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I’ve been scrolling on Vinted for hours, and I still haven’t bought a single thing. My head hurts, and I don’t understand the difference between a “sleepsuit” and a “romper” – but I know I need at least eight of the former. I have made zero headway on the NHS-recommended list of baby essentials. Day one of my mission to buy everything I need for my baby secondhand is not exactly going well.
My partner and I made the decision to commit to buying secondhand for our baby in the second trimester of my pregnancy. This is our first child, and we were both shocked to learn how expensive things could be. Friends of ours spoke about spending £700 on a pram, and hundreds more on car seats, cots and baby gear. We decided we would keep it simple, and only buy essentials – that means no baby bouncer or added extras.
The decision to buy used and vintage came when I did a quick search to see how much organic cotton sleepsuits would cost. I personally like to buy good quality sustainable materials for myself, but it’s something I only do a few times a year. Buying brand-new for a baby just isn’t the same. An outfit the baby would wear for a maximum of three months – and needed eight of – cost at least £25, sometimes £35.
It’s no surprise that My Nurevia’s UK baby cost index 2026 found that families typically spend £3,240 on baby purchases in the first year of their child’s life – £1,220 of which is spent before the baby even arrives. For families who do it secondhand, that figure drops to £2,640 (bearing in mind some items need to be bought brand-new for safety reasons).
Secondhand baby shopping is even becoming popular with celebrities. Lena Dunham recently wrote on Substack that she has a “trading club” with other mums, where they share clothes, and that she’s shopping secondhand for her new daughter: “The clothes are cuter, less expensive, usually better quality. And if we can think back that far, we will remember that hand-me-downs are the entire ethos of childhood!”
My partner and I both agreed that shopping secondhand is the best way to stay close to our sustainable values – and our budget. Given that Vinted is now valued at $8bn (£6m) worldwide and has expanded its preloved market from clothes to electronics, decor and more, it feels like the best place to start.
I initially found it overwhelming until I spoke to friends who regularly use the site. With their help, I managed to figure out what clothing the baby needs right now, and bought it in bulk. If money were no object, I’d love to buy organic cotton from Mori, so I searched for the brand on the site and buy used vests and sleepsuits for under £10. When I realise how many we’ll need, I ditch the organic in favour of 100 per cent cotton baby clothes, like a John Lewis set that would cost £17 brand new, but a “used once” version on Vinted is just £9 with postage.
It turns out buying on Vinted is a skill, and it’s one I began to acquire, making offers on items and buying “bundles” of clothes from the same sellers so that postage is reduced. I spend about £70 on the site and end up with a full set of essentials for the baby, including a cute Petit Bateau snowsuit that would be £79 full price.
But I quickly realised the best way to save money is by word of mouth. I don’t have many friends with babies, but I do tell everyone I know that I’ll happily accept any castoffs. My cousin offered me a baby carrier and travel cot, a friend gave us a hardly used crib, and a woman I met once through a work lunch ended up giving me bags of items that are taking up space in her basement, including a car seat and a baby monitor. She also handed over a giant pile of baby clothes from her antenatal mum friends who are keen to give the used clothes a new home.
This is the one downside to buying secondhand. Even on Vinted, I have a few purchases cancelled and refunded at the last minute
I initially feel slightly embarrassed that a whole cohort of women I’ve never met have put together baby clothes for me – especially as this all came about during small talk at a work meeting – but when I realise we now have plenty of clothes for the first six months of the baby’s life, and we haven’t had to spend a single penny, the embarrassment shifts straight to gratitude.
There are safety concerns about using second-hand car seats and cots. The NHS recommends only accepting a car seat from friends or family if you know its history, it isn’t too old and it comes with instructions. They also suggest buying a new mattress if using a second-hand cot, or making sure the existing one meets safety standards.
Luckily, ours are fine. I got over my squeamishness about buying used bed sheets for the SnüzPod crib when I realised brand-new branded ones cost £22 for two and just £4 on Vinted. Yes, they’re secondhand – but they can be thrown straight into the washing machine and is buying used bedsheets really that different to wearing used clothes?
We also realised the donated car seat can turn into a travel system with certain prams, including the Bugaboo Butterfly 2. Full price, this is £435, but on Facebook Marketplace, there are a few at £200. The only problem is that after days of messaging, sellers aren’t getting back to me, or have pulled out at the last minute. During a stressful weekend away where I’m not sure if we’re taking a detour to York for a pram or not, I see the pram reduced in the Boots sale to £348 and decide this is the one item we’ll buy brand-new. The hours of messaging are no longer worth it.
This is the one downside to buying secondhand. Even on Vinted, I have a few purchases cancelled and refunded at the last minute. It’s particularly annoying when you’ve already spent time searching for the perfect item and haggled on the price. When my purchase of new baby towels without tags fell through, I ended up just buying some on M&S for £12. The reassurance of knowing they’d arrive with no problems made up for the dopamine high of getting a bargain on Vinted.
This is the one downside to buying secondhand. Even on Vinted, I have a few purchases cancelled and refunded at the last minute
I also struggled to go secondhand for items like a changing mat because I know exactly what it’s been covered in… There are plenty of cheap ones out there that I could buy brand new but as we don’t have a changing table, we decided to opt for a good quality £40 Shnuggle mat that will stick to our normal table and stop the baby from rolling around too much.
One great way to recoup baby costs is to have a baby shower and send guests a wish list, but this isn’t something my partner or I want to do. Instead, when close family and friends say they want to buy us a few bits, we are honest about what we need. Gifts are a huge help in saving money – according to My Nurevia, families typically receive around £450 in clothes, toys and equipment gifted to them – and amongst our gifts, we’re lucky enough to receive a Tommee Tippee breastfeeding set with a breast pump and bottles, as well as a Sustainabub baby sling.
By the time we got the absolute essentials, we’d only spent £600. This is thanks to Vinted – and the kindness of others, whether that’s been via gifts or secondhand donations. I’m aware there will still be more to buy – over the course of the year we’ll need a bigger cot, more clothes, and other items we can’t even predict right now – but our secondhand experiment has shown us that it is possible to do things sustainably and on a budget. It just means swallowing your pride as you reach out to your community, and spending more hours than you think messaging sellers online.
