Having a baby can bring out so many emotions in you. When I first found out I was pregnant, I was excited, happy, and scared all at the same time. It was incredible knowing this little life was growing inside of me, but I also knew I had a lot of planning to do. Thinking about how to save for a baby was definitely one of those things that was on my mind to plan. Raising my little human was something I was extremely excited about, but I needed to figure out ways to save for a baby.

Save for a baby in these simple steps

Read through these strategies to help you save for a baby. Some of the tips I describe below were successful saving strategies I used, while others were recommended to me by like-minded parents that were interested in saving money.

Start your Amazon baby registry.

Ebates

Ebates lets you earn cash back for shopping at numerous stores, which includes major and well-known retailers. Some retailers even offer sales and cash back deals at the same time. For example, one of the major retailers can offer 25% off your entire purchase plus 12% cash back! This is a great deal, because many other retailers don’t allow you to combine offers and sales. Also, Ebates is free to use. There is no monthly fee, one-time fee, or any kind of fee to use their services.

$5 Meal Plan

Groceries are one of the largest household expenses. The $5 Meal Plan is a weekly meal plan service that costs only $5 a month. If you ask me, that’s a great deal with a lot of potential savings!

The $5 Meal Plan also introduces you to new recipes, so you can try different dishes if you’ve been cooking the same dishes for awhile.

Hold a diaper raffle

Baby showers have all sorts of cute and exciting games such as, “Don’t say baby” and “Guess the baby food.” Doing a diaper raffle at your baby shower can help you save a lot of money. In a diaper raffle, attendees bring diapers, receive raffle tickets, and a lucky winner is drawn to receive a prize.

I had a diaper raffle at my baby shower and a lot of my friends and family members brought diapers to participate in the raffle. I received diapers of all sizes and I can tell you that I used every single one of them!

Diapers are expensive and you use so many of them that this is one of the more costly baby expenses. I saved a lot of money on diapers by holding a diaper raffle at my baby shower.

*There are affiliate links in this post, which means I receive a commission for qualifying purchases, at no extra cost to the buyer. I am also an Amazon Associate, which also means I earn from qualifying Amazon purchases, at no extra cost to buyers.

Try cloth diapers

If you are looking for more economical options for diapers and are not interested in disposable diapers, try cloth diapers for your baby instead. There are several benefits to using cloth diapers, including cost savings over the long run and reducing landfill waste.

Initially, the upfront cost is more because cloth diapers are more expensive. However, over the long run, you end up saving more money because you’re reusing the cloth diapers, as opposed to throwing away every disposable diaper and constantly buying new ones.

Breastfeed

Choosing to breastfeed not only has tremendous health benefits , but it also helps save money. Formula is another costly expense for raising a baby. However, if breastfeeding around the clock is something that you think might be too exhausting, you can also try doing a mix of breastfeeding and formula.

Some people don’t agree with this and feel that you need to choose one or the other. I started out exclusively breastfeeding for the first few months and then switched to a mix of breastfeeding and formula two months before I went back to work full-time.

My baby’s pediatrician said it was fine and my baby had no problems consuming breast milk and formula. Every baby is different. If your baby’s pediatrician says it’s okay to try both breast milk and formula for your baby, then you could pursue that option to help save money if you choose not to exclusively breastfeed.

Convertible furniture

When my daughter was a baby, she used a convertible crib. This was perfect for saving money, since we were able to transform the crib to a toddler bed once she outgrew the crib. There are several types of convertible cribs. Some convertible cribs convert to toddler beds, while others transform into twin-sized beds.

Manage stress

This tip sometimes surprises new parents. “How can I possibly save money by taking care of myself and managing my stress?” Do you recall hearing the stewardess tell you on your last flight to put your oxygen mask on first before putting it on anyone else? You can’t help others if you’re not okay or alive.

According to Dr. Ramani Durvasula, a professor of psychology at California State University, Los Angeles, “Stress impacts an individual in numerous ways — immune function, endocrine function, pain modulation, psychiatric symptomatology, cardiovascular function — and impacts cognitive elements of the person, such as perceptions of control, hopelessness, helplessness, and agency.”

Chronic and unmanaged stress levels can contribute to health issues and increasing healthcare expenses. Take care of yourself and manage your stress to help avoid costly healthcare.

Read this article on anti-stress techniques to get ideas to on how to manage your stress better.

Vacation nearby

You might be used to doing your annual or biannual vacations in faraway places, that typically require airplanes and hotels. If you do, try changing it up this year and pick a local vacation spot to help you save for a baby. You could end up saving more than a thousand dollars by just taking out the airfare from your vacation costs.

Ideas for nearby vacations

Camping
Local beaches
Local tourist sites

Limit shoe purchases

In the first year, I would advise not to buy too many shoes for your baby. First, they are not able to walk yet for at least the first 9 months. During this stage, shoes are considered a nice-to-have, but not a baby essential. Second, they grow very fast during their first year. Your baby won’t be using his/her shoes for that long since he/she will outgrow them pretty quickly.

Try some of these strategies to help save for a baby and you could end up with an extra several hundred dollars in a month alone.