- best buy
- High chair safety
- High chair features
- Cleaning
Full Access first month £5, then £10.99 per month, cancel at any time
By clicking a retailer link you consent to third party cookies that track your onward journey. If you make a purchase, Which? will receive an affiliate commission which supports our mission to be the UK's consumer champion.
When shopping for a high chair, you want a model that's safe, easy to assemble and comfortable for your child. In our expert guide, we explain which key features to look out for, and reveal some of our top-scoring high chairs.
The high chairs on this page are Best Buys, so you can be confident they'll withstand messy mealtimes. We've split our selection of the best high chairs into five categories, including a brilliant travel high chair, our cheapest Best Buy and a convertible high chair that also functions as a toddler chair.
Keep scrolling to see which baby high chairs we recommend – we've tested big-name brands including Ikea, Joie and Stokke. You'll also find information on shopping for second-hand models, high chair safety and how much you should expect to spend.
We only recommend high chairs that excel in our tough lab tests. To save you time and money, we've rounded up our pick of the top Best Buy high chairs, including the cheapest Best Buy model.
Only logged-in Which? members can view our exclusive reviews in the table below. If you're not yet a member, try Which? to get instant access.
Full Access first month £5, then £10.99 per month, cancel at any time
Full Access first month £5, then £10.99 per month, cancel at any time
Full Access first month £5, then £10.99 per month, cancel at any time
Full Access first month £5, then £10.99 per month, cancel at any time
Table last updated: January 2024
To see our full selection of on-test high chairs, consult our high chair reviews.
Standard high chairs tend to be cheaper than other types. They're usually lightweight, too, and therefore a sensible option if you plan on moving the chair around the house.
Prices usually start from around £50, although our expert tests have found some for less than £20, including the Ikea Antilop.
See all our lightweight high chair reviews and lightweight folding high chair reviews
These adjustable-height high chairs offer extra flexibility – you can feed your baby at a higher level, and toddlers can sit lower down when feeding themselves.
If you're tempted by a multifunctional high chair, expect to spend at least £130. We've tried out a selection of these, including the Chicco Polly Magic Relax.
See all our multifunctional high chair reviews
These high chairs last longer than standard chairs, as they can shapeshift to match the age of your child – many can be used as furniture for children up to five.
Prices usually start from around £100, but if you want to spend less, Kiddicare does a combination high chair that costs around £60. Meanwhile, a Stokke Tripp Trapp (shown above) will set you back at least £200.
See all our convertible high chair reviews
Travel or portable high chairs are a great choice for holidays or day trips out with your baby. They're ideal if you're off to a restaurant and can't be sure there are high chairs available, or if you're likely to be visiting child-free relatives or friends.
There are various types available, including chair harnesses and booster seats, such as the Baby Polar Gear On The Go booster seat (pictured above). Chair harnesses are made of fabric and attach to a dining chair using the straps supplied. Booster seats are fold-up, box-shaped seats which fold out to create a little booster seat that straps to a chair. Some even come with trays.
You don't need to spend hundreds to get a decent high chair, which might be a relief to hear – especially if you've already spent most of your baby budget on a pushchair, car seat and baby monitor.
The amount you spend will be largely dictated by the type of high chair you want. Lightweight, foldable models are cheaper options, while wooden convertible models cost more but are made to grow with your child.
A cheaper high chair costing less than £40 can be perfectly adequate for many parents, as long as they’re not looking for snazzy features, stylish designs or lots of adjustment options.
However, you’ll still get the basic folding design, chair padding, footrest and tray (though you might need to pay extra for this on some of the cheapest models). They’re usually made of plastic with an aluminium frame, so are lightweight and fold, which can be a real bonus.
We add our Great Value logo to high chairs that are at least 20% cheaper than the average typical price for a high chair, and score at least 60%.
If you see a high chair with this logo, it's not as good as a Best Buy, but we feel it's good value and acceptable quality compared with other models we've tested.
Some products with a Great Value logo might be Best Buys as well – so if you spot both logos, you know you've got a quality product at a good price.
See all our Great Value high chairs.
How to buy the best baby bottle, steriliser, warmer and other feeding essentials - see our pick of the top products to make feeding your baby easier.
Our research suggests that Ikea is one of the most searched-for brands for high chairs. The retailer has a small selection of high chairs and names the £19 Antiliop model as one of its bestsellers.
Ikea's priciest model is the £169 Graval (above) – you can fix it in place at three different heights to adapt as your child grows.
Read all our Ikea high chair reviews.
This baby and child brand sells a selection of multifunctional high chairs, many of which are foldable for easy storage.
Among the sub-£100 high chairs we've tested are the Joie Mimzy Snacker, Joie Mimzy 2in1 and Joie Snacker 2in1 (above).
Explore all our Joie high chair reviews.
Stokke has a wide range of high chairs to choose from, but they're pricey. The cheapest model is the Stokke Clikk High Chair (above), which costs around £150. You can use it with or without a tray, and it’s suitable for use from six months up to 15kg.
We've also tested the pricier Steps + Baby set – it's a modular system, meaning you buy the chair for around £209 and then add on other elements. For our test, we added a high seat back, harness and crotch bar (£70) and the tray (£54). We also added a seat cushion (£42).
See our Stokke high chair reviews.
Shopping for a high chair in-store means you can check to see how easy it is to fold up and manoeuvre. But if you head online, you'll have a wider choice of brands and high chair types.
Wherever you decide to shop, take note of the returns policy in case you're unhappy with your purchase.
There are several popular online retailers that sell high chairs:
To see which baby and child shops are rated highly, consult our expert guide on the best and worst shops.
When your baby can sit up unaided and has control of their head and neck, you can start using a high chair – this is generally around six or seven months, coinciding with weaning.
However, some multifunction high chairs include a newborn attachment, which means your baby can be next to you at the table, at the same height as the rest of the family, even if they can't yet sit up unaided.
It's easy to buy or sell a high chair from second-hand sites such as eBay, Facebook marketplace or Gumtree. You might find that typically more expensive brands, such as Stokke or iCandy, have a good selection of second-hand high chairs for a reasonable price.
If you buy a high chair second-hand, make sure you get plenty of photos of it before you hand over any money (or even check it over in person) to make sure it's in a good condition.
You should also check the following:
High chairs have to pass numerous British Standards before they can be sold on the UK market. Which? is the only product reviews website that also carries out a range of these tests to check whether the high chair you're going to buy lives up to the manufacturer's claims.
We've seen lots of reviews and comments from parents who think the popular Stokke Tripp Trapp is unsafe because, under certain circumstances, it's possible for a child to tip the chair over backwards. Reports suggest that some children are able to push against the edge of a table and force the chair to tip over.
We've tested this model and it passed all our safety tests. It's possible to push over most high chairs, and manufacturers do say that children should not be left in a high chair unattended as it's unsafe. However, we know this is not always practical when you've got young children and you're trying to prepare dinner and get things done.
If you're worried about your child pushing over the Stokke Tripp Trapp or any other high chair, we suggest you place the chair with its back to a wall, which will stop it from falling over completely.
When your child no longer needs a high chair (and the age will vary depending on the style of high chair you buy), you can either sell it via an online marketplace; give it to a charity shop, friend or family member; or dispose of it.
If you decide to throw it away, it's likely you'll need to take it to your local council tip, as most local authorities won't collect something as large as a high chair in kerbside rubbish pick-ups.
Check to see if parts of the high chair can be separated out and put into recycling, but remember this will depend on the type of plastic it's made of.
To uncover the best high chairs for your budget, we pay attention to the features that matter the most.
We test how stable high chairs are, to make sure wriggly babies won't topple them over. Plus, we strike each chair with an impact hammer to see if it falls over or breaks, and we throw the trays on to the floor, from one metre up, on every side, to see if any bits break off. We also check for any sharp edges or poor-quality finishes.
For more information on how we decide which high chairs are Best Buys, explore our guide on how we test high chairs.