The Best Baby Bottles To Consider For Your Newborn

Whether you’re planning to breastfeed your baby or use formula, you’ll very likely need to have bottles on hand for your baby’s arrival. But what are the best baby bottles? And what criteria should you look for to find the bottle that is best for your baby?

Which Baby Bottle Is Right For Your Baby?

As with most baby items, it can be overwhelming to know where to start with choosing the right bottles for your baby and your family and lifestyle. We’re here to help you find the best bottles for newborns. First, let’s start with a few things to consider when it comes to choosing a bottle.

Let your infant test a few baby bottles first

It’s often a good idea to have a handful of some of the top baby bottle styles on hand to test out with your baby. Then, once you know which bottle works best for them, you can invest in more of those. (Eventually, you’ll definitely want enough bottles – around six to eight – to ensure you aren’t cleaning them all the time!) 

Consider your Baby Feeding Plan

Think about whether you plan to breastfeed or formula feed and choose baby bottles accordingly (but recognize that things might go differently than planned on that front). Personally, I’d planned on exclusively breastfeeding my daughter for the first year of her life, but ran into supply issues about four months in. We started supplementing with formula – so we were using both breastmilk and formula for several months – and ultimately, I stopped breastfeeding altogether at around the nine-month mark and we moved to 100% formula until she turned one. Even if you plan to exclusively breastfeed, know that pumping and bottle feeding at least periodically can make for a great bonding experience between your baby and family members as well as a way for Mama to get some freedom from time to time – both so valuable.

Baby Bottle Materials

When choosing the best baby bottles for your family, consider what materials might align best with your needs and values. 

Plastic

Plastic baby bottles are lightweight and inexpensive, but they’re not as durable as other materials and might require more frequent replacement. BPA is no longer permitted to be used in the production of baby bottles, but even still, some chemicals might potentially still leech out, especially when heated in the microwave or dishwasher, so you’d likely want to wash plastic baby bottles by hand. (Definitely something to take into consideration. That can get old fast!) 

Glass

Glass baby bottles sound a bit scary (What if they break?), but these days there’s not much to worry about on that front. (Some even come wrapped in silicone to make the risk of them breaking miniscule.) These will need to be replaced less often than plastic baby bottles (but are also pricier). 

Silicone

Silicone is a good material to look for in both baby bottles and nipples. It’s very flexible and virtually unbreakable, but can be on the expensive side. 

Baby Bottle 101: Nipple Levels

Baby bottle nipples come in different levels that control the milk flow rate:

• Level 0 are for preemies
• Level 1 are for Newborns
• Level 2 are for babies 3 to 6 months
• Level 3 are for babies 6 months and older
• Level 4 are for babies 9 months or older

Know that when your baby is a newborn, you’ll want to look for Level 1 nipples for your baby bottles (which creates a slower flow). Your baby will also eat more frequently but will consume less milk at each feeding than they will as they grow. With that in mind, smaller (4-ounce) baby bottles can be a good newborn baby bottle option. You’ll want to graduate to Level 2 nipples and bigger 8-ounce bottles as your baby grows.

Baby Bottles for Newborns Loved By Parents

Now that you have a bit of baby bottle 101 under your belt, here are a few top baby bottles to consider when you’re starting to shop.

Babylist Bottle Box

This is a neat option that allows you to test out five popular baby bottles on your newborn to help you determine which might be best to invest in.

Dr. Brown’s Natural Flow Options+

This glass baby bottle is an especially good option for breastfed babies, and its gentle flow makes for easier digestion for your baby.

Boon NURSH Reusable Silicone Pouch Bottle

This silicone baby bottle option is not only durable and dishwasher safe (as well as microwave, freezer, and boiling water safe), it also collapses as baby drinks, which helps to cut down on gas bubbles.

Medela Breast Milk Bottles

This plastic baby bottle is a popular one for pumping mamas. If you use a Medela pump, it will attach directly to the pump for a super easy experience: pump directly into them, store milk in them, and add a nipple to feed baby.

NUK Simply Natural

These baby bottles’ nipples are meant to mimic the shape of the breast, and this set comes with two smaller baby bottles with slow flow nipples, two larger baby bottles with fast flow nipples, and two silicone pacifiers, too.

MAM Easy Start Anti-Colic Bottle

The neatest feature about these baby bottles is that they’re self sterilizing. (Just screw off the bottle’s base, fill it with water, insert the nipple, screw the base back in and heat for three minutes in the microwave.)

Comotomo Baby Bottles

This is another well-reviewed silicone option for your baby bottles that is supposed to be softer and more similar to a breast than other bottle options.

Philips Avent Natural Baby Bottles Essentials Gift Set

These baby bottles are known for being easy to clean (always a plus!) and for being easy for baby to switch between breastfeeding and bottle feeding.

Lifefactory Glass Baby Bottle with Silicone Sleeve

I’m pregnant with baby #2, and these are actually the bottles we chose this time around! (I wanted glass baby bottles and loved the silicone sleeve to make them more durable and easy to grip.)

There are many baby bottle options out there, and a few things to consider when you’re determining the best baby bottles for your baby specifically.

Hopefully this post has made you feel a bit more confident about your decision, and grounded you in some of the features that can differ from bottle to bottle.

Consider putting a few different types on your baby registry list, and then once you meet your baby and let them try some bottles, you’ll know much better which are the top baby bottles for your family.

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