The Crayon Baby Gear List
What you really need and what it costs
The baby gear industry has a way of making you feel like buying more stuff makes you a better parent. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t. The most impactful way for you to save money is simply to not buy things you don’t need.
It also saves you a lot of time, space and overwhelm in the lead up to your baby’s arrival.
Beyond the absolute necessities, many “must-have” items in these industry-standard lists should really be labelled as “it works for me”. These items are usually sponsored products, items that align with the author's parenting approach, or they’re a preference of their baby. You can do away with a number of them.
This list is unsponsored. We’ve divided it into three sections: essentials, useful-to-have and nice-to-have. For each item, we’ve given cost estimates for budget, mid-range and top-end options based on New Zealand pricing.
This list is written to help you manage your spending well. I hope it also saves you a lot of time figuring out how to tie a complicated sling or install the latest software.
Keep in mind that, like many parents, you will probably end up with baby items you barely use, either because your baby doesn’t take to it or the item doesn’t suit your lifestyle. It’s often hard to know this before you purchase the item, so for nice-to-have items, consider borrowing or buying secondhand (as long as they meet safety standards).
So here it is, the official Crayon Baby Gear List:
Now for the important legal part: This information is general and not regulated financial advice for the purposes of the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013. Please seek independent legal, financial, tax or other advice in considering whether the content in this article is appropriate for your goals, situation or needs. The information in this article is current as at 21 June 2022.
Stephanie Pow
Founder and CEO, Crayon