Stokke Yoga Baby Bouncer & Swing review

If you’re looking for a safe pair of hands (or seat) to place your baby, the Stokke Yoga Bouncer ticks all the boxes. Designed with the help of physiotherapists, the ergonomic baby bouncer is aimed at style-conscious parents who want a minimal design with maximum hands-free practicality.

Suitable from birth up to 11kg, the lightweight bouncer and soother RRPs at around £250, similar in price to the Nuna Leaf Grow (£250) and the BabyBjörn Bouncer Bliss (£219), placing it firmly in the premium category. But what makes it stand out from most other manual baby bouncers is the fact it can sway and bounce. This means you can stimulate or soothe your baby with just a couple of gentle movements.

Norwegian brand Stokke is known for creating baby products that combine style with practicality, such as the Tripp Trapp and the YOYO3. With its much-loved Scandi design appeal, Stokke specialises in crafting high-quality baby gear — and the Yoga Bouncer is a prime example of this.

How easy is the Stokke Yoga Bouncer to set up?

Setting up the Stokke Yoga Bouncer was effortless. The bouncer comes in three parts – the base, the seat (with the newborn cushion, five-point harness and shoulder pads already attached) and the toy arch. All you need to do is click the base and seat together, attach the toy arch and you’re ready to go.

That said, to make sure you set up the bouncer correctly, it’s worth following the clear instructions included with the Stokke Yoga Bouncer. Along with showing you how to enable the bouncer to sway from side to side as well as bounce up and down, or just bounce, the instructions also teach you how to adjust the height of the harness and how to recline the seat.

The only thing that wasn’t clear in the instructions was which recline position suited each development stage. After looking this up on Stokke’s website, I discovered that the lower position is recommended for newborns, the middle position is for growing babies ‘starting to observe their surroundings and interact’ and the higher position is ‘designed for older babies’ without the newborn inlay.

Other than that, this product feels very intuitive to start using.

How comfortable is the Stokke Yoga Bouncer for babies?

Comfort is a clear strength of this bouncer. Coming with an ergonomic newborn cushion, it wraps your baby in soft, padded fabric. It’s marketed as ‘the closest thing to being in your arms’, and while nothing often soothes a baby like being in their parent’s arms, my daughter was very happy watching the world go by in it.

Sometimes she would sit in the bouncer for five minutes while I made a coffee or quickly hung the washing out nearby. At other times she was happy to stay in it for around 20 minutes, observing her surroundings and kicking her legs, which caused the bouncer to bounce naturally. The only time she was fussy while using it was when she was ready to be fed or she wanted some help powering the bouncer.

Temperature-wise, because the seat is made from a breathable mesh, soft cotton and cushioned shoulder pads, my baby was comfortable from the moment she was clipped in.

How supportive is the Stokke Yoga Bouncer for newborns?

The bouncer feels super supportive – so much so, a few house guests even joked they ‘wished it came in an adult size’! Designed with the input of physiotherapists, the ergonomic support for the head, neck, back and hips feels excellent and thanks to the newborn insert, there’s not an area where my daughter isn’t being supported. This means she can safely turn her head, wiggle her feet and wave her arms without me having to assist her.

The five-point harness adds to the supportiveness. At first, the harness straps can be a bit stiff to adjust. But once you have done so a few times, it’s easy to lengthen them as your baby grows. I liked that the harness includes cushioned shoulder pads, which add another layer of comfort and support.

Positioning-wise, there are three recline positions you can switch between depending on your baby's stage of development. We started using the bouncer when my baby was 12 weeks, so I switched between the recommended lower and middle incline. For newborns, the bouncer lay more flat than upright. This filled me with confidence that my daughter could safely still see me (and have a nosey around) without tipping forward.

How effective are the bounce and sway movements?

The bouncer is powered either by your baby’s natural movement or by gentle manual motion, and it’s easy for parents or carers to set it swaying or bouncing. I found that most of the time I would bounce the bouncer with my foot, or sway the bouncer as I moved from one quick task on one side of the room to another.

My baby was 12 weeks old when we started using it and at that stage she wasn’t yet able to power the bouncer herself through natural movement. But by week 14 she was kicking away, causing the bouncer to bounce and sway.

The motion was completely silent, gentle and controlled, and felt very natural. The bouncer swayed as if she was being rocked in my arms and bounced as though we were on the move. She was soothed while swaying and stimulated while bouncing.

How easy is the Stokke Yoga Bouncer to use day to day?

Very! You simply set the recline position, choose the movement setting and clip your baby in with the five-point harness. To take them out, you press the harness button and it unlocks.

To adjust the recline, you release the latch at the back of the seat. To enable both swaying and bouncing movement, you push the clip down; to lock the bouncer into bounce-only mode, you slide the clip back up.

Once your baby is secured in the harness, you can either gently set the bouncer in motion yourself or let them move it naturally while you get on with nearby everyday tasks, keeping your baby in view.

How portable is the Stokke Yoga Bouncer?

Weighing 4.2kg, the lightweight Stokke Yoga is very easy to move around the home – and this was the case even when safely holding my baby in one arm and the bouncer in the other.

It doesn’t include a carry handle, which would have been helpful, but portability-wise, I found it quite easy to hold at the top of the seat and move around from room to room.

It’s easy for baby paraphernalia to take over a home. But the Stokke Yoga Bouncer keeps its footprint to a minimum, as it’s 65cm at its tallest height setting, 69cm long and 45.5cm deep.

When it’s not in use, you can simply disconnect the base from the seat and it lies completely flat together. This makes it easy to store or pack in the boot of your car.

How easy is the Stokke Yoga Bouncer to clean?

I tested the light beige colourway, so I was initially unsure how well this bouncer would stand up to everyday mess and baby-related stains. But to my surprise, it turns out that it does so very well.

The good news is that you can machine wash pretty much everything but the stand and toy arch on a 40-degree wash. To do so, you have to unzip the seat at the back and then you can detach the seat, harness and buckle by threading the straps through the gaps.

I found myself cleaning the newborn insert at least once a week and it scrubbed up well every time.

How does the Stokke Yoga Bouncer compare with the BabyBjörn Bouncer Bliss?

The only other bouncer I’ve used is the BabyBjörn Bouncer Bliss Woven Mélange, which, at around £190, is a little cheaper than the Stokke Yoga Bouncer.

Like the Stokke, the BabyBjörn Bouncer comes with three recline positions. It also weighs around 4.5kg and can be laid flat for easy storing.

However, that’s where the similarities largely end, as I personally think the BabyBjörn Bouncer isn’t as supportive for newborns in comparison to the Stokke Yoga Bouncer.

The Stokke specifically comes with a super supportive newborn insert and five-point harness which the BabyBjörn Bouncer is lacking. The latter also doesn’t sway, it just bounces.

What’s in the box?

• Seat including newborn insert and five-point harness
• Base
• Toy arch

How sustainable is the Stokke Yoga Bouncer?

You don’t have to worry about the durability and longevity of this bouncer. Along with feeling sturdy, safe and of high quality, according to Stokke, the frame is made from Forest Stewardship Council-certified beechwood, a dense hardwood, while the seat uses certified non-toxic fabric, with the top layer made from 45% cotton and the bottom layer made from 55% polyester.

Thankfully there isn’t too much packaging to contend with either, as it’s just a cardboard box to place in your recycling bin.

Whether you use this for one baby and pass on to a friend or intend on using it for multiple children, it’s a bouncer that is built to last.

Is the Stokke Yoga Bouncer worth the money?

If you’re looking for a premium product to use from day one that can be passed from one baby to the next, and that provides a safe place to settle and stimulate your baby, then yes.

But if you’re after a more budget-friendly hands-free option, or an electric bouncer you won’t have to power yourself, there are more affordable products out there.

I would say that this product is best suited to style-conscious parents who want to be able to have hands-free moments in every room of their home, while having a safe space to place their baby nearby.

Where can I buy the Stokke Yoga Bouncer?

It is available from John Lewis, Stokke, Natural Baby Shower

MadeForMums verdict:

The bouncer is practical, durable and silent — and easy to move from one space to another. Not every manual bouncer offers both bouncing and swaying movement, but I love that this one does. It also pretty much does exactly what it promises – helping to both soothe and stimulate your baby. Yes, really!

I’ve loved using the Stokke Yoga and would definitely recommend it to parents with newborns, as it’s like having another pair of safe hands around the home.

It’s worth noting that newborns won’t be able to power this themselves, though, so be prepared to be on hand.

And, despite its name, the toy arch doesn’t include a toy as standard. So you’ll need to spend around £15 extra for a compatible Stokke toy.

Coming with a newborn insert, suitable until your baby reaches 11kg/24 lbs and costing £249.99, it’s not cheap. Put simply: this is a premium product that prioritises safety while also delivering strong comfort and support. It’s a win-win for me!

Read more:

• Best baby bouncers, swings and rockers, tested by parents
• Nuna LEAF grow bouncer seat review