Hospital bag checklist
Pack by about 36 weeks and leave the bag by the door or in the car. This list follows the NHS, the NCT, familienplanung.de and the CAF, and several hospitals' own lists. Where they disagree, it says so.
The bag
A bag you already own is fine. Roughly a weekend holdall. Several guides suggest two: a small one for the delivery room and the rest for the stay. A bag that later works as a changing bag earns its price twice. No official guide gives a size.
Holdall or changing bag, if you need one: 115 € to 140 €
Papers
- Your pregnancy record or maternity notes
- Health insurance card, and any top-up cover
- ID for both parents
- Blood group card, recent results and scans
- Marriage or family record, if you have one
Registering the birth usually needs both parents' ID and the hospital's birth certificate. The deadline can be only a few days, so check the rule where you live before the birth.
Copies and a folder: 0 € to 10 € (estimate)
For labour
- Lip balm
- A water bottle with a straw
- Snacks and isotonic drinks
- Hair ties
- Warm socks, and slippers a size up for swollen feet
- A dressing gown
- A long phone cable
- Your own pillow
Bring a bath towel and a flannel unless your hospital supplies them. Choose unscented toiletries.
Comforts for labour and the stay: 15 € to 60 € (estimate)
For you, after the birth
Many hospitals supply pads during the stay, so ask yours. At home you'll need two or three packs of ten for the first week. No tampons until your midwife says so.
Underwear: the NHS suggests five or six pairs. After a caesarean it has to sit above the scar, not across it. For going home, pack loose clothes, roughly what fitted at six months pregnant.
Maternity pads, two or three packs: 8 € to 30 €
Disposable or high-waisted underwear, six pairs: 6 € to 19 €
Nightwear that opens for feeding: 80 € to 138 €
For the baby
Hospitals often give you nappies for the stay but rarely clothes. Wash everything first, without fragrance.
- Five to eight bodysuits and sleepsuits
- A hat, socks and a cardigan
- A blanket or sleeping bag
- An outfit for going home
The car seat has to be fitted before you leave the hospital. Try it in your car before the birth, not on the day.
The baby's things for the stay: 0 € to 20 € (estimate)
For the birth partner
- A change of clothes and a toothbrush
- Snacks and a phone charger
- Any medicines they take
- A card or coins for parking and vending machines
Ask whether a partner can stay overnight. Some hospitals only allow it in a paid private room.
Birth partner's bag: 0 € to 20 € (estimate)
The total
Everything on this page: 224 € to 437 €
The low figure takes the cheapest option for each line, the high figure the dearest. Most lines are small. The bag is the big one, and if you already own a holdall it drops out entirely.
Often suggested, rarely listed
Cooling pads and a rinse bottle for after stitches turn up in many online lists. Neither is in the NHS, NCT, German or French hospital lists; both are mostly an American habit. Some people find them soothing. Ask your midwife before buying.