How long are babies typically in newborn/ 0-3 mth clothes?

BWhiddon1988 · July 2015

I'm a FTM and doing a little shopping around and noticed that newborn only goes up to 7 lbs, which she could come out weighing that! I didn't know if it's better to buy 0-3 mth and if that would last me a little bit or is it better to only get a few 0-3 mth and get more 3-6 mth? The sizes seem to not really go by their actually month

flas · July 2015

I'm a third time mom and I am only buying an extremely limited amount of Newborn clothes, like maybe just one or two. Everything else I buy will probably be 0-3 months, I tend to have big babies.

Pontot31 · July 2015

Mine never wore NB and was only in 0-3 for less than a month. But I have friends whose babies were in NB for a month.
It depends on their birth weight and how fast they gain weight really.
0-3 will last you longer but a 7 pounder will likely swim in it at first.

MadBloom · July 2015

Some babies never fit newborn!!
I wouldn't go nuts with NB sizes. How big were you and your hubby at birth? If you were both 8 pound babies then I'd stick to 0-3 and 3 month sizes.

My husband and I were both under 7 pounds and sure enough our princess came out under 7 pounds even though she was 11 days late. She fit in NB for a good 4-5 weeks.

keallenrmt · July 2015

Depends on the baby. DD was a tiny hippo at birth (9.2) but wore newborn for about a month tops then was pretty on schedule until recently, she's now 15 months. She wore 0-3 for 2-3 months then 3-6 for a couple months and so on but she is tiny now, only 19lbs. She didn't double her weight until she was a year old and babies should double around 6 months I think. I bought a couple things in each size and if she needed more I would buy whatever she needed.

buckwheatpancakes · July 2015

I was wondering the same thing. Thanks for the insight ladies!

Pontot31 · July 2015

You can always keep tags and receipts to return things or shop online and buy stuff after the baby is born.
I would still get a weeks worth of basic NB stuff and then more 0-3 and 3 month clothes. And even more 3-6 month items. But really, you can buy as you go.

We got so many clothes for gifts that my daughter never wore because she grew too fast. At 3.5 years old she's still going through 2 sizes most seasons so I don't buy a whole lot. I get basic pieces and a couple cute items.

Cook3133 · July 2015

All 3 my boys were in NB for 2-4 weeks and then pretty much the month they were fit the clothing, until my last that outgrew 6-9m in like 1 month! And mine were all in the 8# when born and 20-22 in length.

But I have a friend who just had a boy almost 11#s and he never fit NB and is 3wks old almost outgrowing 0-3m

Pontot31 · July 2015

Another thing... I always buy a little big so she can grow into it and clothes will last longer. It's harder as a NB but gets easier as they get older.

BWhiddon1988 · July 2015

thanks everyone! I didn't want to end up with a bunch of stuff that she never ended up getting to wear

urby87 · July 2015

You've gotten some solid advice here, so I'll just echo what others have said. Newborn is typically smaller than 0-3, so I would definitely not register for a ton of (if any) newborn stuff. If you get more than they can wear over the course of the first few weeks, they probably won't be able to wear it all. But another good point I saw mentioned is to keep the tags on and exchange them for a larger size if you run into that problem.

Squirtgun · July 2015

I'll give the opposite perspective… daughter was in newborn clothes for three months.

It will really depend on how big your baby is, though, as others have said. (She's still in 9 month clothes at 17 months old. She tends to get a lot of wear out of her clothes.)

I'd recommend, as others have said, only taking tags off of the cutest outfits and then seeing how it goes. You can always return and exchange for bigger clothes.

SJFTCA · July 2015

I'm a FTM, but I've looked at several sizing charts for different brands and they all seem to be fairly similar. I'm sure some of the sizing depends on weight distribution, but you can look at the attachment and see if it helps :-).

helsbels222 · July 2015

Not long at all. Don't buy too much newborn because they may come out too big for them. Babies also grow real fast in the first 3 months. It goes too quick. You may want to buy a little more in 0-3 because they spit up a lot and then there's also diaper malfunctions. Stock up on onsies so you don't have to do laundry too often.

Also keep in mind when registering, try not to register for a lot of clothes. Just more of the basics. Everyone likes buying clothes (since they are so stinkin cute) so you may end up with more than you need. People bought clothes I didn't register for. I swear my son never wore the same outfit more than once in the first month.

wedding crazed · July 2015

Two of my sons fit them for almost 2 months. My daughter didn't fit that size at all (9lbs. 8 oz). However, my cousin jsut had a baby and she had to go out and buy preemie clothes as newborn wouldn't fit, so it totally depends on your baby.

keallenrmt · July 2015

Just a side note, babies literally grow over night too. One day something fits fine, the next time you put it on it's too small.

Elyse1384 · July 2015

You've got some great feedback here so just to echo what everyone has said - depends on the LO.

That said, this thread reminded me of my epic mom fail with DS. Little guy had colic and bad reflux so I was rushing through the store with him melting down in my arms to get 0-3m clothing a few weeks after his birth (we were team green and had limited clothing). I grabbed clothing only by looking at the hanger for "N" or "0-3". Well... I got home, washed it all and went to put a new pair of PJs on DS that night. I felt like I was cramming the poor kid in there like a sardine and couldn't zipper the clothing. Poor little guy couldn't stretch out his limbs. DS was clearly pissed and I called in DH like "WTF... It's like he had a major growth spurt while napping". Yup.. This freakin genius here didn't bother to check the tag that was marked "P" (preemie). Didn't help that DS was a big boy and even N was stretching it a bit. Moral of the story... Never go by just the hanger!

Destini89 · July 2015

My son was 6.1 16 inches long he was full term, however he swam in nb, I had to get a couple of premie for him. He didn't fit in nb until a month later. It honestly just depends on the baby. I would suggest getting like 2-3 nb and then if your baby is small you can always get some after. I would also keep the receipt just in case baby is bigger too!

oliarnmom1517 · July 2015

I'm very thankful for this thread!! I'm a FTM and have been wondering about this.. Thank you OP for posting!! But I talked to my mom today and my brother and I were both 10 pounders so we never fit in newborn sizes.. I'm really hoping that my baby boy isn't a 10 pounder after his mom.. But I only have one newborn outfit and hope I don't need to get many.. My mom warned me to only get a few but it's nice to hear from other experienced moms who have had different experiences..

katiedhunter · July 2015

I also found that brands varied in size, some brands fit smaller and some bigger.

CarrieOct15 · July 2015

If you're a FTM, you'll probably get a ton of clothes from friends and family. This is my family's first grandbaby, and on top of that everyone is thrilled that I'm having a girl. She'll probably have more clothes than she'll ever need. If for some reason I don't get a couple newborn outfits at the baby shower, I'll probably only buy a couple outfits.

mrsaragon · July 2015

I'm a FTM as well, but I'm focusing more on 0-3 and 3-6 months. Most of the baby showers I have been to, people usually tend to buy newborn items and my husband's family have already gotten is like 6 NB outfits. I don't plan on spending a ton of money on clothes that I know he may not fit into at all or for a week lol it's hard to buy outfits where I am anyway because it's super hot with long summers and Long sleeve outfits are far and few between unless they are sleepers.

VexedMommy · July 2015

If you're having a shower, I would wait to buy any clothes that aren't meaningful or somehow special until afterwards. As long as you've got enough outfits in NB and 0-3 for the first 2 weeks you should be fine.

My daughter was born full term at 5lb 8oz and needed preemie clothes for the first month or two. She was in NB until about 4 or 5 months. She was walking before she was out of 0-3 clothes. Each child is different. As a STM, I'm waiting to buy clothes until after this baby is here.

helsbels222 · July 2015

VexedMommy said:
If you're having a shower, I would wait to buy any clothes that aren't meaningful or somehow special until afterwards. As long as you've got enough outfits in NB and 0-3 for the first 2 weeks you should be fine.

My daughter was born full term at 5lb 8oz and needed preemie clothes for the first month or two. She was in NB until about 4 or 5 months. She was walking before she was out of 0-3 clothes. Each child is different. As a STM, I'm waiting to buy clothes until after this baby is here.

Welcome to N15

rox7777 · July 2015

Side note on some of the popular brands:

Carter's looks huge but will majorly shrink after you wash and dry it. It tends to run small after that. And Gerber tends to run on the true to size scale and possibly a bit big depending on the outfit. I always remember those to brands because we received so much of both with our first.

I buy my newborn clothes at a consignment shop and then swap them once we're done. It's nice to buy a few new things, but in the new baby stage they rarely stay nice. We have Wee Cycle and Once Upon a Child in our area and both always have great items.

DS1 was 6lb13oz, but he had little chicken legs. He wore NB for 8 weeks and 0-3/3 for 3-4 months. In my opinion the 0-3, 3-6, 6-9 tend to run smaller than the 3, 6, and 9 sizes.

RaisingJulian · July 2015

My son wore newborn for a while if I remember correctly. And he was born 7lbs 6oz he's also always been in the size for his age. He's 2 1/2 now and in 2t and that's only because he's so tall so if he's wearing shorts he fits in 18months but that's because he's in underwear when he's in a diaper it's 24months. But he's a twig so it will depend on your baby. His dad is over 6 foot and super skinny so my son takes after him.

lyankowi · July 2015

PP gave good advice. DD wore a newborn outfit home from the hospital but I took it off of her as soon as we got home because it was too small. I never put her in newborn again (I brought a 0-3 to the hospital but my mom had bought her a going home outfit. I actually brought a girl outfit, a boy outfit, and the 0-3 was gender neutral) She out grew 3 mo at 2 mo, 6mo at 5 mo, and I only bought a few 9mo outfits, I actually skiped 9mo and went straight to 12mo and that's when she finally slowed down and wore out most of those clothes. Now she's 2 wearing 3-4t clothes.

WeirdAlice · July 2015

My daughter was 6lbs 7 Oz and fit in premature cloths, NV cloths were to big for the first 3 weeks or so then she was in newborn for about a month or 2, But 0-3 months gave her extra room to grow in.