Best Booster Car Seats

Booster Car Seats Buying Guide

What Is a Booster Seat?

After children outgrow a front-facing car seat, they’re still not big enough to properly fit into an adult‑sized seat belt. A booster seat is designed to raise and position a child so that the lap and shoulder belt fit properly across the child’s body during normal driving and in a crash. In the event of a crash, it is the vehicle’s seat belt that holds the child in place.

When Does a Child Need a Booster Seat?

In general, most booster seats can be used for children who are at least 5 years old AND at least 40 pounds AND are able to sit properly during a car trip without leaning, slouching or playing with the seat belt. In the United States, children under 57 inches and younger than 9 years old must use a booster seat; however, booster seats are used to keep children safe, not because of a law.

When considering transitioning a child from a convertible seat to a booster seat, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) in an August 2018 Press Release recommends delaying the transition for as long as possible: “Each transition — from rear‑facing to forward‑facing, from forward‑facing to booster seat, and from booster seat to seat belt alone — reduces the protection to the child.”

Types of Booster Seats

There are two types of boosters: high‑back boosters which provide head and back support, and backless boosters which raise the child to fit the vehicle’s seat belt and are intended for children who have outgrown a high‑back booster seat.

Most safety experts recommend using a high‑back booster as often and for as long as possible. A high‑back booster typically has side impact protection padding and is better at keeping the seat belt properly positioned because children don’t tend to lean sideways as much in a high‑back compared with a backless. Most high‑backs also come with connectors that attach to the vehicle’s LATCH system to secure the booster to the car seat. This doesn’t affect the child’s safety but does keep an empty unsecured booster seat from becoming a projectile in the event of a crash. For children who regularly fall asleep in the car, a high-back booster has the advantage of offering head and back support.

To use a backless booster, the vehicle seat (or the vehicle seat’s headrest if there is one) must come up to the child’s ears to decrease the chance of the child getting whiplash in a crash; otherwise, the child needs a high-back booster. Backless boosters are a convenient option when it isn’t practical to use a high-back — when using a car service, for example, or switching cars.

Our Picks for Booster Seats

More from the AAP in the same press release quoted previously: “Using the right car safety seat or booster seat lowers the risk of death or serious injury by more than 70 percent.” All of our recommended booster seats meet the following criteria: Have excellent crash test results, are child friendly, convert from a high‑back to a backless booster, come with a LATCH option and are easy to clean. In addition, each recommended booster seat has at least one convenience feature such as a cupholder or console.

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