Prizes are the part of baby shower planning most likely to be handled in the supermarket on the morning of the shower. They do not need to be, and they do not need to be expensive.
The rule that matters: a prize should be something an adult would actually use. Novelty items with a baby theme go straight in a drawer.
How many prizes do you need?
One per game, plus one spare for a tie. Three or four games is right for a two hour shower, so four or five prizes covers it.
A tie is more common than you expect, particularly with bingo. Having a fifth prize in a cupboard saves an awkward thirty seconds.
What to spend
Five to fifteen dollars each is the normal range. Beyond that, guests start to feel odd about winning, and the shower shifts from a party to a competition.
If the budget is tight, one slightly better prize for an overall winner and small chocolate for each game works well and costs less than five separate prizes.
Prizes that get used
- A good candle. The most reliable option on this list.
- Hand cream from a brand people recognise
- A coffee shop gift card, ten dollars, spent within the week
- Chocolate — a proper bar, not a fun-size bag
- A small potted plant or a succulent
- A bottle of wine or prosecco, if the crowd drinks
- Nice tea or coffee
- A lip balm and a face mask bundled with a ribbon
- A scratch card, which costs two dollars and generates more excitement than anything else here
Prizes to avoid
- Anything baby themed. The guest is not the one having a baby.
- Mugs. Everyone has enough mugs.
- Novelty items with the date printed on them. Bin by June.
- Anything perishable if guests are travelling home by train.
- Large or heavy items. Prizes have to be carried home alongside a handbag.
The no-prize option
Plenty of showers run games with no prizes at all, and nobody minds. If you would rather not, say “winner gets first choice of cake” and move on. The games work because they are games, not because of what is at the end.
A cheaper approach that works better
Buy one type of prize and give the same thing every time — five identical candles, or five bars of good chocolate. It costs less through buying multiples, it removes the decision, and it avoids the situation where the person who wins the first game gets visibly the best prize.
Prize wrapping
A paper bag and a printed tag is enough. It takes the prize from an object handed over to something that looks planned, and the tag costs a few cents.
Our favor tags are editable in Canva and print many to a sheet, so one printing session covers prizes and favours together.
Planning the games themselves
The prizes matter less than picking games that suit the room. Our baby shower games collection covers bingo, guess the baby food, advice cards and wishes for baby, all editable so you can adjust the questions.
For the shower as a whole, the planning checklist includes an eight week countdown with a line for buying prizes, which is the step most often left to the last morning.
Related guides
- Baby shower printables — the full collection
- Baby shower bingo — the game most likely to produce a tie
- Baby shower invitations