Best Cribs Under $450
Your baby’s crib is an important investment for safe sleep—but it shouldn’t break the bank
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There are a few crucial must-haves for your baby’s first year, and a crib is definitely one. Having a firm, flat surface for your baby to sleep on for every nap and nighttime is vital for their safety—and your peace of mind. (Besides a crib, you’ll also need an infant car seat, a baby bathtub, and a baby monitor, and we have recommendations for those, too.)
It can be tricky to find a crib that’s easy to assemble and safe, and doesn’t cost a small fortune. But you don’t have to spend a lot to get a great crib. Below you’ll find some of the most highly rated cribs from our recent lab tests, all of which come in at under $450. Most of the cribs we’ve tested in our labs are convertible, transforming into a toddler bed and then into a daybed, twin bed, or full-size bed (usually with the purchase of an additional conversion kit), which means you’ll likely get many years of use from your purchase.
For even more options, explore our crib ratings and our crib buying guide. You can always filter CR’s ratings by minimum or maximum price to find the products that best fit your budget.
Material: Beechwood
Converts to: Toddler bed, daybed
Includes storage: No
Made of solid beechwood, the Newton Baby Galileo Convertible Crib is a sleek, modern crib that converts to a toddler bed and daybed. Our testers appreciated how easily the crib mattress height can be adjusted between the three positions, as well as the inclusion of a toddler rail for conversion. When we purchased our model from Newton Baby for testing, a free standard crib mattress was included in the price, making this a very good deal.
Material: Pine and engineered wood
Converts to: Toddler bed, full-size bed; kits required for both
Includes storage: No
The budget-friendly Delta Children Emery 4 in 1 Convertible Crib is a good buy, with a wood and engineered wood construction that’s Greenguard Gold Certified. The well-made frame can be converted into a daybed and offers an easy-to-adjust mattress support (you’ll need to lower the mattress height as your baby grows). The front rail is relatively low, so it may work well for petite caregivers or those with tender cesarean section incisions. But the model we ordered arrived with all its parts in a jumble, making initial assembly pretty overwhelming.
Material: Pine wood
Converts to: Toddler bed (kit required), daybed, full-size bed (kit required)
Includes storage: No
Although the DaVinci Kalani 4-in-1 Convertible Crib is somewhat basic, it’s made of solid New Zealand pine and offers families a lot of flexibility, thanks to four mattress heights that caregivers should be able to change on their own without additional help. It can also convert into a toddler bed, daybed, and full-size bed, with the purchase of additional kits. The model we bought and tested had some minor imperfections in the construction, but it was easy to put together.
Material: Pine wood
Converts to: Toddler bed (kit required), daybed
Includes storage: No
It’s rare to find a crib with wheels these days, and the Jenny Lind 3-in-1 convertible crib from DaVinci includes optional, lockable wheels, which can be helpful if you’d like to move it closer to your bedside or around your home.
This traditional-style pine crib converts to a toddler bed with guardrail (kit sold separately) and a daybed (no kit required), so it can grow with your child. We found it very easy to assemble, but if you’re planning to use it for multiple siblings, note that its construction quality wasn’t as sturdy as other models’ we tested, which could limit its lifespan.
Material: Pine wood
Converts to: Toddler bed (kit required), daybed, full-size bed (kit required)
Includes storage: No
The DaVinci Colby 4-in-1 Convertible Crib is made of New Zealand pine and is Greenguard Gold Certified, and it comes in seven colorways, ensuring it will match any nursery decor you’ve dreamed up. You’ll be able to use this crib long past the nursery years because it converts to a toddler bed, a daybed, and even a full-size bed, though separate kits are required. Our testers found this model a little difficult to assemble—enlist a partner!—and there are sturdier options out there, though we liked the minimalist, Scandinavian-inspired design.
Material: Pine wood
Converts to: Toddler bed, daybed, full-size bed (kit required)
Includes storage: No
The easy-to-assemble Dream On Me Ashton 5 in 1 Convertible Crib is made from reclaimed New Zealand pinewood and is a solid choice for families looking for flexibility: It comes in eight different colorways, offers three mattress heights, and converts into a toddler bed, daybed, and full-size bed (with or without a footboard). The conversion kits for the toddler bed and full-size bed must be purchased separately, however, and the construction quality of the crib didn’t impress our testers. But this simple, classic crib is still relatively easy to put together.
Safe Sleep Guidelines for Infants
- Always place your baby down on their back in their own sleeping space, with no other people or pets.
- Always use a crib, bassinet, or portable play yard for sleep with a firm, flat mattress.
- Use only a fitted sheet in your baby’s sleeping space.
- Do not put loose blankets, pillows or nursing pillows, stuffed toys, bumpers, baby loungers, or sleep positioners in your baby’s sleeping space.
- Do not use weighted sleep sacks.
- If your baby falls asleep in a car seat, stroller, swing, or infant carrier, move them to a firm sleep surface on their back as soon as possible.
Sudden unexpected infant death (SUID), which includes sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), remains the leading cause of death in infancy. But following safe sleep practices for every nap and nighttime can help keep your infant safe and prevent the risk of SUID fatalities. For more safe sleep recommendations, contact your pediatrician.
