Parenting

The 8 Best Car Seat Cleaners For Beating Crumbs & Grime

by Zlata Faerman
A toddler boy in a cleaned car seat in a car
Onfokus/Getty

When you buy a new (or used) car, you know the moment you drive it off the lot it depreciates in value. This same philosophy can be applied to a child’s car seat. As soon as your little one is old enough to ride, eat, and drink in the car seat, you can rest assured it will get filthy — and quickly. You can also say goodbye to your exceptionally clean seats and floor mats while you’re at it. Fortunately, the best car seat cleaners can tackle the grime, the crumbs, the stickiness, and then some — so order (and your sanity) is restored, no matter how briefly.

To fight back the filth, consider the tools you’ll need for the job. Maybe that involves a powerful handheld vacuum to suction up all the stray snacks (oh-so-many Goldfish…) that have made their way into every nook and cranny of the car seat. Maybe it means an effective upholstery cleaner to revive the sticky, smelly fabric that’s seen one too many squirts of food pouch. Or, if you’re trying to get all those hard-to-reach places, you need the ingenious gel that picks up all the dirt, dust, and debris.

With all that in mind, it’s time to shop car seat cleaners. There’s one for every need and budget — and they’re all on Amazon.

Best Car Seat Cleaners

THISWORX Vacuum

This practical mini vacuum is lightweight and easy to use. Weighing just 2.4 ounds, there’s a dust bin capacity that’s ready for pretzel crumbs, lollipop sticks, and dried out gummy bears. It even comes with a washable HEPA filter! One reviewer said, “The vacuum itself is powerful, easily cleaned out the sand from the car seats, as well as the other dirt form the floor mat.”

$34.99
SHINE ARMOR Car Interior Cleaner

This multi-surface cleaner works magic on your child’s car seats, *and* your car seats. It lifts away dirt and grime using its proprietary Nanotechnology (hello, science!) with a non-greasy formula. Spray in sections and wipe away with a microfiber cloth — that’s it! It works on all kinds of materials, including pleather, upholstery fabric, carpet, and  plastic.

$16.94
Bissel Multipurpose Portable Vacuum

This gem removes deep-down dirt, spots and stains quickly with a powerful suction that gets ride of them for good. Using warm water and a targeted cleaning formula, you get to clean the exact spots you need. And as a mom, you know that while you’d love to put the whole car through a car wash, there’s only a few areas that truly need a deep clean. One reviewer said, “I’m very impressed by the Little Green’s performance … [it] removed stains from my car’s seats and carpets that I couldn’t get out no matter when I tried!”

$123.59
Armor All OxiMagic

This bad boy deep cleans with powerful oxygen action, removing the toughest stains from your little one’s car seat. One reviewer said, “My car’s seat had a quagmire of stains on them. I sprayed each one, rubbed it in with a brush, blotted with a microfiber towel, and let them air dry. All of the stains completely disappeared. Amazing”

$11.08
Chemical Guys Lightning Fast Carpet and Upholstery Stain Extractor

This fast-acting, ultra-concentrated two-in-one cleaner removes stains and grime while deodorizing. It can be sprayed on and wiped off, or brushed in and vacuumed out. So depending on your schedule, cleaning can be an easy breeze! It works on fabric, carpet, and upholstery.

$8.99
Woolite Carpet and Upholstery Cleaner

If car stench has got you down, look no further than this triple-action formula by Woolite. It lifts stains, eliminates even the strongest odors (hi, kids and pets!), and helps keep your car looking cleaner for longer. One reviewer said, “I have 3 kids and it’s hard to keep things clean. I decided to give this a try and i am happy with the results.” Each bottle has its own attached scrub brush — and you get four bottles in an order.

$14.99
Vacmaster Professional

For extreme cases or – ahem – extreme cleaners, there’s the Vacmaster Professional. The wet-dry vac combo packs a powerful punch with an amazing 45-foot cleaning reach. One reviewer said, “I don’t normally review things on here, but for this I will make an exception. This thing far exceeded my expectations. This vac has unbelievable suction and cleans car seats right up.”

$189
TICARVE Cleaning Gel

Behold the magical cleaning power of this detailing gel — it does absolutely wonders for hard-to-reach spots that get absolutely filthy. Think about the personal cup holders by the front seat, back seats and in the kids’ car seats. This gel helps to remove any of that dust and dirt. It’s an absolute must for any car. Not surprisingly, it’s amassed more than 37,000 Amazon ratings to date.

$6.99

SHOP THE STORY

THISWORX Vacuum

This practical mini vacuum is lightweight and easy to use. Weighing just 2.4 ounds, there’s a dust bin capacity that’s ready for pretzel crumbs, lollipop sticks, and dried out gummy bears. It even comes with a washable HEPA filter! One reviewer said, “The vacuum itself is powerful, easily cleaned out the sand from the car seats, as well as the other dirt form the floor mat.”

$34.99
SHINE ARMOR Car Interior Cleaner

This multi-surface cleaner works magic on your child’s car seats, *and* your car seats. It lifts away dirt and grime using its proprietary Nanotechnology (hello, science!) with a non-greasy formula. Spray in sections and wipe away with a microfiber cloth — that’s it! It works on all kinds of materials, including pleather, upholstery fabric, carpet, and  plastic.

$16.94
Bissel Multipurpose Portable Vacuum

This gem removes deep-down dirt, spots and stains quickly with a powerful suction that gets ride of them for good. Using warm water and a targeted cleaning formula, you get to clean the exact spots you need. And as a mom, you know that while you’d love to put the whole car through a car wash, there’s only a few areas that truly need a deep clean. One reviewer said, “I’m very impressed by the Little Green’s performance … [it] removed stains from my car’s seats and carpets that I couldn’t get out no matter when I tried!”

$123.59
Armor All OxiMagic

This bad boy deep cleans with powerful oxygen action, removing the toughest stains from your little one’s car seat. One reviewer said, “My car’s seat had a quagmire of stains on them. I sprayed each one, rubbed it in with a brush, blotted with a microfiber towel, and let them air dry. All of the stains completely disappeared. Amazing”

$11.08
Chemical Guys Lightning Fast Carpet and Upholstery Stain Extractor

This fast-acting, ultra-concentrated two-in-one cleaner removes stains and grime while deodorizing. It can be sprayed on and wiped off, or brushed in and vacuumed out. So depending on your schedule, cleaning can be an easy breeze! It works on fabric, carpet, and upholstery.

$8.99
Woolite Carpet and Upholstery Cleaner

If car stench has got you down, look no further than this triple-action formula by Woolite. It lifts stains, eliminates even the strongest odors (hi, kids and pets!), and helps keep your car looking cleaner for longer. One reviewer said, “I have 3 kids and it’s hard to keep things clean. I decided to give this a try and i am happy with the results.” Each bottle has its own attached scrub brush — and you get four bottles in an order.

$14.99
Vacmaster Professional

For extreme cases or – ahem – extreme cleaners, there’s the Vacmaster Professional. The wet-dry vac combo packs a powerful punch with an amazing 45-foot cleaning reach. One reviewer said, “I don’t normally review things on here, but for this I will make an exception. This thing far exceeded my expectations. This vac has unbelievable suction and cleans car seats right up.”

$189
TICARVE Cleaning Gel

Behold the magical cleaning power of this detailing gel — it does absolutely wonders for hard-to-reach spots that get absolutely filthy. Think about the personal cup holders by the front seat, back seats and in the kids’ car seats. This gel helps to remove any of that dust and dirt. It’s an absolute must for any car. Not surprisingly, it’s amassed more than 37,000 Amazon ratings to date.

$6.99