Tools · Car Seat
Maryland Car Seat & Booster Checker (2026)
Enter your child's age, height, and weight to see the minimum seat stage Maryland law requires and the first-offense fine ($50). This is the legal minimum — not best safety practice.
Maryland car seat checker
4′9″ = 57 in. Enter only the boxes you have. Maryland uses child safety seat required while under 8 AND shorter than 4′9″; reaching age 8 or 4′9″ exits.
Heads up: Maryland added the rear-facing-under-2 requirement through SB 176, effective October 1, 2022. A first violation of that specific rear-facing rule is a written warning, not a fine. Summaries predating October 2022 do not include the rear-facing mandate.
- Child
- Not entered
- Minimum legal stage
- Enter age / height / weight
- Booster-exit rule
- child safety seat required while under 8 AND shorter than 4′9″; reaching age 8 or 4′9″ exits
- First-offense fine
- $50
Plain-language summary, not legal advice.
This shows the minimum legal requirement in Maryland, not best safety practice, which is usually stricter, and not legal or safety advice. Always follow your car seat's manufacturer instructions. For the full four-stage rules, front-seat rule, and citation, see the Maryland car seat law reference, cited to Md. Transp. §22-412.2 (last reviewed 2026-07-11).
How Maryland car seat law works
Maryland keeps its main rule simple: a child under 8 must ride in a child safety seat, which includes a booster, unless the child is already 4′9″ or taller. So the booster exit is age or height: reaching 8 or 4′9″ ends the requirement. As of October 1, 2022, Maryland also codified rear-facing for children under 2 through SB 176, so rear-facing is law here rather than only a recommendation, though a first rear-facing violation brings a written warning instead of a fine. Maryland does not set a separate forward-facing harness age, and it has no front-seat age ban. The standard fine is $50, and a judge may waive it if the driver did not own a seat but buys one before the court date.
This checker shows the Maryland minimum legal requirement — not best safety practice, which is usually stricter — and is not legal or safety advice. For the full four-stage rules, front-seat rule, and citation, see the Maryland car seat law reference.
Car seat checkers for other states
Same tool, each with its own booster-exit rule.