how much formula do you go through

rlk2 · July 2014

I have been crazy googling and searching this board because I'm sure this question has been asked a million times....BUT....I am trying to see how much breast feeding really saves (I am going to be meeting with a LC soon to discuss benefits/difficulties/etc). How much formula do your LO's go through per week or month (and can you help specify how big the cans are you buy)- I am so new to all of this and am a little overwhelmed! I want to be as prepared as possible!

ks3pink · July 2014

We spent over $70 a week on formula. Add in the gripe water and gas drops they needed and it was around $100 a week. I'm still broke from it a year later!

MommyWannaB10 · July 2014

We go through about 1 up & up formula can (23oz, I think) per week. It costs $25/can. I buy when target offers a gift card then use the gift card on the next formula purchase. But you usually have to buy 3 in order to get the card, since we go through it so easily it's no big deal to buy in bulk.

Mrs.Guz · July 2014

We go through a large can from costco about every 4 days. So about $300 a month on formula. That's the only reason why I tried breastfeeding as long as I did, to save money.

12bailey18 · July 2014

With my singletons we averaged between 100-150/month so I'm starting out our twin budget between 200 and 300/month. That was for Similac. I'm going to try generic this time around, which will hopefully save some. It may be wishful thinking though, lol.

Jenn06L80 · July 2014

I breast fed my singleton. This time with the twins I nursed/pumped/supplemented for 3.5 months. I just switched to 100% formula. I get gerber good start gentle from amazon prime. 4 big containers cost $83 with subscribe and save. I get 12 containers a month for a total of of $249 a month. Formula is so much cheaper than I ever imagined.

I also have ordered the ready made formula 8 oz boxes. I get 24 of them for $31 on amazon prime subscribe and save. These are amazing for travel.

courtlandmatthew · July 2014

I feel like I spend a lot less- I use the generic from Costco- which is 16.70 a can. It is really reasonable to me.

PGwithNo3 · July 2014

A sh!t-ton. My son had the purple Similac and that had no generic and it was $$$. If I have another baby I am so bf'ing or pumping.

courtlandmatthew · July 2014

Definitely I have been lucky that my kids have not need special needs formula and have adjusted to generic formula just fine. One can of costco formula makes about 240 ounces- that lasts for us about 9 days- at about 25 ounces a day. Going through a can every 9 days or so means I spend just about 60 a month on formula- for the twins I will double that but it has worked out so far with our first two kids

Wishing35 · July 2014

We go through almost a whole small can of similac a day. We are very lucky and our insurance covers it, we get a shipment every month from a medical supply company. I would check with your insurance especially if your babies have any kind of allergy or medical need for formula.

whitehousem · July 2014

We buy generic (from SAMs club) for Enfamil Gentlease. It's a big container (3lb) and it lasts us about a week right now (maybe a little less). Each container is $25, so we are only spending $100-$125/ month, which I don't think is bad at all. The twins are 11 weeks old and are going through approx 56oz/day together.

lynnwiss · July 2014

I've recently had to supplement with formula because I can't keep up with the demands from my twins. But at their 2 month check up the pediatrician gave me 3 cases of formula. They said they get samples sent to them all the time and like to help families of multiples. So my advice is to ask your pediatrician for sample containers if you do need formula cause every little bit helps.

KDR1979 · July 2014

My kids always got a little breastmilk and formula. We stocked up on all the free samples and good coupons. I have a shelf in the basement and started stocking formula before they were born. My kids weren't picky/sensitive, so I did switch formulas. We started on Similac Neosure them moved to Enfamil Newborn then moved to Enfamil x few months. Then moved to Similac Advance/Organic and then on to Gerber Good Start. I was lucky that my kids could do this. This let me use every single $5-10 coupon/free sample that I ever got!

My pedi gave me a good rule of thumb. To figure out what a baby needs to eat, take their weight divide by 2 and subtract 1 ounce. IE-10 lb baby needs a 4 oz bottle. I used that as a guide to feed my kids and it really helped. I also remember that she never really wanted them to go over 32oz/day. At one point, DS was eating 35 oz/day and she told it was a little too much. He was born 1.5lbs bigger than his sister and is now 4.5lbs bigger than her, so he usually did eat a little more than her as a baby.

CNYBride05 · July 2014

BFing has a lot more than cost saving benefits... But it's hard with 2, so I'd encourage you to keep an open mind about how you nourish your LOs. GL!

lowisezo · July 2014

I use the generic from Costco,they just increased the size of the can from 36-40oz. Each can is about $17. My formula bill is about $115 a month. My babies eat about 6-7 cans a month. They just turned 8 months and have finally really started to get the hang of eating cereal and purees, so their formula intake is dropping. Hallelujah!!

Evo9380 · July 2014

I know there's a ton of answers but wanted to jump in too! I'm sure most of this has been said but here's our story

We ended up on Nutramigen due to a dairy allergy for our girl, but put both on so as not to mix it up and accidentally have her taking the wrong one.

This stuff is also in a smaller can, and runs $20-25 per can depending where you buy it. We also went through about a can in a 24 hour period. That's at roughly 4oz every 3 hours. In total, I think we're doing $300-400 a month.

My overall thought is not to stock up on formula unless it's free samples since you don't know what your LOs will tolerate until they are here. We had about 10 cans of free sample similiac/enfamil that I ended up donating to our NICU and I was so glad I didn't end up paying for any of it!

Good luck

ajsweeton · July 2014

We've tried every generic to try and save money, but we had to come back to similac when the others caused a lot of gas and stomach problems. We go through a regular size can of similac every 3 days. Our babies are 13w old and they eat 60oz a day together. The similac is retail $25 a can so without coupons we would spend $250/month, but we get checks and coupons. And we have some friends that give us checks too.

kirbyjr06 · August 2014

My twins are 4 months old, go through about 50-60 ozs of formula a day. Right now they are on Enfamil Gentease, we tried Target brand when they were around 2 months and it messed with their tummies. I am going to try again in a month or so. However, I use formula checks and stock up when Target does their "buy 2 get a $10 gift card" deal and only spend about $15 on a can, so right now I think we spend about $130-$150 (plus tax) a month on formula. When Target runs their sale, I buy enough to last 2-3 weeks because that is about how often they run the deal on Enfamil. Also, I have a lot of friends and family send me formula checks (and I trade and send my Similac checks out that people send me), so I haven't had to buy a can without one yet. Those checks save me $40-50 a month. Moving to generic will only save me $25 a month, I think (based on it being double what a Enfamil can is), so I am going to keep them on Enfamil until my formula checks stop coming!

KDR1979 · August 2014

My pedi gave me a good rule of thumb. To figure out how much a baby needs in their bottle, take their weight and divide by 2, then subtract 1 ounce.

So a 10 pound baby needs 4 oz at each feeding. New babies eat every 3 hours around the clock! So, formula is VERY expensive! I rented a hospital pump for about ~$65/month. I struggled with supply, but still gave my kids every drop that I could. My kids always got a mixture of formula and breastmilk.

dmurrie · August 2014

Our twins are a month old, and we use roughly 1 sample canister a day or 1 regular size canister of Enfamil every 2 - 2 1/2 days. We were using one can exactly every 2 days, but I think that was growth spurt time. Now it's more the 2 1/2 days. Depending on the coupons we have, each canister is roughly $20-25. That being said, our pediatrician's office is generous with samples... And after consulting us also passed our info on to the company, who sent us a free case of 12 samples. Also, because the info was sent to them through the Dr, we didn't need to send them birth certificates in order to get the samples (which I understand they would have required before sending the multiples-size sample pack had we contacted them on our own). That being said, with DD1, the formula companies sent great coupons to start out with and then got more stingy as time went on. I'm guessing the same will happen this time around, too.

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