The best car seats for four-year-olds tested by real parents

The Silver Cross Motion All Size 360 Car Seat is soft and breathable, made of natural bamboo fibres, and comes with plenty of safety measures. Little ones will stay protected with every journey thanks to the Side Protection System; it was awarded ‘Best baby, toddler, and child car seat’ in the ADAC 2022 Autumn Test (ADAC stands for the Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club, an experts' safety organisation that evaluates car seat safety). 

The ISOFIX base keeps the seat firmly locked in place, and it's the first rotating car seat of its kind to meet the latest R129 (i-Size) regulation.

You can buy this seat when your baby is a newborn, and it will grow through baby, toddler, and child stages; our mum tester Maria said: "The 360 capabilities are revolutionary. I know friends of mine who, 7/8 years ago, said this feature on a car seat was unheard of, so I feel fortunate to have this type of car seat on the market during my young children's lives. I love that I can pop my LO in and out of the car without having to strain my back, and especially during postpartum recovery, it's an additional help – I can see all the straps directly in front of me and am able to secure little one into her seat as safely as possible and without the stress of leaning into the car."

When it comes to fitting this car seat, you can download the free Silver Cross app onto your smartphone for additional instructions and how-to information. It’s handy to do this before you buy the car seat, as you can check whether it’s compatible with your make and model of car. 

When the car seat grows with your child, you can store the harness away and use it as a booster seat, and the headrest is adjustable. It’s currently available in three neutral colours; the fabric is easy to wipe clean and made from recycled plastic bottles for added sustainability. 

We tested this car seat as part of the Mother&Baby Awards 2022 when it won Gold for Best Multi-Stage Car Seat.

Read our full Silver Cross Motion All Size 360 Car Seat review.

A car seat that’s suitable to buy at birth and will grow with your child, the Joie Every Stage R129 features a range of safety features to give you peace of mind that your little one is as safe as possible in the car. The Joie Every Stage R129 car seat is suitable from birth to 36kg – about 12 years.

The rear-facing position is designed to suit your baby from birth to about four years (105cm tall); then, when your little one grows, change to forward-facing from 100-145cm (from about four to 12 years old). When rear-facing, the seat uses a five-point harness; in forward-facing, it uses the car’s seat belt. It’s easy to know where the seat belt goes, thanks to green markers and indicators. Guard Surround Safety panels provide extra side protection, and the headrest has three layers of foam for additional side protection.

Once you’ve changed to a forward-facing booster seat position, the harness easily tucks away with storage slots underneath the covers; M&B tester and Contributor Sophie Knight said: “I really liked that there is integrated storage for the harness once you progress to the booster seat, and need to tuck the harness away. It's much easier than having to unthread the harness and take it out. I was confident it was stored safely and out of the way, so my daughter was still comfy, and it wasn’t in the way.”

The seat is designed to grow with your child, making sure they’re always comfortable with six recline positions and side wings that expand when the headrest height is increased. Sophie continued: “It’s pretty easy to set up and install this car seat in both rear- and forward-facing positions, making sure the seat belt is secured in the coloured slots and is nice and tight. However, I did miss the security of ISOFIX with this seat. However, it was very comfy for my daughter to sit in during journeys, and for newborns, there was plenty of padding and comfort with the inserts. It’s easy to change the height of the headrest, and it’s a secure booster seat.”

Thanks to the clear numbers underneath, it’s easy to change the recline position and see which position it’s in. However, it’s not compatible with ISOFIX.

Designed for three-year-olds and up, this booster seat has 10 different height positions that can be adjusted using just one hand. The Joie seat comes packed with protection, including the Guard Surround Safety side impact panels for full-body impact protection and ISOFIX connectors, meeting R129 and i-Size regulations for ultimate safety.

This forward-facing seat is suitable for 15-36kg – that’s roughly three to 12 years old. It is installed in your car using ISOFIX, although you can also just use the car’s seat belt; M&B tester and Contributor Sophie Knight said: “I like that you can use this with just the car’s seat belt in case your car doesn’t have ISOFIX. The only downside I found to this booster was that the ISOFIX connectors were really difficult to release; the position of the buttons meant it was incredibly difficult to get my fingers in the right place, and I have to admit to swearing quite a lot when taking this seat out.”

It’s lightweight – weighing just 5.6kg, making it easy to swap out between cars.

The headrest has ten height positions, there are two positions for the backrest, and you can also extend the size of the seat depth by three positions – this makes it different from most booster seats that lack this adjustment. Sophie continued: “It’s great that this booster seat features so much adjustability, meaning it suits all those growth spurts your child has. Having adjustable positions for the seat really sets this one apart from most others on the market.”

The Joie Signature range means this booster seat is more stylish than most, with design details setting it apart and making it smart to look at; plus, the covers are still removable and machine-washable.

This sturdy high-back booster from Cybex features built-in side impact protection, a patented three-position reclining headrest, ISOFIX, an 11-position height-adjustable headrest, and an adjustable backrest. It’s available in four colours and suitable until your little one is 150cm tall or 12 years old.

Our mum tester, Rebecca Lancaster, said: "On unpacking the car seat, I realised it came in two parts - the back and seat. It took a bit of brute force, but I finally managed to put the two together."

The seat is compatible with ISOFIX, but you can also fit it with just the car seats. Rebecca continued: "Putting it in the car was easy - it uses ISOFIX connectors, which slot in far more easily to the seat than the ISO Fix on our previous car seat. It’s more slimline than our old seat, too, meaning there’s space for the armrest to fold down in the middle of the back seats, which is excellent for playing games on long journeys. Because it’s so narrow, I wondered if she’d be comfortable, but there certainly seems to be space for her.

"The headrest is brilliantly sturdy and has a clever bit at the back that reclines or sits the head more upright, depending if they’re asleep or not. However, despite this, the headrest is what lets the car seat down slightly as it’s got two layers to the cover which overlap where my daughter would lie her head if she were sleeping."

This affordable car seat is suitable for children about 15 months to 12 years (76-150cm tall). It's a high-back booster seat with two options for forward-facing positions; when your child is about 15 months to four years old, use the seat with the harness for added safety and security; then, when they've grown, you can use the seat with your car's seat belt. The harness can be stored and tucked away behind the seat padding.

This seat is an upgrade from previous Graco high-back booster seats, as it features ISOFIX fittings to install the car seat with even more safety; M&B tester and Contributor Sophie Knight commented: "The ISOFIX installation was one of the easiest to use, with simple click buttons to get the seat installed safely and by myself. Having ISOFIX when your child is older and using the booster with the seat belt, not the harness, gives extra peace of mind. There is also a top tether available to fix behind the main car seat, although my car wasn't compatible with this."

There are handy green coloured indicators to show the seat has been installed correctly, and the green fittings to slide the seat belt through are easy to use. The harness connector button can be a little fiddly, however, Sophie Knight continued: "I did find the harness connector one of the trickiest, as the two side sections didn't stay together as easily as some car seat harnesses do. It's a small thing, but it can make things more troublesome when you've got a wriggly child, and the things won't stay together long enough to click in easily. But it just takes a bit of perseverance!"

The high-back headrest has 15 positions - that's more than most booster seats - and the handle for altering the height is easy to use. The seat weighs 7.2kg, meaning it's easy to take out and swap between cars if you need to. Sophie Knight said: "It's lightweight, meaning it's a breeze to move it from my car to my husband's, and it was easy to re-fit without being heavy or clunky."

Graco has made the seat from memory foam, so it's comfy and soft on car journeys; plus, the covers are removable and machine washable for those inevitable spillages.

The Maxi-Cosi Kore Pro i-Size is a top-notch booster seat designed to grow with your child, offering the perfect blend of safety, comfort, and convenience. This i-Size seat is made for kids aged 3.5 to 12 years (around 15 to 36 kg), so it will see them through the majority of their time in a car seat.

The seat features side impact protection, which provides extra security around your child's head and torso. It has an adjustable backrest that ensures a proper fit as your child grows, so your little one stays comfortable and supported on long journeys.

Comfort-wise, the Kore Pro i-Size doesn't disappoint. Its breathable cover keeps your child cool, especially on warm days, and the seat is well-padded for a smooth ride. Our parent testers loved how easy it was to install. Mum tester Beth said, "This car seat is very simple in construction and design, and because of that, it is very straightforward to use... unlike some car seats. It doesn’t take a Ph.D. in engineering to be able to install! As a car seat, there are no surprises; what you see is what you get."

This car seat is also easy to install, thanks to its simple ISOFIX connectors, which firmly secure the seat and prevent any shifting or wobbling during travel.

Because practicality is key for busy parents, the seat cover is removable and machine washable, so you don’t have to worry about spills or crumbs. The Kore Pro also has handy cup holders, which are a big hit with kids (and parents!) for stashing drinks and snacks during long car rides.

The Maxi-Cosi Kore Pro i-Size is a durable, flexible, and safe choice for families on the go. It offers peace of mind and comfort from one stage to the next.