Hospital bag checklist for dad, or any birth partner: what the support person packs
Every hospital bag list is written for the person giving birth. This one is for the other person: the one who will be awake for thirty hours, standing most of them, in a room that is freezing, with a phone at four percent. Pack it by 36 weeks and leave it in the car.
Printable packing list
One page, tick boxes, no email required.
Download the packing list (PDF) What to do, stage by stage (PDF)Paper and numbers
- Three printed copies of their birth plan: one for the chart, one for the nurse, one for you.
- Your partner one-pager, folded, in your pocket, not the bag.
- Their ID and insurance card; your ID.
- The pediatrician's name and number, if one has been chosen.
- The call list on paper, in the order you agreed, for when your phone dies.
- Parking details, the after-hours entrance, cash or a card for the garage.
Keeping yourself going
- Snacks that do not smell: bars, nuts, crackers, dried fruit. Labor can last a day and a half, and smells can turn a laboring stomach.
- A big water bottle, and change or a card for the vending machine.
- Phone, a long charging cable (the outlet is never where you are), and a portable battery.
- Headphones for the long quiet stretches when they are resting.
- Two changes of clothes, including something warm. Delivery rooms run cold, and you may get wet.
- Comfortable shoes you can stand in for hours.
- Swim trunks or quick-dry shorts for the shower or tub.
- Toothbrush, deodorant, face wipes, eye drops, and any medication you take.
- Your own pillow in a colored pillowcase so it comes home with you.
- A book or something downloaded. The waiting is real.
For supporting them
- Two tennis balls in a sock, or a massage tool, for counter-pressure on the low back.
- Lip balm and hair ties for them, somewhere you can reach without being asked.
- A small speaker, or the playlist downloaded to your phone, if music is in the plan.
- Battery candles or a dimmable light, if the birth place allows them. Ask first.
- A hand fan, and a washcloth you do not mind losing.
- Their own robe or gown, slippers and warm socks.
- Their snacks and drinks, if the care team has said eating and drinking is fine.
- Glasses, if they wear contacts; contacts usually come out.
For the baby, and for after
- Car seat installed and checked before 36 weeks, base left in the car. This is the one thing that cannot be bought on the way.
- A going-home outfit in two sizes, a hat, and a blanket for the car seat.
- A notebook and pen. Write the timeline of the birth while it is fresh: times, who was there, what was said. It is the start of your version of the birth story, and you will not remember it later.
- Camera or phone storage cleared, if photos are in the plan.
- Snacks and a drink for them for right after. They will be hungry.
Ask what the birth place provides
Most hospitals supply diapers, wipes, swaddles, pads, mesh underwear, a peri bottle and basic toiletries for the birthing person, and many will give you a cot or a reclining chair. Ask at the tour or a prenatal visit so you pack less. Birth centers differ, and for a home birth the midwife will have her own list for you; the car-seat, notebook and keep-yourself-going sections still apply.
What to leave at home
Anything valuable, anything with a strong smell, a laptop you will feel obliged to open, and more than one bag. If you are driving yourself home with a newborn, you want to be able to carry everything in one trip while someone else carries the baby.
The planner builds the call-and-go card
The free two-person planner takes your actual numbers, your backup person, and the plan for the other kids and pets, and prints them on a call-and-go card and a fridge card, alongside the labor-room quick card built from what the birthing person chose to share. No account; answers stay on your phone.
I'm the partner or support person How the planner worksQuestions people ask
What should a dad or partner pack in the hospital bag?
Paper (the printed plan, IDs, the call list), supplies for staying functional for a day or more (snacks, water, charger and battery, warm clothes, swim trunks, toiletries), things for supporting the birthing person (counter-pressure tools, lip balm, hair ties, music), and a notebook to record the birth. The car seat goes in before 36 weeks.
When should the partner's bag be packed?
By 36 weeks, and left in the car. Babies arrive before due dates often enough that a bag in the closet is not a packed bag.
Should the partner bring food?
Yes, for themselves, and only things without a strong smell. Hospital food service does not run all night and the partner is the one who has to stay standing. Food for the birthing person depends on what the care team allows.
What do hospitals usually provide?
Diapers, wipes, swaddles, pads and mesh underwear, a peri bottle, basic toiletries and usually a cot or reclining chair for the partner. It varies, so ask at a prenatal visit or on the tour.
Rather go over it live? Newborn Prep for Dads & Partners is a 90-minute class on video for the person supporting the birth: the birth itself and the first two weeks at home. The first Wednesday of every month, 12 seats.