Hospital Baby Bottle Checklist: What You Really Need for Discharge

When you’re getting ready to leave the hospital with your newborn, a hospital baby bottle checklist, a simple list of feeding essentials needed right after birth. Also known as a newborn discharge kit, it’s not about overpacking—it’s about having just enough to feel confident feeding your baby at home. Most UK hospitals give you a few basic bottles and formula samples, but they won’t hand you everything you’ll need once you walk out the door. You’ll want bottles that are easy to clean, safe for your baby’s first feeds, and simple to use when you’re sleep-deprived and holding a squirming newborn.

Related to this are baby bottles, containers designed for feeding infants with milk or formula, which come in different materials—glass, plastic, silicone—and shapes. Not all are created equal. Some leak, some are hard to hold, and some can’t be sterilized easily. You’ll also need newborn feeding supplies, items like bottle brushes, sterilizers, and nipple cleaners that keep feeds safe. These aren’t optional extras—they’re hygiene basics that prevent infections in tiny immune systems. And don’t forget discharge essentials, the small, critical items you must have ready before leaving the hospital. That includes a few pre-filled bottles with formula or expressed milk, spare nipples, and a clean burp cloth. Hospitals often don’t let you leave without proof you can feed your baby safely. Having this ready means no last-minute panic at the front desk.

You won’t need ten bottles. Three or four are enough. You won’t need fancy brands. Simple, BPA-free, wide-neck bottles work best. You won’t need to buy a sterilizer before you leave—the hospital will tell you what they use, and you can grab one later. What you do need is clarity. Know what’s provided, what’s recommended, and what you’re responsible for. The posts below cover everything from what bottles hospitals actually hand out, to how to clean them properly, to why some parents keep hospital bottles as keepsakes. You’ll find real advice from UK mums who’ve been through it—not theory, not marketing, just what works when you’re tired, overwhelmed, and holding your newborn for the first time at home.