IKEA ANTILOP High Chair Review: The £15 Seat That Ends the Search Early

Tray and belt are in the £15, and every part has its own price

The white/white set ships as three packages, shell, tray and legs, with the safety belt included. IKEA rates the chair for children who sit up unaided, up to 3 years or a maximum of 15 kg. The set page lists no test standard, and neither do the part pages; the only assurance beyond the rating is a line that the product has been tested and approved as free from substances that may harm a child's skin or health.

The parts add up to the same money. A shell is £8.50, the tray £3 and a pack of four legs £3.50, which is £15. The set without a tray, 495.975.12, is shell and legs at £12, so the tray is a £3 decision. A cracked tray costs £3, not a new chair.

IKEA UK takes back most unopened products within 365 days for a full refund. Tested ones, assembled included, also go back within 365 days with a receipt, though the refund goes to a refund card. A high chair that has been fed at will show wear, so test the fit at the table before the first meal.

One seat height, and no footrest on the shelf

The chair stands 90 cm tall, 56 cm wide and 60 cm deep, with a seat 25 cm wide, 22 cm deep and 54 cm off the floor. The measurements table gives one seat height, and none of the feature lines mentions recline or adjustment. IKEA gives no table height to match, so measure your own table against 54 cm before buying.

There is no footrest among the features, the measurements or the parts: none of the 12 items on IKEA UK's highchair page is one. A small child's feet will hang for the length of the meal. IKEA sells a £10 inflatable supporting cushion that it says fits all its highchairs, and a £5 tray mat, which add comfort but not a height setting.

Three years or 15 kg, then what

The rating is also the exit plan. A child who reaches 15 kg or turns three has outgrown the seat by IKEA's own label, and nothing on the pages offers a conversion or a higher setting. The ANTILOP covers the two messiest years; the next chair is a separate decision made later, at leisure.

Paying more does not change that on paper. BLÅMES at £79 (rubberwood and fibreboard) and SANDKATT at £40 (a machine-washable cover) carry the same three-year, 15 kg line, so the extra £25 to £64 buys materials and a cover rather than a longer rating. Neither page names a test standard either.

The three packages weigh 1.25, 0.68 and 1.75 kg, 3.68 kg in all (our sum). IKEA describes the chair as easy to take apart and bring along, which suits a seat shared between households for its short life.

A note for secondhand buyers

IKEA UK's recalls page, as read, carries no ANTILOP notice, and the belt is sold as part of every current set. That covers one page on one day, not every chair ever sold, and the gap matters most on the secondhand market, where ANTILOPs pass between families for years.

Work the buckle a few times on a used chair before the first meal, and check that the belt is the one that came with that shell. IKEA's own line is that the child sits securely when the belt is used correctly. A new set needs only the ordinary habit of glancing at the latch, since the belt is the one part that moves under load.