Crate & Barrel has a reputation for offering high-quality gear coupled with elevated costs. Crate & Kids, the Crate & Barrel baby and kid division of the retailer, is no different. Customers will get the quality of standard Crate & Barrel products, but at the cost we’ve come to expect from the retailer.

Lucky for your baby shower guests, not everything you register for has to be high-end. If you’re looking to save money, we recommend using the Crate & Barrel registry for items where quality is a priority, while saving the rest for a second, more economical registry. For instance, a crib that will be passed from your new baby to his future younger siblings should be built to last and might be great to get from Crate & Kids. A swaddle set that costs nearly $80 and will likely get covered in spit up (or worse)? Not so much.

Just so you know, What to Expect may earn commissions from the shopping links included on this page.

The benefits of a Crate & Barrel baby registry

Registry completion discounts: Didn’t receive those cute hooded towels or that stroller that you really wanted? The good news is the Crate & Barrel Registry Completion Deal allows you to purchase the remaining items on your registry at a 15 percent discount. There are some restrictions on what you can buy, and certain items from brands like Plan Toys are eligible for only 10 percent off. (You can read the full terms and conditions here.) Standard completion policies are generally in the 15 to 20 percent discount range, so Crate & Barrel is status quo amongst the competition in this category.

App makes it easy: Crate & Barrel offers an easy-to-navigate iPhone app that allows you to shop for registry items anywhere—from the comfort of your couch to the waiting room at the OB/GYN. The app simplifies shopping by providing well-organized categories, including gifts by price range, top-rated gifts and baby registry favorites. You can also use it to update your registry in real time, scan items in the store, view your rewards and gift cards, build lists of favorites, and get notifications (like when a gift is purchased!). And if you have a Crate & Barrel credit card, you can check your balance, pay your bill and track rewards from the app as well.

Thank You Manager: The Crate & Barrel Thank You Manager eliminates the work of tracking gift givers. When the time comes to send appreciation to family and friends, you will have an already-made log of each gift you received and its corresponding benefactor. That leaves more time for painting nurseries and assembling cribs!

Group gifting: Crate & Barrel allows you to select higher-priced items for your guests to purchase as a group. So if you’re hesitant to put that expensive dresser on your registry, tag it as a Group Gift so your guests know they can all chip in, or buy it on their own if they're feeling generous.

Charitable gifting: Crate & Barrel has partnered with nonprofit organization Baby2Baby, which provides diapers, clothing and other essentials to children living in poverty. Registrants can add individual donation amounts to their gift list, encouraging loved ones to donate.

Popular brands: Although Crate & Barrel leans heavily on its in-house design expertise to create items like rugs, linens and furniture, they also sell items like car seats, diaper bags and strollers from kid-centric brands like Nuna, Uppababy, Stokke, Dagne Dover and Baby Björn.

Free interior design consult: Crate & Barrel offers a service called Design Desk, where you can meet with an interior designer either virtually or in-person to get photorealistic renderings, floor plan ideas and styling tips for your nursery. You don't need to be registered at Crate & Barrel to use the service, but if you are, you can also use it to book a registry-specific consultation.

Using your Crate & Barrel baby registry

Unsure where to begin to create your registry? From the Crate & Barrel main baby registry page, click on “Create My Registry.” From there you will be asked to provide your name, email address and type of event. You will also be given the option to receive email notifications, which we recommend for learning about special offers and events.

On the next page, you are asked to provide your event date, baby’s due date and their gender, which is optional. You then input your address and, if applicable, your co-registrant’s information. After creating a password, you click through your preferences on shipping (for before and after the event), and whether you want to enable the Thank You Manager. Crate & Barrel also requires that you provide your preferred store location and how you heard about the Crate & Barrel registry.

From your registry homepage, you can add an optional photo and welcome message to your gift-givers. You can also manage your registry by easily adding and deleting gifts. There is a tracker at the top of the screen that tallies the total number of registry items, purchased gifts and remaining gifts, as well as your gift card balance. Within your gift list, you can also easily sort items into "still need," "fulfilled," and "no longer available" categories, which is handy when you're making updates. In the list view for each product, you can also opt to mark it as a "most loved" item or add it to your group gift fund; both will help guests as they're shopping.

Under the "Inspiration" tab, you can download a comprehensive PDF checklist of baby items or browse curated collections such as "The Top 50 Gifts." Crate & Barrel has also created "one-click registries," which are lists of gifts that revolve around a theme, such as eco-friendly, rainbows or a specific designer. You'll have the option to add items individually or an entire collection at once. (Be warned: some "add all" lists are quite lengthy, but you can always delete things you don't want later.) Finally, you can also access your Thank You Manager from its dedicated tab on the registry main page.

When it comes to shipping, standard fees typically start at $4.95 and increase with the costs of your items. For more information on shipping, visit the Crate & Barrel shipping and delivery page.

How to return a registry gift

Crate & Barrel has two separate policies for returning items: one for furniture and rugs and another for non-furniture items.

First, the non-furniture policy states that items can be returned within 90 days with proof of purchase, which is fairly comparable to other registries. Unfortunately, you’ll need to cover the cost of shipping for the return if you cannot locate a store near you.

The furniture and rugs return policy is more restrictive. Crate & Barrel requires that you call a toll-free number or visit the store to begin a conversation about the return. (For more information, check out the full return policy.)

There are only 89 Crate & Barrel retail locations in the U.S. and Canada. As a result, in-store returns might not be a convenient option. Also note that Crate & Barrel items can only be returned in-person at Crate & Barrel stores, not at CB2 or the outlets.

Pros

  • Quality products that are made to last
  • Easily track gifts and thank yous
  • Group gifting available

Cons

  • Return policy restrictions and costs
  • Prices are at the high end compared to the competition
  • Limited options make for an incomplete registry

Our review

The Crate & Barrel registry falls into the “You Get What You Pay For” category; higher-quality products are often accompanied by a higher price tag. Similar to other high-end registries such as Pottery Barn Kids, we suggest complementing your Crate & Barrel registry with a second registry from a retailer that offers lower-cost items and can provide the items Crate & Barrel doesn’t offer.

While Crate & Barrel has enough furniture and accessories to fill out a big chunk of your registry, the options are lacking in some baby registry categories. Most notably, the clothing options are scant to nonexistent: At the time of publication, there were linens and a few swaddle gift sets, but no practical workhorse items like onesies or footed pajamas. Not surprisingly, this also isn't where you'd go for things like breast pumps or baby bottles. And when you purchase from Crate & Barrel, you may find your wallet weighing a bit less compared to shopping the competitors, but top-quality products can sometimes come at an added cost. That said, we came across multiple discount offers while perusing the Crate & Barrel website, and you can also subscribe to the brand’s newsletter to receive additional information about promotions.

And as we mentioned earlier, there aren’t a ton of physical Crate & Barrel stores throughout the country. So depending on where you live, it might be difficult to look at items in-person, and makes returns more of a hassle. Again, supplementing with a second registry is the key to making up for any deficiencies in the Crate & Barrel registry. But if you’re looking for a place that makes it easy for loved ones to shop top-notch gear for your registry, Crate & Barrel won’t let you down.