10 Best Car Seats for Airplane Travel
When you’re traveling together as a family, safety is always a top priority. And whether your journey involves travel by land or air, a car seat is the best tool to keep your child safe and comfortable. Read on for our list of the 10 best car seats for airplane travel in 2024.
Do you need a special car seat for an airplane?
While bringing a car seat on an airplane isn't required, it’s still the safest way to travel with your child. Since airplane seat belts aren’t designed for tiny bodies, the general recommendation is for children under 40 lbs to fly in an FAA-approved restraint. Bringing a car seat on your travels doesn’t just make your child safer while on the aircraft, but it also improves safety at your destination — especially when you’re hopping in and out of a rental car or rideshare.
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10 top recommended car seats for airplane travel
1. Best overall car seat for airplane travel: Cosco
At the top of our list is the Mighty Fit 65 DX from Cosco. This car seat truly has it all: 2 modes of use, 5-point harness (with 5 heights and 3 buckle locations), built-in side protection, and a compact design that makes it easy to manage through airport security checks. The best part? Cosco has been a leader in the world of car seats, swings, and high chairs for more than 70 years — delivering award-winning products recognized for their safety and value. In simpler terms, you can trust this brand (and this car seat) to keep your child safe at all times.
Price: $90
2. Best affordable car seat for airplane travel: Safety 1st
The Jive 2-in-1 Car Seat from Safety 1st has tons of amazing features parents will love. Aside from being certified for use on an aircraft, this seat has removable (and dishwasher-safe) cup holders, removable head pillow and body pillow, a 5-point harness with 3 different buckle locations, and it’s made from machine washable and dryer-safe fabrics. That’s a pretty impressive resume, for sure! But the real selling point? You get all those features for under $100. That’s a pretty small price to pay to keep your child safe throughout your travels.
Price: $88
3. Best high-end car seat for airplane travel: Doona
This car seat from Doona really has all the bells and whistles (plus a price tag to match). The FAA-approved design features a 5-point harness, adjustable handlebar, and 3-layer side impact protection. But the coolest thing about this pick? It can convert from a car seat to a stroller in just seconds. The sleek and stylish construction allows you to navigate your travels with ease — without disturbing your sleeping child as you’re hopping in a car, boarding a plane, or simply walking up the stairs. It’s safe to say Doona really thought of everything with this one.
Price: $550
4. Best lightweight car seat: Baby Trend
The Baby Trend Trooper is a lightweight and affordable travel car seat option. This one seat fits newborns all the way through to big kids — and at just 17 inches across, it fits perfectly down even the narrowest airplane aisles. Other highlights include the comfy padding and stripe along the harness to prevent accidental (and potentially painful) twists from happening. Overall, this long-lasting car seat is light on your wallet and will be light on your back whenever you have to tote it through the airport terminal. That’s enough to make it a winner in our book!
Price: $90
5. Best foldable car seat for airplane travel: WAYB
WAYB’s Pico car seat design is ideal for kids ages 2 and up, within the range of 22-50 lbs and 30-45 inches. This is a great option for airplanes, rideshares, and road trips alike, since its 5-point safety harness will keep your little one protected in any/all scenarios. Each purchase comes with a premium travel bag where your foldable Pico can be stored and carried as a backpack, with the carrying handle, or slipped over the handle of your rolling luggage. This level of safety and versatility is a potent combo, and helps to justify this seat’s hefty price tag.
Price: $495
6. Best expandable car seat for airplane travel: Diono
The Diono Monterey 5iST Car Seat has a futuristic look to it — and yet, it has all the necessary safety features your child needs right now. This design is only 13 inches wide at the base and can completely fold up for easy carry. On that note, there’s even a built-in handle plus carrying straps for total ease of transport. But what we love most about this seat is that it expands in height *and* width. The one-hand, automatic height/width adjustment provides 85% more room as your child grows, so you can keep using this purchase for lots of years and trips to come.
Price: $270
7. Best convertible car seat for airplane travel: Graco
A convertible car seat is one that can grow with your child — that is, it has 2 distinct modes of use. First, it can be used in rear-facing mode (for newborns and toddlers), and then it can switch to a forward-facing seat once your child meets the designated height and weight requirements. With that in mind, the Graco Contender Convertible Car Seat is one of the best on the market. This compact design can easily transfer from car to car, but it’s also certified for aircraft use to keep your child safe in-flight. Convertible and versatile? That’s what we call a win-win purchase.
Price: $160
8. Best easy-install car seat for airplane travel: Britax
The Allegiance Car Seat from Britax boasts super easy installation that makes your long travel days feel just a little bit lighter. Thanks to the push-button latch connections and built-in lock offs, you can install the whole seat in virtually no time at all. Better yet, this seat never requires any rethreading. That’s because the quick-adjust, 10-position harness and headrest grows right along with your child (so there’s no need to rethread or readjust every few months). Easy to install, easy to maintain, and easy to clean — what’s not to love about this design?
Price: $230
9. Best big kid car seat for airplane travel: Evenflo
The Evenflo Maestro Booster Seat is a great pick for taller kids who need a little extra leg room. It’s wider than some of the other seats on our list, but it also converts to a belt-positioning booster to comfortably hold 40-110 lbs. That said, keep in mind this seat has to be in harness mode for airplane use. Other than that, this seat comes with extra padding and head support (which sleepy travelers will love), and it’s got a shoulder belt guide that automatically adjusts to the proper position for your child. Talk about comfort and convenience all-in-one!
Price: $115
10. Best reclining car seat for airplane travel: Peg Perego
With the Peg Perego Viaggio Flex 120, your child can really relax in style. This ultra-comfy car seat has separate height and width adjustments to get the perfect fit as your child grows — but it also has a reclining seat that can be set 5 different ways. So regardless of the position of the car's backrest, your child can stay perfectly relaxed (even on your longest travel days). In addition, the Viaggio Flex design has an aluminum-reinforced construction that provides extra safety and protection against whiplash, as well as an integrated rigid latch for easy installation and stability.
Price: $300
Car seat for airplane travel - common FAQs
Are car seats TSA-approved?
According to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), you can pack a car seat in your carry-on or checked luggage. For car seats you’d like to carry on the flight, you’ll need to check with the airline to ensure that item will fit in the overhead bin or under the seat in front of you.
How do you know if a car seat is airline-approved?
If a car seat has been airline-approved, there will be a sticker on the back, bottom, or side of the seat that reads: "This restraint has been certified for use in motor vehicles and aircraft." The text is in bold red lettering, so it’s pretty hard to miss. If you don’t find this sticker anywhere on your car seat, you can assume it’s not been approved for aircraft use.
Do airlines charge for a car seat?
Because children's strollers, safety seats, and carriers aren’t counted as part of the standard baggage, they can all be checked for free. For added convenience, you can choose whether you want to check these items curbside, at the ticket counter, or at your gate.