11 April 2025 · Jennifer Wijaya
Finance Director · Mother of one, expecting
Baby Shower Gifts Singapore: What to Buy at Every Budget
A baby shower gift has one duty the newborn gift is spared: it gets opened in company. It has to look generous on the table, photograph kindly, and still be the thing the mother reaches for once the audience has gone home.
Money helps less than thought here, so this is arranged by budget with the thinking done.
| Budget | What it buys | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Under S$30 | One lovely thing, wrapped properly | Acquaintances, group contributions |
| S$30–60 | A small set: 2 swaddles, or towel and cloths | Colleagues and good friends |
| S$60–120 | One good thing in place of three adequate ones | Close friends |
| S$120+ | The box that survives to the second child | Family, or the office whip-round |
Under S$30: small, but chosen
At this budget the trick is beauty per dollar. One lovely thing wrapped properly beats 3 adequate things in a paper bag.
A bamboo swaddle single in a print you'd keep for yourself. Bamboo wash cloths, where the 4-pack covers the first year of baths. A bib or bandana bib set for the drool months ahead. A teething ball in a colour that suits the nursery.
Add the keepsake box and wrapping paper, under S$12 for the pair, which roughly doubles the presence of whatever is inside.
Mentioned above
Bamboo Swaddle Single (Printed)S$29.00Shop now
Bamboo Wash Cloth 4pc (Rustic Rainforest)S$25.00Shop now
Gift BoxS$8.00Shop now
Wrapping PaperS$3.20Shop nowS$30-60: the reliable middle
The colleague-and-good-friend range, where most shower gifts live. Sets begin here: 2 swaddles in sister prints, or the towel-and-washcloth pairing that makes bath time look like a ritual.
A bamboo swaddle 2-pack works because one is always in the wash, which is the Singapore rhythm. A hooded towel and wash cloth set. A velcro swaddle wrap paired with a single muslin, the practical combination. A 2-layer bamboo blanket for air-conditioned naps.
Mentioned above
Bamboo Swaddles (2 pc)S$49.00Shop now
Bamboo Hooded Towel & Wash Cloth Set (Outdoor)S$39.90Shop now
2 Layer Blanket (120x120cm)S$85.00Shop nowWhat gets used, which is a different list
I've been to a lot of these and I've received a lot of this. The gap between what gets given and what gets used is wide and consistent.
| Gift | How often given | How often used | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Newborn-size outfits | Very often | A few weeks at most | Give 3-6 months instead |
| Soft toys | Very often | Rarely in the first year | Nothing in the cot before one anyway |
| Muslin squares | Sometimes | Daily for years | The most-used thing on any list |
| Blankets | Very often | Limited, not for cot sleep | One is plenty |
| Bath sets and lotions | Often | Sparingly. Newborn skin needs very little | Fragrance-free or skip |
| Nappies in larger sizes | Rarely | Certainly | Unglamorous and welcome |
| A contribution to something big | Rarely | Always | The best value gift there is |
If you take one thing: size up. Newborn clothing is outgrown in weeks and the parents already have some, while a 6-9 month outfit arrives exactly when the drawer has run out, which is the moment nobody plans for. On the money side, group gifts beat individual ones at every budget. 4 people at S$30 buys something the parents wouldn't otherwise have. 4 separate S$30 gifts buys 4 things they may already own. If there's a registry, use it. If there isn't, ask.
Prices move and vary by retailer. Run the sums again on the day you buy. What doesn't change: the good presents are boring and the memorable presents are keepsakes. Decide which you're giving.
Gifts by occasion
S$60-120. The ones that get remembered
This is the band where one good thing beats 3 adequate ones. Buy the one good thing. I'm not sure I've ever taken my own advice here.
A buddy pillow, the companion of a great many Singapore cots. The 3-pack of full-size swaddles, effectively the wardrobe of the fourth trimester. A weaning gift set, 6 months early and perfectly on time. One of the print-matched gift sets, boxed and finished.
Mentioned above
Baa Baa Sheepz Rustic Buddy Pillowfrom S$29.00Shop now
Bamboo Swaddles (3pc)S$69.00Shop now
Weaning Gift Set (Pink)S$101.40Shop now
Blue Train Gift SetS$119.00Shop nowS$120 and up: family, or the office whip-round
The group gift is the baby shower's best invention. 5 colleagues at S$30 each buys the present none of them could have justified alone.
Spend it on the boxes that survive to the second child: the sleep gift set with swaddles, sheet and sleep pieces together, a collaboration swaddle bundle, the showpiece set, or the edited first wardrobe in a box that needs no wrapping.
Mentioned above
Sleep Gift Set (Girl)S$159.00Shop now
Gift Set (Boy)S$149.00Shop now
Carousel of Fortune Gift SetS$69.00Shop now
Newborn Set (0-6M)S$69.90Shop nowShower etiquette, briefly
Give before the birth if you're invited to the shower. A full month gift is its own occasion later, and nobody has minded being celebrated twice.
Skip newborn-size clothing. Babies here graduate through sizes in weeks. Match the nursery theme if you know it, and if you don't, our prints are designed to belong anywhere.
Write the card by hand. 10 years on, it's the only part of the wrapping that survives.
This guide is general information, written to help you understand a topic and ask better questions. It is not medical advice and does not replace your own doctor, midwife or paediatrician. Anything that worries you about your baby belongs with them.