The Best Lightweight, Umbrella, and Travel Strollers of 2021

A traveler’s stroller in every sense of the word, the Baby Jogger CityTour2 can convert from newborn to infant to toddler with just a few simple steps. Many of the accessories—like the belly bar, car seat adapter, and rain shield—are extra, so you can customize this stroller to fit your own needs. Baby Jogger strollers always set themselves apart with their one-handed fold, and the CityTour2 is no exception. This stroller is all-around useful, and a good fit for a family that is regularly on-the-go.

This stroller probably would have edged into the top three, were it not for some issues with assembly; the stroller arrives only partially assembled, with parents left to put the upholstery on for themselves. Apart from that snafu, though, the Colugo is a terrific compact with loads of extras: a carrying strap, travel backpack, raincover, surprisingly ample storage basket, and one-handed fold. At almost $300, however, it falls into a higher price point of the strollers I tested, and I didn't necessarily feel that it was worth the extra money.

One major draw to this stroller is that it is compatible with 35 different types of car seats—without any adapters. There are no real bells and whistles here. It is mostly just the stroller you’re getting: a true compact, with a one-handed fold. But this is a good value for the price point, at just under $200, and a convenient stroller that isn’t a hassle to use.

A sleek and modern-looking stroller that takes up just a little more space than a traditional compact (knocking it down just a tiny bit on our list), the Chit Chat has a convenient handle at the top for carrying, as well as a strap. The storage basket is spacious enough, and the safety features—including a five-point harness—feel really rigorous.

Atom is the perfect name for this perfectly atomic stroller, which weighs in at just over 11 pounds. The Atom is part of a MacLaren system, which is compatible with a car seat and which is designed to break down to practically nothing. The stroller can fit in the overhead compartment of an airplane, according to the company. Storage is minimal, but it comes with a storage bag and raincover and is a solid all-purpose compact for anyone looking for a stroller that can grow with their family. The Atom lost points, however, due to its high price point.

If you are in the market for a truly miniscule stroller, the GB Pockit is probably the smallest you will find. Billed as small enough to fit in a diaper bag (debatable, depending on how big your diaper bag is), the Pockit really is small. It might be a little too small, depending on how you look at it. The canopy provides nearly no coverage, and the storage is almost nonexistent. That being said, for regular travelers who don’t need anything beyond the brass tacks, this is an excellent backup plan, as long as you don’t mind paying the high price for it ; this stroller costs over $150, and it’s definitely not an everyday solution.

This 13-pound stroller comes with its own carrying strap and can be combined with a newborn bassinet or car seat. It comes with a custom satchel for traveling convenience. And adapters are all included, which is one fewer thing you will ultimately have to buy. This is a straightforward stroller at an approachable price point.

A rigorous stroller with an adjustable footrest, belly bar, deep recline, and great canopy coverage, this stroller is another good pick for those in need of an all-purpose stroller that is also a compact. The storage basket is on the smaller side, though, and this stroller is not compatible with a car seat, so this is more appropriate for parents with children who are big enough to sit in a stroller unassisted. The price point, $200, is reasonable for the sturdiness of this stroller.

Like the GB Pockit, the NorthStar is a subset of the compact category: a mini compact. This is a stroller that is most appropriate for regular travelers who need something very, very small. Tiny wheels make this stroller best for city use, as they don't provide a very smooth ride on bumpy terrain. You cannot store much in the storage basket, so be prepared to carry your own diaper bag. The small sun canopy will not do much to fend off the sun’s rays, so bring your own sunscreen. But for the cost of the stroller, it’s worth considering keeping this pocket-sized stroller as a backup.

With sleek design, decent storage, and good safety features, the BabyZen YoYo is a good pick for parents looking for an entire safety system. It is also on the upper end of the compact budget, and weighs in at over 16 pounds, which is among the heaviest of the compact strollers. It does come with a carrying strap and bag, and arrives mostly assembled, but in this category, there are a lot of other strollers that over perform for less money.

In the double stroller category, this side-by-side stroller was the winner, due, in no small part, to a host of fun extras and a reasonable price point. This stroller comes with a carrying strap, foot rests, reclining seats, dual swivel bars, full-coverage sun visors, five-point safety harnesses, and ample storage space for all your needs. Footrests are adjustable to help facilitate napping on the go, and good-sized tires make it easy to ride on most surfaces. But, like most side-by-side double strollers, it’s bulky, and much heavier than the other compacts I tested.

An affordable stick-style “umbrella” stroller, the Summer 3D Lite had pretty much everything I needed in a basic stroller, and then some: It came with cup holders, an extra storage pouch in the back, and a decent recline. While this was one our favorite lightweight strollers in our initial round of testing, we found that it didn't stack up against some of the newer models. Like all stick strollers, this is a harder stroller to store, but the tradeoff is definitely the price : just $60. This 13-pound stroller is inexpensive and easy to deal with—if you have the space for it.

The Zoe XL2 bills itself as a lightweight stroller—and it is, for a double. As a side-by-side, though, you may find yourself struggling with many of the same space constraints as other double strollers. Some nice perks to this model include one-step brakes, one-handed reclining close, and snack holders, and cup holders for children and parents. The wheels are on the small side, though, and with two kids, this stroller can be challenging to move around on some surfaces. For a double stroller, however, the Zoe is moderately priced, and you do get a lot for the money.

The obvious bonus to the Kolcraft Cloud is the price. Of the strollers I tested, this was the most affordable. The assembly of this stroller, however, is a nightmare. This stroller was the most difficult and frustrating to assemble, and that factor weighed heavily in testing. The storage, though, is ample, and the stroller comes with a snack tray. For an economical stroller it does the trick. But buyers beware: It takes a long time to put this together.

The most affordable double stroller I tested the EvenFlo Minno is a double umbrella stroller that stores like a stick stroller. This is a great stroller for the basics: Getting around is easy enough, and it has plenty of storage space, a good recline, and good awning shade. But you need two hands to close this stroller, and storage is a considerable issue, since this stroller, when collapsed, is long. At 25 pounds, it’s also heavy, and difficult to get onto a high shelf.

One major selling point of the entire UppaBaby line is storage space, and the Minu—the brand’s compact stroller—is no exception. Of the single strollers I tested, this one has the most storage space, hands down. It also has some other nice perks, like a carrying strap, full-coverage canopy, and car seat compatibility. But of all the strollers in the true compact category, the Minu was difficult to assemble, heavy, and hard to collapse, earning it a place farther down on this list. It’s also in the luxury price point , at nearly $400.

A stick stroller with no real bells and whistles (although the stick stroller I tested was the shark design, with a shark’s face emblazoned on the awning—fun for kids and adults alike), this is a functional stroller, at a high price point. It is harder to store traditional umbrella strollers, and new-to-the-market strollers are now foldable and compact, which is why stick strollers appear lower on this list. But one great thing about the Mark, as opposed to other stick versions I tested: It’s only 7 pounds.

UppaBaby’s version of the traditional stick stroller is the G-Luxe, and, like most of their strollers, it comes in at a higher price point. There are some nice extras included with this stroller, like a cup holder, a large sunshade, a deep recline, and a large basket. But the stroller also weighs an astounding 15 pounds, and, as a stick stroller, is harder to store—both in the trunk of a car and in the home, making this a less practical purchase.

A stroller that will work for both short and tall parents alike (the height is adjustable), the Ant is most expensive compact stroller I tested. Although some things about the Ant are great—its compact size, its car seat compatibility, its weight—this is also a frustrating stroller. It arrives unassembled, and assembly is not intuitive. The manual is difficult to understand and follow. There is minimal storage space. Overall, for the price point, this should check more boxes than it does.