Choosing a baby bouncer: types and safe use

Three kinds of bouncer

The classic bouncer is a frame with a fabric seat that bounces as your baby moves. You set it going with a hand or a foot. Examples are the BabyBjörn Bliss, the BabyBjörn Balance Soft and the Cybex Lemo Bouncer. They work without a motor or batteries.

An electric bouncer or baby swing moves by itself, often with a choice of speeds and sometimes with sounds, like the Ingenuity InMotion Automatic Rocker and the Babymoov Swoon Evolution. There are also 2-in-1 models such as the Maxi-Cosi Loa, which the maker lists for use from birth to about 2 years: first as a bouncer, then as a low chair.

From when, and until when

Many bouncers are suitable from birth according to the maker, with a minimum weight. For the BabyBjörn Bliss and Balance Soft that is 3.5 kilos. Check which weight and age the maker gives for each model, and whether there is a reclined position or an insert for the first weeks.

Use it as a bouncer until your baby tries to sit up or weighs about 9 kilos. VeiligheidNL mentions 6 to 9 months or about 9 kilos. Some models then convert into a chair for a child who sits on their own; the maker gives its own maximum weight for that.

What to look for when buying

VeiligheidNL advises a bouncer that meets the European safety standard EN 12790. Look for a base wider than the seat, so the bouncer stands firmly, and for non-slip material under the frame, so it doesn’t slide. On a good bouncer an adjustable backrest takes two actions at once to change, so it can’t fold unexpectedly.

Then check the practical points: is the cover removable and washable, does the seat fold flat to take along, and does an electric model need an adapter or batteries. On the category page you compare the offers per version.

Using it safely

Always put a bouncer on the floor, not on a table, sofa or worktop. VeiligheidNL only makes an exception for the table during feeding, when you stay with your baby the whole time. Always use the harness, don’t leave your baby alone in the bouncer and never adjust it with your baby in it.

VeiligheidNL advises no longer than 1 hour at a time in a bouncer, and no more than 2 hours a day in a bouncer or car seat together. BabyBjörn gives the same one-hour maximum on its own site.

Sleeping in a bouncer

A bouncer is not a place to sleep. BabyBjörn writes that you should never let your baby sleep in a bouncer and that a cot of their own is the safest place. More about places to sleep is in our guide to crib, bedside crib or cot. Questions about your baby’s sleep are for your health visitor (the consultatiebureau or Kind en Gezin).