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How much to spend on a baby shower gift?
June 25, 2010 | In: New Born & Baby Gifts
Three of my friends have baby showers this summer and I have never attended one before. I recently got married and all 3 of these friends attended my bridal shower and wedding, and they each spent around $200 on gifts. Should a baby shower gift equal around the amount that they spent on my wedding gift? Or should I be spending more or less?
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12 Responses to How much to spend on a baby shower gift?
Mama of Zee
June 25th, 2010 at 11:13 am
Depends on how close the friends are? However, if they spent $200 bucks on you… you’re probably on the hook for $100 at least.
Lilli15
June 25th, 2010 at 11:30 am
Wedding gifts are more expensive then baby shower gifts. I think a reasonable price would be under $100. Baby shower presents aren’t that expensive.
Hope this helps!
-Lilliana:)
USA lady
June 25th, 2010 at 11:37 am
It is not necessary to spend that amount for a baby gift unless you plan to purchase an item like a stroller or piece of nursery furniture. You can go to Babys R Us and find beautiful, precious infant clothes and accessories for under $100. My niece had a wonderful baby shower and for that amount I was able to buy bottles, earth friendly Pampers (these are great), and newborn clothes. She was registered there so I knew what she wanted. Have fun!
ataman
June 25th, 2010 at 12:23 pm
Definitely not, a wedding and a baby shower are two entirely different events.
The beauty of the baby shower is that you can buy items off the registry that you can catch on sale and then the mommy never knows how much you “really” spent, lol!
It is also a great idea if you can split the cost of an essential and expensive gift like a car seat with someone, then the parents are getting something they really need and you can divide up the cost with others.
Another way to ensure a great gift is to look for things that no one else will give and that makes you look like you put a lot of time and thought into a gift. Great suggestions are personalized burp clothes or bibs (if you know the baby’s name or initials).
Diapers are always a great suggestion too and a lot of websites like (diapers.com) have pretty good coupons for first time customers. You can buy the parents tons of diapers and baby items and get around 20% off your purchase.
Pippin
June 25th, 2010 at 12:50 pm
Gift giving isn’t a matter of equal exchanges. If they are very well off, then they could, presumably, afford a $200 gift. If you are less well-off, there is no need to go into debt for a gift. Buy something you think they will like AND that you can afford.
(Traditionally, shower gifts are small — a cute outfit or toy, NOT a carseat or crib.)
Aries
June 25th, 2010 at 1:20 pm
If they are your true friends, price shouldn’t even cross your mind. Go to Babies R Us and you can ask an associate for help. Or if you really don’t know what to get, a gift card can be an option, maybe $100 each…just a thought. It just all depends on what you can afford for all three of your friends.
If money is an issue, you can be creative and make baskets for your three friends (since all three are held this summer). Go to a craft store than go to Walmart, a baby can never have too many diapers, onesies, bibs, etc.
cheri
June 25th, 2010 at 2:13 pm
About $100 but try something like ebay you get more for your money. I just went to a baby shower and I spent about $30 in Gymboree clothes. But if you looked at the price tags they added you to $150. Everything was new but I just got them cheaper
Tu
June 25th, 2010 at 3:00 pm
no. i dont think it’s equivalent. But if you are really close to your friend..its a nice thing to do. Maybe you could combine it with other people to give them a nice BIG gift.
PSD
June 25th, 2010 at 3:38 pm
I think it depends on how close you are with your friends. The closer you are, the more you’re likely to spend. Also, a baby shower is definitely not the same as a wedding. Basically, a wedding is a lot more expensive to throw than a baby shower so the cost of the gift has to be in accordance. For me, I usually spend about $50-60 total (including wrapping paper, card, etc.) on average. You can also pitch in with a couple other friends to buy a large gift.
Vegan_Mom
June 25th, 2010 at 4:08 pm
I have NEVER in my 32 (33 on Friday) years of life spent that much on a gift. Two hundred dollars is more than what my wedding dress cost.
I’m one of those who thinks it’s not the cost of the gift, but the meaning behind the gift, and it could be dependent on the person. For my husband’s cousin’s baby shower in April, I got her one of those stuffed animal harnesses. When I saw it on her registry, I told my husband that’s what we were getting her if it was still available. We got one for our daughter a year ago and it’s one of the best things we got her. She likes it and it works well. We moved into this house in November 2009. While unpacking, I found a box of things from my child hood that I had left with my parents. In it, I found a new journal with a yellow cat on it. With it, I pared it with a pack of blank cards that also had a yellow cat on it. I gave it to my SIL who likes to write and has a yellow cat. (I was going to buy her a pen for just a few dollars, but I didn’t make it to the university bookstores where I knew I could find one she might like.) The note cards I fond several years ago when Dumpster diving at my old apartment complex. They were new in an intact package. She seemed to like them.
I’m also cheap. As I said, I think $200 is way too much for a gift. (I think we might have spent that much total, maybe closer to $250 on our daughter since she’s her birth day, September 17, 2007.) Browse Babies “R” Us, and other stores. Think of the mother and what she likes and even look at the registries (if they have one). Go from there. One thing, is if you buy clothes, go for 9 months or 12 months. We had plenty of 0-3, 3-6 and 6-9 months sizes, but it started to taper off between 9 and 12. As I said, the practical stuff is always appreciated.
Sammy Jo
June 25th, 2010 at 4:29 pm
I would say spend at least $100 dollars. I recently had a baby shower and a couple of my friends spent a over $150 for my gifts. So i know that when they are celebrating a milestone, I will try to be just as generous as they were.
Keep in mind, this is ONLY if you can afford to spend that type of money. If not, then spend what you can afford. They will be really appreciative. Im just saying dont go cheapo if you dont have to, when they were generous to you.
Ally K
June 25th, 2010 at 5:00 pm
If your friends were generous and giving with you, you don’t want come off looking stingy. Plus, you might lose some good friends by not reciprocating.
UNLESS you have had some financial setbacks like losing your job or an illness and they are aware of your situation. Good friends, as you describe, would most likely not expect you to respond in kind under those circumstances.
There is no requirement to match gifts dollar for dollar, but I would get close. Why don’t you enter some blog giveaways and try to win some stuff? Even if you aren’t hurting financially, you can add what you win to what you are able to spend and there are so many contests that have great odds of winning.
Here’s one site where I found contests that have EXPENSIVE strollers as prizes and other stuff that moms like. The blogger announced that she’s having a Vera Bradley purse giveaway soon and if you win you might want to keep that for yourself. Good luck!
http://www.free-baby-stuff-resources.blogspot.com/