We Tested the Two Most Popular Jogging Stroller Brands, Thule and BOB, and Put Them Head to Head
"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links."
In the quest to find the ultimate jogging stroller, two names emerge with consistency over parental blogs and reviews just like this: Thule’s Urban Glide 2 and BOBs Revolution Flex 3.0. So we put them head-to-head to hopefully answer the question: Which is the better running stroller?
Our first jogging stroller was an outdated, vaguely purplish BOB, one wheel permanently marked with white spray paint. The result of a scattered Facebook Marketplace campaign, the negotiated $95 price tag felt exorbitant for our grad school budget. But that marketplace stroller, without a handbrake and a perpetually rattling wheel, changed our lives. That may sound dramatic; well, it felt dramatic. Our then-8-month-old was a poor napper unless in the lull of perpetual motion machines, and our Uppababy, while capable urbane, had trouble on the dirt roads and mountainous foothills of Flagstaff, Arizona. The BOB offered a sanctuary and a chance to sneak a workout in during a reliable daily nap.
When it comes down to it, a running stroller is an investment in both mental and physical health. And we do mean an investment, as buying new tends to be expensive. But for active parents, a running stroller is also a chance to share your lifestyle with your kids from an early age.
Brand Background and Popularity
Thule is a Swedish brand, making Scandinavian outdoor goods since 1942. You’ve probably seen its cargo carriers around at the grocery store, its bike racks around at the trailhead, and possibly its backpacks on the trail itself. In 2014, Thule started selling jogging strollers and children’s bike seats, meaning you’ve definitely seen them on the local running paths.
BOB, in contrast, launched in 1994 with a touring bike trailer, co-designed by a bike industry pro and an airline mechanic. When the two company founders started having kids, they designed their own running strollers, and the brand you know and recognize today was iterated. These days, BOB is strictly in the stroller game, as long as we fold wagons under the kid-carrying umbrella (spoiler: we do).
Both the BOB and Thule regularly top best-of lists for jogging strollers, and with good reason: A quick search of your local Facebook Marketplace will probably turn up these two brands more than any other. Each has a history of performance and popularity, and each has a dedicated group of parents who swear by them with the same passion as hometown baseball teams.
How We Tested
As a professional gear tester and a father of two (a curious 3.5-year-old and a feisty-beyond-her-age 1.5-year-old), the only way I hit my weekly miles is via the lifesaving invention of a running stroller.
At our house, we load up the stroller in all types of weather and for all types of occasions. Out of coffee? We’re running to the local cafe and roastery. Anything walkable and runnable, we’re ditching the car and taking the stroller. Did I almost miss pre-school pickup this week by underestimating how far the library was from the park and overestimating how fast I could run? No one knows. We have two kids, so I tested the double strollers, but Senior Editor at Best Products, Cat Bowen, has tested all four and agrees that the differences between the double model BOB and the Thule double align.
Side-by-Side Specs
For this particular round, I tested double strollers from each brand, though I have put a fair amount of miles on the regular single-editions back in one-child days. For our specs and weights, we’ve compared the single versions, which are the more popular of them. I’ve run with both brands’ single versions and found the performance comparable to the doubles.
Urban Glide 2 Double Jogging Stroller
• STROLLER WEIGHT: 23 lbs
• 49 lbs per seat
• MAX STROLLER WEIGHT CAPACITY: 75 lbs
• HARNESS: 5-Point Harness
• SUSPENSION: Dual
• Lockable Front Wheel
• Foldable with One Hand
• HANDBRAKE: On Handlebars
• Multi-Position Canopy with Peekaboo Windows
• HANDLEBAR: Adjustable
• HEIGHT: 48 inches tall
Urban Glide 2 Double Jogging Stroller
amazon.com
$449.95
Revolution Flex 3.0 Duallie Double Jogging Stroller
• STROLLER WEIGHT: 28.5 lbs
• 100 lbs total for double (50 pounds per seat)
• MAX STROLLER WEIGHT CAPACITY: 75 lbs
• HARNESS: 5-Point Harness
• SUSPENSION: Dual
• Lockable Front Wheel
• Foldable with One Hand
• HANDBRAKE: None
• Multi-Position Canopy with Peekaboo Windows
• HANDLEBAR: Adjustable
• HEIGHT: 45 inches tall
Revolution Flex 3.0 Duallie Double Jogging Stroller
amazon.com
$894.97
Head to Head
Throughout the testing process, we pitted the Urban Glide 2 and the Revolution 3.0 head-to-head over several categories, evaluating each on ride and suspension, ease of use, safety features, and other relevant factors. We also left them both out in the rain to see which would dry faster, which was 100% a purposeful test and totally not my personal failure to put the strollers in the garage one evening (they both dried at the same pace and held up just fine to the next day’s miles, thanks for asking).
Ride and Suspension
The ride, AKA how smooth the stroller pushes, is the biggest indicator of overall performance. A running stroller is an investment, one that you want to enjoy pushing instead of struggling with.
The BOB has a reasonably smooth ride, due to its large tires and hefty suspension. It’s a bigger stroller too, which at 6 feet 1 inch tall I appreciate. But that aggressive suspension and added dimension come at a weight cost. It’s heavy to push, and the pre-set handlebar positions have large gaps in range. So what works for me at 6 foot 1 doesn’t always work for my wife at 5 feet 6 inches (and a quarter she’d want me to add. 5 feet 6 and one-quarter inches).
The Thule is unbelievably smooth in comparison. The stroller’s base weight is 7 pounds lighter than the BOB (5.5 pounds lighter in the single version), which makes a difference. The pre-set handlebar gaps are smaller in range, allowing a more customizable running experience.
Both handlebars have wrist straps for added security, but both have their drawbacks. The Thule’s can only be used on the left hand due to the handbrake positioning and the BOB’s is scratchy out of the box.
Wheels
The front wheel in a jogging stroller is what separates it from the regular plebeian stroller only designed for walking. Both the Urban Glide and the Revolution have a single lockable front wheel. When walking, the stroller rotates and turns like a regular stroller. But when running, locking the front wheel provides a safer base for trailing at speed, preventing dangers of spinning or wobbling that can otherwise occur.
The Thule’s front wheel locks via a knob. There’s an adjustment dial that rotates the angle of the locked wheel very slightly to correct alignment. But for major wheel truing, you’ll need two Phillips head screwdrivers and a partner to steer you straight.
In contrast, the BOB has a simple lever that’s easy to engage and disengage. They also have a quick alignment adjustment option, using a spring and dial off the same lever.
The front wheel of the BOB doesn’t come off, which could cause storage or travel issues. But it's a boon for the alignment, which is less finicky than Thules.
While both work when properly set up, the BOBs are far easier to adjust on the fly and, in our experience, less likely to go astray.
Both the Thule and the BOB strollers’ rear wheels pop off with relative ease for storage, but the Thule's is easier with a button release. The BOB requires you to work with a somewhat tricky lever.
As for the wheels themselves, BOB’s wheels are burlier, akin to the kind of tires that come standard on gravel bikes these days. The Thule tires aren’t skinny, but in comparison to the BOB’s, they are. They're much more similar to the wheels you'd see on an urban street bicycle. They're both great, but the BOB wheels can take a lot more differences in terrain than the Thule can.
Kid’s Area
Both strollers feature a reclining kids’ seat with side storage (ours are filled with toddler toys, AKA Lighting McQueen matchbox cars) and 5-point harnesses.
The BOB’s space is slightly more spacious than the svelte Thule, due to the former’s larger dimensions. While my guess is the BOB’s seating is more comfortable than the Thule, my 3-year-old simply says both are “good,” which, in his world, is high praise. Each seat is rated for 50 lbs, not 200 lbs, so we’ll just have to take my toddler’s word for it.
As a parent, I can say with authority that the BOB’s finicky 5-point harness is the worst of the two; it requires a double compression to engage. That’s perhaps helpful if you run with a little Houdini, but my experience involved clipping fingers and my toddler learning a new word that I’d rather hadn’t. The Thules, in contrast, are perfectly adequate and easy to operate while wearing gloves and haven’t been the source of colorful vocabulary.
Each canopy is adjustable, with a peekaboo-style opening for checking in on the littles. The BOB’s canopy has much more coverage, helpful both on sunny days and for the occasional surprise drizzle since it’s also water resistant. It does feel flimsy while adjusting, but stays in place adequately even over bumps.
Thule’s adjustment is more robust, with satisfying clicks for each position. But the coverage is shallow, fine for some sunny days but not for surprise rainstorms where you really need the rain cover. The rain cover works well and also helps trap heat on cold days, but an extra accessory is a tough sell when the stroller’s price point is already high.
Storage Space
Both strollers have a large underseat storage area and cargo nets on the rear side of the kid’s seat. While the Urban Glide is smaller, it has surprisingly more storage than the BOB. It also has a cover and many clever zipper pockets to tuck away bits and bobs.
Because of its folding mechanism, the BOB has less underseat storage, capable of holding a small diaper bag and not much else. And the rear-facing cargo net is frustratingly bifurcated, too narrow to hold anything bigger than a very skinny water bottle. This was a constant source of frustration while testing the stroller when I tried to tuck kids’ hats, boots, and other casualties of running with strollers into these quick-access pockets. They didn’t fit, and I’d have to stop my run to deal with the impending gear and tear-carnage.
Locking and Braking
Both feature a foot-engaged parking lock, a standard feature on modern strollers. While I have a slight preference for the Thule brakes’ ease of operation, both are functional and useful — all that you can ask for from a stroller brake.
The real difference maker here is the Thule’s hand brake, a twistable contraption on the stroller’s handle. The hand brake brings the stroller to a controlled stop. Don’t think of the abrupt stop of a disc brake on modern bikes, more like the old rim friction brakes. It’s the kind of feature you never knew you needed until you try it, and now you won’t run without it. On hilly routes, it allowed me to control the stroller speed even with two kids strapped until the double unit. And the handbrake adds extra confidence at intersections and busy areas, where the thread of a distracted driver always gives me nightmares. Frankly, it’s a safety feature that should come standard on every running stroller, and the BOB not having it is a huge disadvantage.
Folding
Each of these running strollers folds for storage and transportation convenience, basically a prerequisite in modern stroller design.
The Thule folds up via an ingeniously simple but tricky-to-master handle concealed in the front of the stroller. It’s easier to use with one hand and locks automatically in position via a plastic side clamp. It unfolds easily, too, as long as you remember to undo the lock (I frequently forget, but that’s user error — not a design flaw).
The BOB requires a more complicated two-step process, involving two hands and corresponding levers on the stroller handlebars. Then you pull a third red handle, resembling a parachute ejection cord. Pull hard enough and the whole contraption folds upon itself. Then, a strap-a-buckle system locks the folder stroller in place. It’s a two-handed job, hard to pull off with a toddler hanging from one arm.
What Others Say
There’s always an element of subjectivity to head-to-head comparisons: running strollers, like running shoes, will fit differently into people’s lives. Best Products polled other parents about their experiences, positive and negative, using the Thule and BOB.
Hannah is a mom of two (2.5 and 8 months) and lives outside of Denver. She has run with both the Urban Glide and Revolution Flex and says, “I like the Thule way more. Even though we have the double Thule and single BOB, the Thule handles better. It weighs less, is easier to steer, and feels better to run with. There is more storage room in the Thule — I can fit our whole diaper bag in it. The only thing I don’t love about the Thule is that it doesn’t fit through inside doors, but that’s a double stroller thing.”
Caroline, who lives in California, is also all in on the Thule. “The Thule Urban Glide 2 is buttery smooth. I’ve tried so many different jogging strollers and it’s the absolute best! I’m over-the-top obsessed with my Thule Urban Glide. The handbrake is my favorite for steep hills in the mountains!”
Rebekah, a former collegiate runner and mom of two who lives in Michigan, alternates between the single BOB and the double BOB. “We got the single BOB brand new, and [got] the double BOB used. I’ve only used the BOB running strollers for my boys. Having had them just over a year apart, they allowed a lot of versatility with and without car seat adaption as they grew. I’ve used them for many road miles and mild trail runs. I’ve found them to be smooth on turns, and easy to fold and lift into and out of the car. The straps are easy to adjust and you can recline the seats if your littles end up falling asleep, which provides a little comfort perk. Overall I’m a proud owner and BOB running stroller mom, and would recommend them to anyone!”
Cat Bowen, marathon runner and Senior Commerce Editor at Best Products, had this to add about the Revolution: “The BOB Gear Revolution offers a comfortable ride for the driver and the passenger. Thanks to the suspension system and fantastic tires, it doesn’t have any problems gliding over multiple surfaces. I don’t love the coarseness of the wrist strap, but that’s easily and inexpensively fixed by buying a softer, after-market strap. I frequently attach my hydration vest to the handlebars and it still feels solid, even with the additional weight. It takes some learning when it comes to folding it up, but once you get it, you’re golden.”
Conclusion
I almost regret saying this, but I’ve joined the cult of Thule. I thought it would go the other way, truly. In my mind, the BOB was the gravel bike to Thule’s carbon road bike — approachable, all-terrain, and (slightly) more affordable.
But the designers at Thule know what they’re doing. A sleek Swedish design style deceptively conceals ample storage. The suspension and the ride are superior and buttery smooth. And the handbrake is a safety game changer.
The BOB is a great stroller, and in my experience, its hardiness and durability make for an excellent buy. The Urban Glide takes care of you if you take care of it. The BOB is built for apocalypse-level abuse, and for bigger families, that’s pretty critical.
If you don’t trust us, trust only the world record holder for the stroller mile: Ruben Sanca ran his in a cool 4:32 while pushing his then 5-year-old son — and he did it with a Thule.
Urban Glide 2 Jogging Stroller
amazon.com
$449.95
You Might Also Like
