top 5 baby backpack carriers
Thekidpacker.com may receive a small commission for purchases made through links in this post.
What is the best baby carrier backpack for 2022? Take a look at our top 5!
Updated: February 1, 2022
Top 5 Baby Backpack Carriers
Ready for adventure with your little one? Looking to hit the trail or take a big trip but can’t decide which baby backpack carrier to buy? We are here to help!
Baby backpacks are simply incredible. They allow you to embark on endless adventures with your little one in tow in complete safety and comfort. However, with so many makes and models available today, it can be overwhelming determining which one meets your needs.
Don’t worry, we’ve done all the research and made it simple for you to figure out exactly which pack will fit your needs. With over 1,500 miles of baby backpack wearing under our belt, we know what will keep both you and baby happy.
What to consider when buying a baby backpack:
- What are you using it for? Hiking, travel, around town?
- Who plans to wear it? Mom, dad, friends, all the above?
- What features are a must? Sunshade? Extra storage?
Top Rated Baby Backpack Carriers
Quick Links:
Osprey Poco Plus
Osprey Poco
Thule Sapling
Deuter Kid Comfort Pro
Kelty PerfectFIT Signature
Top Rated Baby Backpack Carriers - Comparison Table
The table below utilizes a rigorous scoring system to evaluate the key components of a baby backpack child carrier: Comfort (Adult Comfort, Child Comfort, Fit Adjustability), Safety (Child Safety, Sun Protection, Nap Effectiveness) and Other (Gear Storage, Extra Features, Durability, Cost). Although all of packs below get high marks for overall score, there are key differences between each backpack.
Quick Summary
1. Osprey Poco Plus - Best Overall
Planning to use your pack for a bit of everything? Travel, hiking, quick trips to the store? This is the pack for you. It is a workhorse, built to last, and has all the versatility and features to ensure you and your baby are prepared for anything.
Pros:
- Expandable hip belt for a comfortable fit for all sizes
- Excellent sunshade
- Great storage options
Cons:
- No detachable backpack
- Pack weight on the higher end
2. Osprey Poco - Best for Short Hikes
Morning walk in the woods? Evening walk around the neighborhood? This is the pack for you. Not as bulky as other packs due to less storage, but still includes a built in sunshade. The Osprey Poco is less expensive than the Poco Plus with less storage, but still highly adjustable to fit different body types. If you want to compare our top 1 and 2 baby carrier backpacks take a look at our comparison article: Osprey Poco Plus vs Osprey Poco.
Pros:
- Top notch built in sunshade
- Slimmer profile with less bulk
- Easy torso adjustments to fit anyone
Cons:
- No zippered hipbelt pockets
- No ideal water bottle holders
3. Thule Sapling- New 2021 Model
The latest Thule Sapling (2021) model is a new and innovative approach to baby carrier backpacks. This child carrier is comfortable, includes an entirely removeable child cockpit and has great accessories sold separately. We also really love the way this baby carrier backpack looks!
Pros:
- Excellent sun protection
- Dual side access for child to self-load / walk out
- Large zippered hipbelt pockets
- Removeable/washable child cockpit
- Thule Sling Pack – Purchased separately
Cons:
- No water bottle holders
- Sunshade not incorporated but included
- Premium price
4. Deuter Kid Comfort Pro - Best for Travel
Quick trip to see friends and family? Two weeks of train hopping around Europe? This is the pack for you. The most plush backpack we tested, and is sure to keep your child comfortable for day after day of travel adventure. A detachable backpack is also included, which is a great feature when traveling.
Pros:
- Excellent for kids napping
- Top marks for child comfort
- Great zippered hipbelt pockets and extra day pack
Cons:
- Lack of zippers on rear storage
- Premium price
A New (2021) Baby Backpack for Travel Alternative:
Osprey Poco LT
The Osprey Poco LT was released in 2021 and is a great combination of classic Osprey features and fresh new travel friendly features. Instead of designing the most plush baby backpack carrier, the Osprey Poco LT is lightweight and compact which can be ideal for certain travel scenarios. Take a look at our full review here!
5. Kelty PerfectFIT Signature - Best Around Town
Running to the grocery store? Picking up a few things from the home improvement store? This is the pack for you. Not as bulky as other packs due to less storage, but still includes a built in sunshade. Not as expensive as other models, but still highly adjustable to fit different body types.
Pros:
- Limited extras that aren’t needed around town (hydration bladder, rain cover)
- Slimmer profile
- Plenty of storage to carry changing gear and snacks for a full day of shopping
Cons:
- Sunshade design not ideal
- No rain cover available for purchase
Honorable Mentions
ClevrPlus Urban Explorer - Best Economical Option
Looking for a full feature pack at nearly half the cost of the big brand names? This is the pack for you. ClevrPlus offers a number of baby backpack styles, and this is their most well rounded option that will have you ready for a day on the trail or a trip around town in no time.
What we love:
- Full featured backpack with sunshade included
- Plenty of storage including numerous zipper compartments
- Very reasonably priced
What’s not great:
- Build quality is noticeably lower quality than higher priced brand names
Kelty Journey PerfectFIT Elite - Highly Versatile Backpack
Looking for another option for a well rounded pack for travel, outdoors, and around town? The Kelty Journey PerfectFIT Elite could be the pack for you. This is Kelty’s top of the line child carrier backpack and offers excellent build quality, and all the features you would expect from a well known name like Kelty.
What we love:
- High quality pack construction
- Easy and quick fit adjustments
- Great gear storage options
- Sturdy, well placed grab handles for loading
What’s not great:
- Sunshade design is less than ideal
- No rain cover available
- Costs more than the Signature model with limited extra features
Chicco SmartSupport Backpack Carrier - Best Bare Bones Child Backpack
Looking for a bare bones child carrier back pack? Don’t need any gear storage? This could be the ideal pack for you. The Chicco SmartSupport Backpack Carrier is made to do one thing, carry a child on your back. This pack is great for carrying your child around the house, in stores, and around town.
What we love:
- Bare bones construction, slim profile
- Light weight frame
- Includes a sunshade
What’s not great:
- Very limited fit adjustability
- Lack of storage limits pack versatility
Top 5 Baby Carrier Backpack Details
The Osprey Poco Plus is The Kid Packer’s top rated baby backpack! The ratings below explain a lot but, to entirely appreciate this pack and understand why this is our overall top rated baby backpack lets hone in on the child comfort (10/10), adult comfort (9/10) and the nap effectiveness (10/10) ratings.
The combination of these categories equates to a parent sanity rating. A top child carrier backpack that your child can nap in is worth its weight in gold. This is the best all around pack on the market today.
Some of the best features of this pack are classic Osprey. The quality hipbelt fits securely around your waist, transferring the weight to your hips and legs, minimizing the weight on the shoulders and back. Quality load lifters (straps above the shoulders) are built into the Osprey Poco Plus, and are easily adjustable while the pack is on and loaded with child and gear.
One of the most important features on a child carrier backpack is the sun shade. Osprey has the best baby backpack sunshade on the market. It is fully integrated and built into the frame, accessible via a quick zipper. It pops up and securely clips into the front of the pack.
We can’t stress enough how important a sun shade is on a child carrier backpack. Not only does a sun shade protect your child from the sun but, it provides a comfortable place for them to rest their head while napping.
An separate hydration bladder sleeve is a great bonus that many child carrier backpacks do not have.
The rain cover is a great extra feature that we always recommend purchasing. Not only does the rain cover keep your child dry but, it serves as a wind block to keep them warm.
Lastly, Osprey offers a separate carrying case for purchase. The pack folds down nicely and can easily fit in an airplane overhead bin, behind a seat in a car, or in a closet. The carrying case is great to ensure the pack doesn’t get banged up.
With a total score of 91/100, the Osprey Poco Plus is The Kid Packer’s top rated child carrier backpack. It simply has everything we are looking for! Adult comfort, child comfort, child safety, extra features and gear storage. This pack offers the most versatility compared to any of the competitors. Whether you are out on the trail, around town, or using it for a trip around the world, this is the child carrier backpack for you. If you are looking for a pack to use frequently this is definitely the pack to go with. Still looking for more details? Have a look here at our comprehensive review covering every scoring metric for the Osprey Poco Plus.
When searching for the best baby backpack, Osprey is always at the top of the list. The Osprey Poco is a child carrier backpack very similar to the Osprey Poco Plus. It lacks a few extra features and offers less storage, but typically costs $30-$40 less than the Plus model.
Despite lacking a few extra features, the Osprey Poco is still one of our top rated backpacks and is perfect for short day hikes. It gets great ratings for child and adult comfort, sun protection, nap effectiveness, and value. If you are looking for a do it all child carrier backpack at a slightly lower cost with a few less bells and whistles, this is the backpack for you.
This a very comfortable backpack to wear, even when fully loaded to its maximum limit of 48.5 lbs. It has a tension mesh back panel that provides great airflow, keeping the wearer cool.
The shoulder straps and hip belt have good padding and rest very comfortably, properly distributing the weight to the hips and legs, limiting stress on the shoulders and back. The straps and buckles, like with all Osprey products, are high quality and easy to adjust.
With 20 liters of gear storage, the Osprey Poco has plenty of space for full day trips. You can store most of your gear for a day trip in the zippered storage compartment on bottom of the child carrier.
There are also mesh stuff pockets on the sides of the child cockpit and hip belts for storing small items.
One thing we do miss on the Poco vs. Poco Plus are the large mesh pockets directly behind the hip. On the Poco Plus, these spots are great for putting larger items and water bottles. Also on the Poco Plus, the hipbelt pockets are zippered, which give you a bit more piece of mind when storing things like care keys.
The Osprey Poco does a great job of adding extra features that make a trip that much more enjoyable. Something as simple as a place to tether a child’s favorite toy or pacifier go a long way in making the experience more enjoyable for everyone. On the Osprey Poco, these tether points are installed right next to the child’s shoulders.
As mentioned above, Osprey has a great rain cover perfect for protecting your child from inclement weather of any type. The rain cover can be purchased separately here.
Along with the Poco Plus, Osprey makes two of our top rated baby carrier backpacks. With a total score of 88/100, the Osprey Poco is a quality pack with great features that any child or backpack wearer will love. If you are looking for a highly versatile pack that will allow you and your child to go on day hikes and shopping trips around town, this pack is for you.
The Osprey Poco comes in about $30-$40 cheaper than the higher end Osprey model, the Poco Plus. Overall, the Osprey Poco is a great value! You really get a lot of bang for your buck with this pack. Aside from all the great features listed above, these packs have great resale value as well. Looking for more detail? Take a look at our comprehensive review here!
Although just recently re-leased in 2021 with a new and unique design, the Thule Sapling Child Carrier is one of The Kid Packer’s top 5 baby carrier backpacks on the market. Since the previous Thule Sapling and Thule Sapling Elite models were two of our top rated child carriers you may see this model described as the NEW Thule Sapling.
The Thule Sapling is a great overall baby carrier backpack that gets top marks for adult comfort, fit adjustability, child safety, and especially for extra features.
The Thule Sapling is highly adjustable to fit a wide variety of body types. We’ve found that friends and family members really enjoy wearing the child carrier backpack, as it gives them a unique experience with the child. Having a pack that can be adjusted to fit just about anyone is a great selling point.
The combination of the fully adjustable torso/shoulder straps, extendable hipbelt padding, and load lifters provide excellent comfort and options for wearers of any size. The adjustment mechanism for the torso is Velcro which differs from previous models.
Thule really excels in designing with the child in mind for both comfort and safety. The new Thule Sapling has a completely new child seat design with the ErgoRide child seat. This unique seat design angles the child’s lower half back as opposed to a more upright and forward position. The child cockpit includes a plush removeable/washable chip pad and padded sides with ample ventilation to keep them cool. The only real downside to the child cockpit is that while there is padding on the back panel, the upper part of the frame is hard plastic and can come into contact with your passenger if the ride is particularly bumpy or they throw their head back.
A great feature of the new Thule Sapling is the sun shade design. The sunshade is included and has great side panels for both sun protection and a place for your child to lean while napping.
Gear storage included on the Thule Sapling is primarily comprised of the lower storage compartment and zippered hip belt pockets which provide 22 liters of storage capacity. The lower storage has a unique design with three zippers. The front zipper is for stowing the sun shade while the two side zippers provide the wearer access to the storage compartment. This is a unique feature but, we do feel that water bottle pockets are still necessary and would have liked for Thule to include them.
To really amp up the gear storage capacity and functionality, Thule provides the option to purchase the Thule Sling Pack separately. We really love this feature as it adds 10 liters of organized storage and is in itself a great sling pack accessory that can be worn on its own.
Thule Sapling Sling Pack - Purchased Separately
Another great feature is the rain cover, sold separately. This is a must for us as it fully covers the child in inclement weather including the cold and wind. It securely clips onto the pack keeping your child dry for hours. On hikes at elevation with rapid weather changes, the rain cover is a must have.
Rain Cover and Thule Sapling Sling Pack - Purchased Separately
With a total score of 83/100, the Thule Sapling is one of the absolute best child carrier backpacks on the market. This baby carrier backpack includes functional and unique features with a really great updated look! Interested in learning more about the new Thule Spaling? Take a look at our comprehensive Thule Sapling Review here!
The Deuter Kid Comfort Pro is Deuter’s top of the line baby carrier backpack. It comes with all the features you could ask for, is built to last, and was designed with child comfort as the top priority, which makes it our top pick for travel. When traveling, your child might be in the backpack for 6-8 hours a day for a week or two at a time, and a backpack your child will be comfortable in should be a top priority.
The Deuter Kid Comfort Pro is the most plush, luxurious child carrier backpack we have reviewed.
Let’s start with the child cockpit area. The Kid Comfort Pro is designed with an extended head rest panel behind the child’s head. Although we don’t love that this makes the pack larger, we do appreciate what it does for child comfort. It provides extra space for your child to rest their head when it comes nap time.
We also appreciate the material chosen for the child cockpit. Children can get quite warm while in a baby carrier backpack however, Deuter decided to use perforated mesh in the child seating area which makes for a cooler ride. Between the plush padding, extended headrest and well ventilated material the Deuter Kid Comfort Pro will certainly be a comfortable ride for your child!
A sunshade is critical when traveling, and the Deuter Kid Comfort Pro comes with one, so that is great! A sunshade really is a must for any child carrier backpack.
The sunshade is fully integrated and built into the pack, accessed by a rear zipper. You simply unzip, pull the shade up and forward, and attach it next to the adult shoulders with two clips. We appreciate an integrated sunshade as you will likely use it on every trip.
We do love that the Deuter Kid Comfort Pro includes a sunshade but, which more robust side panels were included to provide better sun protection. For the child carrier backpack with the best sunshade, have a look at the Osprey Poco Plus.
We have mixed opinions on the storage features of the Deuter Kid Comfort Pro.
We do appreciate a removable day pack which on this pack, holds 10-12 L of gear and is nestled into the lower storage compartment. This allows you to share the load with someone else, or leave it home entirely if you plan to be in a crowd and prefer a slimmer profile.
However, on this Deuter model, the removable day pack sits inside the primary storage compartment, and both cant be used at the same time. This is a bit of a bummer, and really limits the amount of gear you can take with you.
This baby backpack does offer some other nice storage options, however. On both sides of the hipbelt are zippered compartments, great for small toys, chapstick, keys, etc. On both sides of the child are mesh stuff pockets. These are great for child toys or even better, a phone with a white noise app when it is nap time.
Lastly, there is a large stuff area with a drawstring near the top of the pack in the rear. This is a great area to place extra layers and rain jackets.
One nitpick with the Deuter storage design: most are “stuff” areas with drawstrings. We prefer zippered pockets. Just too much risk of something falling out with stuff pockets. We vote zippers.
This pack receives an 83/100 from The Kid Packer based on all that was discussed above. This baby backpack is super comfortable, uber plush, and is perfect for travel. When your child will spend all day in a backpack for several days in a row, it needs to be comfortable. However, the Kid Comfort Pro does lack a few features we expect in a top of the line product. Don’t get us wrong, this is a solid pack that has much to offer and perfect for travel. However, we prefer the versatility of the Osprey Poco Plus if you are shopping in this price range. Interested in learning more about the Deuter Kid Comfort Pro? Take a look at our comprehensive Deuter Kid Comfort Pro Review here!
The Kelty Journey PerfectFIT Signature Child Carrier comes with the Kelty name, known for making high quality products. Specifically, Kelty is known for making great backpacks, and this pack is no exception.
It is one of three models offered by Kelty and receives an overall rating of 79/100. The Kelty Journey PerfectFIT Signature model generally sells for $30-$40 less than the Elite model, with fewer storage options such as mesh pockets, hydration bladder storage, and has fewer zippered storage pockets. Despite having less storage options, the Signature model still has the ability to carry 26 L worth of toys, snacks, and gear. Overall, we find this backpack to be perfect for errands around town and has enough storage for hitting the trails as well.
As with most of Kelty’s backpacks, this child carrier backpack is very comfortable to wear even when fully loaded with a child and gear. Soft, padded mesh on the hipbelt, shoulder straps, and back lumbar make this a comfortable pack to wear for extended hikes.
The Kelty PerfectFIT suspension system utilized on the Signature and Elite models is unique to Kelty. While wearing the pack, there are two straps that hang down by your waist. As you pull down on both straps simultaneously, the torso section is adjusted. The shoulder straps begin to move down and allows for on the fly adjustments. This feature works best when the backpack is being transferred from a taller person to a shorter person. This is a particularly useful feature to help ensure that the pack can be finely tuned to fit nearly any body type.
The PerfectFIT Signature model comes with two rear zippered storage compartments. One large top compartment and one smaller lower zippered compartment. The upper zipper compartment has interior mesh pockets to help keep things organized a great place for quick access items like sunscreen, wipes, toys, etc. We really l love practical nature of this design!
The lowered zippered pocket is covered by a flap and can also hold plenty of gear like extra layers and a packed lunch.
The hipbelt on this model includes two zippered hipbelt pockets and one of them expands to hold a water bottle! The expandable water bottle holder is a neat feature but, does graze your thigh while in use. The zippered hipbelt pockets are great for small quick access items like Chapstick, keys or a phone.
Kelty receives Kid Packer’s top ratings when it comes to child safety for the Journey Perfectfit Signature and their other two models: Kelty Journey PerfectFIT Elite and the Kelty Journey PerfectFIT. Their lightweight yet sturdy frame, five point harness and child waist belt are really excellent safety features.
With a total score of 79/100, the Kelty Journey PerfectFIT Signature is a solid child carrier backpack. Whether you are around town or hitting the trail, the Signature has everything you need. With 26L of storage and top ratings in child safety, you can rest easy knowing you and your little passenger will have a great experience! This backpack has a slimmer profile than other Kelty, Osprey, and Thule models, making it ideal for trips around town. Interested in learning more about the Kelty Journey PerfectFIT Signature? Take a look at our comprehensive Kelty Journey PerfectFIT Signature Review here!
About The Kid Packer
Here at The Kid Packer, we want to help you live your best life. A great baby backpack child carrier can help you do just that. After having used a child carrier backpack for over 1,500 miles of adventuring and exploring, we have a passion for them and know what makes a great pack that both you and your child will love. We hope our comprehensive research allows you to confidently find the right backpack for your needs!