9 Best Gliders and Rockers for Your Baby Nursery

Dimensions: 39.75" x 29" x 35.5" | Swivels: 270 degrees | Reclines: Electronically | Chair weight: 123 lbs | Weight capacity: 300 lbs | Available colors: Cream, gray, gray stripe, ivory boucle (shown) | Certifications: Greenguard Gold Certified, CertiPUR-US Certified foam, FSC Certified wood

The Kiwi Swivel Glider is our top choice because it reclines nearly flat and swivels far to the left and right, yet costs less than some others that do the same. It also arrives nearly assembled and ready to go — the back of the chair and two side wings have to be slid on, no tools required. It is heavy though, so keep that in mind. Place it near a wall outlet and plug it in so that all the features work.

When you press one button, the footrest pops out, and when you press another, the back goes down. New parents said it's easy to operate the buttons without waking a baby. Button operation is also ideal for C-section moms who don't have the core strength to manually push a footrest down.

Amazon offers the chair in performance fabric that's both water-repellent and stain-resistant. Crate and Barrel offers an additional boucle version and a striped fabric, each $999. The Kiwi comes with a pillow and you can buy an ottoman separately.

✔️ TESTING NOTES: "I spent many hours during the baby stage in the Kiwi and loved it," a tester told us. "It was always comfortable and has lasted for almost four years now as a cozy place to read." Olivia Lipski, senior reviews writer and analyst and a new mom, said, "Both my husband and I use this chair all the time and love being able to put our legs up and relax. It's currently in our living room, as we couldn't fit everything in the nursery, and it looks great there."

The Kiwi comes with a built-in USB charging station. If you use an app on your phone to track your nursing sessions or your baby's sleep schedule, this lets you do so without worrying about losing power. However, some online reviewers said that having the port on the inside of the chair is awkward. Lipski also reports that the ports on her chair can get overheated.

Dimensions: 30” x 29.5” x 40” | Swivels: 360 degrees | Reclines: Manually | Chair weight: 80.5 lbs | Weight capacity: 250 lbs | Available colors: Ecru, shell, gray (shown) | Certifications: FSC-Certified wood

For a budget price, the Chatham does all the things: glides back and forth, swivels in a full circle and reclines back. The recline requires you to manually pull up on a bar on the side, which is a little tricky while holding a baby. The plus is that, with no electronic operation, you don't have to worry about placing this chair near an outlet.

The fabric is polyester, yet it's not a performance fabric, so it's more susceptible to staining than others on this list. It comes in several shades of off-white plus a gray.

✔️ TESTING NOTES: The Chatman is mid-sized and should fit most parents. The glider arrives needing simple assembly (basically, attaching the back to the seat). No tools are required; you just need scissors to snip off some straps used for shipping. Overall, most parents reported that this is a good affordable choice.

Dimensions: 42.5" x 33" x 38" | Swivels: 200 degrees | Reclines: Electronically | Chair weight: 124 lbs | Weight capacity: 330 lbs | Available colors: Gray, denim, white boucle, cream boucle, ivory (shown) | Certifications: FSC Certified wood

We loved the previous version of this glider, giving it a past Good Housekeeping Parenting Award. The update, the Glider Plus, can glide and swivel and has power recline, gently easing you and your baby into a lying-back position with the footrest up. (The chair doesn't glide if you're fully reclined, only when you are sitting.) A tester mom told us, “I have been living in this while breastfeeding and recovering from my C-section."

A USB port is built in, perfect for charging your tablet or cell phone during long feeding sessions. The fabric is a polyester and nylon blend, which you can clean with a damp cloth; there are cleaning directions on the brand's site. This is a heavy chair, something to keep in mind when you have to move it into the nursery.

✔️ TESTING NOTES: Great for tall parents who want a roomy seat that is fully supportive, this is also a wide chair, making it great for nursing. "It's wide enough for both me and my toddler to sit in while I breastfeed my newborn," a mom told us. The seat is about 21 inches from the ground, so if you have short legs, it might not be best fit for you.

The Glider Plus has an adjustable headrest, a feature we did not see on many others. It doesn't move up and down, but the headrest can be tilted forward via power control if you need the support while you're gazing down at your infant. The lumbar support is also power-adjustable.

"I have been doing the rounds online, and this glider is now at the top of my list," an expectant mom told us.

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Dimensions: 33" x 38" x 42.5" | Swivels: 360 degrees | Reclines: Electronically | Chair weight: 94.7 lbs | Weight capacity: 275 lbs | Available colors: Steel basketweave (shown), dune basketweave and ivory boucle | Certifications: Greenguard Gold Certified, CertiPUR-US Certified foam

This won our most recent Parenting Award in part for its 360-degree swivel — you can spin in a full circle while sitting in this glider. It does not recline as deeply as some others, but it does lean back electronically, with just the touch of a button, so you don't have to put a lot of effort into reclining and sitting back up.

There's both a USB-A and a USB-C charger on the side, to power up multiple devices without them being in the way. (We'd set a nightstand next to the chair to place them on.)

✔️ TESTING NOTES: “It’s the most comfortable swivel chair I've ever tried,” one tester told us. “The design is elegant, and the leg rest is just perfect!” Testers also liked the neutral color options.

"The chair overall was very easy to put together and arrived very compact. It wasn't terribly heavy for two people to lift and move around," a tester told us. "The chair itself was also a smaller footprint than other armchairs, so it didn't take up too much space in the room." We think this is a good one for a small nursery.

"Despite being white and us now having a toddler in the house, the chair has been very easy to keep clean using an upholstery cleaner when needed," said a mom who has had the glider for more than a year. "It still looks new."

Dimensions: ‎33.5" x 27" x 41.25" | Swivels: 360 degrees | Reclines: No | Chair weight: 71 lbs | Weight capacity: 300 lbs | Available colors: Beach, light gray, dark gray, oat (shown) | Certifications: Greenguard Gold Certified, CertiPUR-US Certified foam, FSC Certified wood

While it does not recline, this swiveling glider has a high back with a full head pillow, making it among the most comfortable nursery gliders. It can swivel fully around in a circle and glide back and forth in a rocking motion.

✔️ TESTING NOTES: It arrives in two pieces, the base and the back, which are not hard to put together. Pro tip: Build the glider, and your baby's crib, in the nursery room so you don't then have to maneuver either one through the door. But if you do need to move it from room to room, this chair is 27 inches wide and fits through standard doorways.

Because it has no recline or footrest, it can tuck close to the wall in your nursery and still have room to glide back and forth. Parents said it's comfy and fits well even in a small room.

Dimensions: 17.5" x ‎31.5" x 39.25" | Swivels: 360 degrees | Reclines: No | Chair weight: ‎80 lbs | Weight capacity: 242 lbs | Available colors: Light gray, dark gray, cream (shown) | Certifications: Greenguard Gold Certified, CertiPUR-US Certified foam, FSC Certified wood

If you prefer a separate ottoman to a built-in footstool on a nursery chair — which lets you customize the fit by moving the ottoman closer in or further out — we like this glider set sold with an ottoman for under $400, and it comes fully assembled.

In addition to the ottoman, it comes with a lumbar pillow. The polyester fabric can be spot-cleaned.

✔️ TESTING NOTES: The Olive Glider can spin in a full circle and glide back and forth, but does not have any reclining ability. The seat back, however, sits at a fixed recline position that allows a parent to put their head back. Some parents liked that; others wished that the seat back was a little less tilted.

The seat width is on the small side — as a frame of reference, 17.5 inches is about what you get on an airplane seat. Some parents said it's still super comfortable, while others said it's not the best glider for plus-size parents.

Dimensions: 39.5" x 28" x 37" | Swivels: No | Reclines: No | Chair weight: 57 lbs | Weight capacity: 300 lbs | Available colors: Dijon, two off whites, gray (shown)| Certifications: Greenguard Gold Certified, CertiPUR-US Certified foam, FSC Certified wood

Here's a classic rocking chair, not a glider, so if you're going for a mid-century modern nursery, this chair nails the look. It's got beautiful wooden rocking legs and sticks to its primary function — it rocks. There's no recline, swivel or glide. Consider it low-tech chic — a rocker our grandparents would have wished for in their day.

Because there are no power functions, this is a lightweight rocker that you can easily move around. Change its spot within the nursery as your kid grows, or you move it from one room to another for a sibling.

The Kai might look large but it has a relatively small footprint. With no recline, you can move it closer to the wall than most recliners can go — just make sure you account for the backward motion of the rocker. With no footrest that pops up, you also don't have to worry about what's in front of it.

✔️ TESTING NOTES: Assembly takes only a few minutes, and caregivers said it's extremely comfortable. The performance fabric looks high-end yet online users said it resists stains.

Dimensions: 40'' X 37'' x 40'' | Swivels: 240 degrees | Reclines: Electronically | Chair weight: 114 lbs | Weight capacity: 350 lbs | Available colors: Oyster, teal, charcoal gray, dark brown, natural, peacock, light gray (shown) | Certifications: None listed

If this looks like the kind of comfy recliner a sports fan would kick back in while watching the game, it's because the Jelissa is designed to fit into a living room, a nursery or anywhere you want to sit and stay awhile. A button tucked inside by the right arm powers this into a recline position with the footrest up and it can recline almost perfectly flat. Another button sets it upright again.

The Jelissa is constructed with springs under the thickly padded seat that can hold up to 350 pounds. Just note that it does not swivel or glide back and forth — it's a recliner for parents who want the option to lie back but are okay with not being able to rock. And yeah, we know this is a glider story, but we also know that some parents decide, while shopping, that reclining is what they really need!

The button panel also has a USB port for charging a device. The polyester chair comes with two throw pillows, which come in handy when positioning your baby comfortably.

✔️ TESTING NOTES: It is a little over 100 pounds itself, so keep that in mind when you need to get it into the nursery, where it will need some assembly. Once built, it requires a door at least 36 inches wide if you're moving it from room to room. You can opt for Wayfair to deliver it directly to your room of choice for an additional fee.

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Dimensions: 37" x 35.75" x 37" | Swivels: 360 degrees | Reclines: Choose either an electronic or a manual version | Chair weight: 113.75 lbs (power verison) | Weight capacity: 300 lbs | Available colors: About 20 fabrics and colors | Certifications: Greenguard Gold Certified

This "Pillow" version of the popular swiveling, gliding and reclining Paxton chair includes two loose pillows that can help you position your baby on your lap. The springy seat, about 20 inches off the floor, can fit a short mom or dad better than most. The back is also on the lower side.

If you choose West Elm's white-glove delivery service, they'll assemble this in your nursery for you. It might be a good idea — this is another comfy chair with springs in the seat, which makes it heavy.

✔️ TESTING NOTES: The Paxton is, technically, available in a wide range of fabrics from faux leather to velvet in colors like navy, pink and shades of brown. But we suggest clicking to see what is in stock and available for delivery in a week. It's a much smaller range of neutral-fabric choices, but you can be sure to get your glider by your due date.

Our other advice is to splurge on the power version of the Paxton. The power recliner operates fairly silently and very smoothly. If the price is too much, you can go with the manual version instead, and knock off hundreds of dollars, but you'll miss out on the electronic recline and the USB charging port. "At first, I thought the idea of a chair with a USB where you can plug in your phone was a little unnecessary," a new mom told us. "But it’s actually great."