Baby room setup checklist
Set the room up before the due date, not after — a working changing station and a monitor that's actually been tested matter more than anything decorative.
19 items
Makes your own editable copy. No account needed.
The items
- Cot or cot bed, built and checked against the current safety standardSecond-hand is fine; a mattress that's been used by another baby is not — buy that new.
- Mattress, firm and flat, sized exactly to the cotA gap at the edges is where a baby can get stuck. Measure both before buying either.
- Fitted sheets×3One on, one in the wash, one for the night it's needed at 3am.
- Mattress protector×2
- Room thermometerAim for 16–20°C. Guessing by feel gets it wrong in both directions.
- Blackout blind or curtain liningDaylight naps and early summer mornings both need this more than the cot does.
- Baby monitor, tested from the room you'll actually be inWalls and floors eat signal. Test it before the first night, not during it.
- Chest of drawers or a wardrobe within reach of the changing area
- Changing table or a topper on a sturdy surfaceKeep one hand on the baby always — that habit, not the surface, is what stops a fall.
- Nappy bin or a lidded bin, lined and ready
- Nightlight, dim enough not to wake anyone fully
- Comfortable chair for feeds, wherever they'll happen in this room
- Storage baskets or boxes×3Sorted by size before the baby arrives is sorted for the next two years.
- Somewhere for dirty laundry, already in the room
- Sockets covered and cords tucked away
- Blind cords looped up out of reach
- Trailing monitor or lamp cables secured
- Smoke alarm checked in or near the room
- Room decluttered of anything that isn't for the babyA nursery fills up with gifts fast. Decide what's staying before it arrives, not after.
Makes your own editable copy. No account needed.
Questions people ask
- How early should the room be ready?
- By around 36 weeks, so nothing is still being assembled if the baby arrives early. The last fortnight is for washing sheets, not building furniture.
- Does a newborn need their own room from day one?
- No — current guidance is to keep the cot in the parents' room for the first six months, so set this room up for daytime and eventually sleep, not necessarily night one.
- What's actually worth spending on here?
- The mattress and the monitor. Cot styling can be second-hand or borrowed; those two are worth buying new and testing properly.