If you're expecting your first baby soon, it'south time to start thinking about automobile seats.

You may already know that in that location are two types of machine seats for newborns: infant car seats and convertible auto seats. Both are safe for your baby, but in that location are some important differences you'll want to consider when registering or shopping for your baby's first car seat. Those differences have to exercise with size, portability and how long yous'll exist able to use the machine seat earlier your baby gets too big.

Here's what parents need to know nearly both baby and convertible car seats, plus how to decide which one is right for your newborn.

Infant vs. convertible auto seats

Actually quickly: Let's go over safety basics for newborn machine seats. These rules apply no matter what blazon of seat you become.

Infants and toddlers should ride in a rear-facing car seat until they reach the weight limit or height limit of their specific model, whichever comes kickoff. You lot should plan to keep the car seat rear-facing until at to the lowest degree age two and maybe fifty-fifty longer, depending on your infant'southward growth. Infant car seats and convertible automobile seats both allow babies to ride rear-facing from day ane.

At present, let's get into the differences betwixt the two.

Infant car seats

Infant machine seat pros

  • Babe car seats are mostly smaller and more compact. They might exist a cracking option for you if you're going to brand frequent trips with your babe and you need something portable. Baby auto seats are also handy if you're going to be moving the seat from car to car frequently.
  • Parents appreciate that many baby car seats can exist used with a travel system. This means the seat tin can come out of the car and snap into a stroller frame. You can keep your baby buckled in when yous get out of the car and commencement walking around the grocery shop or the park. This is a groovy option for families on the get!

Infant car seat cons

  • The trade-off? Your child volition outgrow an baby motorcar seat faster than a convertible one.
  • Dissimilar brands and models have different size limits. Typically, infant motorcar seats can fit babies up to around 35 pounds or 35 inches long. Once your baby is too big, you'll need a convertible car seat to continue her safe while driving.

Convertible car seats

Convertible auto seat pros

  • A convertible machine seat might be right for you if you want to invest in just 1 machine seat that will final many years. Existence able to convert the seat from rear-facing to forward-facing means you can use the same model from the twenty-four hours your baby is born until she's ready for a booster seat.
  • Convertible motorcar seats are installed rear-facing at first and so "convert" to a forward-facing position when your child outgrows the weight or height limits. Depending on the model, convertible automobile seats can fit children up to 65 pounds in the forward-facing setting. Some can even exist turned into a booster seat for older kids.
  • Convertible car seats also ordinarily have greater weight and height limits for the rear-facing setting than infant car seats do, then your baby can ride rear-facing for longer.

Convertible machine seat cons

  • The downside? Convertible automobile seats are frequently larger and bulkier than infant car seats.
  • They're typically not designed to be portable. They don't have carrying handles like infant car seats, and they're non designed to be quickly taken out of the car one time they're installed.

Whichever model you choose, always keep safety in listen. You shouldn't use a car seat if it has been in a crash, if it has parts missing, if information technology has been recalled or if it'due south past its expiration date. If there's no expiration date, utilize six years from the engagement of manufacture. And if yous don't know the history of a used car seat, it'southward safer to buy a new one.

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Your car seat should encounter federal motor vehicle prophylactic standards and take a v-signal harness. Look for a label with this statement from the National Highway Traffic Prophylactic Administration. If you can't discover information technology, don't purchase the seat!

When to switch from an infant to a convertible car seat

You should switch from an infant to a convertible car seat once your child reaches your infant seat's maximum weight or tiptop, whichever comes starting time. Nigh automobile seats are outgrown when your child's caput is less than one inch from the summit of the seat, but check your seat'southward transmission to exist sure.

An infant automobile seat'south weight limit is often marketed more clearly (some models include this in the product proper name), merely proceed in heed that many children volition reach the summit limit before they do the weight limit.

Every model is different, but most infant car seats have a maximum weight that's somewhere betwixt 28 and 35 pounds, and a maximum pinnacle between xxx and 35 inches. Yous tin notice the limit for your car seat in the user transmission, on a label on the side of the seat, or by checking online. Nigh children will accomplish i of those two milestones onetime betwixt 9 and 18 months.

Fifty-fifty after y'all switch to a convertible car seat, y'all should even so proceed your child rear-facing equally long equally possible. And remember, if you lot e'er demand assist installing any type of car seat, y'all can observe a child passenger safety technician in your surface area through the National CPS Certification Program at safekids.org.