It’s no secret that babies are expensive — diapers alone cost an average of $80 per month, according to the National Diaper Bank Network1. Add to that big-ticket items like a crib, stroller, high chair, baby clothes, car seat — not to mention pacifiers, swaddlers and more.
Fortunately, there are a lot of ways to get free baby stuff, including a free stroller, free crib, and free car seat.
Keep reading to learn about:
Baby registries that come with freebies
Local places to get free baby stuff
Organizations that give away free baby stuff
Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)
Other ways to save on baby items
You might also want to check out our new-parent guides:
Baby registries that come with freebies
These retailers offer free baby stuff when you create a baby registry:
Amazon baby registry box
Prime members who sign up for an Amazon baby registry will receive a free welcome box filled with full- and travel-sized products and samples for mom and baby.
What’s in the box? One Redditor shared the goods inside the February 2023 Amazon baby registry welcome box:
However, the contents of the box change based on product availability.
The fine print:
To get the free welcome box, you must:
- Be an active Amazon Prime member
- Create a baby registry
- Add 10 unique items to your registry, and have over $10 of purchases from your registry (by you or others).
If you receive SNAP, Medicaid, or other qualifying government assistance, you qualify for 50% off Amazon Prime.
Extra perks:
Amazon offers a 15% discount on any remaining items you have to purchase yourself from your baby registry, up to a combined value of $2,000 (a $300 savings).
Babylist's registry box of freebies
Babylist allows you to create a baby registry and add items from different stores. If you’re shopping on a web browser, you can even install the Babylist web extension to add items from any online store to your list.
Plus, you can request gently used baby clothes, home-cooked meals, and even cash for baby-related expenses or college savings.
When you sign up with Babylist, you’ll receive a Hello Baby Box, which includes product samples from popular brands (diapers, bibs, pacifiers, etc.). Boxes typically also contain coupons and promotional items.
The fine print:
To get your Hello Baby Box:
- Create a Babylist registry
- Add three items to your registry from the Babylist Shop
- Add three items to your registry from other stores (like Amazon and Target)
- Make a minimum purchase of $30 from the registry (you or someone else can make the purchase)
Once you’ve completed these tasks, a button will appear at the top of your profile that reads “Hello Baby Box.” While the box itself is free, you have to pay $8.95 plus tax to have it shipped to you.
Extra perks:
Babylist offers a one-time 15% discount in the Babylist shop on Babylist.com. Your registry must be at least 30 days old to get the discount, which is good from 60 days before and up to six months after your baby’s due date.
Target
When you create a Target baby registry, Target will send you a free welcome kit valued at more than $100. While the contents vary, you can expect to receive a mix of coupons and sample-size products.
Target also has options like:
- Target Circle: If you sign up for this rewards program, you can get exclusive deals on baby items for one year and earn 1% Target cash when you make purchases in-store and online
- RedCard: Target’s credit card that helps you earn 5% in Target cash when you shop
- Shipt: A Target partner program that offers same-day delivery on what you buy at a participating Target
You can use these options and others to save money and get your items quickly.
The fine print:
To get your welcome kit, you must:
- Create a Target baby registry at Target.com or in-store
- Go to your local Target and ask for a kit at Guest Services
It’s a good idea to call first to make sure there are kits in stock.
Here’s what one Redditor got in January 2024:
Extra perks:
Target offers a 15% discount on everything in your registry eight weeks before your baby’s due date, which you can redeem twice. You must be a Target Circle member, and your registry must be active for at least 14 days before you can receive the offer.
Also, Target allows for returns and exchanges from your registry for up to one year after purchase.
Free breasts pumps
Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, insurers now cover breast pumps and milk bags. There are a number of services to manage the ordering and billing to your insurer for free:
Aeroflow
BabyList
Breastpumps.com
BumpBoxes
Local places to get free baby stuff
Doctor’s office or hospital
Ask your gynecologist or your child’s pediatric doctor about free baby product samples or discounts on things you’ll regularly use for your baby. Sometimes, they have samples on hand and can share them when you come in for an appointment.
Another great place to check? Your local hospital — especially pediatric and maternity hospitals. If you give birth at a hospital, check to see what free baby items they can offer as you head home with your baby.
Facebook groups
Facebook groups are another goldmine to find baby stuff freebies. You can connect with other moms to get inside tips on where to score free baby samples.
Plus, you can find people giving away things they no longer need — like free strollers, free cribs, free car seats, gently used baby clothing, unused disposable diapers, toys, and other items.
Use the search feature on Facebook to look for parenting groups or baby freebie groups in your area. You can also join a Buy Nothing Facebook page to ask people in your area if they have free baby stuff they no longer need.
Freebie Alerts app
The Freebie Alerts app, available on the App Store and Google Play, sends you a notification every time your neighbors are giving away free stuff. This can be a help when looking for free baby clothes, toys, and other accessories.
The app monitors:
- Facebook Marketplace
- Nextdoor
- OfferUp
- TrashNothing
You can choose to receive alerts from all or some of these sources of free stuff.
If you want specific baby items, you can use the whitelist feature to notify you of offers with certain keywords. When you want an item, just tap on it in the app to communicate with the person giving it away. You can also post items you would like to give away.
Organizations that give away free baby stuff
Organizations that help mothers and families might also give away free baby items to expectant mothers.
For example ShareBaby in Baltimore helps low-income families get free diapers and other essential baby care items. They deliver more than 200,000 diapers per month to 15,000+ children in families that need extra help.
They also have a pantry filled with baby supplies and work with community partners to get them in the hands of those who need them most.
Here are a few organizations to check out:
Baby2Baby
Baby2Baby is a Los Angeles-based charity that provides free diapers, free wipes, free clothing, free cribs, and other baby essentials at no cost to families in need. To date, the charity has given more than 300 million baby items to people in 260+ cities across the country.
Items are typically distributed at hospitals, shelters, underserved schools, and foster care programs.
Feeding America
While Feeding America primarily focuses on making sure U.S. families have access to nutritional food, local branches offer additional services to meet community needs.
Baby brands partner with Feeding America to provide baby supplies for people in need. For example, Abbott, the maker of Similac, donated enough baby formula to provide 1.5 million meals to seven Feeding America food banks in 20202.
Safe Kids Worldwide
Safe Kids Worldwide has chapters across the United States and in dozens of other countries around the world. While each chapter has its own programs, some distribute free car seats to low-income moms and families3.
Safe Kids also provides events for free car seat checks.
Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)
WIC is a federal program that provides nutritious food items to pregnant women and mothers with children up to age 1 and children up to 5 years old.
Besides free baby formula and food, WIC-eligible families can get breastfeeding support and access to healthy foods like fresh fruit and vegetables and whole-grain bread.
Check your eligibility for WIC.
We created detailed guides for state and charity resources for single moms in every state:
Other ways to save on baby items
Getting free baby stuff certainly helps cut costs, but you’ll need a strategy to save money over the long term.
Here are 10 ways to save on baby items:
- Sign up for rewards programs
- Get a subscription box for frequently used items
- Shop at membership warehouses
- Use coupons and coupon codes
- Sign up for email alerts from local stores to catch items on sale
- Check with your employer about flexible child care savings accounts
- Opt for gently used baby clothes instead of new
- Check with your insurance provider to see if they cover baby items like breast pumps
- Create a baby registry and tell your friends and family about it
- Connect with other parents on sites like Freecycle to get free cribs, free beds, free strollers, and other items
Check out these other resources for low-income families:
SOURCES
- National Diaper Bank. https://www.google.com/url?q=https://nationaldiaperbanknetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/NDBN_DiaperNeed_Overview_February_2020.docx.pdf&sa=D&source=docs&ust=1689726378790430&usg=AOvVaw0c-gp1F0hdUaEfjriTNN5K
- “Nutrition Resources for New Parents: A Partnership with Feeding America,” May 20, 2020. Abbott. https://www.nutritionnews.abbott/news-research/global-nutrition/abbott-is-partnering-with-feeding-america-to-support-families-in-need/
- Safe Kids Worldwide. https://www.safekids.org/safe-kids-coalitions-united-states
