Best double buggy and pushchair for toddlers and newborns 2021

Best: Overall

Rating: 10/10

• Tandem seat configuration: Side by side
• Single-mode: No
• Suitable from birth: Yes
• Weight in tandem mode: 12.8kg
• Width: 72cm

We loved this versatile little number. The huge three wheels have excellent suspension, meaning it took on rough country paths, cobbled pavements and big pavement curbs without a fuss. The adjustable handlebar is coated in a grippy material and includes a strap so the pram doesn’t run away from you when you’re on the downhill. The seat units lie flat (and it is therefore suitable from birth), and the back zips down to leave only mesh, letting air circulate and keeping our mini testers sweat-free during naps.

The fold on the pram is an easy one – probably a two-handed job if we’re honest, but it’s simple enough. And then it’s not too cumbersome once folded, meaning it’d fit in most average-sized car boots. The drawbacks are the annoying-to-fasten straps, which are fiddly, and with two riders you have to fiddle twice as long. And the shopping basket – or lack thereof. There is storage in mesh drawstring holdalls on the back of the seats, but it’s not enough when you have at least two kids.

The hoods are great though – nice and big, and have inbuilt pockets for stowing away snacks, keys, phones; all the important stuff. And honestly pushing it is a dream – you’d struggle to find a better all-terrain double than this at the price.

Best: Lightweight double

Rating: 8/10

• Tandem seat configuration: Side by side
• Single-mode: No
• Suitable from birth: Yes
• Weight in tandem mode: 11.8kg
• Width: 76cm

Lightweight and reasonably nippy, this pram is great for taking on city streets. Indeed, it’s one of the lightest doubles we tried. The small wheels make for easy manoeuvring but aren’t so good on bumpier terrains. The seat pads are reversible in a deep pink and royal blue, meaning you can pick a colour for each seat.

While both children have their own seats, they’re also able to see and interact with one another. They have individual UPF 50+ sun canopies though and recline to flat separately if nap times don’t align. We really liked the recline mechanism – it’s easy to use one-handed and isn’t as jerky as some others we’ve tried. There are also reclining calf supports too.

The basket underneath is huge and has a very handy open back that is perfect for chucking stuff into while you juggle two kids. The foot brake is substantial and doesn’t get jammed despite being put through its paces. And the one-hand fold is really simple – it doesn’t take much effort at all, so you don’t feel like you’ve done 500-metre butterfly after loading it into the car. We also really liked that there’s one rain cover that goes over both seats, so when British weather hits the kids are cocooned together – lucky things.

Best: Single to double transformation

Rating: 8/10

• Tandem seat configuration: Side by side
• Single-mode: Yes
• Suitable from birth: Yes
• Weight in tandem mode: 15kg
• Width: 91cm

Robust and roomy, the Bugaboo donkey is going to see your child from birth to toddlerhood and beyond. The expandable chassis offers a huge amount of flexibility to growing families. Compress it down to one seat and a side-car-style shopping basket, or with a few simple adjustments it can slide out to a side-by-side two-seater. You can also have it with one basinet and one seat unit side by side if you have different aged children. The large back wheels and decent suspension offer a smooth ride, while the large shopping basket underneath is great for when you’re out shopping.

You can use this pram from birth with the cosy bassinets, and once your child is sitting unsupported you can switch them into the bucket-style seat units. Both options are super comfortable and snug and can make use of the extendable UPF sun canopies. One minor detail we found annoying was that the rain covers are separate for each seat and quite fiddly to get on and off properly.

You can fold the donkey with seat units and bassinets attached, but it’s a huge footprint – you’d need a very roomy boot to accommodate it like this. We found it fitted through most shop doors in duo mode, but this wasn’t the case with an average-sized front door.

Best: Premium double

Rating: 9/10

• Tandem seat configuration: Inline
• Single-mode: Yes
• Suitable from birth: Yes
• Weight in tandem mode: 22.1kg
• Width: 60cm

The Joolz geo2 is a pram designed to grow with an expanding family. It’s a really premium single pram, with plush fabrics and a smooth glide. We loved the huge shopping basket underneath. The easy-to-use fold doesn’t mercifully doesn’t involve taking the seat unit off – although it remains pretty large once folded, in our opinion.

But it then can be expanded into double mode, if you have two children close in age, or twins. The addition of the extra seat – which stacks underneath the main seat – removes our beloved huge shopping basket. While you may have reservations about in-line seats, and what the kid at the bottom looks at, it was actually pretty nice in there. There’s enough room for them not to be nose-to-back-of-seat, and plenty of legroom to stretch out. You can also use it with two bassinets at once. What we would say is that in duo mode there’s not a ton of striding space for the parent behind, which as a tall adult we found a bit of a shame. And it is one of the heaviest double prams we tried. But we really liked the fact you can fold the geo2 with both seat units attached, and the footprint, when folded in double mode, is good compared to many others.

Best: Practical double

Rating: 9/10

• Tandem seat configuration: Side by side
• Single-mode: No
• Suitable from birth: Yes
• Weight in tandem mode: 17.5kg
• Width: 77.5cm

This side-by-side configuration pram feels seriously smart. The fabrics are luxe, the five-point harness is quick and easy to use (vital when loading two kids), and the seats are well padded. The three-section sun canopy provided a really good amount of cover in all weathers, and our mini testers were able to snooze nicely as the seat reclines to almost flat. On that note, the recline function is a drawstring one, which isn’t the smoothest for the passengers. Our testers were fine with this, but light sleepers (and their parents) beware.

It pushes well, and fits through most shop doors at 77.5cm wide, but not internal doors in our house. It is also so easy to fold – simply pull the handle in the seat and down it goes. A few minor downsides are that once folded it’s not freestanding, and the handlebar is not adjustable. But we can forgive that because there are two really good-sized baskets underneath the seat unit, making it really practical for larger families. Aside from a few relatively minor points, it’s hard to fault this pram – we were thoroughly impressed!

Best: For flexible configurations

Rating: 9/10

• Tandem seat configuration: Inline
• Single-mode: Yes
• Suitable from birth: Yes
• Weight in tandem mode: 17kg
• Width: 60cm

With luxury fabrics, leatherette trim and plush seats, this pram feels like it’s incredibly well made and looks very smart indeed. You can choose from a huge range of configurations when in duo mode, using a combination of bassinets, car seats and bassinets – all these options are in-line setups. Although initially, this seems a bit mind-blowing, we found that once we got our heads around the different attachments it was easy to use and super flexible.

Seat elevator adaptors lift the top seat, giving more space to the passenger below. Even when we had a bassinet on top, the mini tester on the bottom level had more than enough space (although they are quite low down and tricky to see). When pushing this pram in duo mode it is long – we felt a touch like a bus driver. This meant it isn’t exactly nippy around corners. But it is a light push – which is really important when you might be pushing two toddlers up an epic hill.

We found folding the pram not as easy as some – you have to remove all the seat units/bassinets before folding the chassis. This wasn’t great when we were in a rush. But it does have all the high-end finishes you’d expect from a luxury pram – large UPF canopies, large shopping basket, natural fibres, a really good glide and a robust footbrake. It also has a magnetic-clasp harness with very well-padded straps.

Extra bassinet (£295, Silvercrossbaby.com)

Extra seat unit: (£275, Silvercrossbaby.com)

Best: All-terrain double

Rating: 8/10

• Tandem seat configuration: Side by side
• Single-mode: No
• Suitable from birth: Yes
• Weight in tandem mode: 16kg
• Width: 76cm

We were really impressed with this side-by-side number. It’s big, there’s no denying that. But it feels very robust as a result, with a sturdy chassis and large tyres. The wheels are air-filled, which although liable to punctures makes it a really smooth ride across all terrains. The front wheels are lockable if you’re really off-roading it. And it feels a lot higher than some other side-by-sides we tried. This is great for tall parents, but might not be so ideal for more petite pilots. A foot brake goes right across the back wheels and is flip-flop friendly.

We are big fans of storage in a pram that’s proportional to the number of kids we’re transporting (two, in case you missed it). There’s a decent basket underneath the seats and then a zip pocket in the back of both the seats too for more important valuables. All the fabrics are really durable, and made from 100 per cent recycled PET too – so this pram has a big eco-friendly tick from us. The canopies are some of the most generous we tried, and they also flick out at the bottom, perfect for naptimes. Make no mistake – this is not a pram with a compact fold, and we found this function a bit of a workout. But if you’re not going to be folding it too regularly, then this is a fantastic pram for all terrains.

Best: For high-end features

Rating: 8/10

• Tandem seat configuration: Inline
• Single-mode: Yes
• Suitable from birth: Yes (with bassinet)
• Weight in tandem mode: 18.3kg
• Width: 62cm

This in-line double pram (that is seats or bassinets stacked like a double-decker) is built to grow with your family. A very smart and robust single pram, you can easily add an additional bassinet, car seat or seat unit it for an extra passenger. The huge under-seat basket converts to become the seat. This does then leave you short on basket space, which we didn’t love.

However, the seat unit and bassinet are both deluxe, the fabrics are thick and luxurious, and the mechanisms are great. We were really impressed with the all-season seat unit, where the upper pads zip off and reveal a breathable mesh fabric beneath for warmer months. The seat unit reclines really smoothly, but it is a bucket-style seat so not suitable from birth. You’ll need to use the bassinet for newborns. The swivel front wheels make manoeuvring around shopping aisles and busy streets easy, while the large foam-free, puncture-free back wheels give a smooth ride. Our gripe with juggling two kids with this pram is the fold is a bit of a faff – you have to remove the bassinets or seat units before folding the chassis. It was slightly, err… “challenging” trying to fold it down into the car, while also attempting to keep two toddlers under control.

There are also nice touches in the canopy, with a flick-out eyeshade and a piece of fabric that folds out and clips onto the seat unit to provide an enclosed, quiet space within the seat for naps. Certainly, this is a very well-made pram with loads of premium touches.

Single pram: (£600, Johnlewis.com)

Sibling seat unit: (£220, Johnlewis.com)

Best: Smaller in-line double

Rating: 8/10

• Tandem seat configuration: Inline
• Single-mode: Yes
• Suitable from birth: Yes (with bassinet)
• Weight in tandem mode: 16.4kg
• Width: 64cm

We really liked how easily it is to adapt this pram from newborn bassinets to seat units. The bassinets simply clip together underneath and it transforms them into a seat unit. It’s also simple to add the additional bassinet or seat unit with the use of some easy-to-slide-on adaptors. Perhaps this pram’s mechanisms aren’t quite as slick as some others. Yes, there’s an easy recline in the seat (no drawstring here – hurrah!), but we found the fold function and lockable wheels slightly plastic-y and tricky to coax into working. These will ease up over time, but we prefer things to not have a “knack” to them any more than necessary.

Big ticks go to the included footmuffs and cup holder – we like not having to fork out for these necessary extras. We also liked the five-point harness as it was relatively easy to strap a toddler in quickly, even when they were protesting. And shout out to the extra-large shopping basket, which still had an ok capacity even when the extra seat unit was on. And when the second seat unit is on, it’s got a fair bit of space for the lower passenger – much more generous than some of the others we tried.

Best: For easy folding

Rating: 9/10

• Tandem seat configuration: Side by side
• Single-mode: No
• Suitable from birth: Yes
• Weight in tandem mode: 16kg
• Width: 77.5cm

This was one of the best side-by-side doubles we tested. Four-wheel suspension gives for a smooth glide, while lockable front wheels make taking sharp corners easy, and negotiating more bumpy surfaces isn’t too much hassle either. We really liked the hand-operated brake – you don’t see many on double prams. And the huge three-panel canopies (with UPF, of course!) include two peek-a-boo windows, which close with magnets made checking up on our snoozing passengers easy.

The recline is drawstring, which we find a drawback (pun not included, for once), but the seats do recline totally flat, and a zip-down mesh back gives plenty of air circulation – no sweaty nap times here. And the seats themselves are nicely padded, and feel a bit more premium than others we tried without going overboard. Big shout out to the easy-to-close harness – someone’s heard our prayers over at Baby Jogger on that front. An almost alarmingly simple fold – pull the centre of the seats and it closes – made our lives easier. It’s not the smallest footprint when folded, and it’s not the narrowest side-by-side we tested, but we loved so many aspects of this pram. Often it feels like a double pram has had some corners cut in functionality or comfort – that’s not so here.

Best: All-in-one bundle

Rating: 8/10

• Tandem seat configuration: Inline
• Single-mode: Yes
• Suitable from birth: Yes
• Weight in tandem mode: 21kg
• Width: 62.5cm

We were thoroughly charmed by this cute and clever double pram. It has a range of sweet fabrics to go for – we went for an Orla Kiely-esque fika forest but there’s also cute rabbit, fox or bird print to choose from too. Unlike almost every other pram we tried, the wow came with everything included in the box that you’d need for an infant and an older child. This included both a seat unit and separate bassinet, rain covers, two hoods – it even has two cute pram teddies in the box. We told you it was charming.

A huge under-seat shopping basket gets a nice big tick from us, as does the one-hand recline. Adapting the pram between one and two passengers is easy. Both the seat and bassinet are plush, with contrasting fabrics and the seat unit has an easy-to-use harness. There’s even an integrated buggy board here – but it might be a struggle to use it when in duo mode as there’s not much room. You can’t really fold this pram with both seat and bassinet attached, but the chassis folds easily once they’re off. One thing to note is it’s quite a big footprint – it is “tiny-boot approved” in that it fits in a Fiat 500 boot – but you’d struggle to fit anything else in there with it.

Best: For design

Rating: 8/10

• Tandem seat configuration: Inline
• Single-mode: Yes
• Suitable from birth: Yes
• Weight in tandem mode: 16.2kg
• Width: 65cm

It’s hard to beat Cybex for a well-thought-out design, and the gazelle s is no different. This is a fantastic pram for a single passenger – two huge shopping baskets, great fold, easy to push. And then it cleverly converts into an in-line double. Remove one of the baskets (you still have a very sizable basket underneath) and add a second seat unit or bassinet, or Cybex infant car seat.

There are more than 20 seat combinations, so you’re sure to find one that suits you and your little passengers. The seat units have to be sat back to back though – this meant both our testers got a view, but they couldn’t interact with one another. You can fold it with one seat unit attached, but not two – we found this a touch disappointing, but nothing we couldn’t overlook. When folded it can be freestanding, and it fitted in our compact boot and under the stairs. We always appreciate the little touches Cybex manage to get into their products, and this pram is no different.

Single pram: (£629.95, Johnlewis.com)

Extra seat unit: (£269.95, Johnlewis.com)

Best: Value for money

Rating: 8/10

• Tandem seat configuration: side by side
• Single-mode: No
• Suitable from birth: Yes
• Weight in tandem mode: 13.5kg
• Width: 74.5cm

Talk about amazing value! This side-by-side pram has all the spoils of a much more pricey pram at a fraction of the cost. We loved the big foam-filled tyres, which took on bumps in the road with ease, and the lockable front wheels negotiated tight corners beautifully. Our mini testers seemed very comfy in the quilted seats. And although the clasp on the harness isn’t plush, it is quick to do up – so our planking toddlers were thwarted. There’s an average under-seat basket, which is slightly tricky to just lob stuff into but it’s there and that’s the main thing. There are a few different finishes on the venus you can go for. We plumped for black with tan leatherette details, and it looked really smart.

The seats fully recline (drawstring mechanism, but you can’t have everything!), and there’s a zip-down back panel to make nap times a breeze – literally. The fold is a bit creaky, but it does fold easily. Something to note is that the folded footprint isn’t tiny – it wouldn’t fit in a compact car boot. However, it is a good bit narrower than many of the other side by sides we tried, making it much easier to get through doors. Overall we were really pleasantly surprised by the Ickle Bubba venus.

Best: For city living

Rating: 8/10

• Tandem seat configuration: inline
• Single-mode: Yes
• Suitable from birth: Yes (with bassinet)
• Weight in tandem mode: 16.1kg
• Width: 74.5cm

Designed for active parents, the sleek is super lightweight and simple to use. Loads of the features have been clearly well-thought-out for real-world living. The one-hand recline on the seat units are smooth and didn’t wake our napping mini tester. The UPF50+ sun canopy has a soft-close peek-a-boo window and ventilation sections to keep air moving and prevent overheating. Certainly, our passenger looked comfortable in the padded seat. And there is decent suspension on this nippy little number. We also loved the under-seat shopping basket that had a cover – this prevented all our shopping from getting wet in the very British weather we tested it in.

With the addition of four adaptors, this single-seater can be converted into an in-line pram. We liked that you could have the seats world or parent facing, or one facing each way. When in duo mode there was plenty of space – no one was nose-to-nose with the back of the seat in front/up top. But you would need both seats facing the same way to recline them properly. You can fold this pram with one seat unit attached – but it must be in world-facing mode, which is a touch frustrating when using it in duo mode. Once it is folded, it can be freestanding – even when the seat unit is attached – which is handy for storage.

Single pram: (£799.99, Thule.com)

Sibling seat unit: (£269.99, Thule.com)