Twins: what to buy new and what to buy pre-loved
With twins you need two of almost everything, so the new-versus-used decision matters twice as much. The good news is the buy-new list is short.
Why the decision matters twice over
Twins change the maths of a nursery budget. Every cot, every pram, every drawer of clothing is a purchase you make in pairs, so a choice that saves fifty dollars once saves a hundred here. That is the case for pre-loved. It is also the reason the short list of items you should buy new deserves proper attention: with two children relying on them, the things that keep a child safe are the ones you never cut a corner on.
The rule is the same as for a single baby, only the stakes and the savings are doubled. Buy new where safety cannot be verified. Buy pre-loved where it can. Below is where each item falls.
The short buy-new list
Buy two of each of these new, or only used with a fully verified history.
Child car restraints, unless you know the full history: that it has not been in a crash, that it is within its expiry, and that it still carries the AS/NZS 1754 label.
Mattresses and anything hygiene-critical that cannot be properly cleaned; a soft, worn or ill-fitting mattress is a safe-sleep risk, and you need two that are firm and correctly fitting.
Any item that must meet a current mandatory standard but cannot be checked against it. If you cannot confirm compliance, treat it as a buy-new.
For the full reasoning on each of these, see our companion guide on the items to never buy second-hand. The principle carries straight across to twins.
The long buy-pre-loved list, doubled
Almost everything else is a safe and sensible pre-loved buy. Used durables are easy to inspect, and with twins the saving on each one lands twice.
Clothing, barely worn and often outgrown in weeks; twins churn through sizes twice as fast, so buying pre-loved in pairs is where the biggest saving sits.
Prams and carriers in sound condition, checked for recalls.
Cots that meet the mandatory AS/NZS 2172 standard, each paired with a new firm mattress.
Toys, books, feeding pillows and most nursery furniture.
The checks that make used safe
A pre-loved buy is a safe buy when you do four quick things. Look up recalls before you commit. Confirm the relevant standard for cots and restraints, so AS/NZS 2172 for a cot and AS/NZS 1754 for a car restraint. Inspect for damage and completeness, checking nothing is cracked, missing or held together with tape. Then wash before use. With twins you run each check twice, but they take minutes and they are what turns a cheap purchase into a sound one.
For twins: buy new, buy pre-loved, or borrow
Buy new the handful of items that keep two children safe: restraints, mattresses and anything you cannot verify. Buy pre-loved the long list of durables, in pairs, where a saving lands twice over. And borrow where you can, since a pram or a set of feeding pillows used for a few months is often lent between families rather than bought at all.
Why the pre-loved case is stronger for twins
The argument for buying second-hand is simply stronger when there are two of them, because everything you can safely buy used, you buy twice. Every barely-worn size, every pram, every cot that meets the standard is a doubled saving, and the buy-new list stays exactly as short as it was for one child. Do the four checks, keep the small safety list new, and let the long list carry the budget.
References
These are the current Australian authorities for the mandatory standards referenced above. Always check a specific model against the recalls database before you buy.
- Product Safety Australia (ACCC), Car restraints (mandatory AS/NZS 1754 standard for child car restraints).
- Product Safety Australia (ACCC), Household cots (mandatory AS/NZS 2172 cot standard).
Related reading
Two of everything, for half the cost
Buy the long list pre-loved, in pairs, and pass it on when your twins move past it. See what other families are selling.
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