What kind of stroller should I buy? This is definitely one of the most frequent questions we receive from our active readers who are looking to start a family. Most soon-to-be moms and dads have a litany of requirements. They tell me that they plan to baby wrap or babywear when hiking through rugged terrain, but their stroller needs to keep pace from city errands to theme parks. They want something that can have a car seat clicked in and fold without a ton of fuss, and that can grow from one to two babies. That last specification is the real kicker that throws a lot of options out of the running. The Uno2Duo stroller manages to check every single box with ease.
New from our long-term sponsor Graco, the Uno2Duo stroller is one of few strollers we’ve seen that can handle the baby phase right on up through preschooler life. With a total of 22 different ways to ride, this multitasking masterpiece of strollerdom can handle whatever your family throws its way.
Functionality of the Graco Uno2Duo Stroller
First things first, every parent wants a stroller that has built-in ability to click a car seat in directly. In today’s high-tech world of strollers, this is non-negotiable. It drives me a little bit nuts when manufacturers treat car seats as an afterthought, so I’m happy to say that the top seat on the Uno2Duo stroller has a removable snack tray that serves as a base for a Graco ClickConnect infant car seat. No added adapters needed. Yes! We’re still using the infant car seat for our youngest, but he is at the top of the height/weight range, so we’ll be transitioning him soon. That’s not all, though. The top seat converts to a bassinet and also comes off completely to make way for the car seat to click straight into the stroller frame. This is perfect for little babies who aren’t yet holding their heads upright and have no use for a seat.
We discovered this particular stroller setup further down the line than that, though. I had a 3-year-old and a 1-year-old when this came into our lives, so I’ve had the pleasure of fully testing the Uno2Duo in its most fully-featured capacity. One of the very first things I did – after wheeling it around with my preschooler in the top seat to get a feel for it in single-kid mode – was to pull the lever to extend the back wheels five inches and then pop up two built-in adapters to add the second seat.
This stroller is sold in three configurations: as a single stroller, as a travel system with one seat plus an infant car seat included, and as a double stroller with two seats included. The second seat and the car seat are both sold separately as well. As you can see, even if you don’t get the second seat, there’s a standing platform back there that’s super handy for multiple kids.
In case you didn’t catch that earlier, this stroller literally extends to accommodate the extra kid. Most single-to-double converting-style strollers simply stick you with that additional length from the beginning. The handle also telescopes, which is an oft-used feature for my 6’4” husband.
The upper and lower seats both have massive canopies, which is the one thing I found lacking in my review of the RoomFor2 stroller. When my youngest son is in the configuration shown above, I can close the stroller canopy and the car seat canopy and actually eek out a nap for him at the park. Both seats also have harnesses that convert from 5-point to 3-point, so I can safely buckle up my toddler and my preschooler. For the most part I still just click my infant car seat in here for errands without bothering to unbuckle and transfer him, but I know the day is coming when we’ll make full use of our options here. It’s still nice to have both seats on now in case I opt to babywear the littlest dude, keep the 3-year-old below, and have the 5-year-old climb into the seat up-top.
Maximum containment, you guys. I find it necessary on occasion.
The Uno2Duo stroller has a cell phone case in addition to the usual cup accessory area on the other side, and I find myself sticking all sorts of stuff in there. It’s helpful to keep my knick-knacks separated, since everything else tends to get swallowed up in my purse in the GIGANTIC basket below.
To put the stroller away, I click the car seat back into the car seat base, have the preschooler climb out from the bottom, and stow the lower seat separately in my trunk.
The stroller can be folded with the upper seat attached. Yes! It’s certainly not the flattest-folding stroller I’ve seen, but the top seat does come off easily to help this stroller maneuver into trunks of various sizes. In its full configuration it is heavy and it is large, but that’s honestly what I need with my genetically gigantic babies who require comfort and a nap space on-the-go. It fits into my truck or minivan without issue, and I do go to the effort to rearrange some stuff and remove the upper seat to accommodate this stroller when I drive my tiny sedan.
Sometimes, choices have to be made. Functionality, storage, and bells and whistles get pitted against compactness and agility. What I love about the Uno2Duo stroller is that you can get ALL of the options in one box, parsing it out to serve your needs as your family grows. Pare it down to just the frame with the car seat early in your parenting journey, and add the other components on as you go. Even if I didn’t have a minivan that this whole getup could fit into, I’d still start with the frame and base seat, keeping it configured in its smallest iteration. You can take advantage of the HUGE basket to stash all the “new mama gear” that piles up with baby number one. When baby number two shows up, you’ll be way more prepared than most.
What products have you gotten a lot of use out as your family has grown?