The Answer To Every Question You Ever Had About A Baby Registry

You’re Pregnant. Congratulations! A brand new person will be born soon and that little person will need a lot of new things, which is why you’ll need to set up a baby registry.

This is your one-stop-shop to get the answers to all your questions before you start your Baby Shower Registry.

What is A Baby Registry?

A baby registry is a list of gifts that you would like to receive for the new baby. By creating this list, you are ensuring that you get the gifts you actually want for your baby, instead of random gifts that you may, or may not need.

A baby registry is usually created online.

Friends and family members would go to your online baby registry, and pick something that they would like to buy for you. Once they get an item from your registry, it is no longer available for other people to purchase.

There are various companies or stores where you can register for baby, like Amazon, Walmart, Target, etc. Normally people choose to have their registry at their favorite store.

You can have more than one baby registry. However, managing multiple baby registries can get tricky.

How Does A Baby Registry Work?

As your friends and family buy things from your registry, the store manages the registry for you. That means, they automatically remove items that people have already purchased.

Having a baby registry is extremely helpful because everyone can go to one (or two places if you decide to have more than one registry), and buy exactly what you want. Registries take the thinking work out of gift buying. Baby registries are also helpful in ensuring that there aren’t duplicate purchases.

As the mom, you can see the list of purchases and you are able to send thank you notes to those who have made purchases.

Many, but not all stores offer a completion discount where you can buy everything left un-purchased in one go at a discount. Completion discounts are REALLY helpful because you are getting items at discounted prices.

Many people feel uncomfortable about telling others what gifts they want. However, baby registries are extremely common and they are expected. They are helpful to you as the new mom and to the gift giver. By telling people what you want for the new baby, you take the thinking work out of gift-giving. No one needs to figure out or guess what you would like. By having a baby registry, you reduce the risk of receiving duplicate gifts as well.

By having a baby registry, you don’t get, what you don’t want. Imagine the feeling of getting something that you really, really dislike. By having a baby registry, you eliminate all that. There are no awkward feelings for either the mom or the gift giver.

When to Start A Baby Registry

Short answer – around the start of your second trimester, (to be completed at the end of your second trimester – the 6th month of your pregnancy.) Yes, this may seem early but unless you’re copying someone else’s baby registry, (which is absolutely possible and many moms do this), doing it right takes time. If you want to wait till you find out the gender, which can happen around the 5th month of pregnancy, that’s okay too. That will still leave you enough time.

Long answer… Way sooner than you thought. Here’s why…

This is your approximate timeline:

Your Pregnancy Timeline	Your Activity
6th month of pregnancy	Create Your Baby Registry
6.5 month of pregnancy	Send out the Baby Shower Invitations
7.5 month of pregnancy	Celebrate – Baby Shower
9th month of pregnancy	Celebrate again – Baby’s Here!

The ideal time for a baby shower is around 6-8 weeks before you give birth. (You don’t have to follow that timeline but this is traditionally when it happens.) Baby shower invitations are ideally sent out 6 weeks before your shower date, to give the host and attendees enough time to make arrangements. This may seem far in advance but baby shower planning is a job on its own, and sending out invitations 6 weeks in advance, follows traditional guidelines and it relieves stress.

Before you can send out those invitations, you have to have your baby registry done because you will need to let people know where you are registered. In other words, get your registry done sooner than you would have thought.

Your 6th month of pregnancy is the latest time to do it – if you want to follow the traditional timeline. Some recommend that you start your registry at the beginning of your second trimester – so month 4. If you do that, it will give you 3 months to create and tweak the registry, before you have to let people know about it.

Starting it early makes it stress-free.

How To Let Friends & Family Know About Your Baby Registry?

There are three methods of letting people know about your baby registry. You can use:

Email Everyone

Email everyone who is invited to your baby shower, and let them know where you are registered.

Tell Everyone

Let people know when you talk to them.

Use Announcement Cards

This is the easiest way.

• When you create your baby shower invitation, let people know about your registry right on the baby invitation.  Or,
• Some baby registries give you complimentary announcement cards, which you can include in your baby shower invitations. Or,
• Print your own announcement cards that match your baby shower theme, and include it with the baby shower invitation.

Baby Registry Must Haves –  What To Put On Your Baby Registry?

This is a tough question, especially if you’re a first-time mom.

This new baby checklist is comprehensive and includes all baby essentials. There are no “luxuries” on the list but it does include items that are considered by some as “non-essentials but you can’t live without… as a mom”. This baby essentials checklist is color-coded to help you stay organized while you’re creating your baby registry.

Click here for your FREE Printable Baby Essentials Checklist

What Not To Put On Your Baby Registry?

Everyone has their opinions on what to put and what not to put on your registry.

Baby shoes

Baby will not walk until much later. Baby shoes are adorable but they are not a necessary expense.

Baby wipe warmer

Wipe warmers are a luxury and if you’re a frugal mom, you can certainly do without it. Cold wipes do not necessarily feel good to a warm baby but if your baby really hates it, you can warm the wipe between your hands just before you wipe baby’s bottom.

A crib bumper and comforter set

Crib bumpers and frilly crib accessories are adorable but definitely not recommended by the AAP – American Academy of Pediatrics. They are considered dangerous because they can lead to strangulation and suffocation. According to the AAP – “Avoid use of soft bedding, including crib bumpers, blankets, pillows and soft toys. The crib should be bare.”

Baby Clothes Beyond 6 Months?

Some people are of the opinion that you should not add baby clothes beyond 6 months because you don’t know how your baby will grow. Most babies are average but you can’t know if your baby will be average, big, or small until they’re born.

Diapers?

This is a controversial subject.

The Case For Not Adding Diapers To Your Baby Registry

Some people say that you should not add diapers to your baby registry because you cannot know if the baby will have sensitivities to certain diapers or wipes. This is true. However, most babies have no adverse reactions to disposable diapers.

If you or your spouse has skin sensitivities, your baby may too. That being the case, adding diapers and wipes to your baby registry is probably not a good idea.

If you are on the bench, simply ask guest to offer gift receipts for diaper purchases. If you discover that your baby has sensitivities to a specific brand, you can always exchange it for something different.

The Case For Adding Diapers To Your Registry

Diapers will most likely be your largest expense until your baby is potty trained. Receiving diapers at your baby shower will be helpful in keeping diaper costs down, at least during the first few months.

Getting diapers at your baby shower is so helpful that lots of people have diaper raffles at their baby showers.

High Ticket Items?

Some people say it’s impolite to add expensive items like a dresser or stroller onto your registry. They are of the opinion that it makes you seem greedy. By adding high ticket baby products to your registry, you put pressure on your friends and family to buy it for you.

Others say you should put EVERYTHING on your baby registry.

Both are valid points.

The Case For Adding EVERYTHING To Your Baby Registry

Most people DO expect you to put everything on your baby registry. If someone was only going to spend $15 on your gift, seeing a $900 stroller on your baby registry will mean nothing to them. They were not going to buy it for you anyway.

If they want, friends and family can pool funds to buy a high ticket item for you.

If you created a baby registry with a store that offers a completion discount, you will automatically get a discount on everything that is left unpurchased. In other words, you will be able to buy whatever is left on your registry – at a discount.  The Amazon baby registry discount is between 10-15%, which is significant, particularly if you are buying expensive items. However, those items have to be on your registry. You cannot add them after the fact, and expect the discount. It is, therefore, absolutely in your benefit to add all you really want to your baby registry.

How To Choose A Baby Registry

Choose A Baby Registry That Is Easy For Everyone

Some people prefer shopping online. Some people prefer going to a physical store and buying gifts. Accommodate them. If you are going to have multiple registries, including one that is widely accessible for everyone, like the Target Baby Registry or the Walmart Baby Registry.

Consider a Universal Baby Registry

A universal baby registry allows you to add virtually any item you want to your registry. The Amazon Baby Registry and Target Baby Registry have universal registries, so they allow you to add items to your registries, even if it’s not necessarily from Amazon or Target. For example – you’ve been browsing Macy’s maternity collection and there’s a cute maternity dress that you love. With a universal registry, you can add it! This makes life super easy because you’ll be able to have everything in one place, instead of managing several registries.

The Universal Baby Registry is a wonderful feature.  All you have to do is install Amazon’s free 1 Button App. It’s an extension that’s super easy to install. Then, when you see something online that you’d like to add to your baby registry, you click the button (which lives at the top of your browser), and it gets added to your wish list.

If you did shop at other sites, people who are browsing your baby registry will be able to see non-Amazon items listed on your registry. If they want to get it for you, they’ll be given the option to “reserve” the item for purchase, before they are taken to the website where the item is sold. When someone reserves an item on your baby registry, it indicates their intent to buy it.

Kindly keep in mind that items that are added to your registry via the universal registry take place outside of Amazon. That means, no Amazon payments or free prime shipping, returns, customer service, Amazon’s A-Z guarantee, etc. Everything takes place entirely outside of Amazon.  Also important – anything you add from a universal registry, will not be eligible for Amazon’s baby registry discount.

Multiple Baby Registries Can Be Helpful, But…

The Amazon Baby Registry is the elephant in the room. Most people believe it’s the best and few registries come close to all the perks they offer. If you can have only one registry, the Amazon registry would probably be it because it has a large variety of products and you can register for almost everything. BUT, at the time of this writing, Amazon doesn’t offer services – only products.

You might want to consider multiple registries and try to include a few services in there, like a maid, a doula, food delivery, etc. When you haven’t slept for days and chronic fatigue sets in, someone helping with laundry or bringing dinner is invaluable.

Keep in mind, however, that managing multiple registries is stressful and time-consuming. If at all possible, try to include “services” into your Amazon Registry, as part of the universal baby registry.

Here’s an obvious tip – if you are going to have multiple registries, do not add the same things to both registries. This will decrease the chances of you getting multiples.

Consider Shipping

When we register, we often do not consider the shipping part but that could be a big deal for some gift-givers. The Target Baby Registry offers free shipping for purchases over $29, for Walmart, it is $50, and for Amazon, it’s $49 or FREE if you have Amazon Prime. Consider these variations carefully before you decide on the right Baby Registry.

Consider Their Return Policy

Registering for exactly what you need can help decrease the likelihood of returns, but you never know. Choose a registry that makes returns easy.

Discounts and Coupons Are Great But Read The Fine Print

Some sites offer completion discounts for items in your registry that have not been purchased by a certain date. This is wonderful because you’ll be able to save money when you buy the items that were not purchased from your registry. But, be sure to read the fine print. There will be date limitations and possibly other restrictions.

Don’t Delay – Register Early!

You will want to give gift-givers enough time to buy gifts. Consider starting your registry in your second trimester. In case you missed it, scroll up to view when to start a baby registry.

If You’re Buying Online, Read Reviews & Registry Guides

How To Create A Baby Registry

Start With The Basics & Use A Checklist

There are TONS of baby items available. It is easy to get overwhelmed. Use a checklist and prioritize the necessities – like a baby crib, swaddle blankets, baby sleep sack, baby bottles if you’re formula feeding, a breast pump if you’re nursing, a car seat, a stroller, onesies, diapers, and wipes. Once you have the basics, move on to other items like baby monitors and baby bouncers.

Put Everything A Newborn Needs On Your List – Even the Big-Ticket Items

Having a baby costs a small fortune, particularly if it’s your first baby. This is why you need to add everything your baby will need when they are born, to your registry. If you are fortunate, you may have enough friends and family to buy everything you need. If you don’t, that’s okay too because you may be able to buy whatever is left with your completion discount. If your registry is on Amazon and you have Amazon Prime, that’s 15% off everything that is left on your registry!

Add Personal Notes to Your Registry

If the registry allows you to add a personal message to potential gift-givers, consider leaving personal notes on select registry items.  This can be particularly helpful for those big-ticket items. If you are feeling guilty about adding those things to your registry in the first place, perhaps leave a note to potential gift-givers, to say that you realize this is pricey and you do not expect them to buy it, but you’re adding it to our registry nonetheless so that you could buy it later with your completion discount.

Add Gift Certificates to Your Registry

This is extremely helpful, particularly to uncertain gift-givers. You could then shop off your own registry, and get the completion discount. You could also save them for later because YOU WILL DEFINITELY need things later that were not on your baby registry.

Add Items To Your Registry At Different Price Ranges To Accommodate Everyone’s Budget

If everything on your baby registry is “expensive”, people may decide to buy items that are not on your list, or not buy anything at all. Accommodate everyone’s budget and add things at all price levels. The bulk of your items should be in the middle price range. $30 -$70 is the norm but your friends and family may be different.  Gift givers could also collaborate with one another and chip in on one big-ticket gift.

Consider Yourself, Too

Once your baby arrives, you will likely not be able to get out much. Think about what you will need

Make Your Preferences Clear

If you prefer a specific nursery color or theme, make it known early on. Keep in mind that your gift-givers want to get you what you want, so don’t hesitate in politely guiding them. Holding back for the sake of politeness can result in you getting things you don’t really want or need.

Encourage Gift Baskets

A bottle of saline spray, a snot sucker, a thermometer, some infant Tylenol, nail trimmers, alcohol swabs, and cotton swabs may seem super boring, but these are things you will definitely need. You could encourage gift-givers to create a themed gift basket with these items. Other examples of gift baskets could be a bath and skincare basket, a nursing supplies basket, a board book library basket, or a gift basket with pampering goodies for mom.

Picking products to add to your baby registry is daunting on its own, but finding the perfect registry, is just as daunting. Each has many different advantages and bells and whistles. There are plenty of great baby registries out there and they all claim that they’re the best registry stores. These companies are falling all over themselves to get your business. That means, they try to make creating a baby registry easy, and they try to keep you happy.

I have spent a ton of time researching “the best baby registries.” For a thorough and in-depth analysis, check that out here. But in case you have not done so, also check out the heading above: Helpful Tips For Choosing & Creating Your Baby Registry, because just picking out the perfect baby registry, is not enough. When comparing sites, the amenities and perks are important but there are a lot of other factors to consider.