How Do Car Seats Fit in a 2025 Volkswagen Atlas?
Editor’s note: This Car Seat Check was published in April 2024 about the 2024 Volkswagen Atlas; little has changed for 2025. See what’s new for 2025 or check out a side-by-side comparison of the model years.
The verdict: Volkswagen’s people mover, the 2025 Atlas three-row SUV, has room for seven with a second-row bench seat or six with captain’s chairs. For this Car Seat Check, we tested a model with captain’s chairs, and it excelled thanks to ample room and easy-access anchors.
Does it fit three car seats? No; we tested a model with second-row captain’s chairs. However, in a previous Car Seat Check, an Atlas with a second-row bench seat was able to accommodate three car seats across with ease.
Take a look at how the Latch system and each car seat scored below in our Car Seat Check of the 2025 Volkswagen Atlas.
Related: Search Car Seat Checks
Latch: Grade A
Three sets of anchors sit in slits in the upholstery, and two clearly marked top tether anchors sit mid-way down the second-row seatbacks. All anchors are easy to find and use.
Infant Seat: Grade A
The car seat was easy to install on both the third-row bench seat and captain’s chairs, and there was plenty of legroom for the front passenger in front of the car seat.
Rear-Facing Convertible: Grade A
The seat was easy to install, and as with the infant seat, there was plenty of legroom for the front passenger.
Forward-Facing Convertible: Grade A
Connecting to the lower anchors and top tether anchor was easy, and after raising the head restraint, the car seat fit well.
Booster Seat: Grade A
The seat fit well after we raised the head restraint to situate the booster flush against the seatback. The buckles are on stable stalks, making them easier for kids to grasp and use.
Third-Row Entry: Grade A
The captain’s chair moved out of the way easily to create a good-sized passage to the third row, and the step-in height should be manageable for small kids.
Third-Row Forward-Facing Convertible: Grade A
There are no lower anchors in the third row, so we used the seat belt to install this car seat. The seat fit well after we removed the head restraint. The third row has two top tether anchors on the seatbacks; they’re clearly marked and easy to use. Legroom is tight, though, so we had to slide the captain’s chairs forward.
Third-Row Booster Seat: Grade A
The seat fit well after we removed the head restraint. The buckles are on small but firm bases, which should make them easy to find and grasp.
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.
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