Graco Snugride or Safeseat?

Hi K.,
I had the Safeseat and really wish I had gone for the Snugride, because I have ended up with the convertible Britax, anyway, now that my daughter is bigger. The Snugride is so light and easy compared to the big, heavy Safeseat. I could barely carry that thing and I would always wake her up because it would accidentally bump into doors, etc...I say Snugride if you want to be able to take it out of the car while she is napping.
Best of luck!

My first 2 babies had the sungride and I loved them. My third got the safeseat which I like but it's not as compact and easy to lug around as the safe seat. It went higher in weight but you likely won't need it to go that high anyway.I would go with the snugride for convenience.

Hello K.,
I had the snugride with my daughter. It's a good car seat, but all the carriers seem to be about the same. If I had to do it over again, and for our next one, I'm going to get the Chicco car seat. Besides Chicco having better products (in my opinion) I have the stroller which I LOVE. I like that when you snap the car seat into the stroller and you life the car seat (if you haven't unsnap it from the stroller) the stroller comes off the ground and you can pretty much swing it around and it will not detach.
I personally don't see an issue with the weight limit for two reason. One, once their feet reach the end of the carrier you would want to switch to a convertible car seat, it's just safer. Secondly, by the time they hit 22lbs (my daughter is 18 months and 22 lbs) they are so heavy that it's hard on your shoulder/back/body to carrier the baby in the carrier. They tend to have enough neck control, etc that you can carry them on your hip and they can sit in highchairs while dining out, etc.
Congratulations and enjoy your new bundle of joy!!!
C.

Graco seats are wonderful and have the highest safty ratings for infant car seats. We had a Snugride for our first two and loved it. Then it became outdated and we bought the Safeseat becaue of the length. I have no complaints on it. We use Britax seats when they outgrow their infant seats which have the highest crash test rating. Safety First! Just FYI, most Britax seats go down to 5 lbs. If you do not think you will use the carrier feature.

I went with the snugride because it had the est reviews in the industry. But just as importantly, experienced moms loved it. It was a grfeat choice for us!

I went with the Snugride because when I purchased (1.5 yrs ago) the Snugride had a higher safety rating. This was mainly due to the lower weight limit, not so much different construction. I also liked that it was slightly more compact than the Safeseat. As my daughter grew I found I was more than ready to give up the infant carrier by the time my daughter reached the weight limit. A carrier is great in the first few months when you can haul them around everywhere, they'll continue sleeping in the carrier, and they're not too heavy. But once my daughter got into the 6-9 month range, she didn't continue to sleep in the carrier once I took it out of the car, and she was getting much too heavy to tote around in that thing. I was ready to switch to her infant/baby car seat (we have the Brittax Roundabout) at that point, and never looked back.

Also, someone made a comment about a belt lock not coming with the car seat, but mine came with every part needed for proper installation. Plus, most modern vehicles are outfitted with the LATCH system, which is safer and more secure than a seatbelt installation, making the point moot.

If I had to do it over again, I would have made the same decision, focusing on the most compact carrier (bigger ones are tougher to lug around), with the highest safety rating, regardless of weight limit because I was ready to switch her by 18 lbs or so anyway--you can't physically carry them in the carrier much beyond that point!

We had the Safeseat and loved it! We needed it more for the height than the weight of our son as he was 24 inches at birth! He still outgrew it by around 8-9 months. If we'd had the Snugride, we'd have been done at 6 months for sure. Carrying my son around never bothered me and I had to lug the thing out of a car. If you've got a SUV, it'll be easier as you don't have to bend over so far anyway. Don't waste money on the travel system. Just buy the snap-in frame for a stroller for the first few months.

J.

I got the Safeseat and I am totally thrilled. I have twins so I have to carry two of them around. They are so much better then my previous choice! They fit in my stroller and they are easy to adjust which is a bonus!!!

Hi K.,
Our son started out with the Graco Snugride, but he hated it and seemed uncomfortable (he was 6 lbs at birth). We moved him into the SafeSeat when he was about 6 months old because it is roomier and he seemed much more comfortable. He was much happier in this seat. He stayed in this seat until we got the Britax Marathon when he was just over a year. I got rid of the Snugride and plan to use the SafeSeat with #2 (due in 6 weeks).
You will probably be fine with either the Snug Ride or SafeSeat, but the weight limitation of the original SnugRide may be a problem. Hope that helps!
L.

K.,

With my first daughter I had a snugride because they didn't have the safe seats yet, she out grew the height before she got anywhere near the weight so i ended up having to put her into a convertable rear facing carseat and really missed being able to carry her while in the carseat and try to wrangle my two boys.. With my 4th we bought the safe seat, not so much for the weight limit but because the height is also greater than the snugride which will allow me to have her in it longer and still be able to wrangle my other 3 children.. It is a little heavier than the snugride, but not by much, and if you buy the travel pack (its the stroller carseat combo) you won't have to carry it much, just take it from the car to the stroller, or the car to the shopping cart..

Good luck in your shopping! And congrats on your bundle of joy!
X.

Hello I have purchased two Graco Snugride late 2007 fo rmy twins and I loved them. I cannot tell you on negative thing about it. They were light weight easy to snap in the base everytime I got in and out of the car. They snapped perfectly in the Graco stroller (both on them fit perfect.

Hi K.,

We went with the Graco Snugride. I did tons of investigating and the majority of people I know that already have kids had the Snugride and LOVED it!
Good luck and congratulations!

~D.

Do not get the safeseat? Are you really planning on carrying around 32 lbs.
Also, your child may not want to be stuck in the almost laying down position that an infant seat provides.
I had to move my son by six months into a convertable carseat because he hatted not seeing anything. The seat was still turned around but he could sit up and play and look out the window.ect.
The safeseat seems just a bit excessive and not very practical.

Just my opinion though.

Good luck

I went with the Snugride in 06 with my son. It had the highest safety rating at the time so it was a no brainer for us. Although, the Safeseat went higher in weight we never needed more. By the time our son was close to that weight he didn't spend much time in there anymore. When he was one we bought the Britax Marathon. Congratulation on your upcoming baby!

We liked the safeseat, it is nice because it does go to 30lb, although we switched to a forward facing when our son was 12 months and 22 lbs because he was really long and really likes to face forward- it was a great car seat and I plan on using it for my second when he arrives in 2 months.
Congrats and good luck to you!!

I got the Graco snugride carseat with my first son 2005. (travel system stroller) I got the graco because they have been aroud a long time and everyone I know with kids loves their travel systems. My first son was 8.15lbs 23in at birth (early) and outgrew the carseat at 7months because he was so long. My son was in the 98% tile at 3 months. We moved him into a convertavel rear facing and he is still in it at 3yrs 39lbs (forward facing now) He was 31.5lbs on his 1st bday. He did most of his growing the first year of life. My second son was a month early at 6.14lbs but at 7months today he is 20.10lbs and 27in and is fine in the same Graco carseat his older brother was in. My second son is not as long as his older brother so he will be able to stay in the snugride longer. I agree with the remark from someone. WHY IN THE HECK would you want to lug around a child over 30lbs in a infant carseat? Talk about breaking your back and they usually don't want to be strapped in being that big. Most kids at that weight are walking. I have big babies and my 7month old is already trying to walk and can sit in a grocery cart. My fist son was chunky so he took up a lot of room and the snugride was getting tight for him.

Good luck.
SAHM/zombie 39 with a super funny active 3yr son and a 7month old son that smiles all day long but doesn't like to sleep much.

I chose the snugride because it was given high marks in Baby Bargains for being very light and easy to use. It's also compatible with the the car seat adaptor for our BOB stroller( which is a FANTASTIC stroller by the way). We use the car seat bases so getting the seat in and out is a snap. It also will fit on top of a shopping cart, unlike the Maxi Cosi.

Neg: Sometimes I think the handle release is a bit stiff, and the upolstry in the car seat makes my baby sweat. I wish it was a more breathable fabric. It's not as "cool" or stylish as some car seats (if that's what you like).

Hope that answers your question!
-Caeles

Do not go with the safeseat, it is really heavy and by the time that they are 20lbs, it's about time to go to a regular car seat. My kids were heavy and so was the carrier and it doesn't fit things very well, like shopping carts and carriers for resturants. I wish that I went with the smaller snugride!!!

Hi K.,

We used the Graco Safeseat with our daughter. I chose it because my sister used it and liked it, but also because I did a lot of research and it got great overall reviews online. When I went to our local fire department to have it checked for proper installation they told me it had never been recalled, which was great to hear!

It was easy to install, we did use the latch system. It is a bit heavy, but we got used to putting it in and out of the car and carrying it. I used a Snap and Go stroller with it which makes life easy!

Some reviews have said that it makes the babies hot and I will admit in the summer I would put my daughter in lightweight clothes for long drives, but for us it wasn't an issue.

Good luck and best wishes!

S.

For us, we bought the 22 lbs Graco snugride four years ago with our first child. He outgrew the seat at 4.5 months and we had to buy the larger carseat. With our second child, he outgrew the snugride at 4 months. I really loved having him in the infant carrier, so we bought the 30lbs Safeseat. He got to be in it until 9 months which was fabulous for us. The infant carrier does get very difficult to carry, but if you snap it into the stroller when you remove it from the car it was fine.

With my first I had the Snugride and didn't care for it that much. It was smaller and weighed less, than the Safeseat. We now have the safeseat and love it. My almost 5 month old is so big, but still fits fine in the safeseat. On her 4 month check up she was 18.10 lbs and 27 inches. I am glad that we got this seat. If not we would almost be having to buy another because she would not fit in the snugride anymore. At first my husband was mad about the weight or the Safeseat, but is now glad that we have it and so am I!

Hi K.,
The Graco Safeseat and the Graco Snugride are more or less the same seat. The Safeseat has a belt lock built into the base whereas with the Snugride you need to buy and apply an additional belt lock. We consulted a CHP friend who told us that the Safeseat was the better option because of the built in belt lock. This allows you to get the car seat really tight against the vehicle's seat. Most people do not get the additional belt locks tight enough and the seat is not very effective if it is not installed correctly.
We used the Safeseat with our daughter and were completely satisfied with it. It is easy to install properly (which is important especially if you are going to transfer it back and forth between vehicles). It is also VERY EASY TO CLEAN. I hadn't thought of this when we were shopping for an infant seat. I just assumed that they all came apart for cleaning. After all, it's a baby product - right? I have lots of friends who were dismayed when they tried to clean the fabric portions of their seats. I however, was pleasantly surprised by how easy the Safeseat was to take apart and just tossed the cloth cover into the washing machine (let it air dry though). Also, I'm not a very big woman and had no trouble getting the seat in and out of my SUV with the baby in it.
I really cannot give this seat a high enough recommendation. My husband and I were both pleased with it.
Good luck with your research and congratulations on your baby. If you have any other questions, just email me. ____@____.com
D.