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The baby products the parents at Which? couldn't live without
Navigating parenthood is hard enough without dealing with useless or dud products. Here are the essential baby items loved by the mums and dads who work at Which?
Drawing on nearly half a decade at Which?, Natalie helps readers cut through the noise with practical guidance on trending products, pest control, cleaning advice and money-saving tips during the sales.
Parenting is a journey filled with joy, sleepless nights – and a whole lot of trial and error, especially with baby products.
To help you save time and money the next time you need to shop for your child, we asked the mums and dads of Which? to tell us about the indispensable products that made their lives easier. They include a game-changing baby carrier and a sound machine that helps little ones sleep through the night.
From must-have gadgets to everyday essentials, here are the baby items that Which? parents couldn’t live without.
Support your growing family: our expert advice can help you make the right choices, from improving your home to planning your finances
Baby carriers
Baby Bjorn carriers
When I needed to get jobs done around the house but the girls wanted to be held, it was a life-saver. Neither of mine took to buggies until much older, so it was also helpful for getting out of the house quickly.
Tash DunlingHead of commercial finance at Which?
For many Which? parents, a baby carrier is a must-have, offering the perfect blend of mobility and comfort while keeping little ones snug – especially those who love to be held at all times. Among the favourites, Baby Bjorn emerged as a top choice, praised for its ease of use and support.
See carriers from more brands, as well as the top-scoring slings and wraps in our guide to the best baby carriers and slings
A portable and collapsible padded highchair means your baby has a place to sit wherever you go. Good for travelling or taking over to a friend or family member’s house.
Angus DawsonChief sub editor at Which?
For parents on the go, a portable baby chair like the Airtushi can be a game-changer, providing a secure seat wherever you travel.
Designed to be attached to a range of chairs – including aeroplane seats and camping chairs, according to the manufacturer – it offers a convenient solution for mealtimes away from home.
With the ability to deflate for easy storage, it’s designed to fit neatly into a bag, making family adventures just a little bit easier.
You can compare a range of popular models and see our experts' top picks in our guide to the best high chairs.
More baby seats and chairs to use away from dinner time:
Snug Floor Seat with Activity Tray – A portable floor seat with a removeable tray, available in three colours. SQUIRREL_TEXT_50019664.
Isofix Car Seat Base – According to our parents, it makes fastening a baby car seat a walk in the park. SQUIRREL_TEXT_50028792.
Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep Machine
A non-negotiable for bottle-fed babies in my opinion! We actually had two, as we live in a three-storey house, so we kept one in the kitchen and one in the bedroom for night feeds.
Sarah-Jane TeddEndorsements account manager at Which?
The Tommee Tippee Perfect Prep machine offers a quick and convenient way to prepare bottles round-the-clock.
According to the manufacturer, it prepares a perfectly warmed bottle in just two minutes, helping to soothe hungry babies without the wait. Designed with night-time in mind, it features volume control to keep noise to a minimum, and it has a digital display.
But be aware that bottle prep machines may not always heat the water to a high enough temperature, so some NHS Hospital Trusts do not recommend using them. We go into more detail in our guide – perfect prep and formula bottle prep machines.
Nuby Rapidcool
We used this at home, but it's also great if you need to prepare a bottle when out and about - take the right amount of formula powder, a flask of hot water (or ask a café or restaurant), then cool in the Nuby.
Vanita Barrett-SmithSenior product engineer at Which?
Available in a wide range of colours, the Nuby RapidCool is designed to cool down formula milk within 2-5 minutes, making it quicker to prepare a bottle.
Milton Sterilising Tablets
These offer a really easy way to sterilise bottles, breast pump equipment, toys and more. Just put a tablet in cold water following the ratio on the box. You can also use the tablets for cleaning surfaces - it helps protect against more viruses than most surface cleaners.
Vanita Barrett-SmithSenior product engineer at Which?
Sterilising tablets can make quick work of sanitising your bottles and feeding equipment. Milton claims the solution is effective for 24 hours and there is no need to rinse baby items before they go into a baby's mouth.
Always read the manufacturer's instructions before use.
We asked more than 2,000 parents about their experience with formula milk – see what they had to say in the best baby formula milk brands
Essential safety equipment
A reliable baby monitor
Having a baby monitor gave me peace of mind while my baby was sleeping, and with ours you can even talk through it. Our child is five now and we’re still using it, as it's helpful for telling them it's too early to wake up and to stay in bed!
Steph KiplingScience team manager at Which?
Our baby monitor has been a godsend. It not only acts as a portable/fixed monitor, but also has a night-light and tunes to help your baby nod off. You can also speak through it to calm your baby, or speak to your partner if they're in the nursery.
Verity CozonSenior researcher at Which?
For parents who want extra peace of mind, a reliable baby monitor with two-way audio can make all the difference.
Being able to hear and speak to your baby means you can offer comfort without rushing to their room every time they stir. Parents we spoke to found this especially useful for soothing little ones back to sleep or reassuring them from another room.
Head to our guide on the best baby monitors to find the right one for you.
An essential safety item in any property with stairs until little one is confident enough to be able to walk up and down them on their own.
Steph KiplingScience team manager at Which?, mum of one
A sturdy stair gate is a must-have for parents with little ones on the move. Whether blocking off staircases or sectioning off certain rooms, having reliable gates in place can help prevent accidents and give parents peace of mind.
Head to the best stair gates for top models and expert buying advice
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Products to help with bath time
Yookidoo Baby Bath Shower Head
This is so helpful for washing the hair of a toddler who hates having their hair washed! It makes it fun and is very gentle.
Rachel MahoneyPeople partner at Which?
Bathtime can be a challenge with a wriggly toddler, but the Yookidoo Baby Bath Shower Head is designed to make it easier.
Shaped like an elephant, it adds a fun touch while helping parents gently rinse hair without fuss. A built-in button lets you control the water flow, giving you more precision and making the experience more comfortable for little ones. It’s also available in seven different colours.
More bath time baby products:
BabyOne Bath Thermometer – One Which? dad said it gives him 'peace of mind to get the bath temperature right' with this floating thermometer. SQUIRREL_TEXT_50019670.
Angelcare Soft Touch Bath Support – A soft bath seat designed to hold babies under six months old, keeping you hands-free while bathing them. SQUIRREL_TEXT_50019671.
Preparing for when they get poorly
NoseFrida Snot Sucker
It is as grim as it sounds, but it clears a snotty nose almost instantly, and is the most effective thing we had for nasty newborn colds. I still use it on my two-year-old as she's not able to blow her nose yet.
Lauren DeitzEditor at Which?
Babies can't blow their own nose and get very snotty, so using one of these is a good way to clear them out.
Angus DawsonChief sub editor at Which?
A stuffy nose can make babies miserable, but the NoseFrida Snot Sucker (yes, it really is called that) is a big hit with parents at Which? to help clear congestion.
The design includes a long tube with a pencil-shaped tip that fits gently in your child’s nose, while you suck on the other end to remove mucus. To keep things hygienic, disposable filters are included to prevent anything unpleasant from passing through.
The kit also comes with a 20ml sea salt solution to help loosen stubborn snot, making it easier for little ones to breathe comfortably again.
Hear me out (no pun intended). My friend has three children under seven – a five-year-old and ten-month-old twins. She swears by these earplugs as they 'take the edge off' the crying and squealing, which she finds really overwhelming. She can still hear everything, it's just not quite as piercing!
Steph LoweSenior content producer at Which?
Daily life as a parent can get loud. While you can’t completely switch off from the noise, a decent pair of ear plugs can tone down some of the harsher sounds.
Loop claims that its Quiet ear plugs are designed to reduce noise by 26dB. They come with a keychain storage case and four sizes of silicone ear tips.
The Loop Quiet Ear Plugs are currently unavailable to buy, but their successor, the Loop Quiet 2, are available from the retailers above.
Very simple: these stop baby socks falling off, which would otherwise happen about 800 times a day.
Natalie HitchinsContent head at Which?
The simple solution to stop babies pulling off and losing their socks.
Hazel MartinCreative artworker at Which?
Whether they’re being pulled off by curious little hands or falling off and getting lost under the sofa, keeping baby socks firmly on baby feet is a challenge every parent knows all too well.
Sock Ons consist of a stretchy material designed to fit over baby socks to keep them securely in place. They’re machine washable and available in white or shades of blue.
For tiny feet, parents also loved:
Juicy Bumbles Soft Sole Baby Shoes – Leather and suede shoes available in several sizes available for age ranges from birth up to two years old. SQUIRREL_TEXT_50019666.
Owlet Smart Sock – One Which? mum called this an 'absolute godsend'. It's a smart sock which alerts you if your baby's heart rate or blood oxygen dips too low. SQUIRREL_TEXT_50019667.
Prams and pushchairs
Bugaboo Donkey 6 Double Stroller
The flexibility of this pushchair was terrific, with 20 possible configurations. We could sometimes have one twin facing one way, and other facing the other (if you're a parent, you'll know why!). The storage underneath is huge (15kg), and there's an additional bag that clips on when you've only got it in the one-child configuration that takes 4kg.
Jamie DarlowSenior researcher at Which?
This travel system-compatible pushchair can be used with two children, either as a twin pushchair or with a younger sibling, based on how you configure the pushchair.
When set up as a double, the horizontal chassis bars are widened to make space for a second seat unit, carrycot or car seat.
This blackout blind has suction cups to affix to any window to make the room nice and dark for nap time (and to discourage early rising in summer). It’s portable and cleverly designed to get right to the edges of small or large windows alike.
Natalie HitchinsContent head at Which?
Getting a baby to sleep in a bright room isn’t always easy, which is why some parents turn to blackout blinds for help.
This one from Tommee Tippee suctions to windows so it can be removed easily, and it's available in two sizes.
Keep baby safe and comfortable all night with one of the best cot mattresses
Dreamegg Sleep Lite Portable Sound Machine
My daughter loves this (and so do I). Soothing white noise, plus lots of other sounds and lullabies. It also has a night light and a timer so you don't have to leave it running all night. It really helped when I stopped breastfeeding my baby to sleep because turning this on signalled it was nap time.
Jade HardingEditor at Which?
The Dreamegg white-noise machine is designed to create a soothing background sound, masking household noise and making it easier for babies and young children to drift off. It’s available to buy in grey, purple or orange.
To help little ones doze off peacefully, Which? parents also liked:
Zello Portable White Noise Machine – A Which? mum said that this white noise machine 'not only helped soothe our baby when trying to get him to sleep, but it eventually formed a great part of his bedtime routine'. SQUIRREL_TEXT_50030833
SnoozeShade Travel Cot Shade – If you're on the go, this portable shade designed to fit over a travel cot can help minimise light in the cot while your baby sleeps. SQUIRREL_TEXT_50030845
Toys
TOMY Toomies Hide and Squeak Eggs
Not sure what it is about this toy, but every baby I've ever known is obsessed with them! It worked as great motivation to get my daughter crawling as well – put the egg just out of reach so she had to move to get it.
Sarah-Jane TeddEndorsement scheme account manager at Which?
Toys that keep little hands busy while encouraging learning are always a win for parents, and these ‘Hide and Squeak Eggs’ do just that. This simple yet engaging set lets babies and toddlers match colourful eggshells, press down to hear them squeak, and discover different shapes inside.
If you're shopping for a little one soon, find something they'll love with this years' top toy trends or check out the best gifts for kids for more gifting inspiration.
More toys popular with Which? parents:
'We're Going on a Bear Hunt' Sound Book – This interactive book comes with buttons for little fingers to press and hear sound effects. SQUIRREL_TEXT_50021967
Bath Crayons– These washable bath crayons are designed for smooth surfaces like tiles and bath walls, and can be wiped off with a damp cloth or sponge. SQUIRREL_TEXT_50020047
Tonies Toniebox 2– The Toniebox 2 is a second-gen audio player designed for children, and it works in combination with Tonies – small figurines that play pre-loaded songs and stories when placed on the device. SQUIRREL_TEXT_50030248
