Top 10: Best car seats for babies 2023

1

Joie i-Level

The i-Level is excellent in many ways, hence why it won our Group 0+ Child Seat of 2019 award. It's also great value given the safety elements it comes with. The high-quality materials and the comfortable memory foam means that this value isn’t kept tucked out of sight, though. What will tempt many, and rightfully so, is the ability to lie it totally flat – a position that is much better for small babies over a long period of time. If you are out all day and don’t want to take a carrycot, then the i-Level will be an excellent option.

It’s also great at doing the basics, as it is very easy to fit, simple to carry and has an excellent cover. The only thing we’d like to improve is the strap adjustment system and the slightly fiddly buckle. Other than that, it is a fantastic seat that will provide reassurance in and out of the car for the first year or so of a child’s life.

Read our full review

3

Britax Römer Baby Safe i-Size

Like the Joie i-Level, the Britax Römer Baby Safe offers the ability to lay your baby flatter when you take it out of the car and slot it into a travel system, which is better for their posture and might well help them sleep better on longer days in the seat.

This is one of the reasons for what might seem to be a fairly high price, but this is also Britax’s first i-Size seat, so comes with more in the way of side-impact protection. Other tricks of note include a quick removable cover, which can be taken off without removing the harness from the seat, which will be a bonus for any parents with little ones that are prone to travel sickness. There are also lots of different colours and designs to choose from.

5

Cybex Aton M

The Aton M is another that can be used on a base that can accommodate a bigger seat, meaning you don’t need to buy a second base as your child grows (so long as you buy another Cybex of course).

It’s chunky, at 4.6kg, but that is pretty much par for the class. Although it isn’t designed to take a child any heavier than 13kg, there is a wide range of adjustment in the headrest – it can be put in one of 11 positions.

7

Silver Cross Simplicity

9

Joie i-Gemm

Joie's i-Gemm seat allows your baby to travel in the rear-facing position from birth up to 15 months. It's i-Size safe and can be installed in your vehicle with the Joie i-Base Advance or i-Base (sold separately), allowing an easy transition to the i-Anchor advance child seat. It also allows you to lift the seat in and out of your car without having to secure it each time with a fiddly seat belt. The i-Gemm car seat has a Tri-Protect headrest with Intelli-Fit memory foam to provide certified side impact protection.

Joie's baby car seat pairs perfectly with the Joie chrome plus pushchair for and is also compatible with most other Joie buggies, adapter-free, as well as most other brands of pushchair when used with the Maxi-Cosi car seat adaptor.