Hospital Bag Checklist and Labor Tips: What to pack and what to expect (from a mom of three)

Updated: April 2026

Written by Meg — mom of three (ages 5, 3, and 1) in Atlanta. I've packed a hospital bag three times including two COVID deliveries where we couldn't have visitors. Here's everything I actually used and everything I wish I'd known. 🫶

Looking for a hospital bag checklist that actually covers everything? This is what I packed across three deliveries — for mama, for papa, and for baby — plus what to expect once you're in labor and the insider tips nobody tells you until it's too late. From when to ask for the epidural to taking everything they offer before you leave, consider this your full hospital prep guide.

Hospital bag quick reference — don't forget these

Most important items:

• Stool softener (Colace) — start taking it before you even need it

• Extended length phone charger cords — outlets are far from the bed

• Portable white noise machine — for baby and for you

• Your labor "go bag" — hair ties, lip balm, gum, makeup wipes in a labeled Ziploc at the top of your bag

• ID and insurance card — you'll need it at registration

• Bring your own pillow with a colored pillowcase so it doesn't get mixed up with hospital pillows

• Electrolytes — Powerade or your own powder — labor is physical

Things to do in the hospital:

• Ask for the lactation consultant every single day you're there if you want to breastfeed

• Take everything in your room — diapers, pads, peri bottle, recovery supplies — it's yours and it gets thrown away otherwise

• Download the Huckleberry app before you go to track feeds and diapers

• Write down questions as you think of them — you will forget them when the nurse comes in

• Sleep when baby sleeps, especially that first day

One thing most people don't know:

• Hospital registration can take 30+ minutes even if you pre-registered — factor this in

Baby #1 — COVID delivery, masks and all. We made it work and so will you!

Hospital bag packing list.

• Mama - wear home outfit (loose and comfy!), pajamas (gown, long sleeves & pants), robe, cozy socks, nursing bras, toiletries, nipple cream, flip flops for shower

  • Nursing bras - my favorite are the ones from Auden/Target, MomCozy and these from Amazon

  • I changed into my own pajamas the morning after delivery - I did the gown so they could easily check that everything was healing. The next day I wore the shirt & pants version and I did not wear the leggings or real clothes I brought until we left.

  • Stool softener - this helps! I brought Colace

• Papa - wear home outfit, comfy clothes (2x), pjs (1x), sweatshirt (hospitals are cold!), toiletries

• Baby - take home outfits (good to have several options for sizing!), announcement items, swaddles, baby blankets

  • We kept both boys in the hospital provided clothes until we put on the take home outfit

• Electronics - remote chargers, extended length charger cords, stroller fan (in case you get hot during labor), portable white noise machine, portable speaker if you plan to play music

  • We got two of the remote chargers for my first and years later, still keep them in the diaper bag in case the stroller fan, white noise, or a phone dies while we’re out and about. You can charge and use the item at the same time - lifesaver. I travel with them for work too!

  • The extended charger cords are great as most of the outlets are far away from the hospital bed (double check it works for your phone - have made that mistake before!)

• Misc. -

  • ID/Insurance card - you will need this to get checked in at the hospital. I also brought pens to fill out the paperwork we'd get for baby's birth certificate and SSN.

  • Pillows - if you want to bring your own, avoid plain white pillowcases as those can get mixed up with the hospital pillows

  • Blanket - your hospital may provide bedding for the husband’s “bed” but you may want to bring him a blanket just in case. You can also bring sheets.

    • I put bed in quotes because Ricky's set up was basically a window seat/bench

  • Water bottle - for baby #2 I got us two of the big 40 oz Stanley’s and I KNOW I KNOW but I’ve got to say, I absolutely loved them in the baby days. The straw was great and not having to refill as often is also nice - they hold 40 oz. I used it daily while breastfeeding as I was constantly thirsty.

    • Once the babies grow into toddlers, something like this with the spillproof lid is better!

  • Tripod/selfie stick - this is *extra* but because we couldn't have any visitors the first two babies due to COVID, this was great for Facetiming our families and capturing some of our first family pictures

    • We still use this a ton to capture family pictures, which is basically an Olympic sport now

  • Snacks - with COVID, the cafeteria and fast food options weren’t open at our hospital so we brought protein bars, jerky, fruit and nut bars, Powerade, etc.

    • The hospital ended up feeding me 3 meals a day but didn’t feed Ricky so he would do Uber Eats or family would bring him food. Worth asking your OB as you get closer to your final appointments what the food situation will be!

    • Pack cash for vending machines if you'll have them available (we didn't)

    • Highly recommend Powerade or bringing your own electrolyte powder! I love ReLyte but whatever you like will work - labor is physical and blood pressure changes are common during delivery. Salt helps if it goes low (mine did every time I got an epidural)!

  • Baby book - optional, but if you want to add footprints/handprints directly in the books, your nurses can help you! I have loved this one for all three babies now and find it manageable to keep up with! It's monthly the first year and then yearly!

  • Labor “go bag” - I took a freezer ziploc and packed anything I might ask Ricky to get for me during L&D. Mine included hair ties, lip balm / chapstick, lavender spray hand sanitizer, sugarless gum (helps with dry mouth) and makeup remover wipes. I marked it LABOR and packed it right at the top of my bag so he could grab it easily and I did end up asking for things. Mostly lip balm, which he ended up keeping in his pocket.

  • Hospital bag - This is the bag I used. Do NOT let influencers on IG make you think you need to buy a new/special bag for your hospital bag, although you of course can if you choose. I did end up buying one because all I had otherwise were rolling suitcases and I wasn't sure if that was INSANE?! (Have since learned, no, it's not insane!) I travel a lot for work and have used the BEIS one several times since. I also wanted something I could wipe down with disinfecting wipes after we left the hospital because #COVIDMom.

Things to keep in mind at the hospital:

• Go time. When it's time to GO (i.e. your water broke or your contractions are progressing and your OB has told you it's hospital time), one thing I did not expect at all is how long the registration process took at the hospital. Holy moly, it took probably close to a half hour. Yes, even though I'd already pre-registered at the hospital. I share this so you know what to expect and can prepare for it. Have your ID & insurance handy as well as your OBGYN's info.

  • If there's time, EAT BEFORE YOU GET TO THE HOSPITAL. Typically you won't be allowed to eat once you have your epidural and start delivering. Ricky ran us through a Chick Fil A drive through on the way to the hospital - big husband vibes. With baby #1 he also ordered dinner to the hospital and put mine aside for me to enjoy after baby was born around midnight.

• When to ask for the epidural. I won't get too much into the details of Labor & Delivery here but all I'll say is if you're planning to have an epidural, make sure you tell them before your pain gets unbearable. From the time you tell them you're ready for it to when it takes complete effect is about 30-45 minutes. That's a hell of a long time to be in pain if you wait too long.

  • Ricky made me a stress ball out of clean socks to squeeze during my early labor. Once my contractions started feeling more intense and I was squeezing the shit out of the stress ball, I went ahead and asked for the epidural.

  • Your nurse will not tell you "okay, looks like it's time for the epidural!" Mine would say that only I could know how much pain I was in and everyone tolerates pain differently. You are your best advocate here! Listen to your body. In my experience, YOU WILL KNOW.

  • And if you decide you don't want an epidural, that is completely your choice to make! One of my close friends decided not to and while she says she won't be making that decision again with future babes, her baby is here and absolutely perfect! There's no one right way. Talk to your doctor if you're not sure how to approach all the different options available to you.

• Once baby arrives, it's all hands on deck. You’ll have nurses, doctors and lactation consultants coming in to check on you and the baby around the clock and they’ll always ask if you have any questions. With my first I was so exhausted from labor and then feeding little man that I could never remember any of my questions when they were in the room, even though I had a million. Try to write down/capture questions as you think of them so when they come by, you have them ready! Papa can help with this too.

  • Your nurses will come in every 6 hours or so. There were a few times when I’d just gotten Tripp to sleep and they came in and stripped him down to his diaper to do tests and check on him, which of course woke him up (and he was PISSED!). Not much you can do about it but if you at least know there is a schedule ahead of time (I didn’t) you/your partner can try to keep an eye on it. You can also ask them to come back a little later if you’ve just gotten to sleep.

• Try to sleep when the baby sleeps! That applies for the first few weeks (slash maybe the rest of our lives?!) but especially the first day after delivery, the baby will sleep a lot. If you’re like me, you will be so excited and in love you will probably just want to stare at baby the whole time and enjoy sharing the news with your loved ones. For baby #2 I knew to use this time to catch up on sleep!!!

• Lactation consultants are your friends, breastfeeding mamas. Have the lactation consultant come see you every day you’re in the hospital. They can watch you breastfeed and make sure the latch and positioning is right and show you how to hand express, etc. Ours was amazing and showed Ricky how to help with latching too, which he helped me with a lot.

  • Even after having breastfed my first for a year, I had the lactation come by every day with baby #2. Every baby is different and Brooks actually had a shallow latch at first, which I had not faced with Tripp. And I promise, after giving birth, you truly will not care about this person seeing your boobs.

• Track the baby's feeds and diapers. The nurses will ask you a few times a day when the baby last ate and how long the feed was, as well as how many wet (pee) and dirty (poop) diapers there have been. They will probably give you a paper to track this on but my midwife recommended the Huckleberry app and I used it for the first few months to track all of Tripp’s feeds and diapers, as the pediatrician will ask you for the same information at those first few appts.

  • Huckleberry also tracks how long you feed on each side so you know which side to start on next time. You want to switch off at each feed which side you start on. More on this in the Breastfeeding section!

• Take all the things from the hospital. Everything provided in your room for the baby (diapers, wipes, hats, newborn shirts, etc.) and for your recovery (pads, disposable underwear, peri bottle, etc.) is for you to take home. Your nurse should tell you at discharge but don’t feel weird about taking it - your insurance has paid for it and what you don’t take gets thrown out because they can’t give it to another patient.

  • You can also ask for more of anything that you may want - most nurses will offer this to you as well before you leave.

Sending you allllllll the good vibes for a smooth and uncomplicated delivery. My mantra for this last few weeks is always "happy, healthy, chunky baby." Repeat after me! Happy, healthy, chunky baby 🙏

See you on the other side, mama!

FAQ

What should I pack in my hospital bag? The essentials for mama: nursing bras, loose comfortable pajamas, robe, flip flops for the shower, toiletries, nipple cream, stool softener, your own pillow with a colored pillowcase, snacks, electrolytes, and extended phone charger cords. For baby: take-home outfit in two sizes, swaddles, announcement items. For partner: comfortable clothes for 2-3 days, toiletries, and snacks since the hospital may only feed you. Pack a labeled "labor go bag" Ziploc at the top with the quick-grab items.

When should I ask for the epidural? Before your pain gets unbearable. From the time you ask to when it takes full effect is about 30-45 minutes — that is a very long time if you wait too long. Your nurse won't tell you when it's time, they'll say only you know your pain level. My signal was when I was squeezing Ricky's sock stress ball hard enough that I clearly needed relief. You will know — listen to your body and ask early.

What do hospitals provide that you don't need to pack? More than you think — mesh underwear, big pads, Tucks witch hazel pads, Dermoplast spray, peri bottle, baby diapers, wipes, newborn hats and shirts, swaddle blankets, and your meals (though they may not feed your partner). Take everything in your room when you leave — it's yours, your insurance paid for it, and anything left gets thrown away.

What app should I use to track feeds and diapers in the hospital? Huckleberry — download it before you go. Your nurses and pediatrician will ask how often baby is eating, how long each feed lasts, and how many wet and dirty diapers there have been. Huckleberry tracks all of it and also tells you which side to start on for the next breastfeeding session.

How long does hospital registration take when you're in labor? Longer than you'd expect — about 30 minutes even if you've pre-registered. Have your ID, insurance card, and your OBGYN's information ready when you arrive. And if there's time, eat before you get there — once you have an epidural you typically can't eat until after delivery.

Should I take the lactation consultant up on their offer? Absolutely yes — every single day you're in the hospital. They can watch you breastfeed, correct your latch and positioning, show you how to hand express, and teach your partner how to help with latching. Even with baby #2 after already breastfeeding for a year, I called the lactation consultant in every day because every baby is different. Take full advantage of this free resource while you have access to it.

What should I put in my labor go bag? A labeled Ziploc right at the top of your hospital bag with the things you might want during labor: hair ties, lip balm, chapstick, sugarless gum for dry mouth, lavender hand sanitizer, and makeup remover wipes. Label it clearly so your partner can grab it without digging through everything.

→ See my full guide to preparing for labor and delivery here

→ Postpartum recovery — what to expect and what you need here

→ Bringing home baby — what those first days look like here

→ All things breastfeeding and pumping here

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Your friendly reminder that this blog is not medical advice! This blog is for educational purposes only and does not substitute for professional medical advice. Consult a medical professional or healthcare provider if they seek medical advice, diagnoses, or treatment for you or your family.

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