Baby Planner — Get ready for the first year, not just the first day.
What the gear costs and when to buy it, the hospital bill, childcare and the monthly costs after — on a timeline counted back from the due date, with a checklist for everything in between.
- Free to start
- No sign-up to try
- Plan together
Everything in one plan
The registry, the bills, the daycare waitlist and the to-do list usually live in four places. Here they’re one.
Includes a baby checklist.
Idea board
Keep the nursery ideas and the big decisions together.
The cot that becomes a bed, the barely-used pram, the daycare two streets over. Save them with a photo, a price and a note, and pass on the ones that won’t work.
“Waitlist is about nine months, so the call has to happen well before the leave ends.”An idea on the board of the “Standard, daycare” example
- From search, a photo, or a link
- Track each one: researching, contacted, shortlisted
- Pass on the ones that won’t work, without losing them
Idea board 1/2
Budget
The whole first year, not just the crib.
Gear, the hospital bill, childcare, diapers and formula, priced for your choices and carried month by month for the whole first year — so nothing arrives as a surprise.
$30,180 · Child care $16,200 · Health & medical $6,800 · Everyday supplies $4,025 · Nursery & gear $2,830The “Standard, daycare” example’s budget
- Monthly costs carried through the first year
- Ordered and received, for every piece of gear
The first year’s budget 1/2
Timeline & checklist
Everything in time for the due date.
The childcare search, the car seat installed, the hospital bag packed, the paperwork after — each with the week to do it by, counted back from the due date.
Start the infant-care searchThe first thing on the “Standard, daycare” example’s checklist
- A prep timeline around the due date
- Tick off each thing as it’s ordered and done
Timeline 1/2
Recommendations
The questions to ask before you sign up for daycare.
Guides for your plan — what daycare really costs, how long the waitlists run, what a sick-child policy means in days off — and local picks once you add your town. Open one and it answers for your plan, with its own numbers and dates.
What daycare costs per week, and what closure days still charge forA guide in the “Standard, daycare” example’s recommendations
- Childcare, leave, insurance and the nursery
- Add your town for local picks
A guide, answered 2/2
Start with the due date. Picture the first steps.
Free to start. No sign-up to try.
Start your baby plan →About the Baby Planner
A baby budget is not one number. Some costs need to be ready before the due date, some arrive every month, and childcare can change the household budget by more than any single piece of gear.
The planner separates pre-birth savings from first-year cash flow. Add medical buffers, gear, diapers, feeding, leave timing, and childcare deposits so you can see the target before birth and the monthly impact after.
What you can do
- Pre-birth savings target
- Medical, gear, diaper, feeding, and childcare categories
- Childcare deposit and start-date planning
- Monthly family cash-flow estimate
- Savings-goal handoff for the remaining gap
Frequently asked questions
How much should we save before the baby arrives?
Aim to cover the costs that hit before or soon after birth: a medical out-of-pocket buffer, any leave-income gap, core gear, early supplies, and a childcare deposit or first month. The planner separates that pre-birth target from later monthly cash flow.
What baby costs are monthly vs one-time?
One-time costs usually include the crib, car seat, stroller, nursery setup, medical setup, and early supplies. Monthly costs include diapers, formula or feeding supplies, childcare, insurance premiums, and recurring household cash-flow changes.
How should we budget for birth and newborn medical costs?
Check your deductible and out-of-pocket maximum, then leave room for timing surprises: delivery type, newborn care, possible NICU costs, and bills that arrive weeks after birth. Insurance reduces the bill, but it rarely makes the timing simple.
When do we add the baby to health insurance?
Birth or adoption usually opens a special enrollment window. Employer plans often require action within about 30 days, while Marketplace plans generally use 60 days. Confirm the rule with your plan before the due date so coverage can start at birth.
What baby costs are easy to forget?
Common misses include unpaid leave, extra takeout or help at home, lactation support, postpartum care, replacement income if one parent changes hours, childcare waitlist fees, and the gap between when bills arrive and when insurance processes them.
Related calculators
Other planning tools that pair well with the Baby Planner.
Photos by Brooke Balentine, Marius Muresan and Tim Mossholder on Unsplash.