How to Read a Crib or Car Seat Label: Model Numbers, Batch Codes, and Manufacture Dates

TL;DR: Every crib and car seat carries a label with three numbers that matter: a model number, a manufacture date, and a batch or cohort code. Learn where each one sits, and every recall check from here on takes seconds instead of a search through the manual.

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A crib or car seat label is a lot of small print: a brand name, a string of digits, a date, sometimes a barcode. Most of it you'll never touch again. Three pieces are worth being able to find on sight, because they're exactly what a recall notice asks for: the model number, the date of manufacture, and a batch or cohort code.

Here's where each one sits, on a car seat and on a crib, decoded piece by piece below.

Why the date matters as much as the model

Since 2009, federal law has required a permanent tracking label on children's products, including cribs and car seats. Under Section 103 of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, that label has to show the manufacturer's name, where and when the item was made, and cohort information — a batch, run, or lot number that narrows it to a specific production window (CPSC).

That's why the model number by itself won't settle the question. A recall often applies to one date range inside a model's production run, not the entire line. Two families can own the same model, and only one of them owns the affected batch. The manufacture date, or a batch code tied to it, is what separates the two.

A car seat label, decoded

Look on the back of the shell, the part that faces the vehicle seat, or the base if it's an infant seat. Federal standard FMVSS 213 requires the label to list the model name or number and the phrase "Manufactured In," followed by the month and year (NHTSA).

┌───────────────────────────────────────┐
│  ACME CAR SEAT CO.                     │
│  MODEL: Cruiser 65                     │
│  MODEL NO: CR-4021          ← 1        │
│                                         │
│  MANUFACTURED IN: 03/2026   ← 2        │
│  Elgin, IL, USA                        │
│                                         │
│  LOT: 2026-03-B             ← 3        │
│                                         │
│  Conforms to all applicable Federal    │
│  Motor Vehicle Safety Standards        │
└───────────────────────────────────────┘

1. Model number — the design name. It's on the box, in the manual, and printed here.
2. Manufacture date — month and year, occasionally down to the day. This is what a recall notice references, and what the seat's expiration date is calculated from.
3. Lot code — a separate stamp on some seats, or the manufacture date doing that job on others.

If the sticker's worn or the fabric cover hides it, check under the padding along the seat back, or the bottom of the shell. Some brands mold the date straight into the plastic.

A crib label, decoded

Crib labels usually sit on the underside of the frame, stamped or printed on a rail near the mattress support, so you may need to tip the crib to find it. Under CPSC's crib standard, the label needs a date of manufacture and has to reflect the construction rules that took effect June 28, 2011 (CPSC).

┌───────────────────────────────────────┐
│  HARBOR HOME BABY                      │
│  MODEL: Harbor 4-in-1       ← 1        │
│  MODEL NO: HB-118R                     │
│                                         │
│  DATE OF MFG: 09/2025       ← 2        │
│  Made in Vietnam                       │
│                                         │
│  BATCH: 0925-C4             ← 3        │
│                                         │
│  Meets ASTM F1169 / 16 CFR 1219        │
└───────────────────────────────────────┘

1. Model number — same on every crib of that design, whenever it was built.
2. Date of manufacture — month and year. A drop-side crib made before June 2011 fails the current standard regardless of condition; this date is how you'd know.
3. Batch code — ties the crib to one production run, the detail most recall listings key off.

Model number vs. batch code, in short

The model number tells you what the product is. The manufacture date and batch code tell you which one — and a recall search usually needs both to give you a clean answer.

Before the tag comes off

Photograph the label before you cut a tag, sand down a crib, or box up gear for a hand-me-down. Save it somewhere you'll actually find again: a phone album, a note, or a saved item in Pouch. It takes ten seconds now and saves a return trip to the garage later.

How Pouch fits in

Once you've got a model number and a manufacture date, add the item to Pouch's free product watch. We check it against CPSC and FDA recall listings and let you know if anything changes, so you don't have to remember which batch of which crib you're sitting on.

Add your gear to Pouch's free recall watch →

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Sources

• U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission — Tracking Label Business Guidance
• U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission — Full-Size Baby Cribs Business Guidance
• NHTSA — Car Seats and Booster Seats
• eCFR — 49 CFR 571.213, Child Restraint Systems
• eCFR — 16 CFR Part 1219, Safety Standard for Full-Size Baby Cribs