 7 recline positions and a rip-stitch energy-absorbing harness pad, a tether that is HUGS as well as a steel reinforced frame and EPP energy-absorbing foam.
It is a heavy seat, so it may be worth looking at alternatives that are lighter if you intend to use it for frequent car swaps or traveling. The seat is large, so it might not fit in smaller cars.
If you’re looking for a low-cost seat with similar quality the Graco 4Ever DLX is a great option. It has lower crash test analysis scores than the Boulevard however it’s an excellent choice for your baby.
The Graco also comes with push-on LATCH connectors which make it much easier to uninstall the seat. The LATCH connectors on the Boulevard have an additional release mechanism, which requires you to press a gray button and pull the webbing to loosen it. It’s not easy to do this if your webbing has a tight fit. However this seat comes with a convenient storage cubby for the belt straps when they are not in use.
Clek Liing
Clek Liing is the ideal infant car seat for you If you’re looking for everything: style, safety and convenience. This rear-facing car seat is simple to install, has an excellent crash test rating and a range of features.
The Liing is made with features that go beyond US and Canadian safety standards. It is designed to be simple and secure installation in any seating position. It’s equipped with the latest safety features like an energy-absorbing steel load leg and an outer shell that is lined with EPP foam to provide greater side-impact protection. The base has 7 recline positions, and a bubble indicator that tells you when the seat is at just the right angle for your baby.
The Liing is a sleek, modern stroller that parents are raving about. It is equipped with innovative safety features like rigid lower anchors that are much easier to connect than hook-and-loop connectors. The Liing has a one-handed quick release, making it simple to remove the base and connect it to strollers that are compatible with it. At less than 17 inches in width, it’s narrow enough for 3-across in most vehicles and fits nicely into many convertible car seats to act as a travel booster.
The Liing best infant seat seat is rated 1st for its unique rigid-LATCH installation method. The Liing’s lower anchors snap into the seat belt slots of the vehicle, and the top tether strap snaps on to the vehicle headrest. This creates a tight snug, secure fit that reduces the risk that the child could be thrown around in a crash.
The base weighs 9 pounds and the seat weighs 10.5 lbs. Other rear-facing seats weigh more, but the difference isn’t noticeable if you plan to transport the car seat and base around. ).
Parents love the Liing’s built-in canopy and 100+spf sun protection with a mesh peekaboo window. Caregivers appreciate the merino blanket that keeps the baby warm and the capacity of the handle to pivot away from the canopy. This makes it easier for them to grab the seat when needed.
Graco Trio Grow SnugLock LX
The Graco Trio SnugLock LX is a three-in-one car seat that converts from rear-facing infant, to forward-facing harness, and then to highback booster. It is equipped with the SnugLock installation system which allows for a simple and smooth installation using either a vehicle seat belts or lower anchors. It is possible to install it using the top tether when in booster mode. (We recommend always using the lower anchors for extra security.)
This seat is perfect for children of all ages. For babies who are just beginning to crawl, it has an infant car seat rear facing insert which helps to support their necks and backs. As they grow older, the insert can be removed and the seat can be used as a regular car seat for toddlers. This car seat is one of the few that allows you to use the top tether when in booster mode, which we recommend.
Its base is quite compact from front to back so it shouldn’t pose a problem fitting in most vehicles. The headrest must be raised to allow the lower anchor webbing to pass through. Fortunately, there’s a headrest adjustment knob to easily do this, and you’ll be able to view the position of your headrest in the display window.
One of the most unique features about this seat is the SnugLock installation system that is a bar that is located in the belt path. Installing this car seat with lower anchors is simple and is almost as easy as using the vehicle’s seat belt.
The manual also provides an excellent illustration of how to correctly route the lower anchor connectors when routing them through the belt’s new path, which can be confusing initially. Keep them away from the chest clip and crotch loop to prevent interference with the buckle system.
The Graco Trio Grow is part of the Protect Plus Engineered family, which means it’s been tested to some of the most rigorous crash testing in the industry. This includes tests for side, rear and rollover crashes as well as frontal collisions.