How to get the best free baby and pregnancy stuff

In our 2023 testing, we've found goody bags for pregnancy, newborn and older kids, free nappies, free wipes, free shampoo and conditioner – and more. We've also included a guide to what government help you can get if you're pregnant or have young children, depending on where you live in the UK.

We have to say, though, that there are definitely fewer freebies on offer than there used to be, which is disappointing at a time when we're all pretty stretched.

Read on to find out exactly what comes in each goody bag or offer package – and what you need to hand over to get them – so you can decide which ones are most useful for you...

Here's our guide to best pregnancy, baby and toddler freebies and free samples

1. Emma’s Diary packs

Who are these freebies aimed at?

Emma's Diary offer Mum to be, Bump to Baby and New Family packs that you pick up from a Boots, Sainsbury's or Argos store. There is also a Labour Information Pack, which you get from your midwife.

What do you get in an Emma's Diary pack?

So far, we've were only able to check out the Mum to be and the New Family packs, as none of the participating stores we tried has any of the Bump to Baby packs available.

The contents of the packs vary and change fairly frequently but in ours we found the following:

In the Mum to be Pack:

• Pack of 7 Pregnacare Original tablets
• Voucher for 3 for 2 on Pregnacare products, plus 10% off
• 5g Sudocrem Care & Protect tube
• 25p off Sudocrem Antiseptic Healing Cream voucher
• 50p off Sudocrem Care & Protect voucher
• 6 Always Liners
• Voucher for £1 off Always Liners
• 2 x 50% off-your-first-box vouchers for Green Chef
• Tails scratchcard voucher

In the New Family Pack:

• 20ml Palmer's Skin Therapy Oil sample
• 20ml Palmer's Stretch Marks Massage Lotion sample
• 15ml Mama Mio Tummy Rub Butter sample
• 25% off your first order from Mama Mio
• Organix A-Z food chart
• 2 x 65% off Hello Chef vouchers
• Tails scratchcard voucher
• Shepherds Friendly voucher

How do you get Emma's Diary packs?

You can get the vouchers for all 3 bags by downloading the Emma's Diary app, or registering online.

If you sign up via the app, the vouchers will be available via the My Free Packs section; if you register online, you can download a PDF to print out for each of the 3 packs.

The vouchers can be redeemed at branches of Argos or Boots – or at Sainsbury's via the app.

Once you've clicked 'download voucher' on the app and redeemed it, the voucher is only valid for 20 minutes and so we recommend you wait until your shop of choice has them in stock – particularly as it took us several attempts in different stores to track them down.

What data do you hand over to Emma's Diary?

When you download the app (for free), or register online and then sign up to receive the packs, you will be required to supply to Emma's Diary:

• Your full name
• Your email address
• Your postal address (including postcode)
• Your date of birth
• Whether or not you are pregnant and, if you are, your due date
• How many children you have and their date of birth(s)
• Agreement to Emma's Diary Privacy Notice and T&Cs

You can choose to opt in or out of offers and samples from Emma's Diary and their partners (such as Pampers and Huggies) that you can receive either by post or email.

How useful are the Emma's Diary packs?

We found that the samples were useful at all stages of pregnancy and parenthood.

It was good to see, in the Mum to be pack, not only a Pregnacare discount code but also a 7-pill sample of their tablets. We also like the little samples of Sudocrem and Always liners – they will definitely come in useful.

Although we liked the samples in the New Family pack, we did feel there weren't many products for your baby — although the skincare samples (for grown-ups) were a nice postnatal skin-recovery treat.

In both packs, there was a heavier weighting on vouchers and discount codes than physical freebies.

Once you're registered, you also then have access to competitions and offers from partners of Emma's Diary too — either on their website or through their app.

2. Boots Parenting Club freebies

Who are these freebies aimed at?

Anyone who is pregnant and/or has children up to the age of 5.

What you get from the Boots Parenting Club?

When you join up, you get:

• Aveeno Baby Baby Daily Care 2-in-1 Shampoo & Conditioner 250ml
• 15% off Boots Disposable Breast Pads 40s
• 8 Boots Advantage Card points per £1 spent on baby products (as opposed to 3 points for every £1 on other products)
• Access to Boots Parenting Club expert advice
• Parenting Club offers via the Boots app
• Free gifts at key stages of your baby's developments

How to do you sign up for Boots Parenting Club freebies?

You'll need to sign up to the Boots Parenting Club, download the Boots app and also register for a Boots Advantage Card (both free).

You can claim the freebies from a Boots store once the virtual vouchers load in your Boots app – and do note that it took over 2 weeks for ours to appear). Just tell the cashier at your local Boots that you have the vouchers and they will scan your physical or digital card and the offer will be marked as 'used' in the app.

What data do you have to hand over to Boots?

If you already have a Boots Advantage card, you will be asked:

• If you're pregnant and if so, your due date
• If you have any children and if so, how many as well as their name, date of birth and gender

If you're registering for an Advantage Card for the first time, you will be asked to provide:

• Your full name
• Your email address
• Your postal address (including postcode)
• Your date of birth
• Your due date
• If you're pregnant and if so, your due date
• If you have any children and if so, how many as well as their name, date of birth and gender
• Agreement to Boots' terms and conditions

How useful are the Boots Parenting Club freebies?

The points and gifts are useful over time, and the initial 250ml Aveeno Shampoo & Conditioner is a generous size. We did have to try in multiple stores on various occasions just to track it down, though.

4. Pampers Club freebies

Who are these freebies aimed at?

Anyone who is pregnant and/or has children in nappies.

What you get from the Pampers Club?

We received:

• A downloadable pregnancy guide
• A voucher for free Ninjamas Pyjama Pants (not available in Ireland)
• A voucher for free Pampers Poonami Proof Pants Essential Pack
• Access via the Pampers Club app to reward points on purchases of Pampers nappies and baby wipes, which you can use to claim discounts and offers on baby and parenting products
• Access to competitions and partner offers

How to do you sign up for Pampers Club freebies?

You can access the pregnancy guide and videos by signing up on Pampers website. To get the reward points on Pampers purchases, you'll need to download the Pampers Club app.

How do you get the Pampers Club freebies?

We received a voucher for the Ninjamas Pyjama Pants about a week after requesting the coupon. You can then redeem it at branches of Asda or Sainsbury's. We did have to wait a little longer for the Poonami Proof pack coupon, which arrived a month later.

We did encounter some issues with trying to redeem the items. We tried 3 different Sainsbury's stores for the Ninjamas Pyjama Pants and they were not stocked in any of them.

The Pampers voucher does not mention a specific store or retailer; instead it says, "most stores will accept it... not valid at Tesco." But when we tried to redeem it at different retailers, we were repeatedly told it was not accepted.

What data do you have to had over to Pampers Club?

When you 'unlock' the pregnancy guide or download the app, you'll be asked to provide:

• Your first name
• Your email address
• Your country of residence
• If you are pregnant, if you have children or both
• Depending on the answer given above, you are asked to provide your due date (optional) and/or child's date of birth (required)
• Your agreement to Pampers' terms and conditions
• You have to agree to opt-in to email marketing including product samples, emails, offers and coupons from Pampers Club and other P&G brands — once you're logged in, you can choose to opt-out of these emails in your Account.

You can also choose to register using your Facebook account.

To claim the free packs of nappy pants, you have to confirm:

• Your full name
• your full address (including post code)

How useful are the Pampers Club freebies?

The guide is quite useful and it contains 10 pages of informative infographics, checklists and more. To claim more freebies however, you do have to wait until you've bought some Pampers nappies or wipes, scanned in the receipts and accumulated enough reward points to claim the coupons and discounts on offer.

The vouchers for free nappies is useful too but, like us, you may struggle to actually claim your freebies.

5. SMA Baby Club freebies

Who are these freebies aimed at?

Pregnant women and parents with babies and toddlers.

What you get from the SMA Baby Club?

• A chance to win £1000 in vouchers for selected baby retailers when you join
• Weekly personalised emails 'to support you from pregnancy to toddlerhood'
• Free 24/7 advice about babies and feeding from the expert Careline team
• 'Members-only exclusive offers'
• Access to the 'Baby2Body wellness studio' which has personalised wellness and exercise plans
• Online tools and checklists, such as an ovulation calculator and baby name ideas

How do you sign up to the SMA Baby Club

You can sign up through the registration page on the SMA Baby Club website.

What data do you have to hand over to SMA Baby Club?

• Your full name
• Your email address
• Your child's or children's name, gender and date of birth, if you've any children under 2
• Your due date, if you are pregnant

You’ll be asked if you want to opt-in to receive:

• Regular emails and offers from SMA Baby Club
• Information about weaning and Nestle products (excluding infant formula milks)

How useful are the SMA Baby Club freebies?

It's a shame that you don't get any physical freebies but the online tools are useful and the personalised content was well designed. We also liked the fact that you can sign up your partner to your account so they receive access to their own tips and support, too.

6. Ella’s Kitchen Friend freebies

Who are these freebies aimed at?

Parents with babies who are weaning or about to be weaned into solid food.

What you get from Ella’s Kitchen Friend?

• A weaning journey map (pictured above) which doubles up as a weaning wall chart
• A weaning guide with recipes and tips
• Regular emails with weaning tips and offers
• 5 coupons for either free or discounted (50p to £1) Ella's Kitchen products
• Access to offers from 'B Corp' brands

You can only receive the pack if your child is under 12 months.

How do you sign up to be an Ella’s Kitchen Friend?

You can sign up through the registration page on the Ella’s Kitchen website

What data do you have to hand over to Ella’s Kitchen?

When you register, you’re required to give:

• Your full name
• Your email address
• Your child's name
• Your child's date of birth
• Answers to 3 questions about your food/cooking/diet choices for your child
• Yes/no to whether you wish to claim the weaning pack and, if you select yes, your full postal address and postcode
• Agreement to receive emails from Ella's Kitchen regarding weaning, products, recipe ideas, promotions and competitions, etc.
• Agreement to Ella's Kitchen terms and conditions

How useful are the Ella's Kitchen Friend freebies?

The wall chart is nice and colourful and the vouchers are great – with brief info about the product you can get on the voucher itself, as well as the age range the product is most suitable for. There was also a good length of time to redeem the vouchers: we ordered ours in July 2023 and the expiry date on the coupons is 31 December 2024.

7. Beaming Baby nappy packs

Who are these freebies aimed at?

Parent of babies (or babies-to-be) who use disposable nappies but are looking for a more eco-conscious option.

What you get in the Beaming Baby Trial packs (you can order 2 at once)

• 1 organic bamboo nappy (you can choose the size)
• 1 bio-degradable nappy (you can choose the size)
• 2 cornstarch nappy sacks
• 1 organic sensitive baby wipe sachet
• 1 organic fragrance free baby wipe sachet
• 1 organic fragrance free facial wipe sachet
• A Beaming Baby Nappy Guide on reusable, disposable and eco disposable nappies
• A £20 Beaming Baby voucher
• A £5 Healthy Start voucher
• A free Eco Peach period care pack voucher

Do note that, although all of the above is free, you'll need to pay £0.99 P&P with Express Delivery (this charge only applies once, so if you order 2 packs, it's still £0.99).

How do you sign up to get a Beaming baby Trial pack?

Go to the Beaming Baby website, select the size of the nappies you wish to trial from the dropdown (ranging from Size 1 to Size 6) and then proceed to Checkout. You can change the number of packs from 1 to 2 either before clicking 'Add to Cart', or you can update the number once you've added one to your basket. Delivery is quick — if you order before 3pm on a weekday, then it should be delivered the next day.

What data do you have to hand over to Beaming Baby?

When you go through the Checkout, you're required to give:

• Your full name
• Your email address
• Your postal address (including postcode)
• Your phone number
• Your email address
• Your payment details (to process the payment of the shipping fees)

You'll also be asked to provide a password to 'create an account' but you can untick this option and still continue to claim your freebies.

How useful are the Beaming Baby freebies?

We really liked the chance to get some biodegradable nappies for free: it meant we could check out their look and feel without committing to buying a whole pack.

8. My Pura baby wipes freebies

Who are these freebies aimed at?

Parents of small babies (or babies-to-be).

What do you get in the Pura baby wipes trial pack?

• 1 pack of 24 biodegradable Pura wipes

Do note that, although the wipes are free, you'll need to pay £0.99 P&P. (Pura also offer a free eco-nappy pack but you have to pay £3.99 P&P to receive that, so we're not counting it as a proper freebie.)

How do you sign up for a Pura baby wipes trial pack?

Visit the wipes trial pack page on the Pura Baby website and create an account. Then proceed to checkout with the 24-pack of wipes in your cart. You will then be required to make a £0.99 payment for shipping. Delivery was fairly quick — ours arrived within a week.

What data do you have to hand over to Pura?

In order to get your freebies, you have to make an account with Pura and you're required to give:

• Your full name
• Your email address
• Your postal address (including postcode)
• Your phone number
• Your payment details (to process the payment of the shipping fees)

You will also be required to create a password to access your Pura account. When checking out, it will automatically check the 'email me with news and offers' box but you can untick it.

How useful are the Pura freebies?

The pack is a good size, and you can never have too many baby wipes! We like that these are biodegradable and plastic-free, and the freebie is a good way to try them out and compare them with your regular baby wipe brand.

9. Piccolo Family Club freebies

Who are these freebies aimed at?

Parents of small babies.

What you get by signing up to the Piccolo Family Club?

• A free baby recipe e-book
• A free 'Weaning 101' e-book
• 20% off your first order from the Piccolo online store
• Access via the Pampers Club app to reward points on purchases of Pampers nappies and baby wipes, which you can use to claim discounts and offers on baby and parenting products
• Access to the Family Club, which rewards you with points when you purchase from the Piccolo online store, which you can then redeem on the online store, too (you receive 200 as soon as you sign up and then a further 10 points for every £1 you spend)
• Access to 'Piccolo Perks' which, at the time we registered, included offers such as 25% off Childs Farm, 20% off Nuby and more

How do you join the Piccolo Family Club?

You need to register on the Piccolo website.

What data do you have to hand over to Piccolo?

• Your full name
• Your email address
• Your postal address (including postcode)
• Your baby’s name and birthday or, if you're pregnant, your due date (you will be able to add multiple babies if needed)

You will also be asked if:

• You want to receive Piccolo news and updates
• You want to receive 'infant feeding advice and information content'

How useful are the Piccolo Family Club goodies?

Although you don't receive anything physical, the recipe book and weaning guide are quite useful. Both are quite substantial — the recipe book contains 20 recipes and the weaning guide has 40 pages of facts, tips, guides and recommendations. Their discount to club members is quite generous, too.

10. Huggies DryNites Pyjama Pants freebies

Who are these freebies aimed at?

Parents with children aged 3 years and older.

What you get in a Huggies DryNites Pyjama Pants pack?

• 1 pair of DryNites Pyjama Pants
• £1 off coupon
• A guide to bedwetting

The DryNites Pants are available in a variety of colours and sizes. Ours were grey with a flower design on them (we told them it was for a girl).

How do you get a Huggies DryNites Pyjama Pants Pack?

Go to the special registration page on the DryNites website. Your sample will then be sent to you — ours arrived in just over 2 weeks.

What data do you have to hand over to Huggies DryNites?

When you register, you will have to provide:

• Your full name
• Your email address
• Your postal address (including postcode)
• Your child's date of birth (month and year)
• Your child's sex (boy or girl)
• Your child's age/weight: 3 to 5 (16kg to 23kg); 4 to 7 (17kg to 30kg) or 8 to 15 (27kg to 57kg)

You’ll also have to:

• Say yes to their terms and conditions
• Say if you want to opt in to advice on transitioning from dry days to dry nights, and to understand more about managing bedwetting

If you opt in, you’ll then be enrolled into receiving DryNites emails featuring offers, news and information. You can unsubscribe from the emails once the first one arrives — we received on average 1 email a week before unsubscribing.

How useful are the Huggies DryNite freebies?

It feels like rather a lot of effort and data-sharing for just one free pair of night-time nappy pants and a £1 voucher, if we’re being honest. But if you’re not sure about using disposable night-time pants and would like to see how well they work before shelling out for a whole pack, this could be a great solution for you.

Pics: Emily Longman Wall

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