The BEST Baby Registry Checklist of 2024
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Wondering what baby items you ACTUALLY need on your baby registry? This baby registry checklist of 2024 has all the best baby gear and essentials you could ever need for your bundle of joy. So, what will you add to your registry?
Many parents struggle to make a baby registry. Do they put the cute clothing? How many diapers should they add? Will the baby wipe warmer make the cut?
After lots of research and lots of revisions to my own baby registry (twice), I finally created THE PERFECT BABY REGISTRY CHECKLIST!
So in this post, I’m going to walk you through everything you need to know so that you can create a baby registry with all your favorite must-haves (and not just expensive trending items that are totally useless)!
Where should I make my baby registry?
This is the big question of all – where the heck should you make your baby registry?!
Below are some of the TOP baby registry retailers along with some of their benefits! And for the record, we registered at Target & Amazon for both of our babies!
Amazon Baby Registry:
- You can manage your baby registry on desktop or via mobile device
- FREE shipping on orders over $25
- FREE PRIME 2-day Shipping for Prime Members
- Baby’s First Year Diaper Discount for customers who reach $500+ in gifts from their registry
- Get a 10% completion discount to use on any registry items that have not been purchased OR a 15% completion discount for Prime Members
- Universal Registry – add any gift from any site for a one-stop-shop baby registry experience
- 90-day returns for items
- Get a FREE Welcome Baby Box valued at $35 for qualifying customers
- Get a 15% completion discount for anything left on your registry 8 weeks before baby’s due date
- Baby registry checklist to help guide you through the necessities you’ll need for baby
- FREE welcome kit (must pick up in-store) with $80+ coupons and samples inside
- Price match guarantee on items
- FREE 2-day shipping if you spend $35 or use your Target Red Card
- Universal Registry – add any gift from any site for a one-stop-shop baby registry experience
- Return gifts up to 1 year
- Group gifting so multiple people can pitch in for a gift
- FREE Hello Baby Box
- 100% Universal Registry
- Ability to add gift cards, services, and non-product based items
- 15% Completion discount valid to use on the Babylist Online Store
- Can set-up cash funds
And before deciding on just ONE of these great options above, remember, you can have more than one baby registry!
Some stores may not offer all the benefits and discounts you want, but 2 of them really really do. Make your registry wherever you wish and make however many of them you want!
Should I have my baby registry gifts shipped?
Choosing whether to have your baby registry items shipped is 100% up to you. However, I do think it’s a great option to have available for those who may live out of town or can’t make it to your baby shower.
The other scenario would be if you’re simply not having a baby shower! You can still make a registry and share it with close friends & family so they can gift your little bundle of joy regardless.
I will note, if you’re making a registry during the time of this coronavirus pandemic, shipped gifts will likely be the way to go!
When should I make my baby registry?
Truthfully, there is not going to be a right or wrong answer here.
With our first, I was SO excited to just start adding things that I got a little out of hand adding anything I could find for BOTH genders since we didn’t know what we were having yet, oops!
If you want to avoid having to delete a bunch of items like I did (LOL), you can wait until you find out the gender of baby (roughly 18-21 weeks) OR register for gender-neutral items if you don’t plan to find out the gender.
What items should I put on my baby registry?
You made it to the fun part! Where we start talking all about the items you should have on your registry! Woohoo!
Keep in mind, although I’m pretty firm on not needing to register for TOO many items, it doesn’t hurt to add items you think you could enjoy! This way, when you get your completion discount, if nobody bought the item for you, you’ll get a pretty nice discount on it!
Travel/Stroller Items for Baby:
- Baby Stroller
(for our first – we used the Chicco Bravo Travel System, for our second, we upgraded to the Graco Duo Double Stroller)
- Carseat
(you’ll have to decide whether you want an infant car seat or a convertible car seat)
- Travel System
(this is a bundle where your stroller and carseat come together)
- Stroller Accessories
(if your stroller doesn’t have many compartments – such as extra storage, shading, cup holders, etc…)
- Diaper Bag
(I personally prefer a backpack – especially with 2 little ones, but the option is up to you)
Diapering Items for Baby:
- Diapers
(depending on your preference you can use cloth or disposable – I also suggest multiple sizes since baby will grow FAST)
- Diaper Rash Cream
(A+D rash cream is my all-time favorite as we found it works fast, is gentle and keeps the skin nice and dry)
- Diaper Pail + Accessories
(I swear by our diaper genie – the nursery NEVER smells like poop, ever!)
Feeding/Nursing Items for Baby:
- Baby Bottles
(if you’re nursing baby, I’d look for a bottle aimed to help mimic the natural breast, if you’re not planning to nurse, you may want to look into an anti-colic bottle)
- Bottle warmer
(we’ve been using this super affordable Avent bottle warmer and it has done the job for well over 1 year without any issues)
- Nursing Pillow
(I personally prefer the Boppy best latch pillow)
- Breast Pump
(for help choosing the best breast pump, you should check out this post for exclusive pumping moms)
- If you want to stock up now on things like bibs, placemats, or a high chair — you can totally add them to your registry!
Sleep/Nursery Items for Baby:
- White Noise Machine
(I personally love the HATCH Baby Sound Machine because it’s something we can use as strictly a white noise machine now and then transition into a night light as our son get’s older)
- Baby Mattress
(We love the Sealy Baby Foam Mattress because it’s very quiet and also dual-sided. Meaning one side is firmer for baby and the other is softer for a toddler! The other runner up we looked into is the Newton Baby Mattress due to their breathe-thru design making it 100% breathable proven to reduce suffocation risk.)
- Crib sheets
- Baby Crib
- Baby Bassinet
(as of right now my top favorite has to be the Halo Bassinet for its ease to keep baby close to me and be able to breastfeed baby easily too)
- Changing table
- Changing pad
- Mattress cover
(to help prevent stains & keep your mattress fresh in good shape)
- Rocking Chair
- Blackout Curtains
These will greatly help to promote a nice dark sleep space for baby (remember how they’re used to sleeping inside that dark womb of yours? yup, they love the dark!)
Bath Items for Baby:
- Baby Towels
- Wash Cloths
- Baby Soap/Shampoo
(I love love love Tubby Todd Baby Bath products as they’re so gentle on baby’s skin. They even have a newborn baby gift set that is perfect to add onto baby registries.
- Baby Bath Tub
(you can choose to go with a small tub that is portable or a little sink insert to help wedge baby up in the sink)
Safety Items for Baby:
- Baby Monitor: When it comes to choosing a baby monitor, there are a lot of things to consider. Do you want a monitor that connects to your WiFi? Do you need a split screen for multiple rooms? That said, here’s a quick rundown on our favorite picks:
Best WiFi Baby Monitor: Nanit
As of 2024, we FINALLY got the chance to try a Nanit Pro baby monitor and wow, I was so impressed! Here’s what I love:
- The most CLEAR video I’ve seen due to it’s 1080p HD video quality
- Accurate sound and motion alerts to keep you in the loop if your child is crying, rolling around, making noise, or if anything is going on.
- Small sensor-free Breathing Band for babies 0-3 months (the unique pattern helps Nanit track baby’s breathing).
- Portable design, perfect for families who travel often or use multiple rooms.
- Runs on a secure 256-bit AES encryption via WiFi
- Built-in white noise. If you use a white noise machine, this monitor has those sounds built in and on a simple timer system you can use.
Best Split Screen Baby Monitor: Babysense
As a mom of two, sometimes we need to keep an eye on both kiddos at once. Thanks to Babysense you can safely watch both of your kids with great video quality. Here’s what I love most:
- Excellent video quality with 720 HD, 5″ screen.
- Split screen ability straight down the middle of the monitor.
- Two-way audio to talk to baby or child if needed.
- No WiFi is needed.
- Overall very affordable and comes with both (2) cameras + the monitor.
- Baby Thermometer
(My husband and I both have a medical background, so keeping a rectal thermometer and a forehead thermometer was important to us)
- Baby Care Kit
(This will typically come with your hairbrushes/combs, medication administrators, nail clippers, nail files, etc…)
- Nasal Aspirator
(If your care kit doesn’t have a nasal aspirator, it’s a good idea to keep one on hand in the event baby gets sick or you need to suction their little nose for something)
Toys/Play Items for Baby:
- Activity Center
(to help promote holding head up, rolling, and various developmental stimulus)
What NOT to put on baby registry
Now that we covered a list of things you should have on your baby registry, what items should you leave off??
Well for starters, baby clothing!
Yup, your little one is going to grow SO FAST! And honestly, even though it won’t be on your registry, I guarantee AT LEAST ONE PERSON will gift you clothing. It’s just hard for anyone to resist buying those cute little outfits, right?
Instead, opt for gift cards or get your own baby’s outfits as they grow this way you avoid having an overabundance in clothing you’ll never even get to use.
You’re probably safe to avoid more fancy gear too, such as:
- Wipe warmers
(some people do love them, but I can’t get behind them as I find them pretty inconvenient)
- Baby food blenders/processors
(a regular blender can do JUST as good of a job, I promise! BUT I will say for these I do understand the convenience of having 1 machine that can cook, prep and store your items)
- Bottle Sterilizers
(instead, you could grab some good ol’ Medela Sterilizing Bags or just use a pot of boiling water…call me cheap or call me old school, but I can’t ask someone to spend $$ on getting me an expensive item I can literally do with a pot of boiling water lol)
- Socks & Shoes
(Your little one will probably not be too fond of wearing shoes or keeping them on for quite a while. To avoid the lost sock/lost shoe or simply outgrowing them too soon, keep em’ off the registry for now)
Remember, less is more when it comes time to create your baby registry.
Now that you’ve gone through the list of awesome places to create a baby registry, what items to put on your registry, and what items you probably won’t need, the last point I wanted to make is that sometimes: less is truly more.
Although it’s exciting to put everything on your baby registry (like I did the first time), you’ll regret it when you have to go through and start taking things off after you realize it’s too much LOL
Plus, when you give your gift-givers TOO many options to choose from, you may not get the items you really did want or need!
Thankfully, this baby registry checklist of 2024 has you loaded with all the essential items needed for your baby’s big debut!