The best high chairs of 2023, for mealtimes with your baby and (much) older children
Tried and tested at home by a mother and child, here are the best high chairs to see your baby through to nursery and beyond
It's important to find the best high chair when you start to wean your baby onto solid food. My youngest son is one year old, so mealtimes are currently a very messy affair. He’s also trying to walk and pull himself up on everything, so I need to keep him as secure as possible. As such, a good highchair that supports his back, keeps him upright, while putting him at the same height as the rest of the family is an absolute essential.
But with so much choice on the market, it can be hard to know where to start. One quick search online will bring up hundreds of different options with prices starting as low as £13 and going all the way into the low hundreds. Do you want a portable high chair for travel, a folding high chair for small spaces or a baby's chair that doubles as a crib?
Read on for an expert guide to how to choose the best highchair and for my reviews in full, followed by answers to the most frequently asked questions. If you're pressed for time, here's my short list of this year's best.
Which are the best high chairs of 2023? At a glance
- Best overall: Stokke Tripp Trapp
- Best highchair for small spaces: Mamas & Papas Juice
- Best portable highchair: Joie Multiply 6-in-1
- Best newborn highchair: Chicco Polly Magic Relax
- Best folding highchair: Silver Cross Buffet
- Best budget high chair: My Babiiie Compact
What type of highchair is best for me?
The type of highchair you choose is very much down to personal preference as the range of designs is vast. Some are super stylish and look like an expensive piece of furniture that you’ll be proud to keep on display, while others aren’t so aesthetically pleasing but fold down neatly and do the job well. Others can be adjusted into a range of different seating options so they will accommodate your child from newborn to toddler. You should also consider the height of the highchair – you might want it to be a tall as your breakfast bar, for instance, or pull up neatly to the kitchen table.
Robin Hilmantel, Editorial Director of Special Projects at What to Expect says that there are also certain safety features that are non-negotiable. “Look for a sturdy chair that doesn't tip over easily, and it should have a harness or strap that will keep your baby safe and secure during feeding,” she explains. “If the highchair you're looking at has wheels, make sure they can be locked. And always check the chair's height and weight guidelines to ensure that the product will work for your baby”.
All of these tips are especially important to keep in mind for second-hand highchairs, which might be older and less likely to meet all of the latest safety guidelines.
How we tested the best high chairs
I tested the best highchairs over the course of a week with the help of my one-year-old son who is currently enjoying a mixture of textured purees and finger foods. While testing, I took into consideration the overall design and aesthetics of the highchair, its height and longevity, whether it could be folded or not and how easy it was to use. As mealtimes in our house tend to be a messy business, I also wanted to test how easy they were to wipe down and keep clean.
If you're expecting a new arrival, by the way, you may want to read our guides to the best travel cots, the best prams and pushchairs, the best baby monitors and the best baby carriers next.
Best high chairs
1. Stokke Tripp Trapp
Best overall, 10/10
We like: classic high chair that can be used right into adulthood (yes really)
- Made of solid wood (choose ash, beech or oak)
- From birth (with newborn set) or six months (with baby set) to 136kg / adult
- Comes in 12 colours
- Newborn and baby sets sold separately
The iconic Tripp Trapp highchair was originally launched in 1972 by Peter Opsvik so I was curious to see what has made its 50-year-old design so enduring. After a somewhat frustrating assembly process, I finally got it up and was impressed by how stylish it looked around my kitchen table. It’s also the exact height of the table which none of the other highchairs I tested were – a small but quite important detail.
The depth, height and footplate can all be adjusted as your child grows, and you can buy the soft reclining new-born set if you wish to use it with a baby under six months, or the baby set (which I tested) for babies of six months plus. The baby set attaches on quite easily and costs an additional £52. It provides additional back and side support and extra security around the front. There’s also a four-point harness to keep your child extra secure. My son kept pushing his feet up on the step at first, so I was glad to have an additional form of protection to keep him safe. If I was going to be picky, I did find the harness a bit tricky and know that my parents would probably struggle with it too.
I think this is a brilliant quality product that has stood the test of time because it just works so well for families. While on the more expensive side, it will last for years and years and eventually just become a piece of furniture that everyone can use – unlike many highchairs which babies grow out of quite quickly or break.
2. Mamas & Papas Juice
Best highchair for small spaces, 9/10
We like: safe, light and easy to clean
- Made of alloy steel and plastics
- From six months to 15kg / three year old
- Comes in grey or green
The Juice highchair is one of Mamas & Papas newest products and is beautifully designed with a green seat and light wooden legs. While it can’t be folded down, it takes up minimal space and is light enough to pick up and move around after baby’s finished eating. As such, the main seat does seem a bit on the dinky side, but if it gets too small during toddlerhood, the junior seat is designed to be used up to the age of five.
There’s plenty of good, handy features in its design such as an easy-to-use five-point harness, padded seat, and a tray table that slides on and off with ease. You can take the seat out to give it a good clean after particularly messy mealtimes and throw the tray in the dishwasher. There’s also an integrated crotch post and step to support baby’s feet while they eat.
If you want a highchair that looks good, feels secure and will offer longevity, this is a great choice that’s well priced at just a snip under £100.
3. Joie Multiply 6-in-1
Best portable highchair 9/10
We like: modular parts can also be used as booster seat, infant chair and play table
- Made of plastics
- From newborn to 20kg / six year old
- Comes in one colourway
- Six modes and five height positions
The Multiply is Joie’s best-selling highchair that boasts six different modes to take you from those early new-born days to fully fledged child. It is one of the largest highchairs I tested, but it does fold down so you don’t need to worry too much about the space it takes up when open. So what’s included? First off, it can be used with an infant insert and reclined to create a comfortable spot for smaller babies who aren’t yet sitting up. It then transitions into a traditional highchair with a an extra-large, single-hand-release tray table and five-point harness. (This can be stored away at the back of the chair’s legs when not in use).
But in addition to these expected functions, the seat can also be switched into booster mode so that it can be used as a portable seat for dinners out or trips to see the family. This means that you could take it in the car if you were travelling somewhere without a highchair and use it on the move. It also transforms rather cleverly into a toddler seat and play table when they’ve totally outgrown it.
I’m often a bit fearful of products that try to do too much but I think this highchair is clever in its versatility. The challenge will just be in reminding yourself of all the ways you can use it in order to maximise its potential.
4. Chicco Polly Magic Relax
Best high chair for newborns 8/10
We like: good way to keep baby snoozing or playing in view while cooking
- Made of plastics
- From newborn to 15kg / three year old
- Comes in one colourway
- Converts to reclining baby seat with toy bar
The Chicco Polly Magic Relax is designed to be used from birth with a cosy insert and reclining seat, before transitioning into a full highchair from six months plus. I started using this highchair when my son was around three months old, and he loved looking at the soft toys that hang from the detachable bar and being able to watch what I was doing around the kitchen. I’d lie him in it when I was cooking or wanted to have eye contact with him at family mealtimes, and I could easily move him around thanks to the four wheels on the base.
At six months, I took the new-born insert out and he’s been enjoying three meals a day in it ever since. The footrest and leg rest are both adjustable and it has eight different height settings so you can tweak it as your baby grows. My only real criticism of this highchair is that now my son is older, he seems a little too slouched in the seat even at the most upright setting. It’s at this point where I think he’d be better in something that makes him sit completely straight such as the Stokke Tripp Trapp.
5. Silver Cross Buffet
Best folding highchair, 8/10
We like: the fully reclining newborn cradle function
- Made of aluminium, plastics and leather-effect nylon
- From newborn to 15kg / three year old
- Seven height and four recline positions including cradle
- Comes in grey or pink
Silver Cross’s Buffet highchair is one of its latest models that delivers more or less exactly what you’d expect from such a trusted baby brand. Well designed and excellent quality, it accommodates baby from new-born to toddler and folds away neatly. Once folded out completely, its legs do cover quite a large surface, so you’ll need a fair amount of space to accommodate it.
To use with a baby below six months, you can utilise the new-born cradle mode that reclines back into a flat position for sleeping, and the main seat has three positions and seven height options. I also liked all the very practical details such as the removable, padded cover which can go in the washing machine. As the cover has lots of folds and creases in it, it’s not the easiest to clean with a cloth so I think it would definitely need a run in the washer every now and then. It also features a detachable tray that can go straight in the dishwasher. In short, this is a bit of a no-brainer that’s well worth the money.
6. My Babiie Compact
Best budget Highchair, 7/10
We like: affordable option for occasional use
- Made of plastics
- From six months to 15kg / three year old
- Comes in one pink, one yellow and four grey designs
If you don’t want to spend a small fortune on a highchair, My Babiie has a really affordable range of stylish options. This compact highchair is the least expensive in my roundup and it offers a safe, secure and comfortable spot for baby (above six months) to eat and relax.
While it is notably poorer quality than the others in this list (the materials feel cheaper and the frame a bit flimsier) it still has all of the essential features that you need such as a comfy and spacious padded seat, five-point harness and wipeable tie-dye fabric. It also comes with a removable tray and can be folded down when not in use. This would make a good option for any family, or as a secondary option to keep at a family member’s house.
FAQ
What high chairs can be used from birth?
As a mum of two, I found it very useful to use a highchair with a newborn insert. While babies don’t start eating until they’re approximately six months old, these inserts mean that you can safely sit a younger baby within them. This helps to make baby feel a part of mealtimes and stay in your eye line when you’re cooking or entertaining an older sibling.
As every second-time mum will attest, I couldn’t sit holding the baby in quite the same way as I could with my first, so this was really useful when I needed everyone to be in the same place. The main thing to check here, however, is the minimum weight requirement. You should check the product safety guidelines so that you aren’t placing your baby in a highchair before it’s safe to do so.
How much weight do highchairs hold?
Every highchair has its own weight capacity so you should check this before using, especially if you have a very small baby. “Many high chairs top out somewhere between 40-50 pounds, but others are designed to be adapted into big-kid or grown-up chairs that can hold upwards of 200 pounds,” says What To Expect's Robin Hilmantel.
What age can I put my baby in a high chair?
Most highchairs are designed to be used when babies can sit with minimal or no assistance, which is around six months old. This is also the time when babies start to eat solid food and begin their weaning journey.
Do babies need a footrest on a high chair?
“Some occupational therapists do recommend that you use a highchair with a footrest, because it can be more comfortable for babies and also promote better posture during feedings,” Robin says. “Think about how you'd feel if you tried to eat a meal with your feet dangling in the air. That said, not all highchairs come with footrests, and not all babies are bothered by the lack of footrest — so it isn't essential”.