Roughly, per year/month, what's the minimum amount it'll cost us to have a new baby around?

[aamia]

What'll we need to buy regularly and where's cheapest to get it? Been doing finances and do have a budget for baby 'things' but no idea whether it's enough or how much we'll need! Planning to breastfeed, and have included an extra £25pw in the budget for extra food for me (coeliac so calorie containing food often expensive), and am guessing that'd cover formula if breastfeeding didn't work out?

So - what's extra in the weekly/monthly budget for a baby? I'm guessing baby wipes, nappies, cotton wool, baby shampoo, talc... (that's going by what friends have given us!), but how often do you buy these and where's cheapest to get them?

Equally, how often will baby need new clothes and other things? What about toys? What will he actually NEED?

Thanks for any and all help!!

[ninjanurse]

My kids are older now, but you can get away with a lot when they are babies. You can easily get lots of things second hand when they are babies. Friends of mine have all sold near enough brand new prams for less then half price what they paid for it. Top tip - Get yourself to an NCT nearly new sale, you can pick up loads of lovely toys, clothes and other paraphernalia for absolute peanuts.

When they are very young one of those playmat things are good as well as a few rattles. Tesco nappies I always found very good You really dont need all the baby toiletries, maybe a bit of the babywash but thats it. Another top tip - rgister on the pampers website! They will send you money off vouchers!

[WipsGlitter]

Childcare?

We got so many presents I dont think I bought any clothes for about the first year! Nappies and wipes are the big ongoing expense.

[GoodHeavensNo]

We didn't spend much at all.

The only thing we bought regularly (ie. on monthly basis) was nappies and wipes. You can get them cheap from Aldi and other supermarkets or places like Home Bargains if you have one.

Or you can by washable ones which may work out cheaper in the long run.

You don't need baby shampoo or talc, I didn't use either.

We got clothes and toys as gifts or 2nd hand.

Biggest expense was childcare by a billion miles, as I went back to work when DD was 9 months old.

[bump6]

Hi, babies can be expensive or as cheap as you like.. Meaning you don't have to buy everything brand new eg clothes toys and to be honest you can buy lovely inexspensive clothing from asda sainaburys etc. agree with Nijanurse nct sales are fab.. Top tip though is to arrive early! you also will receive £80 a month child benefit; not sure if it will continue next year. for me this covers a tin of formula powder and nappies for a month! when our dd was born her family gave her nappies, sudacrem( think she has life time of it) shampoo baby bath etc... she is 8months, have yet to buy her bath stuff! going out to baby groups is usually less than £2 and you also get a brew! if people ask what you would like, suggest nappies wipes.. And as for clothing I am sure that lovely family friend will provide a wardrobe without being asked as who can resist such cute clothes. Hope this long post helps.

[nextphase]

There are a couple of things I'd suggest getting up front - somewhere for baby to sleep, and a way to get them about (pram / sling), and a carseat if you will be using a car.

Clothes, they go through them quite quickly in the first few months - we ignored the newborn sizes, and had 0-3, 3-6, 6-9, 9-12 month clothes, but all second hand or supermarket stuff (keep your eyes out for baby events, where sleep suits and vests etc are often heavily discounted)

You'll need nappies (£10/week?), and wipes (£2/week?). We use tesco own brand nappies once they are out of the newborn stage, but branded wipes.

No ideas on formula, factor in breastpads and nursing bras if bf. I also got new clothes (Primarini!) that were better for feeding in than my pre pregnancy stuff.

The best toys as far as my 2 are concerned are wooden spoons and pans, balloons, water and boxes (like the ones the car seats came in). We also got given quite a few come birthday/christmas. Books from the library so you don't get fed up with them!

[milkteef]

Talc can go off your list. Talc is no longer recommended and your baby doesn't need more than water to clean.

Asda's Little Angels nappies are good as are ALDI. £6 for around 50 and an extra £1.50 for two packs of wet wipes or less if you're just using cotton wool and water.

Toys? No! A wooden spoon, plastic cups, rice in a milk bottle etc are all so much better! For teething put frozen blueberries or fruit of your choice into a clean mesh bag and let them go to town.

Asda are brilliant for cheap decent quality baby clothes. Don't forget charity shops too. You'll need new clothes every 2-3 months but buy as you go/cut the feet off sleepsuits etc and you'll find it much easier.

To be honest my children haven't cost a lot. They are happy and healthy but just haven't had much new or things just because. They eat what we est in smaller portions and apart from Christmas and birthdays they have second hand or homemade toys and love them.

[Fluffycloudland77]

I've seen some lovely cots on ebay that went for £10! You just need a new mattress (white company do some lovely sprung mattresses for babys).

I figure the more comfy the bed the less likely they are to wake up (dont shatter my delusions people).

Some councils give you money if your health visitor signs to say you use cloth nappies, you dont need the reciept for them so you could buy them off ebay or an NCT sale.

[ValiumQueen]

Childcare. Everything else, even the mortgage, pales to insignificance

I put the child benefit away for things for the baby, and buy from charity shops etc. Breastfeeding, using washables, buying second hand and they pretty much pay for themselves, until you go back to work that is

[agendabender]

I breastfed, bought second hand cloth nappies, and was gifted enough clothes and equipment for the first year. I spent the child benefit on swimming lessons and books for baby. I have never bought nappies, formula or babyfood. I'm a student and my husband's salary is low for a professional with a couple of degrees, and we have managed despite our rent being huuuge. As the poster says above, it's as expensive as you want it to be. People don't look at my toddler and think "those clothes are second hand/how awful that she takes him to the park instead of soft play/feeds him homemade food."

[nannyl]

DD is nearly 1 year now

i havent spent much at all... she is BF and we use cloth nappies and wipes
i have been given loads, and bought a load more pre loved

i have also been given so many clothes... in her whole life, so far I have bought her about 5 outfits, new from a shop
i have also bought a pack of vests new for each size (£2.75 per pack in asda) and for for the first time have bought new 12 - 18m sleep suits.

Everything else i have been given or got at my bargain charity shop.

she eats what we eat too.... i have never bought a jar of baby food or petit filoux or similar
the only things i do by for her are organix rice cakes, and i get through an extra tub of plain yogurt a week. I mix yog in with fruit, pureed by myself, from MILs garden.
I also buy fullfat milk for her for her cereal
She drinks tap water with her meals

also look out for NCT nearly new sales.... i have got loads from there, and things often cost as little as a quater (or even less than that) than buying new

Oh and i have joined all the baby clubs.... which are always sending me money off vouchers for milk / food / pouches etc etc and i use these in sainsburys self scan checkouts..... i must have used at least £50 of vouchers for things i have never bought! maybe much nearer £100? I havent kept count but have used a batch every single time i have been to sainsburys!

[ValiumQueen]

I didn't know you could do that with vouchers. I thought you had to buy the item. I will give it a go. Thanks for the tip!

[Fluffycloudland77]

Iirc some supermarkets will accept coupons, others wont. That Channel 4 programme recently about people using coupons to pay for everything had a woman who seemed to use coupons for things she hadnt bought but they didnt tell you where she got her coupons from....

Check with customer services/moneysaving expert before you go so you dont get refused.

[PotteringAlong]

My 9 month old DS is breastfed - my boobs have changed shape more times than a little in the last 12 months! I've only bought 2 bras in each size but have got 12 different sizes over the past year so factor in £30 or so every 3 months on underwear that fits!

[nextphase]

Tesco won't accept their coupons which you haven't bought. Not sure about manufactures coupons.

[LadyKooKoo]

Reuseable nappies will save you a fortune in the longterm if you can afford the initial outlay on them. Also, i use cheeky wipes instead of wet wipes, also saves a fortune (i use wet wipes when travelling and get the £1 Huggies pure wipes from Home Bargains).

[notcitrus]

I saved money during ds's first year. Second hand reuseable nappies, old cloth for wipes, and much less

[notcitrus]

I saved money during ds's first year. Second hand reuseable nappies, old cloth for wipes, and much less on transport than when commuting, and much less eating out so a few more ready meals and takeaways were covered in the early days, and later I did lots of cooking and buying food from markets etc.

Year two required childcare, but only from age 3 have the costs got at all significant.

[PurpleCrazyHorse]

We spent £300 on washable nappies but used own brand wipes. Supermarket, hand-me-down or eBay clothes, toys & equipment. Parents bought expensive items like car seats & buggy.

Try to borrow or buy cheaply, lots of stuff you won't use or your DC won't like. DD just hated her baby play mat, she simply hated lying down. I bought it for £10 on eBay so just resold on, luckily didn't buy it new for £40.

Childcare is a killer. We pay our CM £3.75/hr or nurseries can be £40+ a day. That's our biggest ongoing expense.

[ValiumQueen]

Be brave and have a list to give to people who might like to buy a gift. Unfortunately most folk go out and buy the smallest most unsuitable frilly outfit, or things a bit bigger that will be out of season by the time baby arrives. I have a half a dozen pink blankets for example, and several outfits that were never worn. I thought when DD2 arrived, people would not do the same again, but they did. I am not ungrateful, but I hate to see waste.