Tools · Car Seat
Michigan Car Seat & Booster Checker (2026)
Enter your child's age, height, and weight to see the minimum seat stage Michigan law requires and the first-offense fine ($10). This is the legal minimum — not best safety practice.
Michigan car seat checker
4′9″ = 57 in. Enter only the boxes you have — Michigan uses exit at age 8 or 4′9″, whichever comes first.
Heads up: Michigan’s rules CHANGED effective April 2, 2025 (2024 PA 21 & 22): rear-facing to 2, forward-harness to 5, and rear seat for under-13. IIHS still shows the OLD rule — the figures here reflect the new law.
- Child
- Not entered
- Minimum legal stage
- Enter age / height / weight
- Booster-exit rule
- exit at age 8 or 4′9″, whichever comes first
- First-offense fine
- $10
Plain-language summary, not legal advice.
This shows the minimum legal requirement in Michigan — 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 Michigan car seat law reference, cited to MCL §257.710d (+ §257.710e) (last reviewed 2026-07-09).
How Michigan car seat law works
Michigan is the volatile one: its child-passenger law changed on April 2, 2025 (2024 PA 21 & 22), and a lot of reference sites — including IIHS — still show the old version. The current law legislates rear-facing until age 2, a forward-facing harness until age 5, a booster until 4′9″ or age 8, and rear-seat placement for children under 13. If a summary tells you "rear-facing to 1" or "under-4 restraint," it is quoting the pre-2025 rule. The booster exit is age 8 or 4′9″, whichever comes first. Michigan’s statutory base fine is a striking $10 (though court costs push the real total higher), and a court may waive it if you obtain a proper seat and complete car-seat-technician education.
This checker shows the Michigan 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 Michigan car seat law reference.
Car seat checkers for other states
Same tool, each with its own booster-exit rule.