Go to your local bike shop and buy why they sell/fix. Cheap bikes are often not worth fixing and so cost more in the long run. At your local bike shop you will find experts who can sell you something good. Sometimes the staff isn't friendly, go elsewhere, there are other bike shops. Yes you do eliminate 90% of the possibly choices with this route, but there are still plenty of good choices left.

Consider a bike trailer instead of a cargo bike. There is no right answer for everyone, but I personally like the trailers I have.

A lot of people around me use the Tern cargo bikes to tote kids around in various configurations. Not sure if they’re especially good for that purpose or if it’s a parent trend locally!

Looks like they’re headquartered in Taiwan. Looks like they’re stocked in some shops in sweden but I can’t tell how widespread. Always best to get something that the local shops will be familiar with and willing to provide maintenance for.

My mom biked us kids to a lot of activities when I was a kid. I think at one point she had 3 kinds of seats attached to one bike! For the youngest they make those seats that mount on the handlebars facing you. I’ve recently seen ones with the kid seat section enclosed in plastic for rain/cold which is neat.

I ride a tern and they’re pretty amazing. I’d probably start with a quick haul but could swap to a GSD later down the line as the kids got older.

Having worked in cargobike workshop, I quite like Christiania and Nihola, especially with Promovec motors. They are quite repairable: easy to diagnose issues, good backwards compatability on spare parts. They are also affordable while being decent quality.

Brands I would specifically avoid: Babboe, Cargobike of Sweden, Seaside, Amladcykler.

Go for hydraulic disc brakes in the front. Be wary of any design that has limiters that prevent you from turning properly. Go for a narrow model.

Black Iron Horse's Pegasus has a cool design: a wide box but the front wheels are hidden inside. It also turns with the rear wheel for extra smooth steering.

No budget? Bakfiets