UPPAbaby G-Lite Stroller Review

We purchased the UPPAbaby G-Lite and subjected it to more than 100 tests and measurements along with 19 other strollers. The G-Lite is an ultra-lightweight umbrella stroller that maneuvers well and folds relatively quickly. It lacks kid comfort and ease of use features, and although the folding is fast, the mechanism is annoying.



UPPAbaby G-LITE


Test Lab Score 64

Moderately priced, very lightweight, lacking in seat comfort and maneuverability


Weight, Size
86
Folding
60
Maneuverability
84
Kid Comfort
54
Ease of Use
70
Quality
69


How it Compares

The UPPAbaby G-Lite, G-Lite, and Minu V2 are all under 20 lbs and met our criteria for lightweight or umbrella strollers. The G-Lite has the lowest price of the three.


The G-Lite and G-Lite had lower scores than the Minu V2 and although they are all solid strollers, none of them were top performers in the group.

Related Reading: Best Umbrella Strollers Tested

UPPAbaby G-LITE
Amazon
Test Lab Score64
Weight, Size
86
Folding
60
Maneuverability
84
Kid Comfort
54
Ease of Use
70
Quality
69
SpecificationsThis Product
Single, Dual Pedal BrakeDual
Minimum Age6 months
Maximum Weight55 lb
Car Seat Adapter IncludedNo
Weight11.2 lb
Folded Size3.9 ft3
Fold Rating8
Fold Time3 sec
Steering Rating8
Ride Smoothness115
Kid Cupholders0
Back Recline45 °
Storage Capacity0.65 ft3
Buckle Operation Rating10
Tips With BagYes
Pinch Rating7
Wheel Quality Rating8
Show more rows


A Few Criticisms

The G-Lite is well-loved but there are also some complaints. We read all of the negative reviews and summarized them in the table below. In the column next to each criticism we share our own experience in testing and using the stroller.

CriticismOur Experience
No back supportAgreed. The seat back is hammock-style and doesn’t offer rigid support. We do like the ventilation it provides however.
Difficult to foldAgreed. The seat back is hammock-style and doesn’t offer rigid support. We do like the ventilation it provides, however.
Poor maneuverabilityPartially true. The G-Lite steers reasonably well, jumps curbs easily, and rolls straight without pulling to the side. It doesn’t do well on rough terrain.
Wheels and brakes are unreliableAgreed on the brakes. Getting them to engage consistently has been a problem. We haven’t had any problems with the wheels although they are not the highest quality.
Uncomfortable seatThe shape of the seat does cause some slouching.
Poorly placed strapsWe haven’t noticed any problems with the strap placement.
Difficult buckle operationDisagree. We like only having two clips to snap in and the buckle requires an appropriate amount of force.
Too heavy and bulkyDisagree about weight and agree about bulkiness. At 11.2 lbs it is one of the lightest strollers on the market. It is quite big and bulky when folded.
Doesn’t stand when folded.False. It does stand; see our picture below.
Limited seat reclineTrue. It has only one reclined position that isn’t very reclined.

Testing and Research

We selected the top 20 lightweight strollers on the market based on customer feedback, their safety characteristics, and weight and purchased them for extensive testing. We performed more than 100 tests and measurements on each stroller in the group. Each stroller was used by multiple parents and kids too.

Weight and Folded Size

The G-Lite folds umbrella style with a hinge in the middle and a long narrow collapsed form. It is the lightest stroller we tested at 11.2 lbs. The shape and length of this stroller make it unacceptable as a carry-on item in airlines but it can certainly be gate checked.

Weight

UPPAbaby G-LITE
11.2 lb
Kolcraft Cloud Plus
11.8 lb
gb Pockit+ All-Terrain
12.3 lb
Zoe Tour+ Luxe
12.5 lb
Inglesina Quid
13.0 lb
Summer Infant 3Dlite
13.0 lb
Joolz Aer
13.4 lb
Dream On Me
13.5 lb
Babyzen YoYo²
13.6 lb
Cybex Libelle
13.7 lb
Baby Jogger City Tour 2
14.0 lb
Summer 3Dlite+
14.0 lb
Besrey
14.4 lb
Graco NimbleLite
14.8 lb
UPPAbaby G-Luxe
15.0 lb
Bugaboo Butterfly
16.1 lb
UPPAbaby MINU V2
16.9 lb
Chicco Liteway
17.2 lb
Britax B-Lively
20.0 lb
Baby Jogger City Mini GT2
20.0 lb

Folded Size

gb Pockit+ All-Terrain
1.0 ft3
Cybex Libelle
1.1 ft3
Babyzen YoYo²
1.7 ft3
Joolz Aer
1.8 ft3
Bugaboo Butterfly
2.0 ft3
Baby Jogger City Tour 2
2.2 ft3
Dream On Me
2.3 ft3
Inglesina Quid
2.5 ft3
Zoe Tour+ Luxe
2.6 ft3
Besrey
2.9 ft3
UPPAbaby MINU V2
3.3 ft3
UPPAbaby G-LITE
3.9 ft3
Kolcraft Cloud Plus
4.1 ft3
Summer Infant 3Dlite
4.4 ft3
UPPAbaby G-Luxe
4.6 ft3
Britax B-Lively
4.7 ft3
Summer 3Dlite+
4.7 ft3
Chicco Liteway
4.8 ft3
Graco NimbleLite
5.0 ft3
Baby Jogger City Mini GT2
5.5 ft3

Ease of Use

For such a lightweight stroller, the G-Lite has quite a large storage basket at 0.65 ft3. We were able to fit a reasonably sized diaper backpack in it. It is rated to hold 10 lbs.

uppababy g-lite storage basket, side view

The back of the basket serves as a mesh pocket that can be used for damp or smelly things, or as a small-item pocket.

mesh pocket on g-lite stroller, showing fingers opening it

The seat buckle has only two clips and they attach to the shoulder and hip straps of the 5-point harness. The buckling and unbuckling are smooth and did not take much pressure to push the release button.

buckling and unbuckling the g-lite harness

I found the harness adjustment less frustrating and more intuitive than most strollers. Even raising the shoulder straps to higher slots wasn’t too difficult because it is easy to access the back and front of the seat at the same time.

The seat in this stroller reclines but there are only two positions, reclined and upright. The reclining mechanism is two zippers on the back sides of the seat. It works but certainly isn’t as easy as the competition.

It doesn’t recline far but we’ll discuss that under Kid Comfort below.

reclining the g-lite seat with the side zippers

The dual, umbrella-style handles on this stroller are not adjustable in height and are fixed at 39.5 inches depending on where you grab them. This means that taller parents might want to push farther up on the handles.

The handles are covered with foam and feel mediocre in terms of quality. As with most umbrella strollers, there is a little flex between the handles, but nothing that makes it feel unstable.

uppababy g-lite handles

A plastic cup holder attaches to the frame with a note that says 1.5 lbs or less. It can be removed but I usually leave it on when I fold the stroller.

showing back of stroller and cup holder

There is no peekaboo window built into the canopy.

We were not too impressed with the user manual but we unboxed and assembled the stroller in only 4 minutes, so the manual isn’t too important. Except for putting on the front wheels, it comes fully assembled.

uppababy g-lite unboxing

The brakes have two individual pedals, one on each rear wheel. We found them difficult to engage, sometimes requiring multiple pushes with our feet. It was also painful to release the pedals when wearing sandals.

showing the two red, rear brake pedals on the g-lite

The UPPAbaby G-Lite we purchased is the Jake style which has a black canopy and metallic blue frame.

There is also a red version of the G-Lite called the Denny style, with a red canopy and aluminum (silver) colored frame.

The G-Lite is not infant car seat compatible, however, there are several other accessories available including:

Steering and Maneuverability

The UPPAbaby G-Lite wasn’t a winner but performed reasonably well on our steering course scoring 8 out of 10 stars. This score measures how well it steers and pushes on normal, paved, and flat surfaces. Ease of Steering:

Joolz Aer
10
Zoe Tour+ Luxe
10
Summer 3Dlite+
10
Summer Infant 3Dlite
10
Babyzen YoYo²
9
Besrey
9
UPPAbaby MINU V2
9
Baby Jogger City Mini GT2
9
Inglesina Quid
9
Baby Jogger City Tour 2
9
Chicco Liteway
8
Graco NimbleLite
8
gb Pockit+ All-Terrain
8
UPPAbaby G-LITE
8
UPPAbaby G-Luxe
8
Cybex Libelle
8
Bugaboo Butterfly
8
Dream On Me
8
Britax B-Lively
7
Kolcraft Cloud Plus
6

uppababy g-lite on rough stones showing wheels getting stuck

The G-Lite performs poorly off-road and on sidewalks that aren’t flat or have a lot of cracks. To be fair, this is true for most umbrella-style strollers.

A bright spot for the G-Lite is its ability to jump curbs. It had a lower curb jumping force requirement than most other strollers:

Dream On Me
na
Summer Infant 3Dlite
6 kg
gb Pockit+ All-Terrain
6 kg
UPPAbaby G-LITE
6 kg
Baby Jogger City Tour 2
8 kg
Summer 3Dlite+
8 kg
Kolcraft Cloud Plus
8 kg
Babyzen YoYo²
8 kg
UPPAbaby G-Luxe
9 kg
UPPAbaby MINU V2
10 kg
Chicco Liteway
10 kg
Baby Jogger City Mini GT2
11 kg
Bugaboo Butterfly
11 kg
Cybex Libelle
11 kg
Besrey
12 kg
Britax B-Lively
13 kg
Joolz Aer
13 kg
Graco NimbleLite
15 kg
Inglesina Quid
16 kg
Zoe Tour+ Luxe
16 kg

The G-Lite also has less tendency to veer than most of the competition. Higher numbers in this table indicate that the stroller pulls less to go off-center. Tendency to Veer:

Britax B-Lively
299 in
Bugaboo Butterfly
232 in
Baby Jogger City Tour 2
224 in
Inglesina Quid
204 in
UPPAbaby G-LITE
201 in
Baby Jogger City Mini GT2
196 in
Summer 3Dlite+
186 in
Graco NimbleLite
164 in
UPPAbaby MINU V2
162 in
Joolz Aer
155 in
Chicco Liteway
147 in
Kolcraft Cloud Plus
140 in
Besrey
136 in
Babyzen YoYo²
132 in
UPPAbaby G-Luxe
130 in
Zoe Tour+ Luxe
130 in
Cybex Libelle
125 in
Summer Infant 3Dlite
120 in
gb Pockit+ All-Terrain
117 in
Dream On Me
90 in

Overall Steering and Maneuverability Ratings:

Kolcraft Cloud Plus
69
gb Pockit+ All-Terrain
72
Dream On Me
74
Chicco Liteway
77
Cybex Libelle
78
Britax B-Lively
79
Graco NimbleLite
79
UPPAbaby G-Luxe
80
Babyzen YoYo²
82
Zoe Tour+ Luxe
83
Besrey
84
UPPAbaby G-LITE
84
Inglesina Quid
85
Bugaboo Butterfly
85
UPPAbaby MINU V2
86
Summer Infant 3Dlite
89
Baby Jogger City Tour 2
91
Joolz Aer
91
Baby Jogger City Mini GT2
91
Summer 3Dlite+
94

Folding and Transport

Our “How to fold the UPPAbaby G-Lite” video:

Many people hate the UPPAbaby G-Lite and G-Luxe folding mechanisms. I don’t like it either but I’ve at least grown used to it. It takes two hands because you have to pull separate rings on each handle. Additionally, you have to press a release button on one handle at the same time as pulling the ring.

Despite the difficult process, I can fold the G-Lite in about 3 seconds on average and unfold it in 4 seconds.

One good thing about the stroller is that it stays folded well. The latch that keeps it folded snaps on reliably and stays until you unlatch it so you don’t have to worry about the stroller opening up when you are carrying it.

It will stand on its own if you arrange the wheels just right but it certainly isn’t stable.

uppababy g-lite standing folded

You can drag it by a handle and let it roll on its rear wheels when it is folded. But to keep my hands free I carry it by the shoulder strap which is convenient to access on the back of the stroller. The strap isn’t padded or adjustable but it is fairly comfortable because the stroller is so light.

Woman using the shoulder strap to carry the g-lite stroller

This stroller definitely does not fit in an airplane overhead bin! Even though it is the lightest stroller of the 20 we purchased, it ranks 12th in folded size.

Fold Ratings:

Zoe Tour+ Luxe
10
Bugaboo Butterfly
10
Baby Jogger City Mini GT2
10
Inglesina Quid
10
Graco NimbleLite
10
Britax B-Lively
10
Joolz Aer
10
UPPAbaby MINU V2
9
Chicco Liteway
9
UPPAbaby G-LITE
8
UPPAbaby G-Luxe
8
Besrey
8
Babyzen YoYo²
7
Cybex Libelle
7
Summer Infant 3Dlite
7
Summer 3Dlite+
7
Baby Jogger City Tour 2
7
gb Pockit+ All-Terrain
6
Kolcraft Cloud Plus
5
Dream On Me
1

Kid Comfort

The G-Lite ranks 8 out of 20 in the smoothness of the ride. We measured the acceleration levels in the seat which are affected by vibration and bumpiness. Ride Smoothness:

Cybex Libelle
87
Joolz Aer
88
Baby Jogger City Mini GT2
90
UPPAbaby G-Luxe
97
gb Pockit+ All-Terrain
100
Zoe Tour+ Luxe
102
Britax B-Lively
104
UPPAbaby G-LITE
115
Bugaboo Butterfly
119
Summer Infant 3Dlite
119
Baby Jogger City Tour 2
122
Kolcraft Cloud Plus
127
Summer 3Dlite+
131
Besrey
134
Inglesina Quid
137
Babyzen YoYo²
139
Chicco Liteway
139
Graco NimbleLite
141
UPPAbaby MINU V2
163
Dream On Me
191

The maximum weight limit of the G-Lite is 55 lbs which is high for an umbrella stroller. The seat height of 20.5 inches and seat depth of 10 inches, as well as several other measurements we made are sufficient for supporting bigger kids.

Comfort is a separate issue. Some children find the hammock-style back comfortable and others don’t like feeling slouched. The base of the seat sits at a 24 degree angle which is much steeper than other strollers. The seat back is only at 54 degrees which isn’t very upright. In its reclined position the seat goes back to 45 degrees so there isn’t much difference between reclined and upright.

doll in the uppababy g-lite in a reclined position
The G-Lite in its fully reclined position

There is no padding on the harnesses and no fabric behind the crotch buckle to block heat if the buckle has been sitting in the sun.

Also missing is an extendable leg rest, kid cup holder, snack tray, or a snack cup.

The canopy when fully extended provides reasonable sun protection although legs and possibly arms and parts of the torso will be exposed to the sun.

g-lite with canopy extended

Quality and Safety

Most of the parts and materials on the G-Lite seem to be of high quality. The folding mechanism has worked consistently.

We haven’t experienced problems with the wheels although they don’t feel particularly sturdy.

These white stress marks and scratches on the side have appeared on the cup holder presumably from the stroller laying folded with pressure on the cup holder plastic.

the uppababy cup holder showing white stress marks on the plastic near where it connects to the stroller frame, and scratches on the outside surface

The material has worn well, as have the foam handles.

We attempted to tip the stroller over backward by hanging a 12 pound bag on the handles. The stroller fell backward. It is never recommended to hang heavy objects on stroller handles for this reason. About 25% of the strollers tipped backward and the others did not.

We also measured the force required to tip the stroller over to the side. This stroller required less force to tip over than most other strollers in the group, probably due to its weight and wheelbase configuration.

We looked for pinch points on the stroller that could result in cuts, pinching, or fingers or limbs getting caught. We found several places where pinching can occur. It is always wise to keep children away from the stroller when it is being collapsed or opened and keep their fingers away from the wheels.

We tested the noise level of the G-Lite and found it to be among the noisier strollers in the group.

Average Decibel Level:

Zoe Tour+ Luxe
44
Bugaboo Butterfly
44
Britax B-Lively
45
Baby Jogger City Mini GT2
46
Baby Jogger City Tour 2
46
Cybex Libelle
47
gb Pockit+ All-Terrain
47
Joolz Aer
47
Babyzen YoYo²
49
UPPAbaby MINU V2
50
UPPAbaby G-Luxe
52
Besrey
53
Dream On Me
55
UPPAbaby G-LITE
56
Summer 3Dlite+
56
Graco NimbleLite
58
Inglesina Quid
60
Summer Infant 3Dlite
62
Chicco Liteway
64
Kolcraft Cloud Plus
64

UPPAbaby G-Lite vs G-Luxe

uppababy g-luxe stroller on the left and uppababy g-lite stroller on the right
Left: UPPAbaby G-Luxe, Right: UPPAbaby G-Lite

The UPPAbaby G-Luxe is about 30% more expensive than the G-Lite. The G-Luxe is more, well, Luxe.

The difference between the two strollers is primarily in the material and part quality, which is superior in the G-Luxe. There are also a few design improvements that make the G-Luxe easier to use.

  • The seat has one additional recline position and the reclining mechanism is easier to operate.
  • The brake pedals control both rear wheels with a single pedal and the pedals engage more consistently.
  • The carry strap is affixed to one side of the stroller instead of being in the center and interfering with access to the basket.

The G-Luxe has a few minor feature additions like a small-item pocket just under the handles, an extendable leg rest, and padding on the shoulder harness straps.

See our full review of the G-Luxe stroller.

Quality improvements in the G-Luxe include:

  • Softer, sturdier grips on the handles.
  • A higher grade of fabric for the canopy and seats.
  • Rubber-treaded wheels instead of EVA foam treaded wheels.
  • Single wheels in the front vs double.
  • A firm, more comfortable seat.

In terms of performance, the G-Luxe performed better than the G-Lite in ease-of-use, kid comfort, and quality. The G-Lite had better scores in maneuverability and they had similar scores in folding.

The most notable advantage of the G-Lite is that it is 3.8 lbs lighter than the G-Luxe and 13% smaller when folded.


Kid Travel Editorial Team