Graco Milestone All-In-One Car Seat Review

I have been reviewing the new Graco Milestone All-In-One Car Seat over the past few months. I jumped at the chance to review this model as it can be used for all age/size groups: 0+/1/2/3, something I haven't used before. The car seat is designed as an 'all-in-one' model and can be used from birth and all the way through childhood until your child is 12 years old.

The Graco Milestone All-in-One Car Seat offers the following:

• Three car seats in one including the rear facing seat for birth-13kg (Group 0+), forward facing for 9-18kg (Group 1) and a high back booster for 15-36 kg (Group 2-3).

• 10 position adjustable headrest and harness for a growing child.

• Four position reclining seat, two in the rear facing mode and two in front facing.

• Side impact protection in the headrest to ensure your baby/child is always safe and secure.

• Steel reinforced frame adding extra strength and safety.

• Comfortable insert for baby which is easily removable when your child grows.

• A cup holder to keep your child's drink close by.

• Machine washable seat pad that can be removed easily without having to remove the harness so it's easier to keep the car seat clean.

My Review

Installation/adjusting size: The carseat arrived in a big box along with packaging and manual guides. It was incredibly easy to unwrap and was all ready to go, all I had to do was adjust it for first time use. My son is three years old and currently about 17kg so he still fits in the 9-18kg (Group 1) category using a five-point harness. One of the things that is so handy with the Milestone car seat is that you don't need to fiddle adjusting the straps at the back. When I first used the carseat I was looking through the manual trying to find the section on adjusting the straps expecting to remove the straps and then thread them through the back of the car seat with difficulty. However, I soon discovered you simply need to lift the headrest at the back and the straps move simultaneously. For me, this is the best thing as it is so easy and quick to adjust. There are 10 adjustable positions on the headrest showing how much room there is for growth. It's also very easy to loosen and tighten the five-point harness straps at the front for a comfortable and safe fit on your child.

Reclining positions on the Graco Milestone Car Seat

Transferring into cars: I don't have my own car but frequently use cars of friends and family so being able to transfer a car seat into a new car efficiently and easily is important. The Graco Milestone All-in-One car seat takes no time at all. Once you've done it a couple of times it's very quick to thread the seat belt through the back of the car seat and secure it safely in place with the extra safety latch. One of the best features is that the car seat is quite light, measuring 8kg so I could easily transfer it out of the house and into the car. 

Comfort/Accessories: The insert for a little baby looked super comfortable. The headrest looked comfortable for my son too. He's fallen asleep many times in the car seat now and looked pretty snug. There are two reclining positions for the forward facing seat and I usually have my son leaning slightly back rather than upright in case he falls asleep. This car seat comes with a very handy cup holder, something I haven't seen on any other design. It's a perfect addition to a car seat and means a baby/child can keep their beaker/bottle within reach.

Easily Removable Cover: Unfortunately, my little boy suffers from travel sickness and as a result has been sick in this car seat. I usually hate removing car seat covers because they are such a pain to put back on. But the cover on the Milestone car seat was fairly easy and straightforward to remove, wash and put on again. I did have to sponge down the non-removable parts and it did take a few attempts to get rid of the sick though! This isn't a fault of this particular car seat but I think the fabrics used in car seats are not the best for removing stains. 

Price: The Graco Milestone All-in One car seat can be purchased at Mothercare for £179.99. I think that's a fair price considering it can be used from birth up until 12 years. However, as technology and carseat models are upgraded so often I wonder if anyone would actually use the carseat for 12 years? I think the cost would still be worth it if the car seat was used for a few years especially considering the added features of having an easily adjustable seat. 

Overall, I really like the Graco Milestone All-in One car seat. The biggest benefits for me are that it's so easy to adjust it's size and can be efficiently transferred to another car. As my son has nearly overgrown his previous car seat I will now be using this as our permanent one and can honestly recommend this model.

Many thanks to Graco for providing the carseat for the purpose of the review. All opinions are my own.

Have you tried the Graco carseat? What is your experience? Read my other blog reviews.