6 Best Wearable Breast Pumps That Are Convenient and Effective

The original Elvie Pump was one of the first wearable pumps on the market, but the brand’s newer Stride model has quickly become one of the most popular picks among What to Expect moms, who rave about its ease of use and efficiency.

Although the original Elvie is incredibly portable and convenient, one common complaint is that its suction (up to 220 mmHg) isn’t the strongest. Enter the Elvie Stride: Like the original Elvie, the Stride has two slim and comfortable cups, can store up to 5 ounces on each side and is blissfully quiet, thanks to noise reduction technology. But because the motor is separate (it’s connected to the cups by tubing), the suction is seriously powerful: It goes up to 300 mmHG, meaning it offers on-the-go hospital-grade strength. What’s more, the Stride is also cheaper than the original Elvie, so many moms find it easier to invest if paying out of pocket.

All Elvie pumps connect to an app, which allows you to control the pump remotely, adjust the intensity settings and check your pumping history. (You don’t have live milk monitoring with the Stride, however.) With slightly larger parts, some moms also say it’s a little easier to clean than the original Elvie, too.

The downside, of course, is that there is tubing and the motor hangs separately, which means it’s not as discreet as the original Elvie or some of the other wearable breast pumps on this list. But many moms say they’re willing to negotiate with the tubes in order to get superior suction power at a mid-range price point.

The Momcozy S12 Pro Wearable Breast Pump is a good choice for three reasons: It’s much more affordable than its competitors, it’s free from tubing and it’s super efficient at expressing milk. 

The S12 Pro offers three modes — stimulation mode, expression mode and a combo massage breast pumping mode — and nine suction levels designed to allow you to find the right force for getting your milk to let-down. Most notably, however, is that What to Expect moms find they get great output while using the S12 Pro, which has a suction of up to 270 mmHg. Several moms even say it works as well as more expensive pumps. (Worth noting: This brand has a number of wearable pumps, so if you need a little more strength, the Momcozy V1, which is also very popular, goes up to 290mmHg.)

Although many find that Momcozy pumps aren’t as quiet as more expensive pumps are, the less expensive price tag makes up for it big time. And, depending on where you’ll be pumping, the noise might not be a big con for you (such as pumping at home versus the office).

When looking for a discreet breast pump, noise level is an important consideration — and this wearable pump seriously delivers in this department, emitting just the faintest sound while it works. I used the Elvie while breastfeeding both of my sons and found that the motor was soft enough to use during Zoom calls.

In addition to its gentle sound, I found this pump to be generally excellent: It’s intuitive, easy to set up, sleek and incredibly discreet.It was small and lightweight enough for me to wear in my bra for an entirely hands-free experience. At 5 x 4.3 x 2.7 inches, it’s one of the slimmest wearable pumps on the market, making it a great option for moms who are prioritizing portability. (The soft travel bag that comes with the pump is also perfect for taking with you on the go.) Milk drips right into an attached container, so there are no pricey bags to keep buying. 

Sarah Darby, Senior SEO Strategist and mom of a 1-year-old who also has an Elvie, agrees. "It definitely fulfills its role as a wearable pump because it is super quiet, fits easily inside a nursing or other stretchy bra and I found it relatively easy to clean," she says.

As a bonus, I also found the Elvie app to be impressive (as do many other What to Expect moms). I could watch how much milk I’d pumped in real time, as well as review information about my pumping history. 

One downside, however, is that the parts are smaller. I found them somewhat tricky to keep track of and clean compared to other wearable pumps on this list. The cups are also a little difficult to pour milk out of, and they’d occasionally overflow and leak if I wasn’t paying close attention while pumping (though I had oversupply, which may be why I had this issue). 

Unlike the other models on this list, the Willow 3.0 collects milk into clever “O”-shaped leak-proof milk bags that hang beneath each pump (rather than a built-in storage container) and allow for 360-degree mobility. You can move in any position while you’re pumping without worrying about leaks. This design makes it easy to do “literally everything,” as one What to Expect mom puts it, including working, cleaning, cooking, chasing around a toddler and even sleeping.

Although it's pricier than many other wireless pumps on the market, it has a good battery life (one charge gets you five 15-minute pumping sessions), connects to an app and doesn’t require much work on your end. The Willow has two phases, stimulation and expression, and automatically switches gears when it senses a let-down — which means even less effort on your part. Plus, there are only two parts to clean (far fewer than standard breast pumps), which you can wash by hand or pop in the top rack of your dishwasher.

The major downside to the Willow 3.0, however, is that each bag has a smaller capacity than most other wearable pumps (just 4 ounces per side). You also need to continuously replace the bags, which are sold separately, so over time will add to the cost of this already-expensive pump.

The Baby Buddha Breast Pump is a powerhouse in a tiny package. With five levels of pumping in stimulation mode and nine levels in expression mode, you’re bound to find a level of suction that is right for you. And with an impressive suction power of up to 320 mmhg, many What to Expect moms say it’s one of the most effective hands-free pumps in terms of collecting milk. And, because it’s so powerful, moms also found that it works super quickly — some say it cut their pumping time in half when compared to other pumps. It also comes at a more reasonable price point than some options on this list.

Though very portable and lightweight, on its own this isn’t a truly wearable option. To make it hands-free, you’ll have to wear a pumping bra and use the included lanyard to hang the tiny pump around your neck or tuck it in your pocket. However, many What to Expect moms use this pump with Freemie collection cups to make it much more discreet and comfortable to wear while doing other activities.

The Willow Go has a 7-ounce container, yet remains truly wearable and discreet. At first glance, the Willow Go looks very similar to the 3.0. Unlike the Willow 3.0, however, the Go collects milk in built-in containers, so you don’t have to continuously repurchase milk bags. The Willow Go is also much cheaper, which has helped make it a fast favorite among What to Expect moms since its release a few years ago.

As with the Willow 3.0, the Go is slightly larger and heavier than some other wearable pumps on the market, the original Elvie in particular. But many moms find it easier to use, in part because the pieces are larger and easier to clean, and the milk easy to pour: When your pumping session is complete, simply tip the entire pump over to pour milk out from the top. Plus, Willow Go’s suction is also impressively strong at up to 280 mmhg. 

One thing to keep in mind is that the main pump comes with 5-ounce containers — you’ll have to either make sure you purchase the pump that includes the 5- and 7-ounce options or buy the larger ones separately (it equates to roughly the same price either way). And because the Willow Go is a little bigger than some other pumps, it’s a little harder to wear discreetly in a bra. Plus, because it has reusable containers and not the special O-shaped bags, it’s not as leak-proof as the Willow 3.0. If you intend to frequently use a wearable pump while multitasking around the house and bending over, the Willow 3.0 might be a better choice.

Finally, while this is a great pump, keep in mind that it may not be strong enough if you're pumping exclusively, like many of the other pumps on this list. "The Willow Go serves its purpose if I absolutely need to be pumping when I'm out and about," says Karen Sly, Finance Director, mom of a 3-year-old and 8-month old, "but it doesn't work as well as the Spectra that I use."