The 3-in-a-row conundrum – which cars fit 3 car seats in a row?
Published on 5 March, 2026
Three is the magic number for car safety seats
Overview
Three is the one that will catch you out. It’s easy, usually, to get two child car safety seats into the back of a car. Almost all cars on sale have two ISOFIX anchor points (the ones where you just slide and click to securely anchor a child’s safety seat) in the back, so if it’s two of you and two kids, you’ll all fit, and fit safely and even if you’re not using ISOFIX, all child car seats are also designed to be safely held in place using the seatbelts.
When the third child comes along, though — then you can have a problem. Most cars lack the necessary space in the middle rear seat for an extra child car seat, and hardly any have a third central ISOFIX point. You can, of course, fit a child safety seat to the front passenger seat (as long as (a) it’s rear facing; (b) you can turn off the airbag; or (c) they’re over the age of 12), but then where’s your spouse or partner going to sit? Don’t suggest squeezing them into the central rear seat — that’s not going to go down at all well.
Thankfully, there are a few cars which will take three child safety seats across the rear bench seat, and so here are our picks of the new and used cars which are perfect for this task.
Peugeot 5008 2017-2024
Peugeot’s big family SUV is actually closer to being a mega-practical MPV wearing an SUV disguise. It’s seriously roomy inside, and it came with seven seats as standard, with two that fold away — or which can be removed entirely to make for an absolutely massive boot. We’re more interested in the middle row of seats, though, which are three individual seats, all of which have an ISOFIX anchor and all of which are individually adjustable. This gives you a massive number of options for shuffling seats around to create the kind of space you need to get three child car seats in side by side.
Peugeot 5008s for sale on CarsIreland
2. Volkswagen Multivan 2021-today
In spite of its van-like styling, the big VW Multivan is closely related to the VW Golf hatchback under the skin. Not that you’d know it from sitting in the back, though, where there’s space — and hugely versatile space, with seats that slide, recline, fold and even turn through 180degrees. But more importantly, you can set the Multivan up to have three seats across one of its back rows, and all three seats can easily be home to a child’s safety seat (and all of them will have ISOFIX anchors too if that helps). Really, the Multivan is a classic, big MPV and it’s all the better for it from a practicality point of view.
Volkswagen Multivans for sale on Carsireland
3. Volkswagen ID. Buzz 2022-today
If the Multivan isn’t quite stylish enough for you, or if you fancy going down the all-electric route, then the ID. Buzz is about as practical and useful as family cars get (as well as being hugely stylish). Early versions came with five seats only, while more recently in the Irish market the Buzz has switched to being a seven-seat model only, but what we’re interested in here is the back seats (or the middle row of the seven-seater). This is easily wide enough to take three child safety seats in a row, with the outer two seats having ISOFIX mounts. Plus, the big sliding side doors make loading and unloading everyone and their seats super-easy.
Volkswagen ID.Buzzes for sale on CarsIreland
4. Ford S-Max 2015-2023
Ford’s sporty MPV, with Mondeo bones under the skin, was always one of the most enjoyable big family cars when it came to the driving experience, but much more importantly for families there’s enough width in the middle row of seats (there are smaller fold-away seats in the boot) for three child car seats, all of which get an ISOFIX anchor point. It’s worth noting that space is on the tight side when all three seat positions are filled, so you need to allow for that, but it’s certainly possible to get three seats in side by side, and of course you have the extra seats in the boot to use as well.
Ford S-Maxes for sale on CarsIreland
5. Volvo XC90. 2015-today
The XC90’s back seat is pretty roomy, but ultimately getting three child car seats side by side in the middle row is going to be a tight squeeze. However, the XC90 has its own cheat code, which is that there’s the option of a built-in pop-up booster cushion for the middle rear seat. Assuming one of your kids is old enough to use a booster and the car’s seatbelt, it can be a perfect solution to getting everyone in, but as we say it’s a slight cheat in this case as it’s not strictly speaking three seats side by side.
Volvo XC90s for sale on CarsIreland
6. Citroen C4 Picasso/SpaceTourer. 2013-2022
Sadly out of production now, but the roomy Citroen C4 Picasso (latterly rebadged as SpaceTourer) was one of the more stylish, and certainly more comfortable family MPVs. One of its best traits — in either five-seat or seven-seat formats — was that it had three proper, individual seats in the back, each one with an ISOFIX point, so it’s an absolute doddle to get three child safety seats side by side in the back of the car. The bonus? The C4 Picasso was also very smooth and quiet to drive, so they’ll doze off in no time…
Citroen C4 Picassos for sale on CarsIreland
7. Land Rover Discovery 2017-today
The current version of the Land Rover Discovery has become a bit overshadowed by the more stylish Defender, but it’s still a huge and hugely impressive family machine, if you’ve got the budget to buy and run one. It’s a seven-seater as standard, so you have lots of seating options, but the middle row is broad enough to take three side-by-side child seats, although the sculpting of the seats can mean a bit of juggling is needed to get all three in (and only the outer two will have ISOFIX points). A seriously refined and capable car but beware reliability gremlins with the 2.0-litre engines.
Landrover Discoveries for sale on CarsIreland
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