For parents who are expecting their first baby, many wonder, just how fast do babies grow out of their newborn clothes? It can be difficult to know how many newborn clothes to buy for them. There’s nothing quite like picking out a tiny newborn outfit in a shop and marvelling at how impossibly small it is. But then a well-meaning friend or family member who has already had children tells you not to buy newborn outfits. “Stop!” they say, “The newborn phase will be over before you know it! They’ll be out of it in a couple of months!” They persuade you to buy 0-3 month size clothes instead to get your money’s worth out of them.
It is impossible to know the exact size your baby will be when they’re born. They all grow at different rates both inside and outside the womb, but I can tell you that I’ve never heard of a newborn who has been too big for newborn clothes. Surely such babies must exist, but it’s incredibly unusual. Most of the time new parents find they have lots of 0-3 months vests and babygrows only to discover they are far too big when the baby is born and they haven’t got nearly enough newborn clothes!
Your newborn baby is going to wee and poo a lot. And while they will only be in their newborn clothes for a short period of time (whether it’s a matter of weeks or months will depend on your baby’s growth rate), they almost certainly aren’t going to need the next size up (0-3 months or 3-6 months) to start with. It’s best to make sure you have plenty of newborn clothes in, given that they may need a clean set multiple times a day in the early weeks.
While full-term babies born a bigger size will still need plenty of newborn-size clothes, they will grow out of them much faster than smaller babies and tiny premature babies will. It’s important to have the right size baby clothes for very young babies, or there could be a suffocation risk. For parents who find that even newborn-size clothes are too big for their new baby, they may find it’s a better idea to look online for companies specialising in extra tiny outfits and preemie sizes of baby’s clothing.
There are differences in baby clothing brand sizes, and most parents who choose to buy their baby’s clothes (as opposed to opting for second-hand clothes) will soon work out which brands fit their baby’s size the best. If in doubt, you can check to see if there is a size chart on the individual clothing brands’ websites. You might find this size guide provided by Polarn O. Pyret helpful:
https://www.polarnopyret.co.uk/pages/size-guide
When thinking about buying baby clothes as gifts for new parents, as a general rule of thumb I think it’s a good idea to buy larger sizes, 0-3 months, 6-9 months, or even bigger, that the baby can wear later on in that first year. New parents are likely to have a lot of newborn-sized clothes already and will appreciate having bigger sizes to keep aside for later on. Very often parents will suddenly discover all their newborn baby clothes are too small and suddenly realise they don’t have enough 0-3 month clothing. Clothing sizes bigger than 0-3 months will also last babies longer than newborn sizes, so it won’t feel as wasteful spending money on something really special.
Even babies who are born on the smaller side grow out of clothes really fast. It’s always worth considering picking up second-hand baby clothes that don’t cost much money on pre-loved sites and apps such as eBay and Vinted. It’s also worth joining local buy/swap/sell Facebook and WhatsApp groups to easily get hold of pre-loved items of clothing.
When it comes to working out what newborn clothing you need to buy when you’re expecting your first baby, my suggestion would be:
All-in-one sleep suits (about 10-15)
Body vests (sleeveless or with short sleeves – about 10-15)
A couple of cardigans
A cotton hat for spring/summer
A warm hat for the colder months
A snowsuit/pram suit for when it’s really cold
Honestly, that’s it! I wouldn’t dress them in anything other than vests and baby grows for the first few weeks. The above list will be more than enough clothes to start with, and you can always add to it once you realise you need or would like anything extra. It’s much better to add things as you go along that you really need, rather than buying a whole lot of tiny clothes that your baby grows out of without ever wearing. And remember, it’s totally acceptable to specify what sizes you would like friends and family to buy baby clothes in as gifts!
* Very small babies can have extra sensitive skin, so it’s always best to wash any new/second-hand items of clothing before your baby wears them.
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