Folding High Chairs Buyer's Guide 2026: The £59 Ickle Bubba Folds to 7cm, the £199 Chicco Comes Without a Tray

COMPARISON · FEEDING TIME

Every high chair folds, according to the box. What the box rarely tells you is what "folded" actually looks like. One of the three chairs in this guide collapses to 7cm deep and slides behind the fridge. Another folds to about 30cm and stands in a cupboard on its own feet. The third folds to roughly the size of a laundry basket and weighs more than 11kg, because it was never really designed to be put away: it is a newborn crib, a recliner, a high chair and a first chair in one frame.

That is why we wrote this guide by price tier rather than by star rating. A folding high chair at £59, £139 and £199 is solving three completely different problems. The cheap one is for the family with a small kitchen who wants the chair gone between meals. The middle one is for parents who want a chair from day one that reclines, rolls and still tucks away. The premium one is for parents who would rather buy one piece of kit for the first three years and keep it in the living room.

We pulled the specs from retailer and brand listings, cross-checked weights and folded dimensions where sources disagreed, and read through the feedback parents send us and post publicly about each chair. We then weighed what each chair costs against what it actually does at the table, and what you will need to buy on top.

One surprise up front: the £199 chair does not come with a feeding tray in the box. If you want it as a high chair, budget for the separate mealtime kit too.

Lil' Bubba's verdicts

• Best Budget: Ickle Bubba Flip Magic Fold Highchair · 8.0/10 - folds to 7cm deep, weighs 4.3kg, and costs £59
• Best Overall: Peg Perego Prima Pappa Follow Me · 8.5/10 - from birth, seven heights, wheels and a dishwasher-safe tray
• Best Newborn-to-Toddler All-in-One: Chicco Baby Hug 4-in-1 Armonia · 7.5/10 - crib, recliner, high chair and first chair, but the tray is extra

Quick comparison

Chair	Price	Tier	Chair weight	Folded size (approx.)	From	Max	Tray included	Rating
Ickle Bubba Flip Magic Fold	£59	Budget	4.3kg	60 x 68 x 7cm	Sitting unaided	15kg	Yes
Peg Perego Prima Pappa Follow Me	£139	Mid	approx. 7.6kg	55 x 95 x 30cm	Birth (recline)	15kg	Yes, double tray
Chicco Baby Hug 4-in-1 Armonia	£199	Premium	approx. 11.25kg	60 x 60 x 85cm	Birth (crib/recliner)	15kg / 36 months	No, sold separately

How we picked the 3

We started from the folding high chairs in our catalogue that are in stock with a UK retailer we work with, then split them by price into budget (the cheapest third of high chairs we list), mid-range and premium (the dearest third). Within each tier we chose the chair that best represents a distinct way of folding: flat-fold, compact stand-up fold, and all-in-one. We kept to one chair per brand and left out anything we could not verify specs for. Prices are what we saw at the time of writing and do move, especially when stock is running low.

What to look for in a folding high chair

Folded depth, not just "compact". The single number that decides whether a chair disappears is folded depth. Under 10cm and it slides between a fridge and a wall. Around 30cm and it needs a cupboard or a corner. Anything bigger than that is really a chair you move, not one you store.

Weight versus stability. A light chair is easy to fold one-handed while holding a baby, but a lighter frame can feel less planted once your toddler starts rocking. Heavier chairs with wide bases feel solid and rarely tip, but you will not be carrying them up the stairs to Grandma's.

Start age. Most high chairs start when your baby can sit up unaided, usually around six months. Chairs that recline from birth give you a supervised seat for the early months, which is handy for keeping a newborn at eye level while you eat. Remember the safe sleep basics: if your baby nods off in a reclined seat, move them to a flat, firm sleep space.

Height adjustment. A single fixed height works at a standard dining table. If you want to feed at a kitchen island, sit the chair at a lower coffee table, or bring baby up to the worktop while you cook, you want several height positions.

Tray and cleaning. Check whether the tray is included, whether it comes off one-handed, and whether it goes in the dishwasher. Seams and stitching trap food; one-piece shells and wipeable covers save you a lot of scrubbing.

Footrest. Babies eat better with their feet supported. An adjustable footrest is a quiet feature that makes a real difference as your child grows.

1. Ickle Bubba Flip Magic Fold Highchair / 10 · Best budget

The Flip Magic Fold does one job and does it brilliantly: it disappears. With a single flip motion it collapses from a full-size chair (95cm tall, 76cm deep, 58cm wide) to a flat panel just 7cm deep. At 4.3kg it is light enough to unfold with one hand while the other holds a hungry baby, and slim enough to live behind a door, under a bed or in the boot of the car for weekends away.

It is a simple chair. There is one seat height and no recline, so it suits babies from when they can sit up unaided until they reach 15kg. You get a 5-point harness, a footrest, a removable tray and a wipe-clean cover that comes off for a proper wash. For a lot of families, especially those in flats or with a small kitchen-diner, that is everything they need.

What parents love

• The 7cm fold. This is the headline. One parent told us: 'It lives between the fridge and the wall. Out for breakfast, away by ten past eight.'
• Light and quick. 4.3kg and a one-motion fold means it actually gets put away, rather than becoming permanent kitchen furniture.
• Easy to clean. The cover wipes down and comes off, and the tray lifts away so you are not scraping porridge out of hinges.
• Price. At £59 it is less than half the price of the mid-tier chair here, and still includes a tray and footrest.

What to know before you buy

• Unpadded seat. The seat is firm. A parent shared: 'Fine for meals, but I added a cushion for the first few weeks because she slumped a bit.'
• Fixed tray and height. The tray does not slide closer for smaller babies, and the seat height is fixed, so it works best at a standard dining table.
• Wide footprint when open. At 76cm deep with splayed legs, it takes more floor space open than you might expect from such a flat fold. Harness straps can also be fiddly to adjust.

Best for

• Small kitchens, flats and kitchen-diners where the chair needs to vanish between meals
• A second chair at grandparents' or for weekends away
• Parents on a budget who start weaning around six months
• Anyone who will only ever use it at a standard dining table

2. Peg Perego Prima Pappa Follow Me / 10 · Best overall

The Prima Pappa is one of the longest-running high chair designs around, and the Follow Me version is the one that starts at birth. The backrest reclines past 150 degrees, so in the early months it works as a supervised recliner (up to 9kg in the reclined position), keeping your newborn up at the table with you. Once your baby can sit up, it becomes a full high chair up to 15kg.

It is far more adjustable than the budget pick. There are seven seat heights (the top seat height is about 67cm), a footrest with three positions, integrated wheels that lock, and a double tray: the top layer is dishwasher safe and the whole tray stores on the back of the chair. The eco-leather seat wipes clean in seconds. It folds to roughly 30cm deep and stands up by itself, so it will sit in a cupboard or a corner rather than slide behind the fridge.

What parents love

• Useful from day one. We hear repeatedly from parents that the recline is what sold it: 'He was at the table with us from two weeks old, just lying back and watching.'
• Seven heights. Low for a coffee table, high for a kitchen island, and everything in between, so it fits however your home eats.
• Wheels. Parents tell us they roll it from kitchen to living room constantly. The wheels lock when baby is in it.
• Wipe-clean seat and dishwasher-safe tray. No fabric to soak up yoghurt, and the top tray goes straight in the dishwasher.

What to know before you buy

• Eco-leather wear. One parent put it best: 'Two kids in, the seat has a couple of cracks on the edges. Still works perfectly, just not pretty.' Seat covers are available if this matters to you.
• Tray can be stiff. Some parents find the tray takes practice to take off and click back on one-handed.
• Not a flat fold. At about 7.6kg and 30cm folded it is compact, but it is not the behind-the-fridge chair the Ickle Bubba is.

Best for

• Parents who want one chair from newborn days to toddlerhood
• Homes with a kitchen island, breakfast bar or mixed table heights
• Families who move between rooms and want a chair on wheels
• Anyone who hates scrubbing fabric seats

3. Chicco Baby Hug 4-in-1 Armonia / 10 · Best all-in-one

The Baby Hug is a different idea entirely. It is a crib for supervised newborn naps, a recliner for the early months (from birth to around six months), then a high chair and first chair from six months to 36 months, up to 15kg. A foot pedal raises and lowers the seat, the backrest has several recline positions, four castor wheels with brakes let you move it from room to room, and the Armonia version comes with wood-effect legs and a Montessori-inspired toy bar with wooden and soft toys.

Here is the catch that surprised us: the feeding tray is not in the box. To use it as a high chair you need the separate Baby Hug mealtime kit, which costs around £50 in the channels we see. That takes the real cost closer to £250. It also folds, but only to about 60 x 60 x 85cm, and at around 11.25kg it is the heaviest chair here by a distance. Think of it as a piece of living room furniture you keep out, not a chair you put away.

What parents love

• One frame for three years. One parent told us: 'It was her nap spot, then her bouncer, then her high chair. I didn't buy three separate things.'
• Foot-pedal height. Up and down with your foot while your hands are full, so baby can be at sofa height or table height in seconds.
• Looks like furniture. The Armonia finish with wood-effect legs and wooden toys looks much less like plastic baby kit in a living room.
• Moves around. Four lockable castor wheels make it easy to bring baby with you from room to room.

What to know before you buy

• Tray sold separately. Budget for the mealtime kit if you want to use it as a high chair. Without it, it is a recliner and first chair only.
• Thin crib mattress. A parent shared: 'The mattress is quite thin and soft for my liking.' Use crib mode for supervised naps only and keep overnight sleep in a flat cot or Moses basket. If your baby dozes off reclined, move them to a flat sleep space.
• Heavy and bulky. At around 11kg with wide feet, it is not one to fold away daily, and parents say assembly takes patience.

Best for

• Parents who want a single piece of kit for naps, play and meals in the first three years
• Open-plan living rooms where the chair can stay out
• Gift lists where a group of friends or family club together
• Parents who value a foot-pedal height change over a flat fold

What about the Chicco Zest or a Stokke?

If you want an even cheaper fold, the Chicco Zest is a simple one-piece chair at around £44 that converts into a toddler chair and stool. It does not fold as flat as the Ickle Bubba, though. And if you are not bothered about folding at all, a wooden grow-with-me chair is a different buying decision; our Stokke Tripp Trapp vs Joie multiply comparison and our high chairs roundup cover those.

How to choose

Pick the Ickle Bubba Flip Magic Fold if space is the problem. If the chair needs to vanish every day, nothing here gets close to 7cm folded and 4.3kg. It is the right call for most families starting weaning around six months at a standard table, and at £59 it leaves room in the budget for a good bib and a splash mat.

Pick the Peg Perego Prima Pappa Follow Me if you want the best all-round chair. It earns its £139 with use from birth, seven heights, wheels, a wipe-clean seat and a dishwasher-safe tray, and it still folds into a cupboard. This is our pick for most parents who can stretch to the mid tier.

Pick the Chicco Baby Hug 4-in-1 Armonia if you would rather have one piece of furniture that does naps, play and meals for three years, and you have the floor space to leave it out. Just add the mealtime kit to your list, because without it there is no tray.

Add it to your Nest

Still deciding? Add your shortlist to your free BubsNest registry so friends and family can see exactly which chair you want, and which tray or mealtime kit goes with it. You can compare prices across retailers and swap your choice at any time before someone buys it.