Lalo High Chair Review: 5 Things to Know About the New Chair II

Lalo just made some big updates to its high chair, and it is finally one I think is worth considering.

You may already know Lalo from the original The Chair, one of the more popular wooden high chairs over the past few years. But I’m going to be honest: I didn’t recommend the original in my Best High Chairs guide. It wasn’t particularly easy to clean, the footrest lacked adjustment, the footprint was large, and there was more space between baby and the tray than I liked.

Now Lalo has completely redesigned it with The Chair II.

I’ve tested more than a dozen high chairs with my kids, so I have a pretty good idea of which features actually matter after using one meal after meal. The new Lalo high chair improves almost everything I disliked about the original, including cleaning, ergonomics, adjustability, and versatility.

But there are still a few things I’d change.

Before you buy, here are five things to know from my hands-on Lalo high chair review, including what I love, what could be better, and who I think The Chair II is actually best for.

This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase through my links, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. As always, all opinions are my own and based on my own hands-on testing.

Quick Review: The Lalo Chair II at a Glance

If you’re short on time (hello, parenting), here’s the short version:

• Advertised as a 7-in-1: I think that number is a little generous. Three of the seven “configurations” are simply the three backrest positions in high-chair mode. Functionally, you get a high chair, booster seat, child chair, play chair, and play stool. The newborn rocker is sold separately and is not counted as one of the seven.
• Very easy to clean: Silicone straps, smooth surfaces, and a one-hand removable tray make cleanup easy. I do wish it had a removable top tray.
• Much better ergonomics: The tool-free adjustable footrest and three backrest positions make it much easier to get your baby into a good eating position.
• Five-point harness: The silicone straps are easy to wipe clean, although I sometimes have an extra step getting the upper and side straps together before buckling.
• Modern design: Natural beechwood legs and six muted seat colors make it feel more like furniture than baby gear.
• Mid-range premium price: The Chair II is $249.99, or $375 bundled with the newborn Rocker.
• Not the easiest to convert modes: Converting between baby seat, high chair, booster, toddler chair, stool, etc., has several steps and parts, and some require an Allen wrench.
• Not foldable: The footprint is smaller than the original Lalo high chair, but this still isn’t the most compact option available.

Lalo Chair II vs. Mockingbird vs. Stokke Tripp Trapp

Lalo Chair II Price and Specifications

The Lalo Chair II sits right in the middle of the premium wooden high chair market. It’s priced almost identically to the Mockingbird High Chair and well under the Stokke Tripp Trapp (once you add Stokke’s tray and cushion). Here’s the quick breakdown so you can see if it fits your space and your budget.

5 Things to Know Before Buying the Lalo Chair II

1. The “7-in-1” Claim Is a Little Misleading, But It Is Very Versatile

One of Lalo’s biggest selling points for The Chair II is that it is now a 7-in-1 convertible high chair.

Technically, that is how Lalo counts it. Personally, I think the marketing is doing a little work here.

Modes one, two, and three are all the high chair with the backrest placed in one of three different positions. Then you have a booster seat, play stool, play chair, and child chair.

So while Lalo calls it a 7-in-1, I think of it more as five genuinely different configurations included in the box.

There is also a sixth use that I actually think is more valuable than changing the backrest: newborn mode.

Lalo’s Rocker is $149.99 on its own and attaches directly to The Chair II frame so your newborn can be up at table height with the rest of the family. Lalo doesn’t include the Rocker in its seven configurations because it is sold separately.

As a mom of three, almost four, I have found this type of newborn option more valuable with every kid. Being able to have a newborn safely near the table while everyone else eats is amazing, and the Rocker can also be removed from the high-chair frame and used independently around your house.

Once your baby can sit unassisted and is ready to start solids, you move into high-chair mode. Lalo says this can be around 4 months, although my girls have generally been closer to 6 months before they were ready (be sure to check with your pediatrician). 

This is also where the three backrest positions are useful, even if I wouldn’t personally call them three separate high chairs. Moving the backrest forward helps position a smaller baby closer to the tray, while the highly adjustable footrest makes it much easier to support your baby’s legs as they grow.

Later, the seat converts into a booster seat that straps onto a regular dining chair and supports up to 50 lbs. You can also use it as a full-height child chair, a low play chair, or remove the backrest to make a play stool.

I do want to set realistic expectations about the idea of one chair replacing everything until your child is grown. My 4-year-old still benefits from leg support when sitting at the table, and we’ve needed both a stool and a toddler chair since she was much younger.

So no, it didn’t eliminate every other piece of toddler furniture in our house.

But I really like having the additional configurations, especially since the conversion pieces for the booster seat, child chair, play chair, and stool are included rather than sold separately.

2. Ease of Cleaning

This is probably my favorite improvement.

The original Lalo high chair wasn’t one of my favorites to clean. With The Chair II, Lalo made several really good changes.

The seat and tray are smooth, and there is no fabric that has to be washed after every mess. More importantly, the five-point harness uses FDA-grade silicone straps, similar to the straps on the Mockingbird High Chair.

I love silicone straps on a high chair.

Traditional nylon straps tend to absorb food, yogurt, sauces, and everything else your baby throws at them. Even after washing them, they can start looking dirty surprisingly quickly. These wipe clean in seconds.

The tray also comes off with one hand, which is one of those features that sounds small until you are holding a messy baby in one arm and trying to get a tray covered in spaghetti to the sink with the other.

My biggest complaint here is that there isn’t a removable top tray. I really like being able to remove the top after one meal and still have a clean tray underneath for the next one.

That said, The Chair II is easy enough to wipe down that the lack of a second tray hasn’t bothered too much.

The cushion is optional (which I like). Your child can comfortably use the seat without one, so it is one less thing to clean. If you do want more padding, Lalo sells a wipeable vegan-leather cushion for $39.99 rather than a fabric cushion that constantly needs to go through the wash.

3. The Adjustable Footrest and Seat Are a Huge Improvement

If you’ve read my other high-chair reviews, you know I care a lot about the footrest.

When a baby’s feet are dangling, it is harder for them to maintain a stable seated position. They tend to slump or get fidgety, and having proper support can make a big difference when they are sitting for a meal.

The Chair II has one of the easiest adjustable footrests I’ve used.

It adjusts without tools and gives you a lot of positions, which makes it much easier to support your child’s feet as they grow instead of having a footrest that only works well for one short stage.

The redesigned seat is also contoured and has three backrest positions.

I found changing the backrest a little tricky at first, but it got easier once I had done it a few times (and you likely won’t be changing this very often). The ability to bring the backrest forward is especially helpful for younger or smaller babies because it reduces some of the extra space between them and the tray.

I still wish the tray came a little closer for very small babies. That is one area where The Chair II isn’t perfect for me, although using this style of bib helps catch some of what would otherwise land between baby and the tray.

Overall, though, the ergonomics are dramatically better than the original Lalo Chair.

4. Footprint, Height, Ease of Conversion, & Style

The Chair II measures 20 inches wide at the back, 24 inches deep, and 33.6 inches tall.

That gives it a smaller footprint than the original Lalo high chair, although it is still wider than the Mockingbird High Chair, which measures about 16.5 inches wide.

At 14 lbs, it is light enough that I can easily slide it away from the table or move it into another room.

Like most wooden high chairs, though, it doesn’t fold.

If you need something you can collapse and put into a closet after every meal, this probably isn’t the right high chair for you.

It is also designed specifically for standard dining-table height, roughly 28 to 30 inches. It does not adjust high enough for a counter-height or bar-height table.

Style is one of Lalo’s biggest strengths.

The natural wooden legs keep the overall look neutral, while the seat comes in six muted colors: Coconut, Sage, Biscotti, Rose, Slate, and Licorice.

I don’t usually make looks the deciding factor with baby gear, but a high chair can sit in the middle of your dining room multiple times a day for years. The Chair II looks much more like an actual piece of furniture than a bulky plastic baby product, and I can see that being a big selling point for many families.

One thing I found when testing was that the buckle under the seat to undo the baby seat can be very challenging the first few times.

5. The Chair II Fixes Most of My Problems With the Original Lalo High Chair

This distinction is important because if you’ve read an older Lalo high chair review, there is a very good chance it is reviewing the original Chair rather than this redesigned Chair II (they should’ve renamed it!).

And these are not the same high chair.

The original Lalo Chair was sold as a 3-in-1 high chair, booster, and play chair. It had a larger footprint, far less adjustment in the footrest and seat, and I didn’t find it nearly as easy to clean.

The Chair II adds the three-position ergonomic backrest, much more adjustable footrest, silicone harness, easier-to-clean design, additional child-chair and stool configurations, and compatibility with the separate newborn Rocker.

It is heavier at 14 lbs compared with about 10 lbs for the original, but I’ll gladly take the extra weight for these improvements.

The 30-lb high-chair weight limit remains the same.

I didn’t recommend the original Lalo high chair, but I would recommend The Chair II.

Who the Lalo Chair II Is Best For

I think The Chair II is a particularly good fit for families who want a high chair that is attractive, very easy to clean, highly adjustable, and useful beyond the first year or two.

The newborn Rocker also makes it interesting if you’re shopping before your baby is ready for solids and like the idea of having your newborn at table height with the rest of the family.

And compared with some other premium wooden high chairs on the market, I think Lalo has landed in a nice middle ground between design, functionality, and price.

Who the Lalo Chair II Is NOT For

The Lalo Chair II probably isn’t the right choice if:

• You eat at a counter-height or bar-height table. The Chair II is designed for normal dining-table height. If height adjustment is important, I’d look at something like the Graco DuoDiner or Inglesina MyTime.
• You need a folding high chair. The Chair II doesn’t fold, so families who need to tuck their high chair completely away between meals may prefer something like the Graco Slim Snacker.
• You want the absolute smallest footprint. It is smaller than the original Lalo Chair, but there are still more compact options available.

Frequently Asked Questions About the Lalo Chair II