• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Kid Safety First

  • Car Seats
    • Car Seat Buying Guides
      • Best Convertible Car Seat Buying Guide
    • Infant Seats (USA)
      • Britax B-Safe Review
      • Britax B-Safe 35 Infant Car Seat Review
      • Britax Chaperone Review
      • Britax Endeavours Infant Car Seat Review
      • Chicco Keyfit 30 Review
      • Maxi-Cosi Mico Review
      • Peg Perego SIP 30/30 Review
      • Peg Perego 4-35 Review
      • Safety 1st Infant Car Seats Reviewed
      • Infant Comparison Reviews
        • Britax B-Safe vs B-Safe 35 Infant Seats – Comparison Review
        • Britax B-Safe vs B-Safe 35 Elite Reviewed
        • Britax B-Safe 35 vs B-Safe 35 Elite Reviewed
        • Britax B-Safe 35 Elite vs Endeavours – Comparison Review
        • Britax B-Safe 35 vs Britax Endeavours Comparison Review
        • Britax B-Safe 35 vs B-Safe Ultra Compared
        • Britax B-Safe Ultra Car Seat Review
        • Britax B-Safe 35 Elite vs B-Safe Ultra Compared
        • Britax Endeavours vs B-Safe Ultra Infant Seats Compared
        • Chicco Keyfit 30 vs Keyfit 30 Zip – A Comparison Review
        • Chicco Keyfit 30 vs Keyfit 30 Zip Air Compared
        • Maxi-Cosi Mico AP vs Mico Max 30 Compared
        • Peg Perego Primo Viaggio 4-35 vs Nido Compared
    • Convertible Seats (USA)
      • Britax Advocate ClickTight ARB Review
      • Britax Boulevard ClickTight ARB Review
      • Britax Marathon ClickTight Review
      • Britax Roundabout G4.1 Review
      • Chicco Nextfit 65 Review
      • Clek Fllo Review 2017
      • Clek Foonf Review 2017
      • Diono Olympia Review
      • Diono Pacifica Review
      • Diono Radian RXT Review
      • Diono Rainier Review
      • Graco Contender 65 Review
      • Graco Extend2Fit Convertible Seat Review
      • Graco Size4Me 65 Convertible Review
      • Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 With TinyFit Review
      • Maxi-Cosi Pria 85 Review
      • Peg Perego Convertible Car Seat Review
      • Recaro Performance Racer Review
      • Recaro Performance Ride Review
      • Recaro ProRide Review
      • Convertible Seat Comparisons
        • Britax Advocate ClickTight vs Boulevard ClickTight
        • Britax Advocate ClickTight v Boulevard ClickTight Review 2017
        • Britax Advocate ClickTight vs Marathon ClickTight
        • Britax Advocate ClickTight v Marathon ClickTight Review 2017
        • Britax Boulevard ClickTight v Marathon ClickTight Review 2017
        • Britax Boulevard ClickTight vs Chicco Nextfit Zip Compared
        • Britax Marathon ClickTight vs Chicco Nextfit 65 Compared
        • Britax Marathon ClickTight vs Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 Compared
        • Britax Roundabout G4.1 vs Marathon G4.1 Compared
        • Britax Roundabout G4.1 vs Boulevard G4.1 Compared
        • Chicco Nextfit 65 vs Nextfit iX Zip – Comparison Review
        • Chicco Nextfit iX vs Nextfit iX Zip Compared
        • Chicco Nextfit 65 vs Nextfit iX Zip LUXE Compared
        • Chicco Nextfit 65 vs Nextfit iX – Comparison Review
        • Chicco Nextfit iX vs Nextfit iX Zip Air – Comparison Review
        • Diono Rainier vs Diono Olympia
        • Diono Pacifica vs Diono Olympia – A Comparison Review
        • Diono Rainier vs Diono Pacifica
        • Graco Contender vs Size4Me Seats Compared
        • Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 vs Pria 85 Compared
        • Maxi-Cosi Pria 70 vs Vello 70 Comparison Review
        • Recaro ProRIDE vs Performance RIDE
        • Recaro Performance Racer vs Rally Review
        • Recaro Performance Racer vs Roadster Comparison Review
        • Recaro Performance Rally vs Roadster Comparison Review
    • Combination Harness-2-Booster Seats (USA)
      • Britax Pioneer 70 Review
      • Britax Frontier 90 Review
      • Britax Pinnacle 90 Review
      • Diono Radian RXT Review
      • Diono Ranier Review
      • Seat Comparison Reviews
        • Britax Frontier 90 vs Pioneer 70
        • Britax Frontier 90 vs Recaro Performance Sport
        • Britax Pinnacle 90 vs Pioneer 70
        • Britax Pinnacle 90 vs Frontier 90
        • Britax Pinnacle 90 vs Recaro Performance Sport
        • Clek Foonf vs Fllo Review 2017
        • Diono Radian RXT vs Radian R120 – Comparison Review
        • Diono Radian RXT vs Diono Rainier
        • Graco 4Ever All-in-One vs Milestone All-in-One Compared
        • Peg Perego Viaggio HBB 120 vs Flex 120 Compared
        • Recaro Performance Racer vs Rally Review
        • Recaro ProRIDE vs Performance RIDE
    • Booster Seats (USA)
      • Chicco Kidfit vs Kidfit Zip Booster Seats Compared
      • Clek Oobr Booster Seat Review
      • Peg Perego Primo Viaggio Flex 120 Booster Seat Review
      • Recaro ProRide Review
      • Graco Affix Booster Seat Review
    • Car Seat Bases (USA)
      • Britax B-Safe Base Review
      • Chicco Keyfit 30 Base Review
      • Maxi Cosi Mico Base Review
  • Edges & Corners
    • Prince Lionheart Edges & Corners
  • Fire & Gas
    • Cheap Carbon Monoxide Detector
    • Fireguards
    • Home Fire Ladder
    • Kidde Carbon Monoxide Detectors
    • Plug Carbon Monoxide Detector
  • Indoors
    • Best Furniture Anchors for the Home
    • Childproof Cabinet Locks (USA)
  • Out & About
    • Bikes / Scooters
      • Best Safety Helmets For Toddlers
      • Best Scooter Helmets
      • Giro Scamp MIPS Helmet Review – Safety Helmets For Kids
      • Mini Micro Scooter Review
      • Micro Maxi Scooter Review
      • Micro Sprite Kick Scooter Review
      • Nutcase Little Nutty Bike Helmets Reviewed
      • The Best 3 Wheel Scooters for Kids
    • Reins / Backpacks
      • Child Harness Backpacks
    • Strollers
      • Baby Jogger City Mini Double Review
      • Baby Jogger City Mini GT Double Stroller Review
      • Baby Jogger City Mini Double vs City Mini GT Double
      • The Baby Jogger City Select Stroller Review – 2014 Model
      • Baby Jogger Summit X3 Stroller Review
      • BOB Revolution Pro Stroller Review
      • BOB Revolution Flex vs Revolution Pro Compared
      • BOB Revolution SE vs Revolution Flex Comparison Review
      • BOB Revolution SE vs Revolution Pro Comparison Review
      • Britax B-Agile Travel System Review – 2014 Edition
  • Sleeping Safely
    • Baby Monitors
      • Infant Optics DXR-5 Review
      • Infant Optics DXR-8 Review
      • Philips Avent Dect Review
      • Snuza Hero Baby Movement Monitor
      • V Tech Communications Safe & Sound Review
    • Bed Rails
      • Babydan Sleep n Safe Bed Rail
  • Air Quality
    • Do Air Purifiers Really Work?
  • Blog

Best Narrow Convertible Car Seats – 3 Kids in a Row?

July 3, 2014 By Kristian

The “3 Kids in a Row” Challenge



The search for the best narrow convertible car seats is one that many people have to struggle with. As more and more safety features have been added to car seats over the years, they have had a tendency to get wider and wider. For those that need to be able to fit 3 kids in a row on the back seat of their vehicles, this can be a real headache.

Although family sizes in developed countries are generally on a downwards trend, many people still choose to have at least 3 children. I have 3 kids under the age of 6 myself and, although it is a wonderful blessing, it does bring with it certain logistical challenges that parents of one or two children simply don’t have to deal with.

The Safety Features vs Width Dilemma


Very often the car seats with the most safety features (like the Side Impact Cushion Technology (SICT) “wings” that are found on the Britax Advocate ClickTight or the Britax Pinnacle 90) are usually not an option for those that drive around in standard sized family vehicles. They are simply too wide.

For example, the width of the Britax Advocate ClickTight comes in at a whopping 20.5 inches and I can assure you that, unless you have some sort of Scooby-Doo van, you won’t be installing 3 of those side-by-side in the back seat.

So, do you need to compromise on safety features and chooses a non-premium convertible car seat?

Fortunately, the answer is NO because there are at least 3 very good alternative convertible car seats that manage to combine premium safety features with a narrow profile.

Before going into more details about the dimensions of these 3 seats, there are a couple of other matters that you ought to consider when finding the right seat for your child.

Although it is common for car seats to have a recommended lifespan of 6-8 years, the Diono Radian RXT and Diono Rainier are said by the manufacturer to be capable of lasting 10 years with careful usage. This is another bonus for those with large families since replacing car seats is a very expensive business, especially if you need to replace 3 or more at one time.

One other thing to bear in mind though is that, even if you are buying a car seat for your first child, it is worth considering at this stage whether or not to buy one of the narrower models. If you already know at this early stage that you would like to have at least 3 children as part of your family, I would advise you to buy a slimmer car seat so that you don’t have to incur the expense of having to replace it at a later stage because it can no longer fit in the back of your vehicle next to 2 other seats.

The 4 Best Convertible Car Seats for 3 Kids in a Row


In my opinion, there are 4 obvious candidates for this accolade and they are both made by Diono.

I have already reviewed these car seats in more detail and in this post I am just going to concentrate on their physical dimensions rather than their full list of safety features.

If you want to read my in-depth reviews of these seats, just click on the links below:

  • Diono Radian RXT vs Rainier Review
  • Clek Foonf vs Fllo Review

#1 Diono Radian RXT

The width of the Diono Radian RXT is just 17 inches (3.5 inches less than the Britax Advocate & 1.5 inches less than the Britax Marathon).

So, not only is the Radian RXT narrower than the models that have the SICT side wings attached, but it is also slimmer than the standard non-SICT Marathon model. A difference of 1.5 inches might not sound like much but, when you have 3 of these seats in a row, that combined 4.5 inches extra width can mean the difference between installation success and failure.

Check Price of the Diono Radian RXT

Read User Reviews of the Radian RXT

#2 Diono Rainier

The width of the Diono Rainier is also just 17 inches at the base. However, it is slightly wider than the Radian RXT towards the top front side part of the seat due to the added side impact wings. I have heard some of the first owners of the Rainier commenting that you would probably need more space in your vehicle due to this added width at the top of the seat.

If you already have a couple of Radians and are looking for a seat to go in between them for a younger child, I would probably try the Rainier and just return the seat if it didn’t fit. I don’t think you would have too much difficulty with a Radian-Rainier-Radian configuration in most standard sized family vehicles.

Check Price of the Diono Rainier.

Read User Reviews of the Diono Ranier.

#3 Clek Foonf 2017


The Clek Foonf and Fllo seats measure just 13 inches at the base and 17 inches at their widest parts, which make them ideal for smaller vehicles and those who need to fit 3 seats in a row.

Check Price of the Clek Fllo / Clek Foonf.

Read User Reviews of the Clek Seats.

Clek Convertible Car Seats in Canada


Find Clek Convertible Seats in Canada here.

Diono Car Seats in Canada


Find Diono Car Seats in Canada here.

Safety Information


After purchasing any child car seat, you should always read the User Manual thoroughly before using it. It is also advisable to visit your local Fire Department or NHTSA Child Car Seat Inspection Centre to ensure that the seat is definitely suitable for your child’s specific requirements and that you have installed it correctly. These services are usually provided free of charge.

You can find your nearest NHTSA Centre here.

Leave a Comment


If you have any questions about my best narrow convertible car seats post or simply want to suggest alternative options for those trying to fit 3 kids in a row in a standard sized family vehicle, please feel free to leave a comment below or just send an email to kristian@kidsafetyfirst.com

Share on FacebookShare on Google+Share on TwitterShare on Pinterest

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Connect with Me!

FacebookPinterestGoogleTwitter

Find More Reviews

Recent Posts

  • Essentials By Britax: New Convertible Car Seats
    By Kristian
    November 17, 2018
  • Highbacked vs Backless Booster Car Seats
    By Kristian
    October 27, 2018
  • Britax Skyline Review – The Essentials
    By Kristian
    October 20, 2018
  • Britax Highpoint Review
    By Kristian
    October 17, 2018
  • Britax Highpoint vs Skyline Highback Boosters Compared
    By Kristian
    October 13, 2018
  • Britax Endeavours vs B-Safe Ultra Infant Seats Compared
    By Kristian
    March 15, 2018
  • Britax B-Safe 35 Elite vs B-Safe Ultra Compared
    By Kristian
    March 15, 2018
  • Britax B-Safe 35 vs B-Safe Ultra Compared
    By Kristian
    March 14, 2018

Car Seat Buying Guides

  • Highbacked vs Backless Booster Car Seats
    By Kristian
    October 27, 2018

Footer

Legal Stuff

  • Affiliate Disclosure Statement
  • Privacy Policy

© 2021 Kid Safety First - All Rights Reserved