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By Elise Czajkowski
Elise Czajkowski is a writer on the sleep team. She’s been subjecting her husband and sons to stroller testing since 2022.
A good travel stroller can make the difference between a jaunty vacation and a miserable slog. Whether you’re traveling by plane, car, train, or bus, a travel stroller should make your life easier at every step.
We’ve researched and tested dozens of travel strollers since 2018, and I’ve personally tested 21 at home and on a variety of trips over the past three years. We’ve found the Uppababy Minu V3 to be the best option for most families, thanks to its excellent maneuverability, simple fold, and easy-to-use harness. But regular jet-setters may prefer our runner-up pick, the Joolz Aer2, which is lighter and smaller when folded and comes with a travel bag.
If you don’t mind a slightly clunkier stroller, the Baby Jogger City Tour 2 Stroller is a great, less expensive pick. For an even simpler and cheaper option, consider an umbrella stroller; the Summer 3Dlite Convenience Stroller is our favorite.
This convenient travel stroller has a simple one-hand fold, an easy-to-access storage basket, and a simple buckle. For many families, it works great as an everyday stroller as well.
This sleek travel stroller is ideal for on-the-go families navigating busy airports. We like that it comes with its own travel bag, but it also comes with some minor annoyances.
This less-expensive option handles rough terrain well and offers the best on-the-go napping setup of all the strollers we tested.
Being able to quickly collapse or unfurl the stroller is crucial when traveling.
We prioritized strollers that are easy to steer one-handed over bumpy surfaces and around tight turns.
A travel stroller should be small enough to store easily, whether in a closet or a packed car trunk.
You shouldn’t need to look at the manual to relearn how to use your stroller each time you pull it out.
This convenient travel stroller has a simple one-hand fold, an easy-to-access storage basket, and a simple buckle. For many families, it works great as an everyday stroller as well.
The Uppababy Minu V3 is the rare travel stroller that doesn’t make you miss a feature-packed full-size stroller. It has everything you need to make a trip easier, including a simple fold, plenty of underseat storage, a comfortable handlebar that’s pleasant to push for long sightseeing days, and an excellent canopy. But it’s not inexpensive, it’s slightly heavier than our other picks, and some of the pieces can stick a bit.
This sleek travel stroller is ideal for on-the-go families navigating busy airports. We like that it comes with its own travel bag, but it also comes with some minor annoyances.
The Joolz Aer2 is a lovely stroller that comes with its own travel bag, which can keep a stroller clean and protected when it’s gate-checked or in storage. It folds down as small as any stroller we’ve seen and weighs about 1.5 pounds less than our top pick. But it’s also more expensive and has a few unusual features — like a finicky footrest, peculiar harness, and unique seat recline — that make it slightly less functional for everyday use.
This less-expensive option handles rough terrain well and offers the best on-the-go napping setup of all the strollers we tested.
The Baby Jogger City Tour 2 Stroller doesn’t have the same simple, compact fold as the Minu or the Aer2, but it does have the most comfortable handlebar of the travel strollers we’ve tested, a decent canopy with UV protection, and a good amount of underseat storage. Its large, adjustable footrest, long seat, and deep recline make it the best travel stroller for on-the-go naps. It’s even a bit lighter than the Joolz Aer2 and also comes with a travel bag.
I’ve been writing about strollers for Wirecutter for more than three years, and I’ve tested dozens of strollers in that time.
For many families, a travel stroller will never be necessary; for others, it may be the only stroller they ever need. In general, travel strollers are smaller and lighter than full-size strollers and fold down to fit easily in many forms of transportation.
Travel strollers have increasingly replaced umbrella strollers as the go-to lightweight, foldable option for travelers, which became clear when we noticed brands discontinuing their umbrella strollers and making travel models instead. A travel stroller collapses into a more compact, suitcase shape while umbrella strollers fold into a long, golf bag shape. This extra convenience comes at a cost; almost all of the so-called budget travel strollers we’ve tested in recent years were more expensive than the priciest model we considered for our guide to umbrella strollers.
You do, of course, have to make some compromises; lighter strollers will generally not maneuver as well as heavier options. And most lack features that many parents love in their full-size strollers, such as extra-large storage baskets, reversible toddler seats, and adjustable handlebars.
Only a few years ago, a travel stroller that could fit in the overhead compartment of an airplane was a pricey novelty, but in our 2025 testing, we found almost all mid-range and high-end travel strollers we tested folded down this small. We don’t actually think this is a requirement for most people; airlines will allow you to gate check strollers for free, while bringing a stroller on board will count against your carry-on allowance.
And while the International Air Transport Association (IATA) has guidelines for carry-on baggage size (no larger than 22 by 18 by 10 inches) each airline can make its own requirements, so there’s always a chance that a stroller won’t fit, especially on a smaller plane. All that said, we appreciate that a smaller fold will give travelers more options and makes bringing the stroller on any mode of transit — or finding a place to store it — a bit easier.
If you already own a full-size stroller that you like and are looking to add a travel stroller, you may want to look first at options from the same brand. Stroller manufacturers keep many things consistent across their lines, so you’ll find that elements like the type of brake, the style of the buckle, and the feel of the handlebar are familiar, which can make the transition to the travel stroller smoother for everyone.
We’ve been testing and recommending travel strollers since 2018, and we’ve seen the field grow substantially over the years as high-end brands offer more luxe options. Over eight years of research and testing, we’ve determined that a good travel stroller is:
Easy to push and maneuver: Because a travel stroller needs to perform in a variety of environments inside and outside, we prioritized strollers that are easy to push on uneven terrain and able to maneuver through tight spaces. Since 2023, I’ve taken 21 strollers home and tested them in different conditions, including over cobblestones and uneven streets, in and out of subways, and up and down stairs. My colleagues and I also tested them in our Long Island City testing facility, using sandbags in the toddler seat to test maneuverability and their one-handed pushability.
Easy to fold and unfold: Ideally, you should be able to quickly collapse or unfurl a stroller while holding a squirming baby or a kicking toddler. In my testing, I timed how long it took to fold and unfold each stroller and if it required one or two hands.
Easy to carry and stow: The stroller should fold down to a compact size. We weighed each stroller ourselves, and the ones we tested ranged from 13 to 17 pounds. We also looked for strollers that have a shoulder strap or travel bag for carrying.
We liked to see that strollers had an option for clicking in an infant car seat. All of our picks in this guide are compatible with at least one of our infant car seat picks.
We also looked for a reclining seat, an easily adjustable harness with a simple buckle, a decent-size canopy for sun protection, and an accessible underseat storage basket.
I tested cleaning by smearing foods like yogurt and jam on the strollers and seeing how hard it was to remove stains with just baby wipes. Where small children go, messes follow — that’s why we devote an entire article to how to clean a stroller.
This convenient travel stroller has a simple one-hand fold, an easy-to-access storage basket, and a simple buckle. For many families, it works great as an everyday stroller as well.
The Uppababy Minu V3 is an exceptional travel stroller that makes life on the go with a little one simple and fun. We’ve found that many parents who get it for traveling end up preferring to use it as their day-to-day stroller over their larger, full-size stroller as well. We’ve recommended both the Minu V1 and V2 in previous guides, and the V3 improves on those with a smaller fold, a sturdier canopy, and a better carry strap.
In a dozen little ways, the Minu V3 makes getting out and about with a small child much easier. A 20-pound weight limit on the underseat basket means you can throw in all your kid stuff without thinking, and a cleverly hidden Bluetooth tracker pocket reduces the stress of knowing where your gate-checked stroller has ended up on a flight. The Minu V3’s extendable, zip-out canopy — a major improvement over the V2’s — offers great sun protection and an easy-to-see-through peekaboo window
It’s small enough to fit in an overheard compartment. When folded, the stroller’s measurements meet the IATA’s requirements for overhead luggage, meaning you should be able to bring it onto most planes. If you prefer to gate check, Uppababy also sells a travel bag that lets you access their TravelSafe program, an additional one-year warranty added onto the original product warranty that offers replacements for parts damaged during air travel.
It has a simple, one-hand fold and unfold. You slide a lever on the front of the handlebar, push a button on the other side, and the stroller folds into thirds. It’s the same lever-button process to unfold the stroller.
The carrying strap is clever and super convenient. When the stroller is folded, simply grab the handle that’s built into the seat of the stroller, and it will extend into a carry strap. The padding on the handle-turned-shoulder strap makes it comfortable for quick hauls.
You can adjust the harness easily. Instead of five different harness straps (two shoulder, two waist, and one crotch), Uppababy uses only three, with one combined shoulder/waist strap for each side of the body. The straps are easier to adjust than others we’ve tested, since you can loosen or tighten the waist and shoulder strap at the same time. It does also mean wiggling your child’s arms in and out of the straps, which some parents find aggravating, but I prefer it to trying to contain a fidgety child while buckling four unconnected straps to a buckle.
You can recline the seat at any angle, not just to pre-set options. The seat doesn’t recline fully flat, but I found that my 10-month-old napped well in it. To recline, pinch down a button on the back of the seat and pull down; to incline, simply pull on the recline strap and the back inclines back up again. This may require some force when a child is in the stroller, but that’s true with all travel strollers.
The brakes are intuitive and easy to engage, even when you’re barefoot or wearing open-toed shoes. The Minu V3 has two brake pedals — a red to lock and a green to unlock — that are easy to engage and, based on their position, allow you to see from a distance if the stroller is locked. They’re also easy to use when the stroller’s seat is fully reclined.
It can be used from birth with no accessories. Unlike its predecessor, the Minu V3 includes a built-in foot pouch that unfolds from below the seat and snaps onto the seat fabric. With the stroller fully reclined, this creates a “carriage” mode that can allow newborns to be safely placed in the stroller. The V3 can also take an infant car seat — including our upgrade pick, the Uppababy Aria.
The seat cover can be removed for cleaning. Uppababy recommends spot cleaning or hand washing in cold water with mild detergent. In our tests with the light gray “Savannah” option, we found it pretty easy to clean messes with baby wipes, though the seat fabric did start to look a little dingy after a few months of use. The canopy and basket can also be removed for cleaning.
Uppababy strollers come with a three-year limited warranty.
The fold and unfold button can stick. The stickiness never prevented me from folding or unfolding completely, but sometimes required two or three squeezes of the button to properly engage it. This can be frustrating when you’re in a rush to get moving.
It doesn’t have a back seat pocket. That means you’ll have to find another spot for stashing your phone, pacifiers, snacks, and other odds-and-ends of traveling with a small child.
One of the rear wheels doesn’t always lock properly. In our at-home testing, we found the right back wheel sometimes still spun when the brake was locked, meaning the stroller could pivot but not move forwards or backwards. Unlocking and relocking always fixed the problem, but we’ll keep an eye on it as we long-term test the stroller.
It’s the heaviest of our picks. At nearly 17 pounds, the Minu V3 is not particularly comfortable to tote around for long periods.
This sleek travel stroller is ideal for on-the-go families navigating busy airports. We like that it comes with its own travel bag, but it also comes with some minor annoyances.
Like our top pick, the Joolz Aer2 has all the features of a great travel stroller — including a large canopy, a simple-to-engage brake, and an easy-to-use buckle. It’s even smaller and sleeker than our top-pick Minu V3, which arguably makes it even more convenient for frequent flyers.
While we don’t think it’s quite as practical for everyday use as the Minu, Wirecutter editor Gabriella Gershenson began using its predecessor, the Aer+, as her everyday stroller as her daughter got older and has found it’s held up incredibly well.
It’s easy to fold, and it gets really small. The Aer2 has the smallest folded dimensions of the travel strollers we tested in 2025, and, at just over 15 pounds, is one of the lightest as well. It includes a carrying strap, and, unlike our top pick, it comes with a travel bag.
It’s pleasant to push, even one-handed. I was able to push my napping infant with one hand while holding my toddler’s hand with the other through a busy midtown Manhattan crowd without issue.
Unlike our top pick, it has a back pocket. It’s not enormous, but it’s a convenient option for thin, lightweight items.
There are many ways to use it from birth. A zippered pouch on the bottom of the stroller contains a footrest, which can be clicked into place and used, when fully reclined, with a newborn. Joolz also sells a compatible carrycot for infants, and a “nest to seat” add-on that converts from a newborn carriage to a parent-facing toddler seat.
Joolz offers a superior 10-year multi-family warranty. That means you can pass down or sell your stroller to another family and the warranty will apply to them as well.
It can be cleaned with mild detergent. Even though the manual says that the fabric can be removed and machine-washed, a spokesperson for Joolz confirmed that it should be hand-washed. We found the dark navy blue fabric that we tested stayed looking nice after several rounds of testing, although it did show some faint spots where we rubbed in and cleaned off food.
It’s got a peculiar harness system. Rather than adjusting the length of the shoulder and waist straps individually, you adjust them like a carseat — attach them around your child, then pull down a strap under the footrest to tighten them all. You also push a button on the footrest and pull the straps to loosen. This can be tricky in a hurry, especially if you’re not used to it.
The recline is difficult and can be fussy. Unlike with our top pick, there are only two recline options — what the company calls “relaxed” and “sleep.” To recline the seat, you unzip a large panel and the back of the toddler seat slides back. The “relaxed” setting is held by a strap connected via a small G-hook; unhook that strap and it slides down into “sleep.” But getting it back up from sleep to relaxed is finicky, requiring you to hold the seat back up with one hand and fidget the hook into place with the other.
The extendable leg rest can be finicky. To get the most compact fold, you have to pop the leg rest down after the stroller is folded. And we found it didn't always pop down or stay up when we wanted it to.
The peekaboo window isn’t very useful. The narrow peekaboo window is only visible when the extendable portion of the canopy is unzipped, and even then it doesn’t offer great visibility.
This less-expensive option handles rough terrain well and offers the best on-the-go napping setup of all the strollers we tested.
If you’re willing to sacrifice a one-handed fold, an easily accessible storage basket, and a super compact frame, the Baby Jogger City Tour 2 Stroller is a solid and maneuverable stroller for its price. It handles bumpy streets and cobblestones without complaint, and I found the handlebar’s height and material more comfortable than those on the other less-expensive options we tested.
After two years of testing with her now 4-year-old, editorial director Marguerite Preston still uses the stroller regularly and says it’s held up well. She’s also found it small and light enough to regularly haul up four flights of stairs and store in her narrow entryway. For many parents, the best thing about this stroller is that it doesn’t feature anything too noteworthy or fussy; it’s a simple stroller that just works.
The fold is simple, but it requires two steps and both hands. Slide a lever and push a button to fold down the handlebar, then pull up on a strap on the inside of the seat to collapse the whole thing. (If you have the adjustable footrest up, you need to put it down for maximum compactness.) To unfold, undo a latch on the side and click it all into place.
It has a great footrest. The large adjustable footrest allows a young toddler to lie almost completely flat; paired with the stroller’s built-in UV 50+ sun canopy, it’s a great option if on-the-go naps are a priority.
The buckle has five pieces but stays together well. The shoulder and waist straps on each side click together, which allows you to simply slide your child’s arm through the shoulder straps rather than attach five separate pieces.
Reclining and inclining the seat is simple. Pinch a clamp and pull down on the seat to recline at any angle you prefer, then pinch the same clamp and push up to incline.
The seat fabric can be machine washed. Other parts should be hand-washed. In our cleaning tests, we found that food wiped easily off of the black fabric, and any lingering smudges disappeared with stain remover.
It comes with a travel bag. This adds another layer of protection if you’re gate-checking or putting the stroller away for long-term storage.
Baby Jogger strollers come with a lifetime warranty. This covers manufacturer defects on the frame. It also has a one-year limited warranty on the fabrics.
The canopy is harder to unfurl than the canopies on our other picks. Also, the peekaboo window is secured with Velcro, which means it could wake up a sleeping child when undone.
It’s not easy to unlock. The single brake pedal must be pushed up from the bottom to unlock, which is tricky if you’re barefoot or in open-toe shoes.
It doesn’t have a carry strap. Though the included travel bag has a shoulder strap, the stroller itself doesn’t feature a strap for carrying.
The seat’s most upright position is somewhat reclined. As with other Baby Jogger strollers that we’ve tested, the seat can’t be positioned fully upright, which may be frustrating for a bigger kid who wants to look around (or a parent who doesn’t want a toddler to nap). And the back of the seat doesn’t have a pocket for small items.
The harness is also more difficult to adjust than those on our other picks. And to change the height of the shoulder strap, you need to rethread the straps through the back of the toddler seat, which can’t be done with a child in the stroller.
The stroller does not stand on its own when folded. The stroller also doesn’t have a mechanism for the whole stroller to stay attached to itself when folded; if you grab the handlebar when the stroller is folded, it will pull away from the body.
If you need or want to travel with a car seat that does not work with our picks: The 13-pound Mountain Buggy Nano V3 is equipped with a universal car seat adapter — a genius feature that all stroller companies should adopt. Not only can you use many infant car seats — including any of our infant car seat picks — but it works with lightweight toddler car seats and convertible travel car seats, too.
But the canopy of this stroller rests against the handlebar when closed, making the stroller uncomfortable to push for long periods, especially in the heat. It also has finicky harness straps that never felt tight enough and a brake that’s easy to trip accidentally. Our long-term tester, writer Kaitlyn Wells, said she found folding it a challenge, requiring a lot of force to get closed and locked.
This is not a comprehensive list of everything we’ve tested; it only includes strollers that are still available for sale.
In a previous iteration of this guide, we recommended the Babyzen Yoyo2, which is no longer available. Babyzen has since been acquired by Stokke, which released the Stokke Yoyo3 over the summer of 2024; we tested it and found it frustrating in many ways. In November 2024, about 2,890 Yoyo3 strollers sold between September and October 2024 with serial numbers starting with “142AA” followed by numbers that fall below “0062239" were recalled due to a potentially faulty parking brake. Owners should immediately stop using the recalled strollers and register their Yoyo3 to receive a full refund in the form of a check.
The Britax Juniper Compact was the least expensive stroller we tested in 2025, and it has some nice features like a back pocket and an easy-to-adjust harness. But it felt noticeably flimsy when pushed, with a thin handlebar that was uncomfortable to hold for long periods. We also found the brake and buckle to be tricky to use. Plus it can’t be used from birth, even with a car seat.
In 2023, we tested the Bugaboo Butterfly, and in 2025, the newer Butterfly 2. While we have staffers who love their Butterflies, we found several little issues that made it less appealing than our top pick, including a foot rest that needs to be manually folded down after folding the stroller, and a buckle that allows you to click straps into the wrong place (requiring you to unclick them all and start over). And it can only be used from birth with a car seat.
We considered the Colugo Compact but dismissed it because it isn’t compatible with any car seats and had middling reviews. A newer version, the Compact Stroller+, is now available.
We considered both the Ergobaby Metro 3 and the Metro 3 Deluxe, which is the same basic stroller with a magnetic buckle, carry strap, higher-end materials, and a few extra accessories. We loved that they featured an adjustable handlebar, but overall we found them challenging to fold and unfold in a rush, difficult to steer, and hard to unlock the brakes.
The 10.4 pound GB Pockit Air All-Terrain and the 13.2 pound GB Pockit+ All-City were dismissed because they didn’t feel sturdy.
I found that the Graco Ready2Jet Stroller couldn’t manage even small bumps in the sidewalk and was very difficult to push and turn one-handed.
The Inglesina Quid3 features a clever “zero gravity” shoulder strap that made it the easiest of the travel strollers we tested to carry when folded. But it didn't fold down as small as our top picks, especially with the included belly bar, and I found the harness straps hard to adjust. And it only stands on its own with the use of a small kickstand, which I found fiddly and unreliable.
The Kolcraft Cloud Plus Stroller was dismissed because it did not feel durable, was challenging to maneuver, and didn’t have a working lock.
The Mountain Buggy Nano Urban offers an unusual gimmick; it features larger “urban” wheels and smaller “travel” wheels, theoretically allowing you to use this for all of your stroller needs. It also comes with a universal car seat adapter, although it’s more complex and less convenient than the version in the Nano V3 mentioned above. But I found that it was uncomfortable to push and turn, that I accidentally kicked the brakes while walking with it, and that I didn’t look forward to using it with either set of wheels.
The 14.6 pound Nuna Trvl has some excellent features, including the simplest fold we’ve seen on any travel stroller. But it is very large when folded with the belly bar attached, and when the canopy is closed, it covers the handlebar, making it uncomfortable to push.
The Safety 1st Easy-Fold Compact is fairly impressive given its moderate price tag, but I think most caregivers will find its foam handlebar and low handle height uncomfortable for long travel days.
I really wanted to love the Silver Cross Jet 5, which features a clever design that when it is folded allows you to pull it like a roller suitcase, with the belly bar as a handlebar. But in testing, I found it nearly impossible to unfold — a dealbreaker for travel strollers. Its harness is also hard to adjust, its underseat basket is tricky to access, and its wheels struggle on even the tiniest bumps. We haven’t tested the newer Silver Cross Clic.
We also dismissed several strollers — including the BabyJogger City Mini Air, the Joovy Kooper RS, and the Evenflo Gold Otto — because they are larger or heavier than we think is useful for a travel stroller.
The Zoe the Traveler is only 13 pounds and has some nice features, including a rare parent cup holder, but it didn’t maneuver as well as I’d like. I struggled to push it off the subway, and it nearly tipped forward from a small, uneven bump in the sidewalk. It was also one of the hardest strollers to unfold.
This article was edited by Rachel Hurn and Kalee Thompson.
Elise Czajkowski
I write about mattresses and other sleep-related concerns. I also cover various baby and kid products, including strollers.
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