The 8 Best Convertible Car Seats of 2023

What to Look for in a Convertible Car Seat

Additional Safety Features

While all car seats sold in the United States are required to meet federal standards, there are additional safety features that can be helpful when buying a seat.

Strap Design

While every car seat includes a five-point harness, Alisa Baer, MD, pediatrician and co-founder of The Car Seat Lady, LLC, notes that parents should be mindful of strap design. She advises parents “look for straps that don’t twist and pull smoothly,” because properly buckling your child into their seat for every ride is just as important as installing the seat correctly.

If you plan to install the seat using a seatbelt, she recommends looking for one that has a built-in locking device because “[it] will typically make it easier to get the car seat tight and will typically prevent the tilting that can happen when using the seatbelt’s own locking mechanism." 

“It’s important to remember that all car seats [sold in the U.S.] meet the same federal standards and are safe when used correctly,” according to the University of North Carolina Highway Safety Research Center. Choosing the right one for your family, whether it’s because of a different design in order to fit your child or vehicle properly or one with additional safety features, is also very important. 

Anti-Rebound Bar

Another feature to look for is an anti-rebound bar, which Dr. Baer explains “is designed to prevent the rear-facing car seat from moving toward the back of the vehicle in a crash, preventing the child’s head from hitting the back of their own vehicle seat."

Australian-Style Rear-Facing Tether or Load Leg

Finally, similarly to the True Rigid LATCH system, a few select car seats in the U.S. have the capability to add an Australian-style rear-facing tether or a load leg to rear-facing seats to limit motion in a crash. These additional safety features “prevent the car seat from moving toward the front of the car or reclining any more during a crash,” she explains. “By preventing this motion, the car seat is able to absorb more of the crash forces into its shell and reduce the forces on the child’s head and neck by about half.” 

Ease of Installation

“When it comes to all car seats, the most important safety consideration is to make sure the seat is installed and used correctly,” the UNC Highway Research Center explains. “Every car seat is different, so it is important to read the owner’s manual to make sure you are aware of any requirements specific to your seat.” While every car seat model will have its own unique installation process, the vast majority of U.S. car seats connect to the car using either the seatbelt or LATCH system, and many offer both options.

Seatbelt Installation

Car seats with the seatbelt installation option will have a belt path that the seatbelt will route through to secure the seat to the vehicle. In order to do that properly, the car’s seatbelt needs to be in the locked position (which typically activates when you’re in an accident) at all times to ensure the car seat does not move more than one inch from its position. Most seatbelts have a manual lock option specifically for car seat installation, but some car seats also feature built-in locking devices for extra security.

LATCH System

Both the car seat and your vehicle have to have their respective components in order to use the LATCH system. Any vehicle made in the year 2000 or later will have tether anchors. One set can be found in the backseat tucked between where the seat and backrest meet. (Some are easy to find, others take a bit of digging.) You will always find two anchors on both the passenger and driver-side seats, and vehicles with only one row of seats in the back also have anchors for middle-seat installation.

Additionally, there will be at least one more anchor, which can usually be found on the back of the vehicle seat in SUVs and minivans or on the shelf below the back windshield of a sedan. Some vehicles are also equipped with anchors on the ceiling or the car floor behind the backseat. You can find out exactly where the anchors in your vehicle are located by looking in the owner's manual. 

Both forward-facing and rear-facing car seats will come equipped with two lower anchor connectors that are attached to a belt (made of material similar to a seatbelt) and clip on to the lower seat anchors. Once you clip them in securely, you will tighten the belt as much as you can to ensure the car seat does not move around. Whether your car seat is convertible or not, once it is forward-facing, there is a third tether hook on a strap that fastens to the anchor found behind or above the seat. (Look at your car’s owner manual to locate it.) After you’ve placed the hook, you’ll tighten the strap so that the backrest of the car seat does not move. 

Rigid LATCH

There is also a lesser-known installation category, according to Dr. Baer, and it is called the Rigid LATCH. It is the strongest and most secure installation, but unfortunately, it’s only found in four different car seat models in the U.S.

Remember, the only way a car seat will keep your child safe is when it’s properly installed. “If anything is unclear, don’t hesitate to reach out to a certified Child Passenger Safety Technician in your community or call the manufacturer’s customer service line,” the UNC Highway Safety Research Center tells Verywell Family. “Many manufacturers have certified Child Passenger Safety Technicians in their customer service department specifically to help parents with questions."

Seating Positions

Rear-Facing

If you purchase a convertible seat that is rear-facing only, you can expect it to last until your child is at least 2 years old (the earliest the American Academy of Pediatrics suggests turning children around) or later, depending on their size. The University of North Carolina (UNC) Highway Research Center tells Verywell Family, “Kids should ride rear-facing as long as possible [because rear-facing car seats] protect the head, neck, and spine. It is recommended that kids stay rear-facing until they reach the maximum height or weight limit allowed by their seat.”

According to Dr. Baer, kids can reach three or four years old before they reach one of the limits for their car seat. Additionally, she notes, “A child’s feet touching the back of the vehicle seat is not an indication that they are too big for rear-facing.”

Forward-Facing

Once you turn your child around, they will transition to a forward-facing seat with a five-point harness (which many convertible seats include). A representative from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration tells Verywell Family, “Parents should keep their kids in a forward-facing car seat with a harness and tether until [the child] reaches the top height or weight limit by the car seat’s manufacturer.”

This can happen when the child is anywhere from four to seven years old, depending on the car seat model, but you may want to look for a seat with limits on the higher end because meeting a height or weight requirement doesn’t necessarily mean your child is ready to use a highback booster. 

The absolute earliest Dr. Baer recommends transitioning a child out of a forward-facing seat is five years old, assuming they also weigh at least 40 pounds and are mature enough to use a seatbelt. The maturity milestone is typically what pushes this transition back. According to the UNC Highway Research Center, “Many kids can’t handle this responsibility until they are six years old or older.” They further explain, “Booster seats . . . [require] the child to be mature enough to stay in the correct position at all times so that the seat belt can do its job. If they can’t sit properly at all times (even when sleeping), then they are not ready to use a booster seat.”

Booster Seat

Once a child is in a highback booster seat, that may be the last configuration they need before transitioning out of a car seat. However, there are some instances where a child has maxed out their height and/or weight limit for the highback booster, but they still aren’t quite ready to go without a boost, and that is when a backless booster seat comes into play.

According to Dr. Baer, kids should pass every part of the 5-Step Test before going booster-free, so if they’ve maxed out the height and/or weight limit of their highback booster but haven’t passed this test yet, then a backless booster is appropriate. At that point, you can expect your child to remain in the booster until they are between 10 and 12 years old. 

Why Trust Verywell Family

Deanna McCormack is a content director and freelance writer who specializes in parenthood and lifestyle products and reviews. She is a mom to two kids under the age of three and owns three convertible car seats. She loves the Nuna RAVA and travels with her Cosco Scenera Next.