5 of the Best Baby Hip Seat Carriers
Are you one of the parents who tried using a standard baby carrier in the past but experienced shoulder or back pain? Or are you researching carriers for the first time and interested to learn more after seeing hip seat carriers? Or are you considering including one on your newborn baby checklist or Amazon registry? Whatever your motivation, you've found the ideal location!
From the time they were born, I physically carried and wrapped my children. Something about having my children near to me and the usefulness of being able to leave the house with them sleeping on my chest really appealed to me.
While conventional baby wraps and carriers work well for young children who can sleep in them for extended periods of time, there comes a moment when your child becomes a toddler and their only desire is to wander around and explore their environment. They demand to be picked up and set down all the time, and, let's be honest, they get bloody heavy!
At that point, I realized that my baby carriers were no longer really practical. My shoulders and back were beginning to hurt severely since my infants didn't want to spend a lot of time with them. The same thing occurred when I carried them on my hips without using a carrier.
To be honest, I was really dubious when I used a hip seat carrier for the first time with my first child. I was surprised by how much it helped my shoulders and back pains—I had anticipated that wearing the baby belt carrier around my waist would irritate me more than anything! I was so in love with it that I bought another one for my second child and have been using it ever since she was about 4 months old.
I'm going to go over everything you need to know about waist carriers and hip seat carriers in this post, including what they are, the many varieties available on the market, their advantages and disadvantages, and my picks for the top items. By the end, you'll be able to decide for sure whether a hip seat carrier is the best option for your family and, if so, which model will best suit your way of life.
The Different Types of Baby Hip Seat Carriers
Let me start by making sure you know precisely what a baby carrier with a hip seat is. Hip seat carriers come in two primary variations: ones that only include a hip seat and ones that resemble true carriers by having shoulder straps and an enclosed seat.
Baby Waist Carrier
The simplest of the two designs is a , like the one from Tushbaby, whiwaist carrierch consists just of a hip seat for the infant and a waist belt that wraps around your hips to secure it in place.
These types of baby carry belts are obviously smaller and typically less expensive than other designs—perfect if you're on a tight budget. The primary drawback is that you must constantly make sure you are carrying the infant with at least one hand and that you are never entirely hands-free.
Baby Hip Seat Carrier with Shoulder Straps
Similar to the MiaMily Hipster Plus Baby Carrier, this kind of hip seat carrier is much more like the conventional baby carriers you are used to seeing. However, they include a baby seat that rests at waist level, making the carrier bulkier around your hip.
Many of the items on this list really include detachable shoulder straps and infant enclosures, allowing you to switch between using a hip seat carrier for your baby and a waist carrier at any time.
This is a very useful feature to have if you want to switch from using the complete carrier while the baby is young and unable to hold their neck and head first to only using the hip baby belt carrier when they are older. Alternatively, you could prefer the baby waist carrier while you're at home and often lifting your child up and setting them down rather than the carrier when you're out for a stroll.
This type of hip carrier for baby can also usually be used in multiple carrying positions:
Face-to-face or front-facing, with or without the cage, with the infant in the front
When carrying a child on your back, use only the enclosure
Using just the waist carrier and no enclosure while holding the infant on your side\
Is a Baby Carrier with Hip Seat Good for Baby (or Mom and Dad)?
Many parents worry that some carriers could be dangerous for their children's hips. This is because of the overwhelming data that shows hip dysplasia or even hip dislocations can result from holding a newborn in a posture that maintains the infant's legs close together for extended periods of time.
The infant is totally secure since the hip seat carrier enables them to sit in the posture advised by the International Hip Dysplasia Institute. The hips bend so that the knees are just above the buttocks and the baby's thighs are supported in what is known as the "M-position," where the baby's thighs travel around the parent's chest.
Hip seat carriers allow the infant to keep this healthful position whether they are facing inside or outward, which makes them healthier for newborns than 'regular' carriers. The International Hip Dysplasia Institute advises against an outward-facing posture until the infant is six months old since it frequently results in the M-position when turning the baby to gaze away from the parent.
Hip seat carriers, however, are beneficial for both parents and children.snuggle me and dock tok made baby hip seat carriers
Pros and Cons of Hip Seat Carriers for Parents
The Advantages
Parents who use a baby waist carrier typically report less shoulder or back pain than they would with other conventional carriers. This is due to the fact that your hips and legs are bearing the weight of the baby instead of your back and shoulders.
Additionally, unlike a typical front or back carrier, the weight of your kid won't drag you either forward or backward. A hip seat carrier will assist you in standing up straight, which can only relieve your back strain.
Another advantage is that, when you are using just the hip seat, you can easily swap between the left and right side, which helps even things up and avoid hip or lower back pains. I personally always really struggled to wear my baby on the left side without a waist carrier!
Other benefits to think about are:
The carrier may grow with you from a newborn to a toddler age, allowing you to carry your baby in a variety of postures.
The quantity of storage, which is typically nonexistent in traditional carriers, either on the side of the waist belt or under the hip seat.
The Disadvantages
Despite this, baby carriers with a bunch of seats have several drawbacks and are not without flaws.
You must always make sure that you are holding them with one hand when using just the hip seat, so they are not entirely hands-free. Because of this, I prefer the concept of a hip seat carrier with shoulder straps, which allows you to put the baby in an enclosed carrier when you need both hands free.
Additionally, if you had a c-section, they may be a little more unpleasant than regular carriers for the first 12 weeks or so afterwards. The seat may exert greater pressure on the incision for this reason.
Finally, if you have hip injuries or difficulties, they are not the greatest option because their weight and strain are concentrated on your hip and legs rather than your back and shoulders.
5 of the Best Baby Hip Seat Carriers
Without further ado, the following is a list of the top hip seat baby carriers, along with information on their features, benefits, and drawbacks. You may scroll further down to read more information about the items, but the summary table below will provide you with information about their weight restrictions and important characteristics that make them the best.
1) Tushbaby Belt Carrier
With simply the hip seat and the belt that wraps around your waist, together with the 4 various carrying configurations, the Tushbaby hip seat carrier is a traditional waist carrier. Its exceptional quality is the reason it is at the top of my list.
It is created in the US from premium materials, is safety-tested, and doesn't include any chemicals that cause cancer. With a large compartment beneath the seat, a side pocket, a bottle holder, and loops to attach items like baby toys or your pacifier clip, it provides plenty of storage space.
In comparison to other baby carriers with hip seats, the belt that goes around your waist is also quite thick, making it more pleasant to wear when the baby's weight pushes down. A waistband extension that extends up to 71 inches is available in addition to the conventional waistband's length of 44 inches (1.1 meters) (1.8 meters).
Please take note that if you are a small mom (or other caregiver), the belt may be a little too big for you. This mom weighs just about 100 pounds (45 kg). She still uses it and extols the virtues of this hip seat carrier. Just another thing to have in mind.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/TushBaby-Waistband-Extender-Extension-Adjustable/dp/B07N2XDZ12
2) Chicco Sidekick Waist Carrier
The Tushbaby belt carrier and the Chicco Sidekick belt carrier are pretty comparable (albeit the Chicco is around $30 less expensive): both are waist carriers constructed of high-quality fabrics, and the Chicco name is always a guarantee of high quality and longevity.
The size has a sizable pocket, and this product has received nothing but positive reviews. The biggest drawback is that it cannot be machine washed; instead, hand washing is required. This, given how much babies spit, drip, etc., may be rather irritating.
The belt does not have an extension option like the Tushbaby hip seat carrier, and it suits waists between 23" and 46" (0.6 and 1.2 m).
https://www.amazon.com/Chicco-Sidekick-Hip-Seat-Carrier/dp/B08M23JSYP
3) ErgoBaby Hip Seat Carrier
The first genuine carrier with shoulder straps on our list is the ErgoBaby Hip Seat Carrier. Once more, it's a very well-known brand, and the quality is excellent.
Overall, it's a really comfortable carrier for mom and baby with a variety of carrying postures available thanks to the removable shell that may be used as a baby waist carrier only. Your baby can be carried in the nursing position on the front (with or without the enclosure), the side (with only the baby seat), or the back (with the enclosure).
A flap that covers the top of the cage and covers the baby's head provides additional sun and wind protection.
The two main drawbacks are the belt buckle, which can be a little challenging to reach towards the rear, and the extremely small storage compartment on the side compared to other brands. Additionally, it is one of the priciest carriers on our list.
The ErgoBaby website is where you may purchase this carrier because it is not yet listed on Amazon.
You can really currently take advantage of a limited-time promotion to save 30% on all of their hip seat baby carriers! For the promotion to be activated, use the coupon code HIPSEAT30. It remains in effect until February 27, 2022.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ergobaby-Carrier-4-Position-Ergonomic-Backpack/dp/B010C4IS34/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1DQSJ0G2ELHAW&keywords=ErgoBaby+Hip+Seat+Carrier&qid=1661107364&sprefix=ergobaby+hip+seat+carrier%2Caps%2C255&sr=8-1
4) MiaMily Hipster Plus Hip Seat Carrier
The MiaMily Hipster Plus Baby Carrier, which was created in Switzerland, shares many characteristics with the aforementioned Ergobaby, including a fairly comparable cost. This is a similarly high-quality and comfortable hip carrier with shoulder straps, and if necessary, the enclosure may be removed from the seat to allow for use in a variety of positions.
I appreciate that this brand/carrier may be purchased in a wide variety of ways. Although I like the Hipster Plus, you may also choose from the following options:
MiaMily Hip Seat: only the waist carrier is included.
MiaMily Hipster Essential: This one is comparable to the Hipster Plus, however it differs significantly in that the enclosure cannot be detached (it is way cheaper though)
Instead of using the double strap on the Hipster Plus, you may attach this MiaMily single shoulder accessory, which is a pouch with a single shoulder strap. It's so much simpler to carry a baby on your side thanks to this!
The MiaMily Hipster Front Drool Pad Accessory is a feature that is absent from the majority of other hip baby carriers and is such a great addition to put on top of your carrier, especially while your child is teething.
When a baby is still very small, the MiaMily Hipster Infant Insert offers the necessary head, neck, and spine support.
The main drawbacks are the price (which makes it one of the priciest baby carriers with hip seats) and the hip belt clasp, which is difficult to reach at the rear and makes it difficult to put on by yourself.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/MiaMily-Positions-Ergonomic-Protection-Charcoal/dp/B06XK16HS5
5) Sunnors Hip Seat Carrier
While it is a nice product, the quality of the Sunnors Hip Seat Carrier, one of the least expensive toddler hip carriers on this list, is not as excellent as some of the other items mentioned above. The device is certainly not intended for left-handed persons, since the storage pocket ends up being at the rear with the zip being too difficult to access when the baby is on the right, according to several reviewers, and it can get uncomfortable after lengthy usage.
The primary benefit is the cost; for the money, it's an excellent purchase. The belt is also one of the longest, reaching a maximum length of 49.2 inches (1.25 meters), making it suitable for plus sizes.
https://www.amazon.com/SUNVENO-Ergonomic-Lightweight-Certified-Newborns/dp/B081G8DLVF
