pregnancy-birth

The Hospital Bag Checklist That Is Actually Useful

By Dr. Adeeb Alshahrour · January 7, 2023

Most hospital bag lists are too long. They were written to be comprehensive rather than useful, and they lead to two suitcases in a small room where you will spend most of your time in bed.

Here is the version that reflects what people actually use. The organising principle is that hospitals supply more than you think, so the things worth packing are the ones they cannot give you: your documents, your own clothes, and the comfort items that make an institutional room feel survivable.

When to pack

Have the bag finished by 36 weeks. About one in ten babies arrives before 37 weeks, and your estimated due date is a midpoint, not an appointment. Pack earlier — around 32 weeks — if you are expecting twins, have had a previous preterm birth, or have been told you are at higher risk.

Practical arrangements that matter more than the packing itself:

Install the car seat and have it checked by 36 weeks. You will not be discharged without one, and the parking bay is a bad place to read the manual for the first time.
Keep the bag in the car, not in a wardrobe upstairs.
Tell your partner or support person where everything is, because at some point they will be sent to find it.
Pack two bags if that helps: a small one for the labour room, a larger one that stays in the car until after the birth.

Documents and admin — pack these first

This is the only category where forgetting something creates a real problem.

Photo ID and your insurance card
Any hospital pre-registration paperwork. Pre-registering with the hospital in the third trimester saves a genuinely miserable amount of form-filling in early labour
Your prenatal records or your provider's contact details, if you were given a copy
Your birth preferences, printed, on one page. One page gets read; six pages do not
A list of your medications and allergies, including doses
Your paediatrician's name and phone number — you will be asked for this before discharge
Phone charger with an extra-long cable. Hospital sockets are never near the bed. This is the item people most regret not bringing
A small amount of cash or a card for vending machines and parking

For labour

Comfortable clothes you do not mind ruining, if you would rather not wear a hospital gown. A loose nightdress or a labour gown that opens at the back and front works best, since monitors and IV lines need access. Do not buy something expensive for this.
A robe and non-slip socks or slippers. Hospital floors are cold and you will be encouraged to walk.
Hair ties and a headband.
Lip balm. Breathing through contractions in dry air splits lips within hours, and this is the single most disproportionately appreciated item on any list.
A water bottle with a straw or sports cap, ideally one that can be used lying down.
Snacks and drinks for you if your team allows them in early labour, and definitely for afterwards. Coconut water, electrolyte drinks, and easy things you can eat one-handed. Ask about your hospital's policy on eating in labour rather than assuming.
Comfort items that actually help you: a playlist and headphones, a small speaker, a fan, a tennis ball or massage tool for back pressure, a favourite pillow in a coloured pillowcase so it does not go home with the laundry.
Glasses, if you wear contact lenses. You will not want lenses in for long.

Skip the essential oils, the elaborate labour props, and anything requiring assembly.

For after the birth

You will be in hospital for roughly one to two nights after a vaginal birth and two to four after a caesarean. Pack for that, not for a week.

Two or three pairs of high-waisted, dark, comfortable underwear, several sizes up. If you are having a caesarean, they must sit well above the incision. The mesh hospital underwear is genuinely good — take some home.
A loose going-home outfit in your maternity size. Your body will look about six months pregnant on the way out; this surprises almost everyone. Nothing with a waistband that sits on a caesarean incision.
Two nursing bras or soft bralettes without underwire, and nursing pads.
A nightdress or pyjamas that open at the front for feeding, plus a robe. Dark colours.
Your own toiletries: toothbrush and toothpaste, face wash, moisturiser, deodorant, shampoo, a hairbrush, and any skincare that makes you feel human. A towel, since hospital towels are thin.
A long phone charger (yes, again) and a portable battery.
Any regular medications in their original packaging, so the pharmacy can chart them.
Nipple cream and a nursing pillow if you have one, though a rolled towel works.
A notebook. You will be given a lot of instructions in a state where you will not retain them.

Leave the makeup, the hair dryer, and the third outfit at home.

For the baby

Hospitals supply nearly all of this. Bring:

A going-home outfit, in newborn and 0–3 month sizes, since you do not know which will fit. Include something with legs that separate, because a car seat harness goes between them
A hat and socks or booties, and weather-appropriate layers. In a Chicago winter, a bunting bag or blanket goes over the harness, never under it — bulky coats under a car seat harness are unsafe
A blanket for the car seat and for photographs
The installed car seat
A few nappies and wipes, though most hospitals provide these
A pacifier, if you plan to use one

Do not pack a week of newborn clothes. The baby will be in a nappy and a hospital shirt for most of the stay.

For your partner or support person

The person supporting you is usually the least prepared, and a support person who is hungry, cold, and phoneless is not much support.

A change of clothes, a toothbrush, and deodorant
Their own phone charger
Substantial food and drinks. Labour often runs through the night, and hospital cafeterias close
A pillow and blanket. The sleeping arrangement for partners is typically a chair
Something to do during the long, uneventful stretches
Cash for parking, and a note of where the car is

What the hospital almost certainly provides

Cross these off. Most hospitals supply:

Gowns, mesh underwear, and heavy maternity pads
Nappies, wipes, baby blankets, hats, and a bassinet
Basic formula, if you are formula feeding or need to supplement
Peri bottles, ice packs, witch hazel pads, and numbing spray
Nipple cream, a manual or hospital-grade breast pump on the ward, and access to a lactation consultant
Paracetamol, ibuprofen, and stool softeners
Towels, soap, toothbrushes on request, and pillows

Call your hospital's labour and delivery unit and ask what they provide. Five minutes on the phone saves a suitcase. Ask at the same time about their visitor policy, whether partners can stay overnight, and where to park after hours.

Add for a planned caesarean

Underwear that sits above the navel, well clear of the incision
Loose, high-waisted trousers or a long nightdress for going home
A pillow for the car ride, to hold against the incision over the seatbelt
A longer stay's worth of toiletries, since you will be in for two to four nights
An abdominal binder, if your team recommends one
Slip-on shoes. Bending to tie laces is not happening

More on preparing for the operation itself is in our guide to a planned caesarean at a higher BMI, much of which applies to any planned caesarean.

Things worth doing that are not packing

Know the route to the hospital and where to enter after hours — the main entrance is usually locked at night, and labour and delivery has its own door
Save the labour and delivery phone number in your phone, and know when to call. See labor and delivery
Prepare food at home for the first week back
Arrange care for other children and pets, with a backup, because labour does not check the calendar
Charge everything when you start having regular contractions

Talk to us

Medical disclaimer

This article is general health information, not medical advice for any individual. Hospital policies on what to bring, eating in labour, and visitors vary — confirm with your delivery hospital. Contact your obstetrician or go to labour and delivery for vaginal bleeding, leaking fluid, regular contractions before 37 weeks, severe headache or visual changes, or decreased fetal movement. In an emergency, call 911.