Britax B-Ready Review

The Britax B-Ready is a high-functioning single stroller that expands to accommodate two children from the infant to older child stages, with a second seat or car seat that can be added (or removed) at any time. In fact, it can assume a total of 14 different combinations. It's one downfall: it is large and heavy. So you may want to start lifting weights at the gym before making this purchase.

Performance Comparison

Ease-of-Use

We found the B-Ready above average in its overall ease-of-use: a 7 of 10. Although heavy, it's a snap to fold and unfold and can hold quite a bit of stuff. It has a higher seat height than many of the other strollers we tested in this review and the seat is reversible to be parent-facing or forward-facing. As mentioned above, this stroller also accommodates a bassinet or infant car seat easily. With further accessory purchase, you can stroll two children at the same time. This is not a side-by-side double stroller, but rather an in-line system so as not to increase the width of the stroller. Seating for a second can be easily added or removed at any time. However, it seems that it is more functional for different aged kids than twins

The Britax B-Ready stroller folds in two quick steps using two hands and has an automatic chassis lock. We found it is best to fold with the brakes on, and as a bonus you don't need to bend over to fold it, and afterwards, it both self-stands and can be rolled around when folded. Unfolding it takes two hands and two steps as well. Because of its weight, it's difficult to actually pick up and load, and the wheels tend to stick out in the collapsed position. Based on this, we do not recommend this stroller for public transportation or for a lot of loading and unloading.

The large adjustable sunshade is nice with a magnetic-closure, mesh peek-a-boo window and a visor providing additional shading. You can release velcro from the back of the stroller's sunshade for low sun angles.

Parent and Child Trays Not Included With Purchase

For all of its mommy and baby-friendly features, we were surprised to see that the B-Ready only has a single cup holder for adults (which sits awkwardly on the side of the stroller), and does not include a child tray with the purchase price (a parent organizer and child cup holder are sold separately).

On the positive side, the B-Ready is very comfortable. The handlebar's wide adjustability from 31.5" to 44", front and rear wheel suspension, padding on the buckle, strap and headrest, good foot clearance for longer strides, reversible top seat with four recline positions, and deep seat, all make this stroller an enjoyable ride.

With a very large storage basket (accessible from any side), in addition to the two pockets on the back of the seat for smaller necessities, the B-Ready can carry a lot. A unique feature of this stroller is the zippered front on the underseat basket - this helps keep items secure and clean.

Maneuverability

When it comes to overall maneuverability, the B-Ready fares average, a 5 of 10. It's wide, long, heavy, and not very responsive when pushed and especially clunky with the front wheels sticking out as well as difficult to maneuver in tight spaces. The frame has a lot of play and flex making it difficult to be precise or quick when turning. We actually like the Baby Jogger City Select better when it comes to off-pavement strolling.

When you don't need to do a lot of turning, it can be a smooth ride boasting foam-filled tires and a four-point suspension.

Safety

We gave this stroller our highest safety rating of the review, a 9 of 10 (along with the Baby Jogger City Select).

The brakes are solid and secure, and easy to engage and disengage via a one-step linked parking brake with an on/off indicator.

The headrest is padded, as is the five-point adjustable harness, shoulder and crotch straps. The shoulder straps adjust easily, but the buckle is stiff and requires two hands to operate.

Scoring above average in our sideways and backwards tip over angle tests, it was in the top third of all 21 strollers we reviewed for each test.

Quality/Durability

This stroller scored very well in Quality/Durability with an 8 of 10. Overall construction is strong with heavy fabric and frame, although we did find that the Baby Jogger City Select felt a notch sturdier and tighter to us.

Weight/Folded Size

Scoring a low 3 of 10 in the Weight/Folded Size metric, this stroller is long, wide, and heavy at 29 lbs 12 oz. The third heaviest and widest stroller we tested in this review. It is also large when folded.

The Britax B-Ready stroller is designed for newborns through children up to 55 pounds. Without the infant car seat or bassinet addition, Britax recommends that an infant be at least 6 months old before using the stroller alone.

Ease-of-Set-up

This stroller took us 10:13 (min:sec) to set up, with a score of 8 of 10. Setup was similar to the UPPAbaby Vista. Documentation was not great, but workable.

Best Applications

For a single stroller, we recommend you look elsewhere as the B-Ready is heavy and cumbersome. However, it's hard to beat the value of turning a single stroller into a double later down the line, or when having a friend join in for the ride. With the in-line doubling up, you don't need to worry about getting through narrow spaces and doors as you would with a double stroller; it fits better in a car trunk or closet as well. If expandability is a top priority, we recommend considering the Baby Jogger City Select instead, which at the same price just edges out the B-Ready in maneuverability, quality/durability and weight/folded size. If your budget allows an extra $250, our favorite single stroller with similar expandability capabilities is our Editors' Choice winner the UPPAbaby Vista.

Value

This stroller is a good value as a single stroller with an expandability option, although we feel that an even better value is the City Select. A warning about in-line strollers: when the kids get older they may argue about who gets the front seat or back seat, so you may want to set up some riding rules from the get go.

Conclusion

If you have a newborn and are planning on adding to the brood in the future, then an expandable stroller is something to consider, however, they will be larger and heavier. Nonetheless, the Britax B-Ready fits its name: it's certainly ready for another with extra purchasing. We feel, however, that there are better options and, as above, advise you to consider either the UPPAbaby Vista or the Baby Jogger City Select if expandability is a top priority.