How Do Car Seats Fit in a 2022 Mazda CX-30?

The verdict: Mazda’s tiny SUV, the CX-30, has room for two car seats, but the front passenger won’t be comfortable when a rear-facing car seat is installed behind them. There’s not enough legroom to comfortably accommodate our infant car seat when a passenger is sitting in front of it. Also, the backseat has seat belts for three passengers, but the middle position is very narrow.

Does it fit three car seats? No.

Take a look at how the Latch system and each car seat scored below in our Car Seat Check of the 2022 Mazda CX-30.

Related: Search Car Seat Checks

A Grade

• Latch: The two sets of lower anchors sit under flip-off plastic covers; they’re easy to find and use.
• Forward-facing convertible: The convertible was easy to install and, after raising the head restraint, the seat fit well. There are three top tether anchors high up on the seatback; they’re clearly marked for easy access and connection.

B Grade

• Booster: After raising the head restraint, the booster fit well. The SUV’s outboard buckles sit flush with the seat-bottom cushion, so they may be hard for kids to use independently. The middle seat has a floppy buckle and is too narrow to accommodate a booster seat.

C Grade

• Rear-facing convertible: Installing this car seat was easy, but front-passenger legroom was a problem. We moved the front passenger seat all the way up, so the 5-foot-6-inch front passenger’s knees were grazing the glove box; this is a safety issue because of the proximity to the airbag.

D Grade

• Infant: Latch connection was easy, but legroom was again a problem. The front passenger’s knees were grazing the glove box and we had to adjust the seatback angle to a more upright position, so it was very uncomfortable.

Grading Scale

A: Plenty of room for the car seat and the child; doesn’t impact driver or front-passenger legroom. Easy to find and connect to Latch and tether anchors. No fit issues involving head restraint or seat contouring. Easy access to the third row.

B: One room, fit or connection issue. Some problems accessing the third row when available.

C: Marginal room plus one fit or connection issue. Difficult to access the third row when available.

D: Insufficient room, plus multiple fit or connection issues.

F: Does not fit or is unsafe.

About Cars.com’s Car Seat Checks

Editors Jennifer Geiger and Jennifer Newman are certified child safety seat installation technicians.

For the Car Seat Check, we use a Chicco KeyFit 30 infant-safety seat, a Graco Contender 65 convertible seat and Graco TurboBooster seat. The front seats are adjusted for a 6-foot driver and a shorter passenger. The three child seats are installed in the second row. The booster seat sits behind the driver’s seat, and the infant and convertible seats are installed behind the front passenger seat.

We also install the forward-facing convertible in the second row’s middle seat with the booster and infant seat in the outboard seats to see if three car seats will fit; a child sitting in the booster seat must be able to reach the seat belt buckle. If there’s a third row, we install the booster seat and a forward-facing convertible. Learn more about how we conduct our Car Seat Checks.

Parents should also remember that they can use the Latch system or a seat belt to install a car seat, and that Latch anchors have a weight limit of 65 pounds, including the weight of the child and the weight of the seat itself.

Cars.com’s Editorial department is your source for automotive news and reviews. In line with Cars.com’s long-standing ethics policy, editors and reviewers don’t accept gifts or free trips from automakers. The Editorial department is independent of Cars.com’s advertising, sales and sponsored content departments.