Stokke Steps highchair review: a premium highchair worth the price?

Price on writing: £149 | Buy now from Stokke

How we tested the Stokke Steps highchair

Holly tested the Stokke Steps highchair over eight weeks with her son from six to eight months old, during the early stages of weaning. Over this period, it was used daily starting at around once a day in the early weeks and increasing to around three meals a day by the time he reached eight months, as his eating habits developed.

Once testing was complete, Holly assessed the highchair across key areas including performance, ease of use, safety, comfort, adjustability and ease of cleaning, with particular strengths in safety, stability and adjustability. The Stokke Steps received a final score of 89/100.

The Stokke Steps highchair has a large tray and adjustable footrest

Stokke Steps highchair: What’s in the box?

The Stokke Steps highchair includes everything you need to get started, along with straightforward assembly.

• Highchair frame and seat

• Tray

• Baby set (supportive seat attachment for younger babies, delivered separately in Holly’s case)

• Five-point harness

• Assembly instructions

Holly found the setup simple, taking around 15 minutes in total. She says it was just a case of following the instructions, with no complicated steps once everything was unpacked.

The Stokke Steps highchair comes in Black/Warm Brown or White/Natural

How does it look?

The Stokke Steps highchair has that classic Scandi look - clean lines, a rounded seat, and a simple modern finish. The wooden legs and darker detailing give it a smart, premium feel, so it looks more like a piece of furniture than something you’d normally associate with baby gear in the kitchen.

Holly says, “It looks great and it’s obvious that it’s a good quality. The wooden legs and black elements look elegant. It blends in really well to our kitchen and I imagine it would any kitchen.” It also comes with a large food-grade tray, which is really useful for messy meals and play, and doesn’t look out of place on the chair either.

It comes in two colourways: White/Natural and Black/Warm Brown, both fairly neutral and easy to blend into most kitchens and dining spaces.

How easy is it to use day to day?

Day to day, Holly found the Stokke Steps highchair genuinely easy to live with, especially during the messy early weaning stage when you’re constantly lifting your baby in and out of the chair several times a day.

Because the Stokke Steps uses Stokke’s Baby Set attachment, it feels particularly well suited to younger babies who are just starting to wean, helping them sit more securely and comfortably at the dining table.

Holly says, “It’s easy to get our son in and out of the highchair, it feels like there’s more space for him overall in this highchair than others we’ve used when out and about. It’s also fairly light and easy to move around the room if necessary.”

She also found the adjustability particularly useful in everyday use. The backrest can be adjusted by pressing buttons on either side, while the footrest can be repositioned as your child grows. Holly says the harness clips were “really easy and quick to fasten,” which she appreciated, adding that this “is not a given with baby products but much appreciated!”

Most of the adjustments felt intuitive enough to work out almost immediately without constantly reaching for the instruction manual - something Holly felt was especially helpful during busy mealtimes. The tray can also be removed using buttons underneath, although she did mention these took slightly longer to get used to at first.

Another practical feature Holly liked was how easily the chair adapts over time. The fabric baby insert can simply be peeled off the backrest, while the highchair seat itself can be removed using side buttons to convert it into a chair for older children later.

Which safety features does the Stokke Steps highchair come with?

One of Holly’s favourite things about the Stokke Steps was just how secure and sturdy it felt during everyday use, particularly once her son started becoming wrigglier at mealtimes.

The highchair includes a five-point harness to help keep younger babies safely strapped in while eating or playing in the chair. Holly says, “There’s the harness meaning he’s always strapped in. I love this about it.”

It also has a wide base and sturdy wooden legs, which help the chair feel very stable and grounded during mealtimes, without any wobbling or tipping when babies inevitably start wriggling about halfway through lunch.

Because the footrest and seat are both easy to adjust, Holly found she could get the chair fitting her son properly as he grew - snug and supportive, while still giving him enough room to sit comfortably. She says this helped her feel confident that he was secure in the chair during mealtimes.

The Stokke Steps highchair is fully adjustable and suitable from six months to 10 years

Is it adjustable?

Yes, in fact, this is one of the main selling points of the Stokke Steps highchair. It has a two-position backrest, giving you two depth settings depending on your child’s size, and a five-position footrest with multiple height levels to support growing legs properly at the table.

On top of that, the Baby Set fabric insert adds extra cushioning in those early months, helping younger babies sit more comfortably while they’re still getting used to mealtimes.

Holly says, “It’s very easy to adjust. There are only two settings for the backrest when using it as a highchair but imagine this is enough […]. There are several levels you can adjust the footrest to which is great.”

What’s also handy is that once the Baby Set and tray are removed, the chair can carry on being used as a normal chair later, whether that’s pulled up to the dining table or eventually used as a desk chair as your child gets older.

What are the standout features of the Stokke Steps highchair?

Holly says, “I think its longevity is definitely a standout feature, plus how it looks, and how easy it is to use.”

And that really sums up the Stokke Steps highchair. One of its biggest strengths is how long you can use it for (it’s suitable from six months to 10+ years) so it feels more like a long-term piece of furniture than a short-term baby buy. It also stands out for its design. With its Scandi-inspired look and wooden frame, it blends into the kitchen nicely rather than dominating it or feeling overly “baby gear”-ish.

On a practical level, Holly found it easy to use day to day. Adjustments can be made without any tools, which makes life a lot simpler when you’re trying to do things one-handed mid-mealtime. Getting the seat and footrest set up or changed as your child grows is straightforward, and she also found it easy to get her son in and out without any hassle, which helps keep mealtimes running more smoothly.

There are a few key differences between the Stokke Tripp Trapp highchair and the Stokke Steps

What’s the difference between the Stokke Steps and Stokke Tripp Trapp highchair?

Both the Stokke Steps highchair and the Stokke Tripp Trapp Highchair share a lot of the same core ideas. They both come with a footrest so little ones aren’t left with dangling legs, a five-point harness for safety, and a baby set with cushioning to support younger babies from around six months up to toddler age. Both can also be adapted further with a newborn set and eventually converted into a normal chair that can be used for years - even as a desk chair.

Where they start to differ is in the design and feel. The Stokke Steps is more of a traditional highchair with four legs and a more classic structure, while the Tripp Trapp has that distinctive Z-shaped, more modern ergonomic design. The Steps also comes with a squarer tray, compared to the Tripp Trapp’s rounded one.

Material-wise, both use European beechwood, but the Tripp Trapp is made almost entirely from wood, whereas on the Steps it’s mainly the legs that feature it.

There’s also a difference in weight capacity, which helps explain the price gap: the Tripp Trapp supports up to 136kg, meaning it’s designed to take children (and even adults) for much longer, whereas the Steps has an 85kg limit. As a result, the Tripp Trapp tends to sit at a higher price point at around £220, compared with the Steps at roughly £150.

For more information, read our full review of the Stokke Tripp Trapp highchair.

Is it simple to clean?

Yes, the Stokke Steps is fairly simple to clean day to day, especially for quick wipe-downs after meals. Holly found it easy enough overall, saying, “It’s easy to clean on a daily basis besides the baby set as that’s made of fabric. Everything else can be easily wiped down. The tray we often take off to wash when we’re washing the dishes.”

The main thing that slows cleaning down is the fabric cover over the chair, which can trap bits of food underneath during messier meals, meaning you sometimes have to lift and clear crumbs rather than just wiping everything down.

She also noted that, because there’s only one Baby Set (which includes the fabric over the seat), it hasn’t yet gone in the washing machine as they didn’t want to be without it, although it probably could do with a proper wash. The harness straps are another slightly fiddly area, for now Holly’s been wiping them down rather than removing them, as she’s not completely sure how easy they are to take off and reattach.

The Stokke Steps highchair is easy to wipe down after use

Is the Stokke Steps highchair good value for money?

At around £149, Holly feels the Stokke Steps highchair offers solid value for a premium, long-term highchair.

After using it daily for eight weeks, she says, “I see us using the Stokke Steps until my son grows out of it, which given he’s in the 98th percentile, is likely to be before the age of 10.” That long lifespan is a big part of what makes it feel worth the investment, especially compared with buying multiple chairs as your child grows.

When you compare it to something like the Cybex Lemo 4-in-1 Highchair, which sits at around £300, the difference is quite striking. The Lemo does offer similar long-term usability and a stylish finish, but at roughly double the price.

Holly felt the Steps still delivered on the key things that matter day to day - durability, adjustability and ease of use - without stretching the budget quite so far. As a result, she felt it struck a good balance between quality and longevity, making it a worthwhile investment if you want something that will last through multiple stages rather than a short-term solution.

About the author

Tammy Jacks has over 20 years of experience in the publishing industry, holding key roles such as Managing Editor and Health & Beauty Editor for Woman & Home magazine in South Africa, and Assistant Editor for Living and Loving - a parenting title focused on children’s health and development.

She has contributed to a wide range of lifestyle publications (including magazines, journals and newspapers) and has edited books for fitness influencers and health professionals. As a researcher and writer, Tammy specialises in children’s development, wellbeing and safety. Over the years, she has reviewed countless toys and developmental aids, as well as essential baby products for everyday family life, from baby monitors and sleep aids to feeding equipment like highchairs and nursery must-haves, alongside baby travel gear such as baby carriers, child bike seats and lightweight strollers.