Real first year baby cost – what did you actually spend vs budget?

[Isabella]

Hey everyone,

My husband and I are first-time parents expecting our baby in November. We’ve been saving about $1,500 a month for almost a year, keeping it in a high-yield savings account. We’re trying to figure out what the first year really costs — medical bills, diapers, wipes, clothes, daycare, all that stuff. I plan to take around 8 months off, and my husband will take some time too, about 3 months right after the birth plus another month when I goes back to work.

For those of you who’ve done this recently, how much did you actually spend or budget for the first year? Was there anything that surprised you or that you wish you’d planned for differently? Thanks in advance, we’re trying to make sure we’re prepared and not missing anything big.

• This topic was modified 1 month, 2 weeks ago by Isabella.

[Neha Sharma]

Here’s what our first year actually cost us:

Crib mattress – $200
Diapers (initial stock-up)- $600
Wipes + Target-brand diapers after that – $200
High chair -$180
Stroller -$150
Carrier- $140
Bouncer and swing -$200
Odds and ends like soap and infant Tylenol- $170

Total cost $1,840. Things I haven’t included:

Food. She was exclusively breastfed, then started on whatever we were eating at six months. My pump came free through insurance.

Clothes and toys. Every single piece, secondhand. Our local Buy Nothing group is a goldmine- that’s also where the crib and car seat came from.

Baby shower loot. Bottles, plates, that tiny spoon, the bathtub, bibs, two pairs of shoes, more toys, and the infant car seat all showed up as gifts from family.

Medical. Well visits were covered. Delivery costs are their own beast and vary so wildly there’s no point including a number.

Detergent, water, etc. Technically a cost. Realistically, a rounding error in our grocery budget.

Babies can be costly or they can be inexpensive. Sometimes the answer is decided for you. Formula and daycare aren’t optional if you need them, and those change the math completely. Other times it’s a choice: a particular brand you love, or wanting something new instead of used. Neither one is wrong. But I think it’s worth knowing that the low end is possible, because the internet mostly shows you the other one.

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