Joie car seats - how do they compare?

Joie is one of the most popular baby brands in the UK. As well as child car seats, it makes pushchairs, baby carriers, high chairs, baby rockers, cots and cribs.

We currently have reviews for 18 Joie car seats, four of which have been given Best Buy status. It's also one of the most searched-for car seat brands on the Which? website. 

Keep scrolling to find out which Joie car seats are suitable for your baby or child's age/stage, how much they'll cost and how the different seats compare. 

Head straight to child car seats to see all of our reviews, news and advice. Or see our round-up of the best car seats for 2024.

What Joie car seats have we tested?

_{Prices correct as of 20 September 2024}

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Cheap Joie car seat - Joie Trillo LX, £60

The cheapest Joie car seat we've tested is the Joie Trillo LX, which typically retails for £60.

This is a group 2/3 high back booster seat that's approved for use with children weighing 15-36kg, which is around four to 12 years old.

Your child and the seat is secured using the vehicle seatbelt, but the Trillo LX also comes with Isofix hooks that you can attach to the car's Isofix points to provide more stability. 

Read our Joie Trillo LX review to find out how it scores in our crash tests. 

• Find out more: Car seat weight groups explained 

Joie baby car seats

Joie Calmi R129 + i-Base Encore, £390

This is a rearwards-facing infant carrycot car seat designed for babies up to 70cm tall (or 10kg) which is around 12 months old.

The base is part of a modular system that you can also use with other Joie car seats, and it can be spun 180 degrees to make it easier to get the carrycot clicked into the car.

Find out what kind of protection it can provide in a crash by reading our full Joie Calmi R129 + i-Base Encore review.

Joie i-Snug 2 + i-Base Advance, £240

The i-Snug 2 is the successor to the i-Snug which we previously tested, and when clicked into the i-Base Advance, offers the option of a spinning car seat to make it easier to get your baby into the car. 

Other updates include a change to the harness and headrest for easier adjusting. 

Read the full Joie i-Snug 2 + i-Base Advance review to find out how it does in our tough crash tests and user trials.

Joie i-Level, £185

Experts say you shouldn't keep very young babies in a car seat for longer than around 20 minutes, and they should be in a flat or nearly flat position when travelling where possible as it's the most ergonomic for them. 

The i-Level aims to solve this issue because it can recline to an angle of more than 150 degrees, which is nearly horizontal. 

Find out if it sailed through our tough crash tests, and if it's easy to use by reading the full Joie i-Level review.

• Find out more: Car seat weight groups explained 

Joie baby to toddler car seats

Joie i-Harbour + i-Base Encore, £440

This baby to toddler car seat is approved for use from birth (40cm) until your child is 105cm, which is around four years old.

You can keep your child rearward-facing for this whole time, or turn them forward-facing once they measure at least 76cm. We'd always recommend keeping your child rearward-facing for as long as possible as it's the safest way for your child to travel.

Read our Joie i-Harbour + i-Base Encore review to find out if this car seat is safe, comfortable and easy to install.

Joie i-Spin 360 i-Size, £300

The i-Spin seats are a range of child car seats that can be rotated on the base to help make it easier getting your child into the seat, and to turn it forward-facing once your child is old enough. Many are extended rearward-facing, so you can keep your child facing backwards (which is safer) for longer.

This extended rearward-facing car seat is approved for children from birth to 105cm, which is around age four. 

As the name suggests, you can spin it a full 360 degrees. This should help when putting your child into the seat, and if you want to turn it forward facing (no earlier than 15 months).

But is this child car seat easy to install and comfortable? Read our full Joie i-Spin 360 i-Size review to find out.

Joie i-Spin Safe, £280

This car seat is similar to the one above, except it's rearward-facing only. You can still swivel it 90 degrees to help you get your child into the car, but you can't turn it forward-facing. 

It's been put through something called the Swedish Plus Test. This voluntary approval test, which is only open to rearward car seats, uses faster speeds and shorter stopping times in crash tests to really put car seats through their paces, as well as taking measurements on the neck loads of the crash test dummies.

Read our Joie i-Spin Safe review, or take a look at other tested models in this seat group, which include the Joie Spin 360.

• Find out more: I-Size child car seats explained

Joie child car seats

Joie i-Traver, £160

Approved for children measuring 100-150cm (around four to 12 years old), the i-Traver is the i-size version of the Traver (mentioned below), which means it's been designed and approved to the latest R129 regulations. 

The seat has an extendable seat base and Guard Surround Safety panels, which you can fit to provide extra side-impact protection.

Read our i-Traver review to find out if it makes a difference to its safety scores.

Joie i-Trillo LX, £100

A slightly cheaper i-Size child car seat than the i-Traver, the i-Trillo LX has an extendable 10-position headrest, two retractable food and drink holders in the seat base, and removable machine washable covers. 

You can use it with children measuring 100-150cm, which is approximately four to 12 years.

Read our full Joie i-Trillo LX review to find out if it's a safe and comfortable high-back booster seat.

Joie Traver, £90

The Traver was launched in 2017 so it has been around for a while, but it's as popular as ever, and good value, too. 

The group 2/3 seat is suitable for children weighing 15-36kg (around age four to 12 years), and is installed into the car via 'Isosafe' connectors and the vehicle seatbelt. 

Read the Joie Traver review for more information on its test scores.

• Find out more: What are isofix baby car seats?

Joie multi-group or multi-height car seats

Joie i-Spin XL, £260

The i-Spin XL launched last year and is an i-Size baby to child car seat. Designed to be used the entire time your child needs to be in a restraint system, the i-Spin XL is approved for use with children measuring 40cm to 150cm. That's birth until around 12 years old.

It has a five-position recline and the headrest can be adjusted to 14 positions. The harness hides away in a special compartment once you start using this seat as a high-backed booster.

Find out if this seat has a good safety rating following our crash tests, and if it's easy to install without making a mistake, by reading the Joie i-Spin XL review.

Joie i-Spin Grow, £400

The i-Spin Grow also has a long shelf-life as you can use it with children measuring 40cm to 125cm, which is birth to approximately six years old. 

This child car seat has passed the regulatory tests required by ECE R129/i-Size. But in our own tests, which are conducted at higher speeds and forces than the standard requires, this seat scores poorly for frontal-impact tests. 

We also identified issues with installation and fitting which could mean the seat is turned forward-facing too early or not used properly.

Read the safety alert on the Joie i-Spin Grow review for more information.

Joie Every Stage R129, £180

The Every Stage R129 is similar to older Every Stage car seats, except it's been approved to the newer R129 regulations, rather than the R44 regulations.

However, it's not i-Size, as the seat is installed using the vehicle seat belt, rather than isofix connectors. This could be useful if your car doesn't have isofix connectors (although most modern cars do).

Our tests get parents to try installing car seats to see if they're so complicated that they might make a mistake. Read our Joie Every Stage R129 review to find out how they got on.

Joie Bold, £200

This multi-group seat has a five-point harness that can be used until your child weighs 25kg, which is about age five or six, at which point it can be removed and stored within the seat so it's kept safe. Your child is then restrained using the vehicle seatbelt.

It's approved for use with babies from 9kg (around 12 months) up to 36kg (around 12 years old).

This seat is an oldie (launching in June 2017), but is it a goodie? Read the Joie Bold review to find out.

Joie Every Stage FX, £200

This multi-group child car seat passed the regulatory tests required by R44 regulations to be sold as suitable for children from birth up to 36kg (about 12 years old). 

But in our own tests, which are conducted at higher speeds and forces than the standard requires, this forward-facing seat scored poorly for frontal-impact results when used in Group 1 mode, so it ended up being a Don't Buy.

Even if you're not a Which? member, you can read the safety alert on the Joie Every Stage FX car seat review to find out more information.

Other tested models in this group include the Joie Every Stage.

• Find out more: Car seats for older children