Choosing a travel infant car seat (2024 reviews)

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No matter what seat you’re using, infant car seat travel is usually pretty straight forward. But if you’re busy filling your baby registry and you know you expect to do a lot of jet setting with your new baby, there are some travel infant car seat options that can make the journey smoother.

In this article you’ll find out what to look for in a travel car seat for infants, the best travel infant car seat options, how to use an infant car seat on a plane and more! There are some awesome new infant car seats for travel in 2023, and this article has been updated to include them.

Thanks to Clek for letting us use their awesome photo above!

Quick picks: top infant car seats for travel

If you’re in a hurry, here are some travel-worthy infant car seat options to consider. They all offer different features but one of these should meet the needs of most families traveling with young babies:

• Doona infant car seat stroller – infant car seat that converts to a stroller in seconds (also available on Amazon)
• Evenflo Shyft DualRide infant car seat stroller – similar to the Doona but taller, and you have the option to leave the wheels on the base (less fancy version available at Walmart)
• Clek liingo infant car seat + Silver Cross Jet 5 – long-lasting infant car seat with LATCH built in + amazing carry-on stroller
• Nuna PIPA urbn + TRVL travel system – baseless quick-install car seat + much-loved travel stroller
• Chicco KeyFit 30 + KeyFit caddy – easy-to-use car seat with lightweight stroller frame (save 20% when you sign up for emails)

What to look for in a travel car seat for infants

Let’s start with the most important thing to know: all infant car seats in the United States pass the same testing, so we know they’re all safe to use. Yay! You can feel confident that even the most budget-friendly infant car seat will keep your precious cargo safe in an accident if you use it correctly.

Some infant car seats have extra features that may help them perform better in a crash, while others have extra convenience features to make them easy to use correctly. In my experience there are several important factors to consider when you’re choosing a portable infant car seat:

Lightweight infant car seat

If you’re buying an infant car seat for travel specifically, you might want to look for one that’s light weight. That’s not necessarily the most important factor, as you can see with the more niche options below, but it’s a consideration for some traveling families. You can read more about the lightest infant car seats here.

Infant car seat installation features

All car seats in America are required by law to offer both seatbelt and LATCH installation options. But on an infant car seat, the LATCH installation almost always requires using the base – which weighs an extra 10 pounds.

For seatbelt installation, some infant car seats now offer the option of using a “European” belt path. Instead of only installing with the lap portion of the seatbelt, you also loop the shoulder belt around the back of the car seat for extra stability. If you’re visiting a country that has seatbelts you can’t lock, you may need to bring a locking clip and be prepared to use it.

And a few really innovative car seats now integrate LATCH directly into the infant car seat – no base necessary, and no need to worry about the dreaded locking clip! More on those below…

Infant car seat stroller compatibility

The last factor to look at in choosing travel car seats for babies is stroller compatibility. While it’s not strictly necessary, it’s really helpful to click your infant car seat into a stroller to get it through the airport or push it around the city. It makes traveling in a taxi or Uber straightforward and safe!

Want to get extra-fancy? Now you can opt for an infant car seat with stroller wheels built in.

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Specialized travel infant car seat options

These innovative products are currently vying for the title of “best infant car seat for travel.” They each bring something different to the table, but if you plan to take each of your baby’s monthly photos in a different country you’ll want to consider them all to pick the right one for your family.

Doona infant car seat review

Do you want the Swiss Army knife of baby travel gear? You’ll find it in the Doona infant car seat stroller, one of the coolest baby products I’ve ever seen. In just a matter of seconds your very capable infant car seat deploys its own wheels and converts into a perfectly serviceable baby-friendly stroller! I’ve had the opportunity to play around with it in person (though it was released after our youngest was born) and I definitely let out a few “WOW”s during my test drive.

This is the perfect foldable baby car seat for families who live in or travel to big cities and need to hop in and out of taxis. You’ll never have to worry about your baby being safe on the road, but you also won’t have to wonder what to do with your car seat while you hit a museum or go into a store.

See how easy it is to make the transition:

It’s also an easier solution than a two-piece travel system that has to be separated and stored in the car trunk. The Doona is even FAA-approved and you can just wheel is straight down the airplane aisle. Check out how perfectly it fits on an airplane seat:

So why wouldn’t every family put this foldable carseat on their baby registry? There are three downsides to consider with the Doona, and it’s up to you how important they are.

First, it’s heavy compared to other infant car seats. The Doona weight is 16.5lbs. Most infant carriers weigh more like 9-10lbs, but of course they don’t have a whole stroller built in. If you prefer a lightweight infant car seat, you’ll find great options here.

Second, it ain’t cheap. The price tag may make it a non-starter for many families, though once you add the cost of a well-respected infant car seat and a car seat stroller frame the sticker shock might subside a little.

Third, once your baby outgrows the Doona as a car seat around 1 year old you’ll be on the hook to buy a new car seat and a new stroller. Obviously that’s a tough nut to swallow financially. But many families find that the stroller they love for the newborn and infant stage just isn’t ideal for the toddler stage and they wind up wanting a new stroller anyway. Especially if you’re focusing on lightweight, travel friendly products you’ll find that many of the best ultralight strollers aren’t ideal until at least 6-12 months anyway.

Fourth, if you’re going on a long walk in the neighborhood you should ideally have your baby laying flat rather than in a car seat to keep maximum oxygen flowing to their tiny brains. You can satisfy that need with a different stroller than lays flat if the Doona meets all your other needs.

All those cons aside, the Doona really is an incredible option for families who want to travel extensively with a young baby. It’s the only collapsible car seat that rear faces to keep the littlest travelers safe!

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Evenflo Shyft DualRide

The Evenflo Shyft DualRide integrated infant car seat/stroller was released in 2023. If it looks similar to the Doona above, that’s because it is. But the Evenflo has a few nifty tricks up its sleeve that are worth mentioning.

First, the Evenflo Shyft DualRide is approved for newborns as small as 3 pounds (just like most Evenflo infant car seats). On the other end, many kids can use it until 15-18 months thanks to the extended headrest. It’ll last longer than the Doona by height, making it a very convenient option for travel with toddlers!

Second, while the Doona always brings its wheels (and their weight) the Evenflo Shyft DualRide can leave the wheels behind on the car seat base or at home if you don’t anticipate needing them. That brings the weight of the car seat itself down to just 8-9 pounds – in line with many other car seats on the market. But it’s nice to have the flexibility to use the wheels when you want them and leave them behind when you don’t though some parents find the mechanisms a little clunky.

Third, the base has an integrated anti-rebound panel to help manage crash energy and a tensioning arm for easy seatbelt installation. You still need to lock the seatbelt when you install – always read your manual – but you don’t have to worry about putting much force into installing it.

As with all products, the Shyft DualRide isn’t perfect. For starters, the Evenflo Shyft DualRide is not compatible with any of the company’s strollers. That’s a bummer since many parents with an older child might like the flexibility to sometimes use the car seat with the Evenflo Pivot Xpand single-to-double stroller.

Like all Evenflo car seats, the manufacturer wants 1.5″ of clearance between the car seat and the vehicle seat in front of it. Practically speaking this rules it out for some compact cars unless you will always install it in the center seat (where the rule doesn’t apply). Keep that in mind if you’re planning on installing it by the window so that you can install another car seat on the other side!

The 10lb weight of the wheel assembly is surprisingly high. Families already sometimes complain that the Doona is too heavy, and the Evenflo car seat stroller combo is even heaver; the trade-off, of course, is that if you plan to hand carry it you can leave the wheels behind… unless you’re traveling and taking a taxi followed by a lovely walk over cobblestones.

Moment of truth here: I’m also surprised by the price point of the Evenflo Shyft DualRide. There are several versions with slightly different features/accessories and they range from $500-600. Thankfully you can get a discount when you buy direct and sign up for the email list, and Evenflo runs frequent sales as well. There’s also a slightly less expensive Walmart version, which lacks the carry-all bag and leather accents.

It’s great to see more innovation in this space, and finally a competitor to the Doona. The Evenflo Shyft DualRide has a lot going for it and will definitely be a contender for car-free city dwellers and travelers alike!

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Clek liingo infant car seat review

Travel car seats for infants just got a heck of a lot better thanks to our neighbors to the north at Clek. Their Clek liingo infant car seat is based on the fan-favorite Clek liing, but with a major improvement for families on the go.

The liingo was the first infant car seat to be sold without a base. Since American car seats are required to offer LATCH installation, the liingo comes with a “LATCH bin” attached to the underside. If you’re on-the-go and you want to hop in a Lyft, just pop open the LATCH bin, pull out the strap and you’ll be ready to roll in about 60 seconds! That’s a real game-changer, as many parents don’t feel confident in doing a baseless installation with a seatbelt.

Check out how easy it is to install the liingo with LATCH:

Of course you can also install with the car’s seatbelt using the integrated European belt path option. That can take a little more time to get just right and some countries don’t have locking seatbelts, so using the liingo’s LATCH can help you avoid using a locking clip.

The liingo weighs 9 pounds without the LATCH bin, which adds about another pound. That’s in the same weight range as average infant car seats, but still plenty portable. The size limits are on the generous end of infant car seats and will fit nearly all babies beyond their first birthday. While the liingo’s price tag is a little on the high side, it’s still in line with most “premium” infant car seats and much less than the original liing. Like the liing, liingo is made in Canada – read about more car seats made in the USA and Canada.

Just like the liing, the new liingo is compatible with some awesome strollers. Pair it with the new Babyzen Yoyo² (also available here) and the car seat adapter for the ultimate, ultra-compact, ultra-light travel system – you saw that combo in the featured image at the top of this article. Another great option is the Silver Cross Jet 5 with its car seat adapter, which is a little more budget-friendly. Note that the Yoyo requires purchase of either the car seat adapter or the Newborn Pack if you intend to use it before 6 months, while the Jet 5 reclines flat for a newborn straight out of the box.

If you want the flexibility of using your Clek infant car seat with a base when you’re at home, you can buy the Clek liing base to keep installed in your car. The liing base is packed with awesome features for safety and ease of use, including rigid LATCH, a load leg and plenty of recline options.

The biggest downside of the Clek liingo is it can be a pricey set up if you decide that you want a base. While many two-car families opt to have one infant car seat and two bases, at least with the liingo’s integrated LATCH it’s easy enough to only own one base.

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Nuna PIPA urbn + TRVL travel system review

If you like the idea of the built-in LATCH of the liingo, you’re going to love the new Nuna PIPA urbn infant car seat.

For around the same weight, the car seat has built in rigid LATCH and the installation couldn’t be simpler. You pop out the pipaFIX connectors and just click the car seat into place. There’s nothing to tighten and the car seat even levels itself. It’s probably the fastest car seat to install – ever. That make it perfect for families who rely on taxis or Ubers frequently. It can still be installed with a seatbelt if you find yourself in a car that doesn’t have lower anchors, but it’s not compatible with a base.

As a traveler, you’ll buy it paired with the Nuna TRVL stroller. It’s small enough that families typically take it as a carry-on, but loaded with creature comforts. You can also get it with the MIXX next and TRIV next strollers.

There are two big disadvantages of the Nuna PIPA urbn that you need to know about. First, it can only be used until your baby hits 22lbs or 29″. That’s 9-10 months for an average sized baby, and many families will be fine with that limitation. However, if you’re banking on the urbn as your travel solution it would be much nicer if the seat could get you closer to 18 months – the options for lightweight convertible car seats just aren’t nearly as convenient.

Second – and this is a biggie – the Nuna PIPA urbn can only be purchased as part of a Nuna travel system. Some parents are really grumpy about this for two reasons. First, if they already own a Nuna stroller from an older child they aren’t able to add the car seat. Second, they can’t go outside of the Nuna ecosystem to buy a less expensive travel stroller. Because you have to buy it in a set, the cheapest MSRP that’ll get a Nuna Pipa urbn in your home is $850.

The TRVL itself is a $450 stroller and you’ll be able to use it for years, but you have to decide if the urbn is worth $400 to you. Pro tip: If you buy the TRVL on its own here, you’ll get $90 in rewards that you can use toward purchasing the Pipa RX.

Still, for parents who are living the car-free life or travel extensively the Nuna PIPA urbn infant travel car seat could be a real game changer!

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Joie Mint LATCH

The Joie brand has been a well-respected brand in Europe for years, and it’s finally crossed the Atlantic for the second half of 2024! The most exciting offering for parents who travel is the Joie mint latch infant car seat.

The mint latch has built-in rigid lower anchors, so you can just click in and go without worrying about tightening a strap. One nice touch is that the lower anchors can be set in one of three positions to accommodate sloped vehicle seats – we haven’t seen it out in the real world yet but hopefully there won’t be towels or pool noodles required. Of course you also have the option to install with a seatbelt instead, including on an airplane since it’s FAA-approved.

The Mint also has a fantastic canopy that zips open all the way to your baby’s feet, but also offers a mesh panel for air flow. Perfect for your maternity leave beach getaway!

Rather than purchasing the Joie Mint LATCH on its own, I recommend buying the Joie Nutmeg travel system. It includes both the car seat and an easy-folding 15lb stroller it can click into! When you want to use the stroller on its own, it has a newborn “nest” feature that allows you to use it from birth too.

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Using an infant car seat travel system

If you aren’t interested in the specialized options above, you can use almost any infant car seat for travel. You want to look for ones that are easy to install baseless and ideally compatible with the stroller you want to travel with.

Fortunately these days you don’t have to buy a dedicated “travel system” to click your car seat into a stroller. If you anticipate traveling often, you might consider selecting your stroller first and then only looking at car seats with which it’s compatible. Why? You’ll wind up using the stroller a lot longer than the car seat! Most good strollers see at least three years of use, while infant car seats are rarely used beyond around 15 months.

Here are a few awesome ultra-light strollers (all carry-on approved) and the top infant car seats with which they’re compatible:

	Key features	Infant car seats
Mountain Buggy Nano	13 pounds Full recline	“Universal” with strap (also works with some lightweight convertibles)
Babyzen Yoyo2	13 pounds Recline for 6+ months	Clek liing/Clek liingo Nuna pipa RX/Nuna pipa aire
Baby Jogger City Tour 2	14 pounds Full recline	Baby Jogger City GO 2 Graco SnugRide
Silver Cross Jet 5	15 pounds Full recline	Clek liing/Clek liingo Nuna Pipa RX/Nuna pipa aire

If you’re interested in a more budget-friendly travel-friendly infant car seat travel system, take a look at the Century Stroll On travel system. While the stroller will have to be gate checked because the fold is fairly long, it still weighs around 15 pounds. It comes packaged with the Century Carry On 35, which is fairly basic but works well and only weighs 7 pounds. It’s extremely affordable, especially for such lightweight products!

Another middle-of-the-road option is to buy an affordable stroller frame to wheel your infant car seat around. They’re extremely light weight and have huge baskets, but the downside is that you lose the flexibility of putting your baby in a reclined stroller seat for a long walk around town. But if you expect that most of your travels will be to places that involve more driving than walking, this can be a great option! When our kids were tiny, we loved traveling with our Chicco Keyfit 30 and the matching Chicco Keyfit Caddy.

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How to use an infant car seat on a plane

Using an infant car seat on an airplane is very simple. The most important thing to remember is that you can’t install with the base.

First, plop the car seat on the airplane seat. Look for the level line on the side of the car seat to make sure it’s parallel to the floor. Run the airplane seatbelt through the little arms (“seat belt guides”) on each side of the infant car seat – on some seats they’re raised up above the shell, while on other seats they’re attached to the outside.

After you buckle the seatbelt, make sure it stays fairly level (especially if you’re flying with a newborn) and then pull the seatbelt tail to tighten like you would for yourself. That’s it! Installing it on the plane is one of the easiest aspects of traveling with an infant car seat.

Remember: rear facing car seats must be installed so that they don’t block the exit of another passenger in an emergency. In a single aisle plane, that means you need to put them in the window. In a two-aisle plane, there’s more flexibility if you’re seated in the center section.

Read more: 10 things to know before you fly with your car seat

Should you bring the base when you travel with an infant car seat?

Whether or not to bring the infant car seat base when you travel is a matter or of personal preference and it depends on what kind of trip you’ll be taking. We’ve done it both ways.

For a short trip, we didn’t usually bring our infant car seat base. It’s another 10 pounds of bulk to lug around, and if a trip only involved a few car rides it was no big deal to do a baseless installation in our rental car. That was especially true once our babies were older and didn’t fall asleep every time they were in a moving car!

We did travel with our infant car seat base when traveling with our newborns on trips that involved a lot of getting in and out of cars. Baseless installation is fairly easy, but makes it nearly impossible to transfer a sleeping baby. For a longer trip (more than a two weeks) that involves a lot of car trips in a rental car, I’d consider bringing the base to avoid constantly reinstalling the car seat. The more often you install the car seat, the more likely you are to make a mistake – especially if you’re in a rush.

If you choose to bring your infant car seat base on the plane you can not install it on the plane. Instead, you’d put it either in the overhead bin or on the floor under the airplane seat in front.

Pro tip: If your own carry-on bag is especially large, you may want to put that bag in front of your child’s car seat and the car seat base at your own feet. It’ll be easier to access the contents of your bag and you’ll have more leg room!

Read more: How to install your car seat properly – and fast

Infant travel car seat FAQs

What’s your favorite travel car seat for an infant? Tell us in the comments below!

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