Hello Reddit! I was trying to research the safest car seats (preferably convertible.) since I want to purchase one this weekend for my 10 month old baby. I tried a couple of websites that advertised that they had actually crash tested their car seats, and noticed that there were different results across the board. Is there an institution or websites (Studies too!) I should trust more than others? Is there a reason why it’s not the same car seat that should be ranking the safest on all sites? I don’t know if I can ask about anecdotal advice here, but I was wondering how you all went about making your choices. Thank you! :)

The time has come to switch my little to convertible car seat so I have been trying to find one that gets top safety ratings as well as (ideally) swivel for easier in/out. It seems that many of the top rated models on consumer reports (i.e. Chico NextFit, Britax) for safety do not have the swivel. Am I missing something? Does the swivel feature make the seat inherently a bit less safe?

It appears that the Baby Jogger is the only swivel convertible car seat that is in the top 5 on consumer reports. It's pricy at ~$500. Worth it?

Side note--interesting to me that the Chico models are rated so highly for safety and did so well in crashes when they only allow for rear facing up to 40 lb and 43 in (instead of 50 lb & 49 in like many other models).

Hi, I’m looking for a recommendation on the safest convertible car seat. Not an all-in-one, just a convertible. I am getting so overwhelmed by the options, it seems like every site I found is sponsored, so I don’t trust that.

I found the Chicco NextFit Zip as highest rated on a couple sites - but it’s discontinued!

My only concern is safety rating, with easy to clean being relevant but not super necessary (we have a handheld spray vacuum cleaner). Budget is up to $400-ish. We have mid size SUV and this is the only car seat in it, so size isn’t an issue.

My LO is rapidly outgrowing her infant car seat and we need to switch to a convertible ASAP but we are having indecision and seeking advice/recommendations/experience.

Important to us:

1. Safety, good crash test ratings (not sure whose crash test ratings to trust)

2. rear facing as long as possible

3. preferably car seats withOUT flame retardant chemicals

4. preferably car seat that is easy to clean

5. slim fit might be nice since Mom likes to sit in the back with the baby and we may have another HOWEVER we anticipating our baby to be above average height so she might benefit from extra leg room

We are currently considering Chicco Nextfit Max ClearTex (more leg room) vs. Britax Poplar S (Slim Fit & anti-rebound bar). However, some websites (Baby Gear Lab) gives these average crash test ratings. We are a little confused and open to all advice and alternative car seats. We would like to make the decision soonish. Thank you in advance for all your help. We are in the United States.