Formula cost planner
Formula is one of the largest predictable costs of a baby’s first year, and almost nobody can tell you what theirs will be. Enter an age, and this ranks every formula in the Atlas by what it would cost you per month and between now and twelve months. Tell it what you use now and it will show you what switching would save.
Based on 30 fl oz of prepared formula a day, the age-band average. Add a weight for a figure calculated from the AAP rule instead.
| # | Formula | Per month | To 12 months | Tins/mo | Price checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Parent's Choice Sensitivity | $115 | $992 | 6.1 | 2026-04-20 ⚠ |
| 2 | Parent's Choice Gentle | $120 | $1040 | 6.0 | 2026-04-20 ⚠ |
| 3 | Kirkland Signature ProCare | $122 | $1052 | 4.1 | 2026-04-20 ⚠ |
| 4 | Hero Baby Standaard 1 | $123 | $1064 | 4.9 | 2026-04-20 ⚠ |
| 5 | Humana Stage 1 | $123 | $1064 | 4.9 | 2026-04-20 ⚠ |
| 6 | Up&Up Sensitive | $127 | $1100 | 5.8 | 2026-04-20 ⚠ |
| 7 | Parent's Choice Advantage Premium | $133 | $1148 | 5.8 | 2026-04-20 ⚠ |
| 8 | Milupa Milumil Stage 1 | $137 | $1183 | 4.9 | 2026-04-20 ⚠ |
| 9 | Nutrilon Standaard 1 | $137 | $1183 | 4.9 | 2026-04-20 ⚠ |
| 10 | SMA Pro First Infant Milk | $137 | $1183 | 4.9 | 2026-04-20 ⚠ |
| 11 | Töpfer Lactana Bio Stage 1 | $137 | $1183 | 4.9 | 2026-04-20 ⚠ |
| 12 | Mama Bear Advantage | $138 | $1195 | 6.0 | 2026-04-20 ⚠ |
75 of these prices are more than 90 days old and are marked ⚠ in the last column. We re-verify European formulas against the retailer feed automatically; US retail prices have no equivalent source, so those are checked by hand and drift between checks. Treat this as a planning estimate, not a quote.
Ready-to-feed, ranked separately (5)
Ready-to-feed is priced per fluid ounce of liquid and powder per ounce of dry powder, and one makes about six and a half times the other. Putting them in one table would place every RTF product at the top at a third of its real cost, which is a unit error wearing a dollar sign. Here they are on their own terms.
| # | Formula | Per month | To 12 months | Units/mo | Price checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nutramigen Ready-to-Feed | $57 | $490 | 4.4 | 2026-04-20 ⚠ |
| 2 | Similac Alimentum Ready-to-Feed | $65 | $562 | 4.3 | 2026-04-20 ⚠ |
| 3 | Similac Pro-Advance Ready-to-Feed | $65 | $562 | 4.3 | 2026-04-20 ⚠ |
| 4 | Enfamil NeuroPro Ready-to-Feed | $69 | $598 | 4.3 | 2026-04-20 ⚠ |
| 5 | Bobbie Ready-to-Use | $224 | $1937 | 17.3 | 2026-04-20 ⚠ |
Runs in your browser; nothing is sent anywhere. Volumes follow AAP feeding guidance and taper after six months as solid food arrives, so the year-one figure is not this month’s cost multiplied out.
This site provides research and comparisons, not medical advice. Consult your pediatrician before changing your baby's formula.
How the numbers are worked out
Daily volume follows the American Academy of Pediatrics: about 2.5 oz of prepared formula per pound of body weight per day, capped at roughly 32 oz in 24 hours. Without a weight it uses the average for the age band instead.
That prepared volume is converted back to powder, because that is what you buy: one ounce of powder makes about 6.5 fl oz of formula. The monthly figure is that powder cost over 30 days.
The twelve-month figure walks the curve month by month rather than multiplying today’s cost out. Intake peaks around three to six months and falls as solid food arrives, so a flat multiplication overstates the total badly — which is why most formula budgets people find online are too high.
What this cannot tell you
- It is not a quote. Prices move, and retail differs by store and by state. Each row carries the date its price was last checked, and rows older than ninety days are flagged.
- It ignores WIC. If you are on WIC, your out-of-pocket cost for a contracted formula is not what this shows. See WIC and insurance.
- Cheaper is not better. The cheapest tins in the Atlas are US store brands, and several lead on corn syrup solids rather than lactose. Cost is one axis of several.
- It cannot override a pediatrician. If a formula was chosen for a diagnosed reason, the price ranking is not the relevant question.
Related
- How much does baby formula cost per month? — the same question in prose, with the ranges
- Feeding chart — where the daily volumes come from
- Switching between formula brands — how to act on a saving without upsetting a baby’s digestion
- How we verify prices