“All-terrain” and “city” pushchairs are marketed as if they’re completely different product categories, and the price gap between the two can be significant. In practice, the real question is much narrower than the marketing suggests: what surfaces will you actually push this thing over, most days, for the next two or three years? Here’s how to work out which one actually earns its keep.
What the terms actually describe
Neither “all-terrain” nor “city” is a defined safety category — both types of pushchair are still required to meet the same BS EN 1888 standard covering construction, braking, folding and stability, as confirmed by the British Standards Institution’s listing for the standard. The difference is purely in the engineering choices made within that standard: all-terrain (sometimes called “3-wheeler” or “jogger-style”) pushchairs typically use larger, air- or foam-filled tyres and a longer wheelbase for stability on grass, gravel, sand or uneven pavements. City or “lightweight” pushchairs use smaller, harder wheels, a tighter turning circle, and usually a more compact fold, optimised for pavements, shops, buses and stairs rather than off-road stability.
Where all-terrain genuinely matters
If your regular routine includes unpaved surfaces — country walks, a gravel driveway, a beach, a village without consistently maintained pavements, or regular use on grass at parks — the larger wheels and longer wheelbase of an all-terrain pushchair aren’t a luxury, they’re what keeps the ride smooth and, more importantly, keeps the pushchair stable. RoSPA’s pushchair and buggy guidance specifically flags stability against tipping as a real risk factor, warning against overloading a pushchair or hanging heavy bags from the handles because doing so raises the risk of tipping — a risk that’s naturally higher on uneven ground to begin with, which is part of why the wider wheelbase matters on rough terrain rather than being purely about ride comfort.
Where city/lightweight wins on practicality
For anyone doing most of their pushing on pavements, in and out of shops, on public transport, or up and down stairs in a flat without a lift, the compact fold and lighter weight of a city pushchair matters daily in a way that all-terrain capability, used rarely, doesn’t repay. A pushchair that folds one-handed and fits in a narrow hallway or a small car boot solves a problem you’ll face multiple times a day; extra wheel stability for terrain you cross once a month is a much smaller practical return for the extra size, weight and often cost.
The middle ground: three-wheelers aren’t only for off-road use
It’s worth noting that three-wheeled pushchairs, often bundled into the “all-terrain” category, aren’t automatically bulky. Some three-wheeler designs prioritise a tight turning circle for pavement and shop use over rough-terrain capability, and some four-wheeled pushchairs use larger wheels for a smoother ride without sacrificing manoeuvrability. Wheel count is a rough proxy for terrain capability, not a reliable one — check the actual tyre size, material (air-filled vs foam-filled vs solid) and wheelbase width on the specific model rather than assuming from the wheel count alone.
Safety and maintenance checks apply to both types
Whichever type you choose, RoSPA’s guidance applies equally: check the pushchair carries the correct BS EN 1888 compliance label, test the brakes by locking and pushing against the lock before relying on them, keep children’s fingers clear when folding or unfolding the mechanism, and don’t overload the pushchair or hang bags on the handles, since this affects stability regardless of wheel size. Air-filled tyres on all-terrain models have one extra maintenance point the city equivalents don’t: they need occasional checking for correct pressure and can puncture, which is worth factoring into the “lower ongoing cost” assumption some parents make about all-terrain models.
A practical way to decide
Rather than deciding by lifestyle self-image (“we’re an outdoorsy family”), it’s more useful to count actual weekly use: how many times per week will this pushchair cross grass, gravel, sand or genuinely uneven ground, versus pavement, shop floors, and public transport? If unpaved use is a small minority of total use, a well-built city pushchair with reasonably sized wheels will usually serve better day-to-day than an all-terrain model bought for the occasional country walk. If unpaved use is a regular, weekly feature of your routine, the extra stability and ride comfort of an all-terrain design is solving a real, recurring problem rather than an occasional one.
Bottom line
Both all-terrain and city pushchairs are required to meet the same BS EN 1888 safety standard — the difference is entirely about which surfaces the wheels, suspension and wheelbase are optimised for. Match the design to how often you’ll actually be on rough ground rather than to how the product is marketed, and check the same safety points (compliance label, brakes, harness, folding mechanism) regardless of which type you choose.