What do I actually need before a baby arrives?

Baby preparation is dominated by equipment marketing, and most of it is used briefly or not at all. A short list covers the first weeks, and buying the rest as needs become apparent is both cheaper and more accurate.

Safety

What you'll need

• A car seat (optional)
• Somewhere safe to sleep (optional)

Step by step

1. Get a car seat and learn to fit it before the birth.It is needed immediately and fitting one for the first time while tired is genuinely difficult. Many retailers will check the fitting free.
2. Arrange somewhere safe to sleep.Follow current local safe sleep guidance, which changes. Buy the mattress new regardless of whether the cot is second hand.
3. Buy nappies and basic clothing, but not in quantity.Babies grow through sizes quickly and some react to particular brands. Buy a modest amount initially rather than stockpiling.
4. Sort out feeding equipment according to your plan.And have a fallback. Feeding plans change for many reasons and having no alternative available at three in the morning is stressful.
5. Prepare the household rather than the nursery.Batch cooked meals in the freezer, a full store cupboard, laundry up to date. These matter far more in the first weeks than decoration.
6. Borrow or buy second hand for anything used briefly.Moses baskets, bouncers, changing tables, newborn clothes. They are used for weeks and are widely available nearly new.
7. Wait on most equipment.Slings, high chairs, monitors, sterilisers and toys can all be bought once you know what you actually need. Much of it turns out to be unnecessary.
8. Sort the admin in advance.Registration requirements, employer notifications, any benefits or entitlements. Doing it while functioning is far easier than afterwards.

Tips

• Accepting practical help — meals, shopping, laundry — matters far more than any equipment. Ask for it specifically rather than waiting to be offered.
• Buy the car seat and mattress new. Almost everything else is fine second hand and is available in nearly new condition.
• Ignore the retailer checklists. They are sales documents and they list a great deal that most families never use.

Common mistakes

• Buying everything on a retailer's checklist — They are sales documents. Much of what they list is used once or not at all, and it is expensive and takes up space.
• Stockpiling one size of nappy or clothing — Babies grow through sizes quickly and may react to particular brands. Buy modestly and adjust.
• Preparing the nursery and not the kitchen — Meals in the freezer and a stocked cupboard matter enormously in the first weeks. Decoration does not.

Questions people ask