hello little human

Baby registry builder

Babies need less than the internet says. What you actually need, for how you'll live. Answer a few questions and get a list of item types, marked essential, helpful or optional. We name no brands and get nothing for what you choose.

How do you plan to feed your baby? Pick all that might apply.
Who will look after your baby during the day in the first year?
Do you have a car?

Everyone gets the car seat. Your baby needs one for any car ride, including the trip home from the hospital.

Will you walk or take transit a lot with your baby?
How much room do you have for baby gear?
What will the weather be like in your baby's first three months?
Are you expecting twins or more?
Do you want the leanest list that's still safe?

Our registry list, from hellolittlehuman.com

Sleep

Feeding

Diapering

Bathing

Clothing

Car and travel

Health and safety

Carrying

Play and development

For you

Skip these

  • Crib bumpers, including padded liners that tie or snap to the rails: banned in the US since November 12, 2022 cpsc.gov
  • Inclined sleepers, with a sleep surface tilted more than 10 degrees: banned in the US since November 12, 2022 cpsc.gov
  • Weighted sleep sacks, swaddles and blankets healthychildren.org
  • Sleep positioners and wedges: Linked to infant deaths, with no evidence they prevent SIDS. healthychildren.org
  • Infant loungers, nests and pods as a place to sleep: Not safe for sleep. Some have been recalled. healthychildren.org
  • Mesh crib liners: Unnecessary, and they can come loose and trap a baby. healthychildren.org
  • Crib bedding sets, quilts, pillows and stuffed animals for the crib: Nothing but a fitted sheet belongs in the sleep space. healthychildren.org
  • Extra or thicker mattresses and pads for play yards and bassinets: They may not fit tightly and can cause suffocation or entrapment. Use only the mattress that came with the product. cpsc.gov
  • Soft-sided baskets and mini-bassinets that don't meet the federal bassinet standard healthychildren.org
  • Monitors sold as a way to prevent SIDS: The AAP says not to rely on them to lower SIDS risk. healthychildren.org
  • Baby walkers with wheels: Linked to falls down stairs, burns, drowning and poisoning. The AAP has called for a ban. healthychildren.org
  • Bath seats and bath rings: They can tip over, and a baby can drown. healthychildren.org
  • Teething necklaces, bracelets and amber jewelry, and benzocaine teething gels fda.gov
  • Talc baby powder: Inhaled talc can cause severe lung damage in babies. healthychildren.org
  • Car seat add-ons that didn't come with the seat: head inserts, strap covers, padded liners, bunting bags with a layer behind the baby: They haven't been crash tested with your seat. healthychildren.org
  • Neck floats and baby float seats: Float seats flip easily and neck floats can deflate. healthychildren.org
  • Wipe warmers, baby shoes for babies who can't walk yet, special baby laundry detergent, bottle warmers, baby food makers, and lots of newborn-size clothes: Nice-to-have at most. A bowl of warm water warms a bottle.
  • A full nursery crib in the first months, if money or space is tight: The AAP recommends room-sharing for at least 6 months, so a bassinet or play yard can come first and a crib later. healthychildren.org

Buying secondhand safely

  • Cribs made before June 28, 2011 probably don't meet the current federal standard, and you can't tell by looking. CPSC says not to sell or give away a crib that doesn't meet it. Don't buy or accept a drop-side crib: it can't meet the standard, even with an immobilizer added. onsafety.cpsc.gov
  • Use a play yard or bassinet only with the mattress it came with, and only if no parts are missing or broken. cpsc.gov
  • Don't use a used car seat unless you know its history and it has never been in a moderate or severe crash. Check that it has its labels (date made and model number), isn't too old for its maker's limit, has no open recalls and no cracks, and has all its parts and instructions. The maker can supply missing instructions and some parts. nhtsa.gov
  • Don't buy or borrow a used breast pump made for one user. Rent a multi-user pump only from an authorized provider, with your own accessory kit. fda.gov
  • Use only infant bathtubs made on or after October 2, 2017. healthychildren.org
  • Banned products still turn up at thrift stores, garage sales and online. The ban on inclined sleepers and crib bumpers applies whenever they were made. cpsc.gov
  • Check recalls before you use anything secondhand: cpsc.gov/Recalls for nursery gear, and nhtsa.gov/recalls (Car Seats tab) for car seats. cpsc.gov
  • Register any new car seat with its maker so you hear about recalls. nhtsa.gov
  • Anchor any used dresser or bookcase to the wall, whatever its age. cpsc.gov
  • Clothes, books, blankets for awake time, burp cloths and towels are good to get secondhand.

The registry aisle is long. Your list doesn’t have to be.

How the list is built

The builder starts from the few things every baby needs, like a safe place to sleep and a car seat for the ride home, then adds what fits your answers: how you’ll feed, who’ll look after your baby, whether you drive, the weather and your space. Items are marked:

  • Essential: you’ll need it from the first days.
  • Helpful: most families use it; it can wait or be borrowed.
  • Optional: nice to have. Plenty of families never buy one.

Choose “keep it lean” and optional items drop off, and each item shows a cheaper way to cover it, where there is one. Essential and helpful items stay, and that includes every safety item.

Why no brands

We list types of things, not products. A firm, flat crib mattress that fits snugly matters more than its brand. This list has no paid links. Any paid link elsewhere on the site is marked and listed on the partners page, and a fee never changes this list.

Safety comes first

The safety notes come from the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, NHTSA, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the FDA. Before you buy anything for sleep, read safe sleep, the AAP way.

Sources

  1. US Consumer Product Safety Commission, “Nursery Product Safety” and “Safe Sleep.” cpsc.gov
  2. NHTSA, “Car Seats and Booster Seats” and “Used Car Seat Safety Checklist.” nhtsa.gov
  3. American Academy of Pediatrics, “A Parent’s Guide to Safe Sleep” and “Baby Products to Avoid.” healthychildren.org
  4. FDA, “Handling Infant Formula Safely: What You Need to Know.” fda.gov