Graco Milestone Review: Get the Best for Your Babies!

Written by Maggie R. in Car Seat Reviews

Graco Milestone Review: Get the Best for Your Babies!

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Children today spend a lot of time in cars, and it is more important than ever to keep them safe. That is why car seat companies work hard to create car seats that will be suitable for children of every age, from infancy through elementary school. In this Graco Milestone review, we compare the Graco Milestone car seat with a few others on the market, to help parents make the best choice for their families.

What Is the Graco Milestone?

The Graco Milestone is a car seat that starts out as a rear-facing infant seat and then converts to a forward-facing car seat and a booster seat as the child gets older. The booster position was rated a Best Bet by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Product Specs

As a rear-facing seat, this car seat can be used by children who weigh between five and 40 pounds. As a forward-facing, five-point harness seat, it can be used by children who weigh between 20 and 65 pounds and are less than 49 inches tall. As a highback booster seat, it can be used by children who weigh between 30 and 100 pounds and who are 38 to 57 inches tall.





Pricing

The Graco Milestone can be found on Amazon for about $160.

Graco Milestone Review: How It Compares

We picked a few similar products available on the market to see how they compare:

  • Peg Perego Primo Viaggio

  • Clek
    Liing

  • Graco 4Ever DLX 4-in-1

Graco Milestone

Price $

Quality *****

This car seat has been tested for side, rear, and forward impact at twice the national standard. Its steel frame makes it strong and sturdy enough to hold up in a wreck. It uses EPS energy-absorbing foam for extra safety.

Comfort ****

Graco Milestone reviews by parents state that this car seat is very comfortable for children. It has plenty of padding, as well as
removable
plush inserts that can be used by infants in the rear facing position. The padding and inserts can be removed for laundering. Parents also noted that the fabric has adequate ventilation so that children do not get too hot while riding. The seat has four reclining positions, including two for the forward facing position and two for the rear facing position.

Design Quality ****

Installing a car seat is often a difficult procedure. One thing that parents mentioned in many Graco Milestone reviews was the InRight LATCH system. Installing the seat in the rear facing position is fairly simple, and the system uses an audible click to let parents know that they’ve gotten it right. When it is time to transition to a front facing position, the LATCH connectors have to be manually moved from the front of the seat to the back. Some parents found it difficult to get the belts tight enough in the front facing position. 
Graco Milestone parent reviewers also liked the Simply Safe Adjust harness system. With this system, the harness straps are attached to the adjustable headrest. Parents pull the headrest and shoulder straps up to the correct height, without having to re-thread the harness. The harness straps can be loosened with the push of a button. 
When a child has outgrown all of the harness positions and is ready to use it as a booster seat, there is a special compartment behind the padding of the back of the seat. The harness can be stored there for future use by younger children. As an added bonus, the drink holder can be installed on either the left or right side of the seat.

Warranty 

This has a limited one-year warranty.

Pros

  • InRight LATCH system
  • Simply Safe Adjust harness system with no re-threading
  • Harnesses can be stored on the back of the car seat
  • Four reclining positions
  • Moveable drink holder

Cons

  • LATCH system may be difficult to tighten in the front facing position

Peg Perego Primo Viaggio

This car seat can be used as a rear-facing seat for children who weigh between five and 45 pounds, and as a front facing five-point harness car seat for children who weigh between 22 and 65 pounds. It is made by an Italian company that is known for fashionable, high-quality children’s products.

Price $$$

Quality *****

While Graco Milestone reviews often mentioned the numerous safety features of the seat, the Peg Perego Primi Viaggio has some great safety features of its own. It has a Shock Absorbing Foam Element below the shell that crumples upon impact, keeping the stress of the impact off of the child. 
It has side impact protection that can be adjusted to ten different positions, in order to best support the child’s head, neck, and spine as he grows. The steel backplate helps prevent the seat from moving forward in a collision. An added safety feature that is not always seen in US-made car seats is a tether that can be used in either the forward or rear facing position, keeping the seat from rotating.

Comfort *****

Parent reviewers describe this seat as soft, cushiony, and comfortable. Some child passengers loved that the front facing position made them feel taller. The Fresco Jersey performance fabric absorbs moisture and allows ventilation, to keep children from getting too hot in the seat. 

Design Quality *****

This seat is easy to install using the push-on LATCH connectors in either the rear or front facing position. The seat is also fairly lightweight, at only 21 pounds, and is easy to transfer in and out of a car. 
At only 18.5 inches across, it is narrower than most seats, and it is possible to put three of them next to each other on a bench seat in a car. The fabric is designed to be easy to wipe clean, but the cover can also be removed for laundering. 

Warranty *****

This seat comes with a two-year limited warranty.

Pros

  • Shock absorbing foam
  • Adjustable side impact protection
  • Steel backplate
  • Tethers
  • Comfortable for children
  • Narrow and lightweight
  • Easy to install
  • Two-year warranty

Cons

  • More expensive than many similar seats
  • Does not convert to a booster seat

Clek
Liing

The Clek Ling is an infant-only rear facing carseat, It is made by the Canadian company, Clek, and came onto the market in April of 2019. It can hold infants who weigh between four and 35 pounds and are up to 32 inches tall. 

Price $$$

Quality *****

Some of the unique safety features of this seat include a metal load leg that prevents rotation and absorbs energy in a collision, and a shell that is lined with energy-absorbing expanded polypropylene foam.

Comfort ****

The seats have extra padding and inserts that can be adjusted to the baby’s height to provide a snug fit.

Design Quality ****

Ease of installation is often a big point in Grace Milestone reviews and other car seat reviews. When it comes to the Clek Liing, parents say that installation is very easy. It uses a rigid LATCH system instead of fabric straps, keeping the seat stable during installation. It can also be installed using a car’s seatbelts, with a belt tension system that ensures that the seat is installed securely.

This seat has several features that are designed especially for infants, such as the sun canopy with a SPF 100+ mesh window. It blocks out the sun to protect the skin, while still allowing airflow and giving parents a way to peek in without disturbing the child. It has seven reclining positions which can be adjusted using a lever. The seat can be removed from the base with the push of a button and is light enough to be carried easily.

Warranty ****

This comes with a one-year limited warranty.

Pros

  • Metal loading leg
  • Shell line with expanded polypropylene foam
  • Easy installation with either LATCH system or seat belts
  • RIgid LATCH system
  • Sun canopy with SPF 100+ mesh window
  • Seven reclining positions
  • Easily removed from base
  • Lightweight

Cons

  • More expensive than many other infant seats
  • Does not convert to front facing seat

liing

Graco 4Ever DLX 4-in-1

While Graco Milestone reviews praised the car seat’s ability to convert from a rear facing seat seat to a forward facing seat and a highback booster, the 4Ever DLX 4-in-1 takes it one step further. It also becomes a backless booster seat. The rear facing seat position can be used by children between four and 40 pounds.

The front-facing, five point harness position can be used by children who weigh between 22 and 65 pounds and are less than 49 inches tall. The highback booster seat can be used by children who weigh 30 to 100 pounds and are between 38 and 57 inches tall. Finally, the backless booster seat can be used by children who weigh between 40 and 120 pounds, and are between 40 to 57 inches tall.

Price $$

Quality *****

This car seat is ProtectPlus Engineered to keep children as safe as possible in frontal, side, rear and rollover collisions. This means it has been put through a combination of the most rigorous crash tests. It also has a LATCH option for the booster position as well as the other positions. The LATCH option helps to prevent the car seat from becoming a projectile in a collision even if the child is not riding in the seat.

Comfort ****

Most parents say that the seat padding and the headrest are adequately comfortable for their children. Some parents say that the fabric is not breathable enough and that children get hot and sweaty while riding.

Design Quality ****

The LATCH system for this seat is simple but may be somewhat cumbersome. Similarly to what parents described in Gaco Milestone reviews, the LATCH traps have to be manually moved from the front of the seat to the back when switching from the rear facing position to the front facing position. Some parents have said that the LATCH system was a little hard to use when installing in the rear facing position, especially if installing it on the middle seat. 
The five point harness is attached to the adjustable headrest, in order to easily change the height of the straps. The harness can also be loosened with the push of a button. When it comes time to convert the seat to a booster, the harness can be stored behind the back padding. The seat also has a “fuss-free” harness holder that will keep the harness straps out of the way as a child gets in and out of the seat. The padding can be removed for laundering.

Warranty ****

This has a limited one-year warranty.

Pros

  • Four modes
  • ProtectPlus engineered
  • LATCH option in booster mode as well as other positions
  • Harness attached to headrest for easy height adjustment
  • Harness loosens with the push of button
  • Fuss-free harness holder
  • Padding can be removed for laundering

Cons

  • Children may get hot and sweaty while riding
  • LATCH system can be difficult to use

Conclusion

For parents who are in the market for a car seat that they can use long after their infant outgrows the rear-facing weight limit, both the Graco Milestone and the Graco 4Ever DLX 4-in-1 are great options. The two models are very similar to each other, although the 4Ever DLX 4-in-1 is a newer model and has some additional features.

Graco Milestone reviews show that parents are happy with this car seat because of its safety features, InRight LATCH system, easily adjustable harness, and ability to convert from a rear-facing seat to a five-point harness front facing seat and a highback booster seat. With the 4Ever DLX 4-in-1, you get all of these features, plus the ability to convert it to a backless booster. The decision between the two seats may come down to your family’s budget and the age of the child who will be using the seat.

If you’re on a tighter budget, and your child is still using the rear facing position, the need for a backless booster is a long way off. You may be better off getting the Graco Milestone. If you like the idea of having a newer version of the seat, with the option to turn it into a backless booster as the final stage, you may want to spring for the 4Ever DLX 4-in-1. Be sure to do your research to decide which seat is best for your family.

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