UPDATED! Originally published 20 Feb 2015
Pregnancy comes with plenty of extra expenses, some subtle and some glaring. Of course some expenses like insurance co-pays can’t be helped, but there are still ways that you can save money during those nine months of anticipation!
Without even talking about baby, there are definitely some increased costs during pregnancy. Today, let’s focus on some ways that you can SAVE money on pregnancy! Please chime in with your tips in the comments!
Saving Money on Pregnancy Tests
If you’re paying more than $1 for pregnancy test, you’re paying too much. Did you know that you can buy pregnancy tests at the dollar store? True story! If they aren’t in the personal care section, they are often up near the register.
The science behind pregnancy test is very basic. The $1 version is just as accurate as the $20 version from the drug store.
In fact, I have always bought no-frills HCG pregnancy tests online. They aren’t anything fancy, but they do the job! I’m not one who posts photos of pregnancy tests (or anything else I pee on), so I don’t care that they look simple and cheap.
They usually come in bulk (pack of 10 or more), but they cost around $.30 each. Although they have an expiration date, we have found that they are accurate for years past the date. For such a low price, you don’t have to feel guilty taking more than one test! Share them with your friends!
If you’re trying to conceive, you can also get cheap ovulation tests in bulk online.
Save Money on Maternity Clothes
Call me weird, but I always get excited when it’s time to break out my maternity clothes, not only because it means I’m starting to show, but it means I get a wardrobe change! A wardrobe change is pretty exciting for someone who rarely buys new clothes (by the end of pregnancy I’m definitely ready for another wardobe change!). The best part about my maternity clothes is that I spent very little on them. In fact, most of them were free!
Getting Maternity Clothes FREE
Most maternity clothes are only worn for 4 or 5 months for each baby. They spend the rest of their lives in a box or bin in the garage or attic. Many women save them for next time or “just in case,” but are totally willing to lend or give them to friends. When I lived near my sisters, we shared our maternity clothes with each other.
While my husband was in law school, a tall friend was excited to lend me her maternity clothes since it can be hard to find pants and shirts that are long enough when you’re tall. Another friend from church who had just had a baby (her last) gave me bags of maternity clothes when she heard I was expecting.
Spread the word! Whether that means letting the ladies at church or your moms’ group know that you’re looking for maternity clothes, posting a wanted ad in the free section of Craigslist, or telling your Facebook friends that you’d be happy to take any maternity clothes off their hands, letting people know you are open to offers is the key to getting them!
Getting Maternity Clothes CHEAP
Before you head out to an over-priced maternity boutique, take a look at garage sales, thrift stores, Facebook marketplace, and Craigslist. You can find lots of gently-used maternity clothes. I try to look for timeless (not trendy) pieces, so that I can use them again in the future without feeling like I walked out of someone’s scrapbook. Though, if the price is right, something trendy can spice things up a bit.
Also, keep an eye on the clearance rack at Target. Most of the maternity clothes that I bought new came from Target and were often about the same price you’d pay at a thrift store or consignment store!
Online kids and women’s consignment-type shops have maternity clothes too. You can get a $10 credit when you sign up with ThredUp. ThredUp has a high standard for the clothes they accept, so you can be confident you’ll find quality, gently-used, top notch variety there. They also give you additional credit for sharing with friends and family, so if you decide you love it, you can pass the news on to others and maybe get some Thredup clothes for free!
Save Money on Cravings
For some, it’s the classic pickles or ice cream. Others crave eggplant or steak or ice chips. When I’m pregnant, cold cereal hits the spot at any time of day. Chocolate is also a safe bet any time of the year.
You know what you’ll want. Whatever your cravings are for, be sure to keep them on hand. Stocking up on the foods that you constantly crave will prevent expensive midnight runs to the store. Your husband will thank you.
Save Money on Prenatal Vitamins
Prenatal vitamins are recommended before, during, and after pregnancy, so if you’re planning on having more than one child, you can plan on years of prenatal vitamins. The cost of vitamins can really add up.
When it comes to prenatal vitamins, there are all sorts of fancy brands that promise to increase your baby’s IQ or ensure 20/20 vision. They’ll try to win you over with free samples and educational literature. There’s plenty of guilt-ing out there along the lines of, “If you really love your baby, you’ll give her the best, most expensive vitamins.” And you might spend $30 on 100 capsules. That’s over $200 for two years of vitamins!
I’m not sold on them. I’ve always gone with the generic brand at Target or Walmart, currently $4 for 100 capsules ($28 for two years.) And my kids are all beautiful and borderline genius! I kid, kind of; they are cute and smart. All my OBs and midwives have said that generic vitamins are just fine. Combined with a healthy diet, you should be set. If you’re curious, these are the very affordable prenatal vitamins I’m currently taking.
Some pharmacies will even give you free prenatal vitamins. During law school, I remember hearing the ads for free prenatal vitamins in the checkout at Meijer. When I got pregnant, I had my doctor write me a prescription for prenatal vitamins (basically just to prove that I was really pregnant) and I got all my vitamins for free at the Meijer pharmacy.
Save Money on Insurance
Know your insurance plan. How much are the co-pays, deductibles, and out-of-pocket costs for you and the baby? Read the fine print. Know what care providers and hospitals are in-network. Don’t be afraid to ask questions (i.e. “How much will this test cost?” “Is this covered by my insurance?”) both of your insurance company and of your care provider.
Prices for the same procedure vary from hospital to hospital, so feel free to shop around like you would for any other major purchase. If you’re paying out of pocket, you can always try to negotiate rates.
See if your insurance plan has a special “Future Moms” or “Healthy Moms” program. Our current insurance plan has an educational program that helps expectant moms have healthier and longer term pregnancies. The bonus is that if you enroll in and complete the program they will pay for hospital inpatient costs. I’m in the process of signing up (there are some hoops to jump through), but it will be well-worth the money saved when it comes to the hospital bill. I’ll keep you updated!
Save Money by Not Shopping… Yet!
To distract you from spending money and keep you busy, go over to Amazon and start your baby registry there! In addition to having fun creating your wish list you also get a free box of baby goodies (valued at $35) and near the end of your pregnancy you get a “completion discount” which means you get 15% (or 10% if you aren’t an Amazon Prime member) on things on your registry. That alone makes it well worth it, even if you’re just stocking up on essentials. 🙂
I literally just took a break from this post to go create a new registry for our baby due in November. I don’t expect anyone to buy gifts from it (it is my sixth baby, after all), but it will be nice to have that 15% discount on some things I would have bought on Amazon anyway.
How About you?
- How do you you save money on pregnancy?
- What unexpected or surprising pregnancy related expenses have you had?
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I am 5’2” so most things have to be hemmed. My MIL found a yard sale of a recent retiree that was short and plus sized. I bought a pair of maternity jeans and a pair of white shorts. My mom helped my alter and restyle the yard sale clothes and take some of her old clothes to remake. I had a wonderful maternity wardrobe that last through all three pregnancies. A gentleman at our church told me I was one of the most stylish mothers-to-be he had known.
Hello moms,
The biggest life-lesson I learned from my career in fundraising is, if you don’t ask, you don’t get! Tell your friends and family you’d love hand-me-downs — they might not know you’re open to the idea, and may have the perfect dress or top for you.
Look for local parent groups and listservs on Yahoo and Facebook, and post that you’re seeking used maternity clothes. I learned about my Brooklyn groups — Cortelyou Moms, FlatbushFamilyNetwork and brooklynbabyhui — from some other expecting moms at a local coffee shop, but you can browse for your local Yahoo groups under Family & Home/Parenting /Moms and Family & Home/Parenting /Parenting Babies and Toddlers
cheers !
Thanks for your suggestions, Eva! There are so many lightly used maternity clothes out there in desperate need of a maternity figure to wear them. It’s all about making sure people know you’re available and looking.
Learned a lot of things from this. Keep it up.
Amazing article. I love the tips. It’s very worthy for me. I had spent too much money during my pregnancy. I bought maternity clothes, medical care equipment’s and other stuffs. After reading this post, I’m pretty confident to save money. Thanks for sharing a wonderful post.
These are some great tips. For maternity clothes I wore a lot of regular clothes just in bigger sizes. If it’s stretchy it works. I also saved -upon midwife’s advice – by skipping prenatals and investing in nutrient dense foods think coconut oil, liver and bone broth. Bonus the coconut oil can then be used for belly stretch mark cream. It works!
I am very glad that here in Canada I do not have to pay for my medical care out of pocket at the moment. I got pregnant with my first child while living in the US and I was shocked at the ‘start to pay for the delviery now’ form I was given at my first appointment.
Freecycle and Kijiji’s Free section are other great resources for getting maternity clothing for free. I have also picked up items from Mom’s trade fairs and samples directly from companies.
My tip would be move to Australia. Not only was my only pregnancy-related health care cost for both pregnancies $15 out of pocket for an ultrasound, I also got two very generous baby bonuses! 🙂 I grew up in the US and moved over here as an adult; so my sisters and friends in the US would tell me about their huge insurance co-pays (one friend was $15,000 out of pocket for her emergency C-section and that was with the best insurance money could buy in her state), and there I was, not only not having to pay for anything but actually getting money for having a baby. (There are all sorts of weird, warped politics behind that decision – basically it was a way for the PM of the day to not have to pay maternity leave, since he was of the opinion that mothers shouldn’t have paid employment; and there was also a secondary motivation of encouraging more Australians to have babies to discourage immigration; but what they heck, if they want to give me money I won’t say no.)
I tired a dollar store test and it was negative, I was so disappointed! Then a couple days later I bought a clear blue test, for way too much, but it was positive! Worth the price for me, since I just had to know! I agree that pregnancy does not need to be so expensive. I think I thrift store shopped for almost all my maternity wardrobe with my first, and this time around I only needed a few extra things. Great tips! You’re blog posts are such an encouragement, thanks for being open and honest. It’s so helpful to read about someone else who is in a similar situation and isn’t afraid to talk about it.
Thanks Beth! I think the cheap tests aren’t quite as sensitive, so you have to wait a few days longer before you’ll show a positive. That’s great that you saved your maternity clothes, so you’re pretty much set this time!
I’ve been contacting any companies that do baby or maternity supplies (stretch mark creams, breast pads etc) and explaining that it’s my first time and wondering if they do samples – a lot of companies are more than willing and in return I’m writing a review for their products on Facebook or whatever their preferred method is. I do have the benefit of working in a pharmacy so I’ve also been able to ask a few company representatives (and gotten a free thermometer, baby nasal sprays and a maternity support band that way) but definitely ask around!
In Australia the most expensive part of pregnancy has been the ultrasounds as everything else is covered by medicare. But I also think you can get ultrasounds for free via the hospital however they’re less likely to tell you gender or waste time telling you other unnessesary information. I’ve made my own maternity belly band to be able to keep wearing clothes after I can no longer zip them up so as yet I haven’t reached for any maternity clothes – just a size or two larger than normal 🙂
Way to go Jacinda! That’s awesome that you’ve taken the initiative and had success getting great freebies! And that’s cool that you made your own belly band! 🙂
Jacinta, this probably varies by hospital, but with my pregnancies the ultrasounds are free if you get the midwife to write you the referral. I forgot with my first and had to pay out of pocket ($15). I didn’t make that mistake with baby #2. Since I work in a very small rural health service I did a sort of joint care thing between the midwives at the large regional centre and the GP we had working for us, and since the GP was the one to give me the ultrasound results, he was perfectly wiling to tell me the gender. First he gave me a little speech about “do you really want to know, why do you want to know,” blah blah blah but once he got over that he was willing to tell me.
Totally embarrassing story: The health service where I work has a high turn-over of doctors because, well, we’re rural. My first day back from maternity leave with my first baby (a complicated delivery which resulted in an emergency C-section – not to panic you or anything; the doctors and midwives were all excellent, so definitely nothing to worry about!) the new doctor said, “Oh hi, how are you doing?” I was absolutely mortified to look up and discover he was the guy who’d broken my waters when they were trying to get delivery going. Made for a very uncomfortable morning tea, because, uh, he’d kind of seen too much of me!
You could just not get pregnant ;P
In all seriousness though, I stumbled upon this somehow (I have no idea how this came up, because I’m a dude and not looking to have a kid anytime soon)
http://www.target.com/p/bematernity-by-ingrid-isabel-beband/-/A-13742281
It’s supposed to allow you to wear your pre pregnancy clothes to avoid having to get maternity clothes.
You’re not going to believe this, but reading your comment reminded me that I bought a black and a white belly band
(like what you linked to) about a year ago at the thrift store. I dug through my drawer today to find one and tried it for the first time. It was heavenly! My maternity pants always slip down but today they stayed put. Thanks for reminding me that I had treasures hidden away!
Bwahaha, Stephanie, you made my day with remembering that you had that belly band. I think a lot of women get too stressed out about what they are wearing when they are pregnant. I love seeing a pregnant mom and love to help them any way I can. I have made several belly bands for them out of recycled stretchy yoga pant (legging) fabric. (I tell them that they are recycled) so they know. Most are so thankful to get anything free. It makes my day to see them happy since I love to sew and this makes it so practical for them and it is mental therapy for me. We both win.
I was a bit of a pregnancy test addict. I tried them all. The cheapos were my favourite!
Haha! Pregnancy test addict!
Great ideas! I am done with the baby making (I hope), but maternity clothes was the biggest issue for me. And now that I am looking to offload them, I am shocked that I can’t even seem to give them away, let alone sell them for $1/piece. Maybe its the area I live in, but I would’ve thought I’d have women jumping at the chance. Its weird!!!!
That’s crazy that you’ve got clothes to give away and no one to give them to!