Inside: We tried three of the best swaddle blankets for babies on the market. In this post, I’ll fill you in on the pros and cons of each swaddle and help you choose the best swaddle blanket for your baby!
Had a few sleepless nights lately? I’ve been through my share as well, mama. Here’s a virtual hug and a cup of coffee for ya, friend. You’ll get through this!
Do you know what you need? (Besides a hot shower and 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep.) You need an awesome swaddle for that baby.
Lucky for you, I’ve also been through my fair share of swaddles and lived to tell the tale.
Today I’ll share with you the pros and cons of each and give you my opinion on which swaddle gives you the most bang for your buck
If you’re looking for a more in-depth plan on teaching your baby to self-soothe and sleep well, I highly recommend the book “The Happy Sleeper” by Heather Turgeon and Julie Wright. One of the techniques is called the Sleep Wave, which is the absolute perfect balance between attachment parenting and cry-it-out techniques. This book is a mama-friendly, baby-friendly, science-backed, and practical guide for helping your baby sleep well at night. A friend of mine recommended it to me, and I’m passing on the favor!
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Swaddle Blanket #1: SwaddleMe
We used the SwaddleMe for about four months with my son and up until three months with my baby girl. At about three months old, my sweet little thing decided she would have her four-month sleep regression early!
We were totally rocking sleep up until then thanks to our toddler and newborn schedule. I decided we needed a new swaddle to help ease this sleep regression.
SwaddleMe Pros:
The SwaddleMe is designed with simple velcro tab closures. This makes it super easy to get a snug fit on your baby, even at that 4 AM wakeup call.
They also come in several different sizes. SwaddleMe is also one of the most economical swaddles on the market. You can get a pack of three for under $20, and they even carry them at most Wal-Mart stores.
SwaddleMe Cons:
The SwaddleMe is notoriously easy to break out of. My baby girl learned this nifty trick of sticking her arms straight down, then raising them up as fast as she could.
This left us with a fun origami baby with her swaddle bunched up close to her neck and her legs hanging out the bottom. Not so cute. Those velcro tabs are also not so fun when they get tangled up in the washer or dryer.
The SwaddleMe is also pretty much good for only the “both arms in” stage of swaddling. There’s no easy way to transition out of the swaddle with this one.
Swaddle Blanket #2: Halo SleepSack
When my daughter was about three months old I did an emergency Amazon search for a new swaddle. I needed a swaddle that would help her transition to self-soothing and also prevent her from breaking out constantly.
She was quite the escape artist! I ordered the Halo SleepSack with my trusty Amazon Prime and did a happy dance when it arrived two days later. You can get Amazon Prime FREE for 30 days!
Halo SleepSack Pros:
I would consider the Halo SleepSack a step up from the SwaddleMe. It has two basic features, the zip-up functionality with armholes, plus the velcro wings that wrap over the zipped pouch. Basically it’s a double-edged sword for keeping those baby escape artists at bay.
Another pro is that you can gradually wean from swaddling. The Halo SleepSack allows you to swaddle your baby with both arms in, hands near face, or both arms out. I swaddled my baby girl with an arm out and she did pretty well for a while.
Oh, and did I mention the zipper zips up from the bottom so you don’t have to completely unswaddle for night-time diaper changes? The Halo SleepSack is also priced mid-range, which makes it a great alternative to higher-priced swaddles.
Halo SleepSack Cons:
Remember that double-edged sword of zippers and velcro wings? Turns out these can become really cumbersome when you’re in a hurry to swaddle a fussy baby.
The wings get all twisted and you end up with a not-so-happy baby in a big jumble of swaddle blanket. It does have so many pros going for it though, so if you’ve got a little more patience than me this might be the perfect swaddle for you.
Honestly, my husband just couldn’t stand this swaddle which is why I moved on to the next contender…
Swaddle Blanket #3: Woombie Convertible
Ahhh, the Woombie. This, my friend is genius. After a few weeks of trying out the Halo SleepSack, I did another emergency Amazon search for a simple, zip-and-go swaddle.
Amazon Prime to the rescue again, and I had my new swaddle blanket ready to go.
Woombie Pros:
There are so many pros with this swaddle. I didn’t even realize what I was missing until I put my baby in her new Woombie.
The genius is in the simplicity.
First, there’s only one zipper, which can zip either up OR down. No velcro wings mean that you’ve got that baby swaddled in literally two seconds. There’s no chance of escape since the neckline is snug but not too tight.
The Woombie is also made out of a more stretchy fabric than the previous two swaddles. My baby girl loves to sleep with her hands by her face, but I discovered she’s not quite ready for her arms to be completely out yet.
Her startle reflex is still in play a bit, and she tends to scratch herself. With the Woombie, however, she can still move her arms freely inside the swaddle, but she has just enough restriction to prevent those sudden movements from waking her up.
She can touch her face to self-soothe without going all crazy with those hands.
I bought the convertible Woombie, which has snaps on the shoulders. This means that when she is ready to transition all the way to arms out, I can just unsnap the shoulder closures and put her arms through.
She’ll still get that cozy feeling through her torso and legs.
If your baby is ready to transition out of the swaddle completely, you’ll love these strategies to stop swaddling!
Woombie Cons:
The only, and I mean the ONLY con with the Woombie swaddle is the price. It’s on the more expensive side. Yet, it’s still not the most expensive on the market, and I think it’s a fair price to pay for the genius engineering that went into this thing.
Related: DIY Newborn and Sibling Photo Shoot (with only your iPhone!)
The Best Swaddle Blanket: Woombie Convertible
Hands down the Woombie is the way to go, mama. It has all the other things the other swaddles have and so much more versatility too.
I’m telling you, you won’t regret it. Around my house, we invest in anything that will get us more sleep! Buy your baby a Woombie here!
Your Turn
What’s your swaddle story? Have a favorite? Looking to find a new swaddle to help your baby get better sleep?
Tell us all about your swaddle experiences in the comments below!
I love comparison posts like this! Super helpful! With our first, I had NO idea there were options—I just assumed all babies liked swaddles and all swaddles were basically the same. Then he was born and HATED the SwaddleMe AND Halo Swaddle (from the hospital), and was always breaking out! We went through a rough month where he was constantly startling himself awake, until I did one of those emergency Amazon searches lol and found the Love to Dream swaddle, which allowed him to hold his arms up. It was a lifesaver!! Now I’m pregnant with #2 and will have to check out the Woombie!