Convertible car seats could help save you huge bucks over the long haul. These car seats come with the right design to handle your baby as an infant, toddler, and school-age kid — which means you’ve got less baby gear to worry about.
Picking the right convertible car seat is a big decision because they are built to last for years. When shopping for the right car seat, there are certain factors you need to pay heed to. From safety indicators, ease of installation, portability, weight limits, to build quality, you will have to ensure that the seat comes with the right specs not just for your child but also for your car.
Best Car Seats That Grow with Babies (Convertible Car Seats): Our Top Picks
We’ve gone through hundreds of convertible car seats and we’ve collected recommendations and checked reviews from thousands of parents. At the end of our extensive research, we were able to curate this list of the 7 Best Car Seats That Grow with Babies.
1. Graco Extend2Fit 3-in-1 Car Seat
With the Graco Extend2Fit 3-in-1 Car Seat, you won’t have to worry about spending extra to upgrade your car seat. Rear-facing car seats are considered the best type of car seats for children within the required weight limit. It is recommended that your child rides rear-facing until they exceed the maximum height or weight rating for the car seat.
When used as a rear-facing harness, this car seat can support children weighing between 4 and 50 pounds. It features a 4-position extension panel that provides up to 5 inches of extra rear-facing legroom allowing your child to ride comfortably in the rear-facing position for longer periods. With the adjustable extension panel and 50-pounds rear-facing weight limit, this seat would grow with your child giving them maximum protection and top-notch comfort.
The Graco Extend2Fit features three seat modes with different weight limits, allowing it to grow with your child until they outgrow using an extra car seat. The rear-facing harness would start with your child as an infant while the forward-facing harness would accommodate your child in their toddler years. This offers weight support of 22 – 65 pounds. When your child gets to school-age, the seat can then be converted to a highback booster which will accommodate between 40 – 100 pounds.
This car seat comes with several useful adjustable features. It offers a No-Rethread Simply Safe Adjust™ Harness System that allows you to make easy adjustments to the height of the headrest and harness in one motion.
It also has an integrated InRight™ LATCH for a quick LATCH attachment. Some extras that would boost convenience is a 6-position recline which keeps your child comfy and helps with easy installation, 2 easy-to-clean cup holder, fuss-free harness storage, and a seat pad designed to be comfy and machine washable.
The Graco Extend2Fit features an impressive build quality that would give you long-term use. It comes with a steel-reinforced frame for extra durability.
Pros
- 4-position extension panel
- Allows for 5 inches of additional legroom
- Frontal, side, rear & rollover safety features
- 10-position headrest
Cons
- A bit expensive (but worth the price)
2. Safety 1st Grow and Go 3-in-1 Car Seat
The Safety 1st Grow and Go 3-in-1 Car Seat is one super affordable car seat that will keep your kid comfy on long rides. This car seat is built to grow with your child. It comes in three modes for extended use. You get a rear-facing car seat with weight limits between 5 – 40 pounds, a forward-facing car seat with a weight range of 22 to 65 pounds, and a belt-positioning boost supporting 40 to 100 pounds.
For easy use, this car seat comes with harness holders that keep the harness in an open position allowing your child to get in and out of the seat with ease. Using the QuickFit Harness, you can easily adjust both the harness and headrest with a single move.
Included are three reclining positions so you can fit it properly into your car. To keep your child extra comfy throughout your trip, this 3-in-1 car seat comes with an extra-comfy seat pad. This seat pad isn’t only designed for comfort but also allows for easy maintenance. To wash, you can take it off the car seat without removing the harness. It is machine washable and dryer safe which saves you a ton of time.
An extra perk is in this car seat are two convenient cup holders with multi-functionality use and they will hold your kid’s drinks and snacks.
Pros
- Side impact protection
- Easy to installed
- Machine washable and dryer safe seat pad
- Three-position recline
Cons
- Could be difficult to get secured
3. Britax One4Life ClickTight All-In-One Car Seat
Just as the name implies, the Britax One4Life ClickTight will take your child from birth, toddler to school-age without losing quality even by a bit. This car seat is designed to provide you with 10 years of service with weight limits between 5 to 120 pounds. It easily converts from a rear-facing infant seat to a forward-facing harness and then to a high-back belt-positioning booster.
Fitted with spark premium soft knit fabric, this car seat is designed to be extra comfy for your child. It features a 9-position quick-push recline that allows it to fit perfectly into your vehicle and you can tune it to find the most comfortable position for your child.
Another feature designed for comfort is its 15-position quick-adjust headrest & harness. As your child grows, their weight and space requirement changes. You can easily make the necessary adjustments using this feature.
What’s more, you will find built-in cooling channels and ventilated mesh for improved airflow and maximum comfort. This car seat is also designed with your child’s safety in mind. It comes with 2 layers of side impact protection that surround your child’s head, neck & torso.
It also features SafeCell Technology which crumples to reduce the impact of a crash and a V-shaped tether that reduces movement during a crash. A high strength steel frame in the seat structure keeps it stable and in place. The Britax One4Life ClickTight is also incredibly easy to install.
Pros
- Comfortable 4-way stretch athleisure fabric
- High strength steel frame
- 9-position quick-push recline
- 15-position quick-adjust headrest & harness
Cons
- No anti-rebound bar
4. Graco Grows4Me 4-in-1 Car Seat
The Graco Grows4Me 4-in-1 Car Seat is built to be the only car seat you would buy for your child from Year 1 to 10. It is an affordable option that most parents would love to have. It features 4 seat modes – rear-facing harness (5-40 lb), forward-facing harness (22-65 lb), highback booster (40-100 lb), and backless booster.
This car seat comes with a simple safe-adjust harness system that allows you to fit it properly into your car and properly secure your child. With a single move, you can adjust the harness and headrest to find the right comfort level.
Another comfort feature is the 6-position recline which allows you to adjust the seat position as your child grows. The 10-position headrest also allows you to make easy adjustments giving your child the best level of comfort at any stage of the ride.
For easy installation, this car seat is equipped with a LATCH system that also makes it very easy to secure to your vehicle seat.
Pros
- Easy to install
- Comfortable build quality
- Affordable price
- 4-in-1 car seat
Cons
- Comes with only one cupholder
5. Maxi-Cosi Pria 3-in-1 Convertible Car Seat
If you’re looking for a car seat that would keep your child comfy through long and short rides, then the Maxi-Cosi Pria 3-in-1 Convertible Car Seat has got you covered. With this seat, your child can ride rear-facing (4-40 pounds) forward-facing (up to 65 pounds), and booster mode (100 pounds).
This car is ridiculously easy to install and convert to each new stage allowing you to make quick car seat adjustments. It comes with a smaller range of features than you would expect for a car seat at its price.
There is a 3-position recline and 5 headrest heights allowing you to make easy adjustments so the car seat properly fits into your car and that your child remains comfortable throughout the ride. It also features a QuickFit shoulder harness that adjusts the headrest and harness height to give your child all the space they need as they grow.
For easy maintenance, this car seat is fitted with removable covers that are machine washable and dryer safe. When fitted into the car seat, they make for a relaxing spot with top-notch comfort.
The Maxi-Cosi Pria comes with the usual safety features you would expect in a premium car seat. It has side impact protection built into the headrest to cushion the impact of a crash. It would also protect your child around the head preventing serious injuries like brain damage.
Pros
- Side impact protection
- One-click latch system
- 3-position recline
- Quick fit shoulder harness
Cons
- A bit expensive
6. Chicco Fit4 4-in-1 Convertible Car Seat
While most convertible car seats on the market are great, they all got one problem. They are not extra portable or slim making it difficult to fit into your car without taking up space meant for other passengers. The Chicco Fit4 4-in-1 Convertible Car Seat solves this problem by offering foldable cup holders and an extra slim design that frees up available space in your backseat.
This car seat is built with safety in mind. It features two layers of protection to protect the head and torso. Its steel-reinforced frame and EPS energy-absorbing foam would keep the seat stable offering maximum protection in the event of a crash.
Ease of installation is an important feature in any convertible car seat. And when installed, you would want the seat to stay in place. The Chicco Fit4 comes with a force-multiplying SuperCinch LATCH tightener (for rear-facing riding) RideRight bubble levels and a LockSure belt-tightening system (for booster seat riding). All these installation features ease the setup process in whichever mode you’re installing the car seat.
To maximize your child’s comfort, this car seat offers a 9-position recline which should also help the seat fit into your vehicle with ease. An extra comfort feature is a dual-density padded seat. You will also find a 10-position headrest that allows you to adjust the headrest positions to your child’s comfort.
Pros
- DuoGuard side-impact protection
- Steel-reinforced frame
- Easy to install
- Dual foldable cupholders
Cons
- A bit pricey
7. Graco Milestone 3-in-1 Car Seat
Graco is known for producing some of the best convertible car seats on the market. This is due to the premium features they offer, which include the Graco ProtectPlus and No-Rethread Harness that allow you to set up the car seat would ease and keep your child safe at all sides while boosting their comfort levels to 100 percent.
The Graco Milestone 3-in-1 Car Seat is no different from their long line of efficient products. This car seat can function as a rear-facing harness (5 – 40 pounds), forward-facing harness (22 – 65 pounds), and a highback booster (40 – 100 pounds).
For easy adjustments, there is a Simply Safe Adjust Harness System that requires only a single move to adjust the headrest and harness. It also comes with the ProtectPlus feature that keeps your child secure against injuries that could occur from frontal, side, rear, and rollover crashes.
This seat integrates a 4-position recline that allows for easy installation based on your car type and helps you to set the seat in the position your child would be most comfortable with. Still, on the ease of installation, the Graco Milestone features a push-button InRight LATCH that allows for a quick one-second attachment with a simple click.
What’s more, there are 10 headrest height positions to help you set the best comfort level for your child as they grow.
Pros
- 4-position recline
- Great value for the money
- 10 headrest height positions
- Fairly affordable
Cons
- Tough to strap and lock in and out
