All the Baby Registry Products CR Staffers Found to Be the Most and Least Useful

A bottle warmer that’s easy to use in the middle of the night in a dark room was on three parents’ must-haves list for baby registries. We’ve evaluated several bottle warmers and found that a few had overheating issues that are important to keep an eye out for. Though they were useful for these parents, one parent who was tight on space in her NY apartment went without it and didn’t think she needed it.

If you put your baby in cute outfits (we don’t recommend you buy too many of these cute fits), you want to try to keep them clean for as long as possible. Buying bibs in multipacks and keeping a few in diaper bags and strollers will assure that you’re always ready for feeding time. Alex Susse, senior consumer experience insights specialist, found silicone bibs especially useful and easy to clean when his kids started eating solid foods.

Another item that you can never have too many of are burp cloths. Kathryn Marx, visual editor, told us she started with a pack of five and quickly found that she needed to keep about 20 in rotation. These are handy, not just to protect your own clothes while burping your baby, but also to quickly wipe up throw-up and spilled milk on the go, and can double as a baby washcloth in a pinch.

When choosing baby bottles for your baby, the parents we spoke to told us to steer clear of the bottles with lots of pieces to keep track of. The trickiest part of buying baby bottles is choosing a bottle they’ll like. Anne, the expectant mother whose baby registry I used for reference, included a bottle box from Babylist on her registry that includes bottles from five different brands to give babies a chance to try a few options and pick their favorite. To keep baby bottles clean, keep a bottle brush on hand, like this one from OXO that Pyle likes.

Breastfeeding is great, but bottle feeding is, too. A comfortable, good-quality breast pump can make pumping easier. We recruited 34 parents to tell us about their pumping experiences with several different models and found some standout options, like this model from Motif Medical. Senior talent development specialist, Cindy Pieroni, thinks adding extra pump parts to your registry is helpful too as these need to be replaced often and can get pricey.

Just one of these is all you need to keep you and your baby comfortable during feeding time. As a safety precaution, you should never let babies sleep on or near a nursing pillow. Pieroni recommends this model from My Brest Friend. She loved that it not only helped her learn how to comfortably breastfeed her baby, but also had a wide foam back that helped with her posture and washable covers she could easily switch out. “It was almost like my emotional support pillow during my breastfeeding journey while also being functional.”

Also called pack ‘n plays, these foldable products offer parents a safe space to lay a baby when you don’t want to lay them in their crib or are traveling. Lauren Friedman, health and food content development team leader, and Toral Patel, senior corporate counsel at CR, both recommend this travel crib from Baby Bjorn. According to Friedman, it’s especially useful for families during travel and when your baby is older, and it earned high praise in our evaluations.

This recommendation comes from two parents for two unique reasons. Nahrae Tinney, manager of product marketing, uses her diaper caddy at home to keep a set of extra supplies in the living room. This way she avoids having to go back into her baby’s nursery every time it’s time for a diaper change. Pyle found that her little one kicked diapers and baby wipes off the changing table when she didn’t keep her supplies organized in one of these caddies. 

If you have the space for a changing table, you’ll also have to buy a changing pad (if the table you buy doesn’t come equipped with one). Instead of stocking up on changing pad covers, look for a changing pad made from a material that is easy to wipe clean to save yourself from having to wash extra items on laundry day. This model was recommended by Patel, Friedman, and Pyle because of its ease of use for travel. For home, you might consider the Hatch Grow Smart Changing Pad and Scale, which also weighs your baby. Make sure to measure your changing table, so you don’t buy a pad that’s too big or too small for your nursery’s table. If you’re tight on space, a portable changing pad might be all you need to change your baby’s diapers at home. Some diaper bags come with changing pads, too, including two of the bags we evaluated and liked (more on these below).

Another popular item from our CR parents’ lists, bouncers are another way to give parents a break from carrying a baby all the time. Baby Bjorn’s Bouncer Bliss was recommended by two staffers, including Friedman, who found it handy to have a safe place to put her baby while she did other things around the house. It’s important to remember that though bouncers may look comfy and safe, you shouldn’t let your baby nap in one.

Play mats can give babies a great place to entertain themselves and learn, while giving parents’ backs a break from constantly carrying them. There are lots of different models, big and small, made from soft foam and fabric. Pyle swears by the Terrazo play mat from Copenhagen Kid, while Patel prefers the more compact play mat from Lovevery.

They won’t be reading Homer’s Odyssey just yet, but it’s never too early to get your babies hooked on reading. Colorful, soft books will keep babies entertained and are even helpful during diaper changes to keep them from squirming while you remove a dirty diaper. Pick stories that you enjoy, too, since you’ll be doing the reading for them (again and again), at least until they’ve got the story memorized.

It’s hard to get through the first year of a baby’s life without encountering a diaper rash. Keep diaper cream stocked in your nursery and diaper bag to relieve your baby’s discomfort after a diaper change. Susse also recommends buying spatulas to apply diaper cream to baby’s butt without getting your hands messy. “Diaper cream is no fun to get off your fingers, and especially if you’re changing a baby out in public this is a real lifesaver for not ending up with diaper cream accidentally on your clothes,” he says.

Another recommendation for those who have the space at home, diaper pails will keep your regular trash bins from becoming stinky with dirty diapers. They all work in different ways, but serve the same purpose of sealing stinky diapers in the pail to prevent those odors from spreading around your baby’s nursery. For Marci Whalen, senior video producer, and her family of four living in a Bronxville apartment, skipping a diaper pail was an easy decision. Instead, she placed soiled diapers in dog waste bags (since they’re often cheaper than the ones marketed for babies), then threw them in with her regular trash. Pyle likes doggy bags for getting rid of dirty diapers on the go, too. 

Forget trying to find a matching top for your baby’s outfit and stick with onesies. Four of our parents named these on their list of must-haves. A few different options with long sleeves and short sleeves, plus a few different sizes for when your baby starts growing out of newborn sizes (it happens faster than you think) are a safe bet.

How many socks do you need for one baby? The limit does not exist. Keep baby’s toes warm with socks before they start wearing shoes, then keep them on when they start to wear shoes, too. You’ll likely find that socks mysteriously go missing throughout the day (we don’t know where they go, but someone should investigate). Multi-packs, like these recommended by Marx, are usually more cost-effective than buying individual pairs.

When you’re constantly putting clothing on and then taking them off to change diapers, you want to put outfits on your baby that will be easy to remove. Friedman finds clothes with zippers much more convenient than those with snaps during diaper changes.

In the winter, before zipping a baby into a footmuff (check those out further down on our list), make sure they’re wearing a winter coat that will keep them warm once you take them out of their stroller. Walking in fresh air is important for parents and babies, and you shouldn’t have to stop going on them because of the cold. Stock up on a few different warm outerwear pieces so you have a backup when there’s a milk or throw-up mishap in one.

When shopping around town with her babies, Whalen found stroller hooks super helpful to keep her hands free while she walked. Just be careful to not add too much weight to your stroller so you don’t tip the whole thing over.

For days (or trips) where you don’t want to push along a stroller, baby carriers allow you to keep your baby close while freeing your hands. Pieroni loved her carrier from popular baby brand Baby Bjorn, as did Toral Patel.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) doesn’t recommend placing any blankets or other soft items in a baby’s crib while they sleep. Instead, bundle babies in a swaddle or wearable blanket that will keep them warm and stay snugly on their bodies through the night. Steer clear of weighted swaddles, sleep sacks, and swaddles that the AAP has stated are not safe for babies. Of the seven parents who recommended stocking up on a number of swaddles, three specifically called out this multipack from Aden and Anais as being one of their favorites.

Don’t underestimate the number of times you’ll be changing your baby’s crib sheets. Having a few different fitted sheets will save you from having to do laundry each time your baby makes a mess in the crib. And, skip any other bedding like blankets and crib bumpers to keep your baby safe while sleeping.

White noise machines can help babies sleep better, and three parents included them in their list of must-haves. Pyle loved the Yogasleep Hushh so much, she bought a second one for her own bedroom. And, the Hatch Rest+ was Patel and Marx’s favorite.

Note: The AAP recently announced new guidelines on white noise machines, and frankly, they are confusing. We talked to CR experts, pediatricians, and the AAP about them for this article.

This one’s on the list of good to have, with one caveat. While nearly every parent we spoke to agreed that pacifiers were musts for a baby registry, not all pacifiers are made the same and it’s hard to know just which pacifier your little one will even like. One option mentioned on several Reddit baby boards is the Babylist box, which gives your baby an opportunity to try a few binkies until they find one that they like best. That way you aren’t stuck buying set after set.

Bath time wouldn’t be complete without some cute hooded towels to wrap your baby in after a bath. Hooded towels have the added benefit of being more likely to stay on your baby until you’re ready to change them into a cute fit. Pyle specifically recommended hooded towels from Burt’s Bees. Hooded towels from Parachute—the brand behind our best bath towel evaluation—are a solid choice as well.

Cowles told me a gum brush helped her baby get used to brushing her teeth when she was older, and the experts seem to agree. On their FAQ page, the American Academy of Pediatric Dentists recommends cleaning a baby’s gums with a soft, infant brush or cloth and water, starting at birth.

Cutting teeny tiny nails with an adult-sized nail clipper is scary. A whopping five parents told us this item was nonnegotiable on their registry. Whalen says a pair from Fridababy, which also happened to be the editor’s choice in our evaluations of baby nail clippers, is amazing. “I use it on my 5- and 10-year-old boys and to be honest I use it on myself also.”

There’s bound to be lots of boogers in your future with a new baby at home. Whatever you want to call it, nasal aspirator or snot sucker, they’ll get you out of a boogie jam when your baby is congested. Two of our parents specifically recommended the dishwasher-safe NoseFrida, while another recommended a more high-tech version that might be easier to stomach for some.

Getting a sick baby to take medicine can be tricky without the proper tools. A medicine dispenser that allows you to measure and easily administer liquid medications to your baby is a baby product Fogarty found useful from her own baby registry. These are available in the form of droppers, syringes, and pacifiers.