that I wish I could have found online before I went to the trouble of buying and trying all of them. I also tried the Beco Butterfly 2
but due to less padding in the shoulders, a thinner waist strap it does not distribute a toddlers weight well enough for me, though it is great for learning how to back carrier, once you are comfortable with a back carry the Beco becomes rather inconvenient with it's complicated baby pocket. The other soft structured carrier I got the chance to try at my local babywearers meeting was a pikkolo
which lacks a chest strap has flimsiest waist belt of all making it the least ergonomic and for the price just really isn't up to par with the other soft structured carriers.The ergo classic
/organic is not really made for the larger person, so you generally have to buy a waist extension if your waist is over a certain size (43"). My waist size is 44.5" which meant for the ergo classic I bought I had to buy the extender which allowed for another 8", but was kind of cumbersome when one only needs another 2". The ergo performance
also worked better for me than the classic and goes up to 48"in the waist, but the shoulder straps are too thin. The performance also kept my kiddo from leaning back as far as in the ergo classic which can 'cause balance issues. I found that of the ergos the ergo sport
worked best for me for 4 reasons the shoulder straps were similar to the classic so they really helped you adjust your child's weight to be carried on your hips, the extended waist size, it seems to sit higher on my kiddo so there was less lean back of and the flexibility of the fabric which though the straps became easily twisted allowed for easily moving my kiddo to a back carry without requiring much shoulder flexibility.I also recently did a side by side comparison for a month between the Boba and the Ergo Sport as well as a week also with the Ergo Classic. I find the Boba to be a superior carrier when you need to position weight more on your hips. The Boba has a better waist strap which adjusts from 28" to 56" it is also wider which provides more support and clasps in the center rather than off to the side like the ergos do. All the straps on the Boba are adjustable from both sides which is super convenient. The Boba is definitely hands down better than the Ergo Classic because of strap adjustability and support since the height of the body keeps your kiddo from effecting your balance two much. Sadly, the ergo sport works better for my body due to the flexibleness & slight stretch in the fabric, the boba fabric is cotton and stiffer though lighter than the ergo classic fabric, and the narrower upper body profile which allows it to sit on my shoulders in the perfect spot.
My dream carrier would be a Boba with a narrower upper body profile, a little bit more stretch in the fabric, and slightly more padding in the shoulders. Meanwhile, I'm using an ergo sport because it works best for me, though I will be recommending the Boba more.
If you plan on buying any of these carriers, REI is the best place to buy a new Ergo carrier due to a liberal return policy though your color choices will be limited. The Boba on the other hand should be bought directly from the company online as they have a 60 day return policy. The Beco Butterly is best bought at Baby Earth since they also have a nice return policy.
I highly recommend trying the carriers for yourself after trying many different types of including several types of Mei Tai's, Moby, Baby K'Tan, and Black Panda Pocket Wrap (similar to the Sleepy Wrap) all of which are more for the under 20lb baby and some are more for small infants, you will find that different carriers work for better for different body types both your body type and your child's.
