How to Keep a Booster Seat From Tipping Over: 7 Tips for Parents

If your toddler sits in a booster seat on a regular kitchen chair, you've probably seen it happen: a little foot finds the edge of the table, they push, and the whole chair rocks backwards. Sometimes it settles back down. Sometimes it doesn't.

That's what happened in our house. Our son Reuben was in his booster seat, kicked the table, and went over backwards, chair and all. It meant a trip to urgent care and a long night of watching him. He was okay, but it changed how we set up our kitchen.

Here's what we've learned about keeping a booster seat, and the chair under it, from tipping over.

Why booster seats tip

A booster seat raises your child higher on the chair, which raises the center of gravity. Toddlers also love to push off the table with their feet. Put those together and a normal kitchen chair, designed for an adult sitting still, can tip backwards on its back legs with surprisingly little force.

7 ways to keep a booster seat from tipping

1. Strap the booster tightly to the chair

Most booster seats come with straps for the seat and the chair back. Use both, and pull them snug every time. A loose booster lets your child shift their weight more, which makes rocking worse.

2. Always buckle your child in

The harness keeps your toddler from standing up or sliding around in the seat. It won't stop the chair from tipping, but it does reduce the wiggling that starts it.

3. Watch where their feet land

Look at where your child's feet reach. If they can touch the table edge or the table leg, they can push off it. Move the chair so their feet hang free, or slide them close enough that they can't get leverage.

4. Keep the chair close to the table

A chair pushed in close has less room to rock. A gap between the chair and the table gives your child room to push, and the chair room to start tipping.

5. Put the chair on a flat, non-slip surface

Uneven floors and slippery tile make a chair easier to tip. If your kitchen floor is uneven, choose the most level spot for your child's seat.

6. Stabilize the back legs of the chair

This is the step most parents miss. Booster seats secure your child to the chair, but nothing secures the chair itself. A chair stabilizer attached to the back legs widens the chair's base so it can't rock back on two legs.

That's why we built the Jackaroo Leg. It attaches to the back legs of most kitchen chairs in minutes, and nobody in our house has tipped a chair since.

7. Protect every chair at the table

Toddlers don't stay in one seat. Once they're out of the booster, they climb on whatever chair is closest. Protecting every chair at the table means you're covered wherever they end up. (A 4-pack of Jackaroo Legs saves 15%.)

When to stop using a booster seat

Follow the age and weight limits from your booster seat's maker. Many kids move to sitting directly on a chair somewhere in the preschool years. Even then, kids rock, lean back, and climb, so a stable chair still matters.

The short version

• Strap the booster tight and buckle your child in.
• Keep their feet away from the table edge.
• Push the chair in close, on a level floor.
• Stabilize the chair's back legs so it can't tip backwards.

Mealtime should be messy, not scary. See how the Jackaroo Leg works.

Greg Dunn is the inventor of the Jackaroo Leg and a dad of twins.