The Graco Grows4Me 4-in-1 Car Seat was one of our favorites. We love that it can accommodate children from infancy all the way until they’re out of a booster seat. Its price was a great fit for everything that it does.
First thing, we must say that the car seat is built to last for 10 years. It starts as an infant seat and ends as a backless booster. We found the simply safe adjust harness system to work flawlessly. It has 10 positions that the headrest and harness simultaneously adjust to with ease.
As far as safety and comfort are concerned, we felt that the Grows4Me outperformed many other car seats. The steel frame is durable and strong so in the case of an accident you know your child is protected. Additionally, there’s plenty of padding in the car seat that keeps your child comfortable and cool. It can also be removed for machine washing if there’s a spill or diaper blowout.
Even though this car seat isn’t stroller-compatible, we still strongly suggest this convertible car seat if you’re looking for something that’s built to last. We love that it has a cupholder and various reclining positions for optimal comfort.
The Graco Grows4Me 4 in 1 Car Seat can convert between rear facing, forward facing, high back booster, and backless booster for children from 5 to 110 pounds. One of the best things about this is the seat is designed to last for 10 years. So, one seat may last until your child is ready to sit in an adult seat.
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- Type of Car Seat
- Review Methodology
- Size and Capacity
- Features
- Graco Grows4Me 4 in 1 Car Seat, Infant to Toddler Car Seat with 4 Modes, West Point
- Safety Features
- Headrest
- Simply Safe Adjust Harness System
- Frame
- Additional Features
- Padding
- Cup Holder
- Reclining
- Cleaning
- Advantages
- Disadvantages
- Alternative Product
- Ratings
- Summary
Type of Car Seat
The Graco Grows4Me 4 in 1 Car Seat is a convertible car seat. This type of car seat can be used for infants until your child outgrows a backless booster. I think the ability to use the seat so long makes it great for budget-conscious parents.
This car seat can be used rear-facing for children from 4 to 40 pounds and forward-facing for children from 22 to 65 pounds. The Grow4me 4 in 1 Car Seat can also be used as a high backed booster seat for children from 40 to 100 pounds or a backless booster seat from 40 to 110 pounds.
Review Methodology
When I learned about this car seat, I knew I had to check it out. Graco is probably the biggest name in car safety seats, and with a 4 in 1, you probably won’t need to worry about buying another car seat for your child.
One seat that actually works for every age seems too good to be true. I hope to help you find out if it is or not. To get to the point, let’s consider the features, advantages, disadvantages, and capacity of the Grows4Me 4 in 1.
Size and Capacity
The Graco Grows4Me 4 in 1 Car Seat is an average-sized car seat. It can be moved between cars if necessary, but it is not really a travel car seat. The capacity for this seat is good as it not only fits a wide range of sizes, but the size ranges also overlap. I like the way this gives parents a lot of discretion over when to transition their child to the next size.
| Seat Weight | 22.53 lbs. |
| Seat Dimensions | 20 x 21.5 x 24 inches |
| Rear Facing Capacity | 5-40 lbs |
| Forward Facing Capacity | 22-65 lbs. |
| High Back Booster | 40-100 lbs. |
| Backless Booster | 40-110 lbs. |
Features
When choosing a car seat, the features I care about most are those that contribute to its safety. Luckily the Graco Grows4Me 4 in 1 Car Seat has a number of features intended to keep your child safe and comfortable.
This car seat model underwent extensive testing to ensure it will keep your child as safe as possible in the event of a crash. It was tested for side, rear, front, and rollover crashes. So, let’s talk about several of this car seat’s safety features now.
Graco Grows4Me 4 in 1 Car Seat, Infant to Toddler Car Seat with 4 Modes, West Point
$223.99 in stock
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Safety Features
Headrest
The Graco Grows4Me 4 in 1 has a headrest that is padded for comfort and safety. It also adjusts to ten different positions to ensure a good fit. You’ll find that this will allow your child to use this seat for many years.
Simply Safe Adjust Harness System
The Graco Grows4Me 4 in 1 also uses the Simply Safe Adjust Harness System. This system is great; it makes it easy to adjust the harness and the headrest since you can adjust them together in one motion. To adjust the harness, you use a single latch, which will adjust the headrest and the harness simultaneously in up to 10 positions.
Frame
The seat consists of a steel frame, which makes it durable and provides strength when needed. In an accident this will help prevent breaking or distortion and provide more safety for your child.
Additional Features
Graco designed this seat to provide safety for children without giving parents a hard time. However, they also included features for the kids to keep them happier while riding in the car. These features should help make car trips more pleasant for you and your child.
I know that when I’m driving my own children on trips, the outing isn’t fun if my kids are uncomfortable during the drive. Some of the Graco Grows4Me 4 in 1 additional features are listed below.
Padding
The Graco Grows4Me 4 in 1 has a padded insert to keep your baby comfortable. I think this is an important feature since it’s hard to keep your baby in a car seat he or she is unhappy in. But, with this insert, you shouldn’t have that problem.
Cup Holder
I think having a cup holder is nearly essential. A cup holder is great for allowing a fussy toddler easy access to some juice while helping to keep your car a bit cleaner. It would be better if it had two cup holders like some car seats, but it is still a nice feature.
Reclining
Another feature that will make this seat better for your child is the six-position recline. This will make the seat more comfortable, especially for little ones who need the seat to be reclined pretty far in order to be happy.
Cleaning
The seat pad and canopy are easy to clean. They can be machine washed in the delicate cycle with gentle soap, then drip-dried. This is a great feature. My child is a bit on the messy side, so I’m frequently cleaning my car seat cover, and machine washing is always easier.
The metal and plastic parts can be wiped with soap and water, but the buckle needs a bit more care. It needs to be gently agitated in a cup of warm water, but luckily this isn’t to hard. Being easy to clean is important, and I know from experience juice and cookies end up everywhere.
Advantages
The Graco Grow4Me 4 in 1 has many advantages. These start with its safety. Like all of Graco’s products, this seat uses Graco Protect Engineering, which means the seat is tested for all types of impacts, including side and rollover.
Another feature I like about this seat is it takes the guesswork out of adjusting the harness when adjusting the seat height. The seat has a single latch to simply adjust the headrest and the harness simultaneously in up to 10 positions. It also has a storage compartment to keep the harness in when you are not using it.
Many cheaper seats won’t recline; the Graco Grows4Me can safely recline through 6 positions to let your kids nap in safety. It even has a reclining position for the high back booster seat.
Disadvantages
This car seat is really good for the price, but it does have a few disadvantages. The inner buckle slot length can be a little short for some children.
Another disadvantage is the lack of stroller compatibility. The car seat is not compatible with strollers, even with Graco strollers.
Finally, I have said this before many times; but one cupholder isn’t enough. Any car seat should have at least two cupholders, one for a drink and one for snacks. But, I know price and safety are the essentials.
Alternative Product
The Britax One4Life ClickTight All-in-One Car Seat is a good car seat, but it is more expensive than the Graco Grow4me 4 in 1. There are some notable differences between these car seats.
The One4Life Car Seat also has a 15-position quick adjust headrest and harness. It also has a 9-position recline and a 120 pound weight limit. However, this car seat costs considerably more than the Graco Grow4me 4 in 1.
Yet, the Graco Grow4me 4 in 1 has all the necessary safety features and more. So, although the Britax One4Life has more extensive features than the Grow4Me 4 in 1, it may not be worth the increased cost for someone on a budget.
| Categories | Graco Grow4me 4 in 1 | Britax One4Life ClickTight |
| Convertible | Yes: Rear Facing, Forward Facing, High Back Booster, Backless Booster | Yes: Rear Facing, Forward Facing, Booster Seat, High Back Booster |
| Weight Capacity | Rear-Facing 5-40 lbs., Forward Facing 22-65 lbs., High Back Booster 40-100 lbs., Backless Booster 40-110 lbs. | Rear Facing 5-20 lbs., Forward Facing 20-50 lbs., Booster Seat 22-65 lbs., High Back Booster 40-120 lbs.
|
| Safety Features | Meets all federal safety standards. 5-point harness | Meets all federal safety standards. 5-point harness |
| Estimated Lifespan | 10 Years | 10 Years |
| Warranty | 3 Year | 1 Year |
| Features | Reclining, Easy Adjust Harness, 1 Cupholder, Washable Cover | Reclining, Lots of Padding, 2 Cupholders, Washable Cover |
Ratings
Now you know all about the Graco Grow4me 4 in 1, so here are our ratings.
- Ease-of-Use: 3/5
- Features: 5/5
- Safety: 4/5
- Value for Money: 5/5
Summary
The Graco Grow4me 4 in 1 is an excellent all-in-one car seat. There are other all-in-one car seats with more features, but these seats often cost more.
So, if you need a reasonably priced all-in-one car seat with great safety features and some nice additional perks, this could be the seat for you. You may want to also review the guide, on how to loosen Graco car seat straps. You may be interested in Graco Sequel 65 review.
