First baby budget - what is really needed

[Nokita]

Hi everyone,
I’m 23weeks pregnant and the only thing I have for the baby is the travel system that has been offered by a friend.
I’m moving house next month so we decided just to buy things after the moving and I’m glad we waited because we are now in a much tighter finances as we are both in furlough leave and I’m a high risk of redundancy.
What do you consider is essential and how much would you budget for a first baby? I’m not brands follower but I do like quality.
Thank you

Well I've bought a lot of things second hand via Facebook marketplace. I've managed to get some amazing bargains. I pretty much got all the clothes I need for the first 9 months for about £30.
We got a second hand cot gifted to us and so just needed a new mattress.
I bought the bedside crib new and that was £80, but again you can get really good second hand ones.
The one thing I definitely wanted new was the car seat and isofix base and I also bought a new pushchair, but you have that already.
It's hard to say how much you need to budget. I've bought a lot of the smaller things (bottles, steriliser etc) gradually.

Also if you have a boots advantage card join their parenting club. You get extra points when you buy baby items - I made some of my bigger purchases from Boots and ended up with about £60 of points which I then used to buy all the baby cosmetic type stuff I needed.

IMHO the only true necessities are clothes, nappies, travel system (check), and somewhere safe to sleep. Add on bottles, steriliser & formula if required.

If you're in Scotland you'll get the baby box, which is fab and full of really handy stuff.

It can be as cheap or as expensive as you make it.

You can buy second hand baby clothes in bundles off facebook/eBay, shop for new ones in Asda, go to Next, or buy organic cotton - the price goes up with each option

Nursery furniture - it depends if you want to co-sleep or get a Moses basket/cot/next to me crib. Again these can be second hand but you'll need new mattress.

Nappies - your options are cheap ones like Aldi/supermarket own brand, pampers, or reusable (big initial outlay, but should in theory save money over time).

Breast feeding is cheaper than bottle feeding,

Do you have friends that have children? People LOVE to give you their old baby stuff - they don’t want to completely get rid of it because of the memories attached to it, so passing it on to someone they know is a win-win situation. They hardly wear babygrows before they grow out of them in the first year, so they are still in good condition. My DD had some vests that she was the 5th kid to wear, and our next DC will wear them too.

Nappies are a big expense. But again, you may know someone who went down the reusable route - that can be a cheaper way of doing things if you don’t mind all the extra washing.

Basically, let people know if you are open to second hand stuff! Honestly, it’s often in really good condition because babies might only wear it a couple of times before they outgrow it. I got various bits that had never been worn from one friend, because her baby was over 10 lbs so all the newborn and 0-3 months stuff never fitted her, so were still pristine.

I'm pregnant with my second, but all our baby stuff is back in the UK, so I'm buying almost everything second hand. This is what I consider essential:

Buggy
Baby-wearing device

10 long sleeved bodysuits, up to 1 month size (it'll be winter here)
6 sleepsuits, up to 1 month (this is probably not enough)
Hat
Snowsuit (again, winter here)
Ikea shoe sorter thing for storing small clothes in our own wardrobe (it's about a tenner and fantastic)

Chicco next to me crib (second hand off Gumtree)
New mattress for the crib (parents generously bought this, shamefully I might not have bothered as the second hand one had only been used twice)
Two sheets for crib
Waterproof mattress protector for crib

Two swaddles (not technically necessary but I will do anything if it might get me more sleep)
Two sleeping bags

Self-rocking chair thing (second hand off Gumtree; wouldn't have bothered if it hadn't been so cheap but it was useful to have last time)

Breast pump bundle with bottles etc (second hand off Gumtree; total bargain)

Things I'm not buying:
Blanket - we have a fleecey throw that will be fine
Baby towels - gave up using these last time, they're tiny!
Changing mats - I may live to regret this, but we have towels etc
Changing table - good grief, why do people throw their money away?!
Car seat - we've no car...
Toys - there is no need whatsoever for the first six months according to my son
Baby gym - I did use it last time, but meh, we'll cope without
Muslins - we have a few knackered t-shirts that I'm happy to cut up
Ewan the Dream Sheep - you let me down, Ewan! I had all my hopes pinned on you!

I'm definitely at the more extreme end, but we might be heading home soon after the birth so I don't want to waste money. I hope this helps!

Oh, and I spent about £1,300 the first time round but so far have only spent about £400. Jeez, that's crazy.

I forgot: nursing bras and strappy tops if breastfeeding. You absolutely do not need a full set of breastfeeding clothes, just a thin strappy breastfeeding top to put under normal clothes. H&M ones are nice and thin for this purpose.

We spent £1000 but it could be done quite easily for less than half that.

Have you considered cheeky wipes? They are reusable and you'll save a fortune. They also work better than disposables imo and I find them much easier.

My other tip would be to not go too crazy with clothes as the chances are you'll be given loads.

Second hand obviously much cheaper but in terms of what you need
Nappies - cloth the initial outlay is higher but cheaper in the long run, Lidl disposables are cheap and excellent
Baby wipes or equivalent - cotton wool and water or reusable wipes are far cheaper than baby wipes, we use the cheeky wipes and they're great
Baby grows - 5 in each newborn, 1 month and 0-3 months - second hand will be by far your cheapest option but Sainsbury's quality is good as is Morrisons - can also layer bigger sizes if it's cold
Vests - as above
Hat
Muslins, 10 - as above
Baby carrier - for me it is essential for naps!
Push chair
Car seat
Cot (you don't need a Moses basket, they can go straight in a cot) or get a baby box (you just pay postage)
2 x sheets and 2 x mattress cover for cot/box
Blankets or sleeping bags x 2

@YorkshirePud1 thank you for the advice on boots, definitely will use it.

@ThrophyCat I’m hopping to breastfeed but sadly I have polymastia and politelia and only after birth I can decide which path to take. I guess I have to prepare for both

@CoolNoMore I think your extreme maybe what I’m looking for so this is a big help. I want to give the best to my little one but I prefer to not spend money in things not really necessary and buy him nappies or food.

@firstimemamma @T0rt0ise I had a quick look on the cheeky wipes, It looks a good option.

Thank you everyone for the advices. This is indeed really helpful

If you have the bounty app there's a shopping list on there which you could use as a basis to pick from and eliminate as u go along. There's 40 items on there but they're broken down e.g. a travel system normally comes with the rain cover etc. they're listed separately and also clothing theyve divided up as well so don't panic you won't need to spend a fortune on lots :)

I've been buying a few babygrows and clothing from the website zulily ( flash sale site a bit like groupon) I wouldn't say it's a need but if you want to get some bargains other than from high street (as I know a lot of places have low stock and odd sizes) it's worth a browse.

I agree that they won't need a tonne of toys for the first few months. I have picked up a baby bouncer and a play mat gym, but I suspect the grandparents are going crazy with soft toys etc.

I'm pregnant with number 2 so am not buying much but with DS we moved halfway across the country when he was 3 months. This is what we found to be essential before the move. It really was all we needed. Obviously you are moving before baby is due but I found it a brilliant way to cut back on buying things!

Next to me crib
A comical amount of muslins.
Pram/car seat which you've got.
A travel cot with newborn level that raised the mattress. Perfect safe place downstairs.
Swing seat. Again a perfect safe place for him while we packed the house up.
About 10 short sleeve vests
About 10 baby grows
A few cardigans
Several baby blankets for layering
A few really warm hats as he was born in jan.
Changing mat, you can use towels but they ruck up and aren't wipe clean although my save outfits if they pee as it will soak in and not form a puddle under their shoulders and head...
Nappies
Wipes
Nipple shields.

We also had a baby bath, but you could easily use the sink and to be honest it wasn't that essential to us.

You may not need anything like the travel cot or swing seat, we have a dog so wanted somewhere off the floor.

When bigger ikea have an awesome range of affordable cots, and their baby feeding range (cups, plates, highchairs, bibs...) are both the cheapest we bought and the best.

We got given/offered so much stuff from friends and family. What has been very useful is the baby seat (just a basic one from asda). We got a 2nd hand changing table but I don't use it. If you are happy to do regular washes then you don't need that many clothes. The sling (borrowed from sling library) has been a life saver. You can muddle through and pick stuff up once baby is born.

You don't need baby carrier, bottle warmer, baby furniature, sleeping aids, dummies, rocking chair or drip bibs. Or changing mat. I just used a folded towel and wipedown mat. Savd your money for when child is 2 and you need well fitting shoes, kids activities, etc

There's very little you NEED for a newborn, people really get carried away spending huge amounts of money on things that are barely used.

Essential items in my opinion: -

Clothing - sleep suits and vests, if it's summer you can get ones that are short. Hats. Warm cardigans/tops, snowsuit if winter.
Somewhere to sleep - eg Moses basket
Moses basket sheets
Waffle blankets
muslin squares
Nappies and wipes
changing mat
baby bath (snuggle one is great and well worth £20!)
car seat
pram
Bouncer chair
Ewan the sheep (worked for us for both children)
bottles and steriliser for the microwave (if not breastfeeding), breast pump if you are (wait until you've had the baby)
Baby monitor if your house is big

We bought vv little before our first child arrived, I'm talking just a car seat, clothes and somewhere to sleep. We bought other things as we went along and realised we needed them. I felt better doing this, though I realise it isn't the norm.