Cosco Kids - Finale 2-in-1 Booster Car Seat

We do curbside check in with the seats and check them in protective bags. My almost 6yo is still under the weight minimum for a booster seat so we have to travel with a harness seat for her, and a convertible seat for our toddler, as well as a booster for our 7yo. It’s just not possible for us to cart that all through the airport to gate check. We have dedicated travel car seats that are lighter and cheaper than our everyday seats. Hers is the Cosco Finale.

We have a couple of the Cosco ones. They stack well amd are easy to carry. Not the fanciest but seem to do the job.

Hey. Just saw this, but if you didn’t get a car seat yet, I highly recommend the Cosco Finale. It’s a forward-facing car seat that converts to a booster. Like the Scenera, it’s lightweight, inexpensive, and FAA approved (but only in 5-point harness mode). That was what we got when our kids outgrew the Scenera.

The Cosco finale is our travel seat for our preschooler / kindergartner. https://amzn.to/4bi5oH5 You can sometimes get it on sale at Walmart. It’s super lightweight and easy to travel with. We keep our massive car seats in my car and these in my husbands. We use them for air travel. It’s a 65 lb weight limit for the 5 pt harness. Edit: it’s only $49 at Walmart. Cosco Kids Finale 2-in-1 Booster Car Seat, Fiberwave https://www.walmart.com/ip/260704037

On sale right now for $49 at Walmart. We have 2 of them and they’re great.

Oh yikes. Hopefully we’ll be okay, we only use it for travel and the 1 mile drive home from daycare, and my son is still around 30 lbs.

Plus one to this parent above getting downvoted. Renting is dangerous. I also second the Cosco Finale, or Graco's Tranzitions 3-in-1 harness booster. When my then 4.5 year old needed a different car seat (the expensive “buy for life” convertible seat got ruined) we got her the Graco and I’m thrilled with it. It was just under $100 at Target (I’m seeing them for $120 now, which is annoying)

I’ll also approve the Cosco car seat option. We actually bought a car seat carrying bag to help make hauling it easier. Just a big black duffle bag with wheels and a strap.

We brought my son’s Extend2Fit on the plane. We fly 4-5 times a year and many different airlines and have never had a problem rear facing it. We had a backpack to carry it through the airport. When my son turned FF after he turned 4, we bought a Cosco Kids Finale and that was a breeze to use on the plane. It was so lightweight and made me wish we had purchased the rear facing Cosco one just for all our trips before FF. They’re cheap Walmart seats.

I would use a cosco scenera next for the little one and a cosco finale for the older one, as long as it seems good for their height/weight. If I was traveling with a second adult I would bring both seats on the plane because I prefer not to check car seats, but if it was just me and 2 kids I would be willing to check a seat that I only use for occasional travel.

I check my car seats. I recommend the backpack car seat covers mainly to make it easier to move them but the Cosco seat is light and my go to for travel. Or put the seats in your stroller and wear baby 🤷🏻‍♀️

Hey UA experts, was wondering if we should or could use our Britax One4life carseat for our upcoming Hawaii trip. Pretty sure it's FAA-approved. It will be on a 757 plane to Hawaii, and then 777 coming back. We're on a lowly economy seat, so I'm not sure if we can even do rear-facing, or if it will fit. Kid is 2yr 11 month at 32lbs. We're hoping to use carseat because he would nap better, especially both fights are at his usual nap time. Update: Thank you for all the insights! We bought a Cosco Finale, and it was worth every penny for not having to lug around the usual carseat!

I really want to get the Scenera as it seems to be the tried and true travel carseat, but I can't get over the 40lbs limit. I learned airplane seat belt is for 40lbs+, so it should be fine when our kid outgrow the Scenera, but we'd still need carseat when we do car rental or taxi/Uber. I'm very leaning toward buying Cosco Finale, rather than buying Scenera now and then RideSafer harness later. I see the Scenera also doesn't have headrest like the Mightyfit, etc. Have your kid fell asleep while facing forward on it? Do you use travel pillow so they don't sleep face down toward their chin, or am I overthinking it? Lol

I’m 100% pro car seat - cosco lightweight one and a padded backpack to carry it through security 

We ended getting a 60$ cosco seat for travel. It’s light and don’t care if it disappears in travel.

We bought a cheap seat we use for air travel. That way if it’s damaged we aren’t out hundreds.

That’s precisely what we have!

We also went the "backpack" route. We got some big drawstring bag things with shoulder straps. It is a little awkward to lug them around the airport, but at least the car seats (Cosco Finale and Onlook) are very lightweight.

We recently used the same one others are recommending, the Cosco. You can literally carry it around the airport with one finger

Just an FYI that the latch system has a weight limit that many people are not aware of.  While is certainly does often  feel easier to use the latch system, I've heard from a few sources that the buckle is the generally the safest way to install a car seat.   And props to all of you who feel comfortable using one of these Cosco products.  I bought one when we were going on a trip and when. I installed it in the car to try it out, it was crap.  Flipped completely from side to side when I had it as tight as it could possibly go.    I returned it and went to target and got something else.  No way I was putting my kid in that.

We rented a car for one day on vacation recently and got a cosco seat. It was in okay shape, but we couldn’t get the latch system to tighten and had to use the seat belt. Our 3.5yo was almost too big for it and I don’t think they had anything bigger except a booster so idk what we would’ve done if she was too big for it. The cost will add up over several days too. Normally we bring the seat but had bus transportation to the hotel and didn’t want to bother for one day.

We just did a similar flight, also with an 18mo old not long ago. We got the same Cosoco seat everyone else mentioned, worked great. We bought him his own seat and used the car seat on the plane itself (must be used in the window seat). It was a little annoying to bring around the airport but not too bad; it's very light just a little awkward to carry. The seat was always with us so there was little worry we'd be without one, he had plenty of space to post up with his snacks and tablet, and he was easily contained being strapped in. Worked in the rental car too, needless to say. Not to mention I'm pretty sure he was more comfortable in a seat built for his age, he's slept 75% of the flight. Also, pro-tip, the buckle will end up right behind the kid's back in the seat if you just buckle it through normally. So what you do is twist the buckle on the short end down a whole bunch THEN click it together and tighten. This will shorten the fixed end enough that it comes out the side and won't make the seat uncomfortable.

I lugged a Diono radian in its Diono bag and it was damn near a workout. The cheap Cosco seat is an attractive option.

The Scenera Next is a great seat, but is mostly only good for rear facing. In the case that the 2 year old is forward facing already (and at least 30 lbs), the Cosco Finale is similarly light and good for travel.

We don’t bring car seats on the plane for our 5 year olds. I’ve actually never seen anyone do that. For travel car seats we use a cheap Cosco one. I believe it’s the Finale. We check it with our bags and put it in a car seat bag (you can get them on Amazon) so it doesn’t get gross. Edit: For out of the country travel when we don’t know what kind of vehicles we’ll be riding in, we use Ride Safer vests. However, for travel within the states I prefer them to be in an actual car seat.

I we just bought this Cosco one specifically for a flight and it is literally 25% of the weight of our Britax. Highly recommend!

Our kids wear vests now but when they were babies we’d bring travel carseats (cheap Cosco seat from Walmatf. They’re really light) Travel carseat and gate check. We don’t usually check luggage so gate checking saves us from waiting for the luggage to get unloaded.

We bring a Cosco finale for trips with actual driving around or a BubbleBum booster for incidental taxis and EU/UK travel. The latter is 40lbs/40” but fabulously small to pack!

I love ours! It’s only gotten big/annoying in the last few years as we’ve dropped a stroller and travel crib (guava lotus) from our repertoire. We started with the Cosco Scenera as a baby travel seat and upgraded to the Finale when it was outgrown!

We don’t drive much when we travel, so our 5yo (similar stats for height and weight) uses a Bubble Bum. I got it specifically because it’s UK and EU certified and I didn’t want something that would be disallowed in Europe.  We previously had a Cosco Finale for travel, but are probably done with it in harness-mode based on height. It was fine on the plane in harness mode though, and pretty lightweight to tote around. I never checked it - always flew in-cabin. 

I did a lot of research and we got a cosco seat because it’s so lightweight and every car seat education resource I found recommended using it on the plane for safety. So that’s what we did. Definitely a hassle bringing on board but we strapped ours to the stroller, and gate checked the stroller and made it all work. Everyone was very nice and understanding

We rent one with the car at our destination. It’s generally a Cosco car seat, which is the one we have anyway.. inexpensive, lightweight, very safe, super easy to install.

Get a cosco finale. My daughter just outgrew her cosco scenera and our plan is to get a finale next time we travel. They’re like $80– probably couldn’t even rent for cheaper than that, and last until 65 pounds!

I've seen rental seats missing important safety components (tether anchors, chest clips, etc) and I've also see rental car employees literally toss them into hot storage rooms. I wouldn't risk my little ones on those seats. I have been flying with Cosco seats for years and love them. You can either check them in a seat bag (for free), or buy a luggage strap. I like to use the luggage strap through the seatbelt paths and then flip the seat upside down, securing it top down, padding side in against my suitcase in the airport. It works great and isn't an extra item to lug through the airport. Additionally, there are personal car rental companies like Turo that you can look into. I have had better luck with Turo seats because I can communicate with the vehicle owner about the specific seat ahead of time. Another option, if you need additional baby gear, is BabyQuip. You can have them meet you at the car rental agency with the baby gear you ordered including car seats.

For what it's worth, my spouse and I have two cars and one (tall) four year old. We've now owned the following seats for him; Chicco travel system (one seat, two bases). Cosco Scenera Next x2 (dad's car, less traveled in) (caregiver's car) (we also used this seat for airplane travel, it's very light). We grew out of this one pretty early because my son is tall. Maxi Cosi Magellan Max (mom's car, more traveled in). I should note, this was one of those expensive 'buy it for life' type seats and I ended up hating it once my son was mobile enough to get into a seat on his own. It was too high and hard for him to get into, plus he wasn't able to learn to clip and unclip on his own. Diono Radian 3R (mom's car). I LOVE this seat. It's more expensive than the lowest priced seats on the market but well under that $400-600 range of 'buy it for life' seats. I have never installed it rear facing because we started using it at age 3. It's also very easy to wash and my child can buckle and unbuckle independently. Cosco Finale x2 (dad's car, caregivers car). I also LOVE this seat. It's light and it's great for travel, it's easy to install for someone without a lot of carseat experience like a caregiver. Ride Safer Vest (for rental cars, cabs, and ubers). Hiccapop Booster (I keep this for emergencies when there might be a second kid in the car or we're really in a bind, he's realistically a little too young for a booster but it's better than nothing in the event of an emergency). We'll use it when he's a little older for a booster seat in rental cars when we travel. All of this to say, I hate the promise of a 'buy it once' car seat because the seats are unwieldy, expensive, and there is no guarantee of how long your child will fit in it because a long torso'd kid will grow out faster than a shorter statured kid, or a heavy kid may outgrow the latch install because the seat itself is so heavy that the latch weight limit is low, etc. I have found that being flexible and buying seats to fit our child in their current phase has been a better call for us.

We have the same car seat and didn’t bring it due to risk of damage. We got a cheap Cosco car seat and it worked great! Also brought our Bugaboo Butterfly travel stroller and left the big Nuna Mixx at home

My toddler just grew out of the scenera and I looked into this and there’s really nothing great. Lightweight option is the Cosco finale but it’s only forward facing. For rear facing the best bet was Graco E2F which I bought and it’s really bulky and heavy. We’re taking the finale on our next trip even though I’m not planning to forward face him normally, this trip has very minimal time in a car so I’m ok with it.

If you are comfortable forward facing your kid, the Cosco Finale is light and cheap forward facing only car seat. It’s 10lbs with 5pt harness. Unpopular opinion: last time I travelled with 2 kids, I brought one car seat for the plane (I wanted the 18month old to sit in one) and rented a car seat from the car rental company. I have travelled with 2 car seat before and hated it. We did have a backup plan of going to the nearest Target to buy another car seat if whatever the car rental place had sucked.

Cosco Finale is SO SO cheap. Like $60 vs $400. But most importantly, what is the weight of your kid? Pico is only good up to 50lbs, while the Finale is 65lbs. My 4yo is more than 50lbs, but he is pretty big. So the Finale would last longer and is cheaper. And only 5lbs more than the Pico. Edit: actually, both are 8lbs in weight! Also, are you staying in the USA or are you going to Canada? The WayB is not approved in Canada, while the Cosco Finale is.

I know a few people have said this but I’ll tell you my set up because I am totally team car seat on the plane! Cosco scenera next seat is the way. (My older child uses a Cosco Finale when traveling) 1. bring a roll aboard suitcase and kinda put the car seat on top. Carry kiddo or let them walk (totally depends on kid and travel plans, or additional adults traveling) 2. Put Cosco car seat on stroller. SOME strollers will kinda let the seat sit nicely or even buckle on. Then I can alternate kiddo in the stroller or walking and I just bring a backpack (and check my bag if needed) I try to not bring a stroller if I can avoid it. I hate having to wait for elevators in the airport, it makes everything take so much longer. But obvs for some trips it can’t be avoided.

The cosco one is awesome for this!

I think you’d be better with a lightweight folding stroller and a separate convertible seat. There are also travel seats that are super light and portable like cosco finale or similar.

Yes, we used a Costco Scenera on several flights for the reasons others have mentioned- safety on the flight and protecting the car seat for use upon arrival. Now we use the cares harness and a ridesafe vest (if just using a car service to/from airport but otherwise not really going in cars) or we gate check the Cosco finale if we’re renting a car. The gate check is supposedly to minimize handling and therefore damage. It’s not ideal but my kid is no longer willing to sit in one on flights. 

I’ve traveled twice to visit family. Once my son was 9 mo and I put him in the ergo baby carrier and had a car seat at my location. Second trip my son was 2 and we got him his own seat without a car seat and daughter was ~ 6 months and she was in my lap/carrier with carseat at my location (my parents) I maybe I’m the minority but I bought the Cosco car seat for my parents to have and it was awful. Little padding and the harness straps didn’t work well at all. I’d spend a little bit more for something a little bit nicer.

Yup, got the light cheap Cosco. No issues getting it into a plane seat, and lightweight enough to easily carry one-handed if need be, while wrangling other things.

I would get something like a cosco finale or graco tranzitions. Or, with her stats, she could use an evenflo chase (must be converted to booster at 50lbs). Just scrolled the comments and the ride safer vest would be a good option too. There’s just a learning curve to it and you have to make sure you have the right size. I’ve heard the company is great with working with customers to assess sizing and fit.

Obligatory “this is a mom”, but my husband has explicitly agreed. Get a seat, cart (we used the Holm off of Amazon), and the Cosco (or whatever is light and in budget). This year we’ve done 10 flights with a 16-18m old and that cart is worth its weight in gold. Buckled her in anytime she didn’t need to be out (TSA, eating, wiggle time, etc) and pulled her around the airport like luggage. Almost every parent struggling with holding a car seat or wrangling an unrestrained toddler asked where we got the cart. Any older parents said “where was that when my kids were that age”. Truly an outstanding purchase for us. Downside is our car seat is too wide for the plane aisle, so I either preboarded the car seat, or my husband lifted the seat (with child) above the seats. I joke that I could be getting commission for now much I recommend that cart. You didn’t mention, but if traveling internationally make sure you have a locking clip. If you’re American, you’re used to auto locking seat belts which aren’t standard in many countries.

Also used the Cosco lightweight one. Highly recommend. I think something familiar like a car seat helps the flight not seem so crazy.

I’ve flown at least a dozen times with my kids and I either bring a car seat into the cabin or use a CARES harness. But I also use a travel car seat (Cosco brand) because it’s lighter. Toddlers and babies are not properly secured with the airplane seatbelts.

I’ve used the Cosco car seat in the US and Europe. It doesn’t fold but it’s light weight and affordable! https://www.walmart.com/ip/260704037?sid=90f439a5-15dc-4c2d-a5b4-b8dc55a764be Contact the manufacturer and they’ll send you a locking clip!

We have (obnoxiously large) bags we put the car seat and stroller into when we check or gate check. Mostly so we don't land and have a wet seat. We bought the cosco car seat for travel. It's like 7 pounds so easy enough for one of us to carry.

We have 2 nicer car seats for the kids main vehicle and the cheaper ($80 Walmart) cosco seats in the 2nd vehicle. These seats are great for flying/traveling, so our lightweight to-go option.

This is what we do. Got a super lightweight one (cosco brand - not the store, it was from walmart). Checked it with our luggage.

The best thing I did was buy a Cosco seat from Walmart for travel. They are safe, but more fiddly to use. They are super light and make airport travel a breeze.

**Buy a Cosco car seat for one or both kids. They weigh like 6 pounds and are no frills. Sooooo much easier to carry around. OP I promise it's worth it.** But yes absolutely carry the car seats on. I wouldn't want them getting thrown around the baggage area even if you gate check it. Do family boarding obviously. Head to the back of the plane so you have time to get everything strapped in before other customers make it to you.

I know you said buying more isn’t an option. However.. we have the Cosco scenera and finale for travel specifically. They are cheap ($40-$60), lightweight. I’ve flown with two seats before and fit them in a single car seat bag and it was crazy. I can’t imagine three to be honest! If there’s ANY flexibility to maybe purchase two in NJ, that might make it easier I do not recommend buying second hand. That’s risky. I wouldn’t rent. I wouldn’t borrow unless desperate and REALLY know the history of the car seat. You CAN do two car seats in a row on planes, window and middle. It can’t be window and aisle. I personally wouldn’t check but would gate check if that was my option. I see people saying it’s no different, but it still kind of is. You’d be handling how to seat gets TO the plane thru the airport rather than machine and workers who don’t give a shit. Who would you rather be in control of your child’s safety? Lastly, if any kiddo is actual booster weight/height, but you prefer harness for everyday, it could be an option to deal with a booster for vacay only (of course ONLY if they meet weight/height) to make to easier

Are you planning on using the seat on an airplane? If you are, I would skip the finale--the buckle of the airplane lap belt will be a lump behind kid's back. I would get the graco tranzitions (happens to have a hollow right where the buckle ends up), or maybe the contender (which is a convertible seat with a closed belt path), esp if you're thinking about having more kids and could use the rear facing capability sometime in the future). The contender will put your kid's legs in the most tempting seat-kicking position, though. If your kid will not sit in the car seat on the plane, I would consider the pico (because you can put it in the overhead bin and avoid checking it), but if your kid is tall I would probably not, since it's not going to last as long as other seats. My first kid peacefully sat in a car seat on the airplane, we used the tranzitions for him at this age.

Sometimes we rent cars w seats from traditional rental places or from tuoro. Although we got these lightweight travel seats from Walmart cal Cosco seats for 60 bucks that are lightweight. Then we put them in a travel bag for car seats cause it makes them easier to carry and not get all jacked up. And then we check them. I was really nervous the first time flying. My daughter was 18 mo and my son was almost 3. But they did well until my daughter struggled with her ears during descent. And sometimes they cry and it just it was it is. Bring tons of screens. Snacks. Books, stickers, coloring stuff, etc. And now they're fine at 3.5 and 5.

We use the Cosco car seat. Super light and inexpensive only $50. We put it in a car seat bag and check in. Never had any issues with car seat in general when traveling.

We also used the Cosco car seat, it's very light weight

Buy the cosco car seat. Super light and easy to carry.

Buy a lightweight Cosco car seat and take that with you instead of their regular seat. Use rolling carry on and buy a car seat strap to strap the seat to the carryon. I used to struggle with the kids’ regular seats on and off the plane until I did this. Your kid will be safer with a car seat, and the ultralight seats are an investment that protects your nice regular car seat from getting damaged by baggage handling.

We have been to five countries with our 2 year old, can confirm I have never been asked by any airline or uber or anything ever about my car seat. In general, people are just accommodating and happy to have kids in car seats or annoyed that you have to install and have way too much stuff.  I would just get the car seat you are most interested in for everyday life. If you are traveling a lot, I’d consider a car seat dedicated for travel like the Doona or Cosco. 

Just an update for everyone - we purchased the Cosco car seat that was recommended to us in this thread. It’s been a lifesaver! Not only was it a breeze to carry through the airport, it was easy to install on the plane and in our rental. We booked bulkhead seats so it was critical that the car seat fit (as the arm rests don’t fold up). Worked out beautifully! Thanks again to all who contributed.

We used to take Cosco car seats onto the plane when my kids were smaller. They're lightweight and FAA approved with a big sticker on the side saying so for any flight attendant who wants to see it. They fit perfectly down the aisle, and you can get a little dolly to attach them to to make them kind of like strollers through the airport. So incredibly convenient! Now that my kids are older, we use Mifold boosters, which easily fit into suitcases and carry-ons. They meet all of the safety standards, even internationally.

How do you like the Cosco seats? Out kids aren't quite into convertible yet. The Cosco went on super sale today and we bought two thinking that if we like them then we can buy another two later, and if we don't like them then they become the ones in "Dad's car". I'm a huge fan of Consumer Report and the Cosco did really well in their testing....

Counterpoint to what many here are saying: we flew to Japan a few weeks ago with an 18 month old and 4 year old. The toddler got a car seat, thinking he'd like being strapped in, and it was horrible the entire time. He wanted to be held constantly, the car seat (our spare, lightweight Cosco seat) barely fit so any small movement jostled the seat in front, and overall we have decided no more carseats on planes. For the future we'll just check them with our luggage.