Best Car Seats Under $100

Best car seats are more than just a baby’s seat; high-end car seats have all the amenities to make your life easy, hold your baby in comfort and keep them secure in a car. Not necessarily fancy car seats should have all the premium perks. There are car seats with the benefits of a premium car seat without a hefty price tag. Here is a list of the best car seats under $100 to help you find the affordable best car seats!

Although affordably priced, all the car seats on my list have the necessary bells and whistles available on premium car seats. To present the list of best car seats under $100 before you, I have tested the most buzzing 22 car seats based on their affordability, safety standards, and convenience and then sorted the bests out of them. So, without further ado, let’s peek at the list before you decide!

Table Of Contents

List of the 5 Best Car Seats Under $100
What To Consider Before Buying The Best Car Seats Under $100?
Best Car seats Under $100: Wrapping up

List of the 5 Best Car Seats Under $100

Evenflo Chase Harnessed Booster [best toddler car seats under $100]

Features:

Product Dimension: 18 x 18.5 x 29.5 inches
Item Weight: ‎9.14 pounds
Weight capacity: 22-110 lbs
Height: 28-57 inch

Evenflo Chase Harnessed Booster 2-in-1 convertible car seat is suitable for toddlers (22-110 lbs.). Your baby will be comfortable and safe in its forward-facing harness mode (at least 2 years) as well as belt-positioning booster mode (at 4 years).

Chase Harnessed Booster car seat is lightweight, easily portable, features an easy-to-install mechanism, and includes all the essential perks and safety standards which make this car seat best for your toddler. Besides, the harness mode of this convertible toddler car seat is FAA certified. Rest assured that this Evenflo car seat passes all the safety standards that are required by the US and Canada.

In addition, the soft and padded head pillow and cushioned seat will keep your baby in comfort while travelling. Besides, two cup holders on each side of the car seat add more convenience during the journey.

Pros

Lightweight
Has done multiple safety tests
Seat covers are easily washable
6 years expiration
Harness and booster seat support
Airline certified

Cons

Minimal padding in the seat
Hook-style basic LATCH attachment

Graco TurboBooster Backless Booster Car Seat [Best car seats under $50]

Features:

Product Dimension: ‎15 x 16 x 8.5 inches
Item Weight: 5.1 lbs.
Weight capacity: 40-100 lbs
Height Capacity: 43-57 inches

Graco TurboBooster is one of the most popular and affordable backless booster car seats for big kids. This car seat is suitable for a baby from 4 – 10 years old, up to 57 inches in height.

This TurboBooster Backless car seat has gone through rigorous crash tests completing the US Safety Standard. This backless booster car seat is able to protect your kid in frontal, rear, or rollover crashes. On top of it, you’re getting this top-notch safety standard car seat at $28 only! And not to mention its super easy installation process, which is almost like a hundred-dollar car seat.

So, what are the other convenient perks of the Graco TurboBooster Backless car seat? Its padded armrests are adjustable, so your kid can sit comfortably, and at the same time, the two cup holders offer easy access to snacks or water bottles. Similar to the Evenflo, the fabric of this car seat is removable and machine washable.

Pros

Most Affordable
Armrests are padded
Connects in the latch system
Two cup holders.

Cons

No head or neck support

Safety 1st Jive 2-in-1 [best convertible car seats under $100]

Features:

Product dimensions: ‎29.75 x 18.13 x 16.25 inches
Product weight: ‎14.25 lbs
Weight Capacity: 5-65 lbs
Height Capacity: 18- 40 inches

The Safety 1st Jive 2-in-1 is one of the best car seats under $100, suitable for newborn babies and toddlers. You can use this car seat in two ways- rear-facing for infants (5-40 lbs.) and forward facing for toddlers (22-65 lbs.).

In terms of safety, the car seat is blessed with a built-in side impact and a five-point adjustable harness that will keep your baby in a snug fit. The Safety 1st jive 2-in-1 features a compact design, so you can adjust up to three car seats of this model at the rear seat of your vehicle; not all the convertible car seats are so compactly designed. That’s why Safety 1^st Jive is one of the best convertible car seats!

In addition, if you frequently travel by plane, then Safety 1st can be a good choice since it’s certified by airlines. So, all these convenient perks have made the Safety 1st jive 2-in-1 one of the best car seats under $100 for parents who are on a budget.

Pros

Side impact protection
Five-point harness
Removable head and body pillow
Machine washable and dryer-safe fabrics
Two removable dishwasher-safe cup holders
Can be used in planes
Exceeds federal safety standards

Cons

The Cup holder is inconvenient to use

Graco SnugRide 35 Lite LX [infant car seat under $100]

Features:

Product dimensions: ‎‎14.4 x 18 x 27.4 inches
Product weight: ‎11.49 lbs
Weight Capacity: 4-35 lbs
Height Capacity: 32 inches

The Graco SnugRide 35 Lite is a top-rated infant car seat admired by most parents who are on a budget. The SungRide 35 Lite weighs only 7.2 lbs. so you can easily transport it from your vehicle to the stroller and vice versa.

The Snugride is designed keeping parents’ ease in mind; it can hold infants from 4 lbs up to 35 lbs. It ensures necessary side impacts to keep the baby secure and safe while traveling. Besides, the car seat base features 4 adjustable positions so your baby can comfortably sit on it. The base also features a level indicator that ensures the car seat’s accurate installation; all these features are rare at this price range!

However, you can install the Graco Snugride 35 Lite without the base via American belt routing and European belt path system, which is a very handy feature while traveling in a taxi or plane. Besides, this infant car seat maintains all the safety standards that will protect your baby in frontal, side, rear, and rollover crashes.

Pros

Very Lightweight carrier
Thick EPS foam
4 reclining positions
Comes with a large canopy
The cover is machine washable
FAA-certified for airplanes
7-year lifespan

Cons

Lacks a no-rethread harness
Lacks lock-off device for easy seatbelt installation

Graco Affix Highback Booster Seat [ Best convertible booster seat]

Features:

Product Dimensions: 16.75″ W x 10.5″ D x 25.4″ H
Product Weight: 9.8 lbs
Weight Limit: 30-100 lbs
Height Capacity: 38-57 inches

Graco Affix is perfect for big kids- 3 to 10 years old, one of the best convertible booseter seat in the market. Your kids can comfortably ride sitting on its backless mode as well as on the highback booster mode. This highback booster car seat features a latch anchor by which you can securely install the car seat.

While testing, I noticed that its front strap is very convenient for adjusting the car seat more securely. The Graco Affix has 6 position headrests, so it can easily accommodate your growing child’s height up to 57 inches; not all convertible car seats of a similar price range have such multiple headrest positions. Hence, it adds more convenience for young riders!

Another fact that I love about Graco Affix is that the car seat is around 10 lbs., so it’s easily portable. Besides, the car seat has undergone several rigorous crash tests and passed all safety standards, including side impact testing.

Pros

Lightweight
Easy to clean and machine washable
Has LATCH connectors
6-point headrest
Comes with a cup holder
Has a pull-out storage tray

Cons

Armrests are not adjustable

What To Consider Before Buying The Best Car Seats Under $100?

Choose The Right Model:

You’ll have mainly four types of car seats in the market, and each of them has limited weight and height capacity. Remember the following points while choosing the best car seat under $100:

All-in-One (0-12 years): These types of car seats are compatible with newborns up to 120 lbs.; you can convert them into rear-facing infant mode or forward-facing toddler mode and can transition them from the harness to lap-positioning booster mode.
Infant car seat (0-1 year): Rear-facing infant car seat can hold 5-35 lbs. up to 35 inches.
Convertible car seat (0-7 years): These seats can hold 5-56 lbs. (both infant and toddler) up to 49 inches.

Harness-to-Booster (2-12 years): Harness-to-booster car seat features two modes- harness mode and highback booster mode. Their weight limit ranges from 25 to 120 lbs.

See Also: How Many Car Seats Do I Need

Safety:

Check out the safety certifications of the car seat you’re going to purchase. In addition to looking for safety labels, you can observe the side impact protection and adjuster/positioner for newborns.

Fits well in your vehicle:

While buying a car seat, it’s important to check if the car seat is compatible with your vehicle. You might need more than one car seat; in that case, bulky size car seats may not be a good fit for you.

Ease of Installation:

If you need to move the car seat frequently, then an easy-to-install car seat can drop your hassle. A car seat installation process can feature ISOFIX, built-in lock-off, latch connectors, or belt guides. In addition, some models have level and tightness indicators for better security.

Other Convenient perks:

Once you get all the necessary features available in your favorite car seat, you can go ahead for additional perks that can provide you the best value for money at $100. Such bells and whistles may include proper indicators, extra-padded chest straps, machine-washable fabrics, ease of use, compatibility with your stroller, and more!