I don’t have a car. Do I need a car seat?

The only thing I would be worried about would be the expiration date of the car seat for the car rental. That's it.

It sounds like you have a good plan for getting a hire car with car seat if you need it. Will you be able to do this at short notice e.g. if your home birth doesn't go as planned and you need to transfer to hospital (for the trip home)? What if a friend offers you a lift somewhere and they don't have a car seat? Or you need to get a taxi for some reason? E.g. if your baby gets sick and you need to get to the doctor's the same day (but don't need/can't get an ambulance)? If you've thought through all those possible scenarios and still don't think you will need one then you probably won't. I'm a ftm to be as well though so maybe someone else will mention something I've not thought of

i would say you dont need one at all , i find it comfortable to travel with a bus , easy to get in and out with a pram , also first car seats dont last long my girl outgrew it at 10 months we had 3 in 1 system and now at 1 i am looking for new buggy as she outgrow it too . if you will need one you will buy it when the times comes . ps with rental cars make shure that car seat is for appropriate weight as most of them are for bigger babies.. also dont invest much to a pram

You shouldn't use a car seat unless you know the history of it, it needs to never have been in an accident and stored correctly (not too hot or cold, not too damp or dry). Ultimately a car seat is designed to save your baby's life and prevent serious injury in the event of an accident. So it depends whether you feel confident entrusting your baby's life to the quality and safety of a seat belonging to a stranger/hire company. Personally I definitely wouldn't. Car seats also have recommended use periods (sort of like expiry dates) and you'd have to know it was suitable for your child's weight and height. Rear facing for as long as possible is also safest, and it's unlikely hire seats will be extended rear facing seats. What about travelling with family or friends for a day out? Whilst I agree less is more and I don't buy into a lot of the baby gimmicks, a car seat is a safety device designed to save your child's life and I really think you should purchase one so that you can trust it fully.

I recommend one, the kind you can carry on the go. I think it’s very helpful for taking baby to the store, doctor appointments, if you ride the bus or train. Uber may have seats, but knowing you have a clean safe one is really important for an infant.

Even just having a clean surface they can be in while out and about is essential. Baby wearing is wonderful but having a carrier really helps too

Get the Doona , it’s a stroller and car seat , it’s nice because it’s a small Stroller for easy to move around in stores , only down side is it is expensive and only fits then for like a year , but it could be a good way to have a car seat on hand but still usable

Personally I have two kids and if you don’t have a car I wouldn’t get one. They’re literally for the car. I would just get a nicer stroller that’s good for babies and transitioning to bigger babies. If you have a home birth you won’t need it. But if you do have an emergency during your home birth and end up going to the hospital you definitely will need whoever’s picking you up to have a car seat. You won’t even be able to leave without the baby seat. But in an emergency you can always buy a nice cheap one if you really needed it.

I've never used a car seat outside of the car. I will warn you though that we've used a few rental cars and the car seats they provide are crappy, bare minimum and my kid always hates them, often not the best fit with the car, they don't install them even though they say they come with the car and so then you're having to figure that out in a car where clearly no one looked at the car and decided what car seat would be good, they basically just have a pile of car seats in a closet and hand you one. That's been our experience at least