12 Household Essentials to Stock Up On Before Baby Arrives
Preparing for your first baby can feel like a never-ending to-do list. You’re researching everything from car seats to breastfeeding, but what about your home? If you’re looking up household items to stock up on before baby, you’re already thinking like a smart, intentional mom — and you’re in the right place.
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While baby gear gets a lot of attention, the real magic happens when your home is prepped to support your recovery and your daily rhythm with a newborn. Because when your house is running smoothly, you can focus on what matters most: healing, bonding, and settling into new motherhood with confidence.
In this guide, I’m breaking down the 12 must-have household essentials to stock up on before baby arrives —things that often get overlooked in the excitement of cute newborn clothes and nursery decor. These are the practical, everyday items that will make life easier in those foggy, beautiful, and sleep-deprived first few weeks postpartum.
Why This Kind of Prep Matters
These things to stock up on before baby might seem small, but they add up in a big way. Having your home ready with the basics creates a sense of calm and order when everything else feels new. You don’t want to be thinking about paper towel shortages or missing soap when you’re running on 2 hours of sleep.
Preparing your space is more than just stocking shelves — it’s about creating an environment that supports you.
That’s why I created my step-by-step Ready for Baby Planner for first time moms who want to go into motherhood feeling clear, confident, and prepared. Inside, you’ll get practical, ready-to-use templates and guided resources that show you exactly what to focus on, when to do it, and what actually matters before baby arrives — so nothing important gets missed and nothing unnecessary adds stress.
This is the exact system I wish I’d had as a first-time mom — a clear, organized plan that removes the guesswork from preparing for baby. I’ll cover exactly what you should be doing now and through each trimester to truly feel ready for baby, how to prepare your home (without overbuying or overthinking), and what to expect during labor and delivery and in those first few days after baby is born.
Household Items to Stock Up On Before Baby
Dishwashing soap
Stock up on liquid dish soap and dishwasher pods. Pods are a game-changer when you’re one-handed with a baby on your hip.
Cleaning supplies for bottles and breast pump parts
Wash bottles and pump parts in a separate bowl or bin with a bottle brush to help eliminate the risk of bacteria and contamination. Dapple bottle soap is my favorite soap to use for bottles and pump parts, along with the Dr. Brown’s bottle brush and this Munchkin bottle drying rack.
Ziploc bags and plastic containers
Check your container storage supply and make sure to get freezer bags and cling wrap to save leftovers from meals. I also recommend getting a couple boxes of gallon size Ziploc bags. I used these to store my breast pump parts between pump sessions and to store various baby items such as the manuals for all of my baby products.
Paper towels
There will be lots of little messes and these make clean up easy.
Toilet paper
No explanation needed here. Stock up.
Hand soap
It makes me happy to make a special trip to Bath & Body Works to stock up on my favorite seasonal scents. Whatever kind of hand soap use, make sure you have enough on hand to get you through the first few months postpartum.
Laundry soap and stain remover
Baby spit ups and blowouts make for a lot of laundry during those early newborn days. Babies = laundry. Whether it’s spit-up, diaper blowouts, or milk spills, you’ll be doing laundry daily. Make sure you’re fully stocked on detergent, stain remover, and fabric softener.
Want to save on laundry? Check out my favorite wipeable changing pad - no changing and washing changing pad covers with this one!
Sanitizing wipes
Look for gentle sanitizing wipes that are safe to use around baby. These are perfect for wiping down surfaces, changing areas, and high-touch spots like remotes, door handles, and your phone.
Trash bags
You’ll need more than you think — between regular household trash and diaper changes, stock up on bags for the kitchen, bathrooms, and diaper pail if you’re using one.
Tylenol or Ibuprofen
This goes for both you and baby. You may need pain relief during your postpartum recovery, and having infant Tylenol on hand for your little one is smart for those inevitable middle-of-the-night fevers. (Pro tip: add it to your baby registry.) For a full list of baby meds to have ready, download my Baby Registry Checklist.
Toiletries and beauty items
Now’s the time to stock up on your daily-use items so you’re not running to the store with a newborn. Think soap, lotion, dry shampoo, toothpaste, deodorant, makeup, and skincare. Include any postpartum essentials like nipple cream too.
Coffee
This one is obvious, right??
For more helpful baby prep checklists, guide, and resources, head over and Grab Your Ready for Baby Planner. If you want to feel truly ready — not just hopeful you’re doing the right thongs — this is your next step.
