The 14 Best Baby Memory Books for Marking All Their Milestones

It’s the longest and shortest year of your life, or so they say. You spend months preparing for baby’s arrival and before you know it, you’re singing “Happy Birthday” to a bright-eyed one-year-old. So how do you hold onto all those little moments that make up the first 365 days and beyond? Many parents turn to a baby keepsake book to record milestones, photos and stories. We’ve rounded up a few of the best baby memory books, from easy-to-tackle one-liner journals to scrapbooks with completely customizable pages.

Baby memory books in this article:
Classic baby scrapbooks and photo albums
Personalized baby photo and record books
Unique baby keepsake books

Classic Baby Scrapbooks and Photo Albums

Want to go all out with baby’s memory book? Fill one of these baby photo books with all the snapshots, notes and other keepsakes your heart desires.

Artifact Uprising “The Story of You” Baby Book

This gender-neutral favorite is meant to make it easy on parents thanks to prompt-filled pages. The fabric binder comes with a pen, adhesive for pictures and mementos, and a free set of Everyday Prints to get you started. Choose from a range of timeless color palettes even more gorgeous in person (bonus: each has luxe foil detailing). Reviewer Sam K. compliments the baby scrapbook’s “beautiful fonts and layouts that aren’t too cheesy or too babyish.”

Buy it: Starting from $99, ArtifactUprising.com

Lucy Darling Book of Firsts Little Camper Memory Book

Lucy Darling creates baby memory books with some of the sweetest themes out there—this woodland version is really just one shining example. Use the baby photo book to commemorate each of baby’s first 12 months. The prompts are super-helpful, but there are also a bunch of blank pages for you to get creative with. Talk about a true baby scrapbook. (BTW: You can keep making memories with a coordinating toddler keepsake book.)

Buy it: $35, Amazon.com

Ronica First Year Baby Memory Book and Journal

Think of this album as a baby photo book and diary in one. The illustrated keepsake has places for notes, pictures and other memorabilia from pregnancy through age 5. You can choose from boy- and girl-specific designs or gender-neutral animal themes.

Buy it: $40, Amazon.com

Tessera First 3 Years Baby Memory Book

Document memories of baby’s arrival and their first three years with this ribbon-accented baby record book. Choose from a series of bonus pages for pregnancy, the holidays and even keepsake envelopes to ensure every memento is captured and saved.

Buy it: $78, Amazon.com

Sugar Paper The Baby Book

Log month-by-month milestones and photos of baby as they grow. Additional envelopes are perfect for storing extra keepsakes, like a lock of hair from the first cut or a letter to your child. Choose from a baby pink, neutral flax or preppy chambray cover, each with shiny gold-foil accents. For an additional cost, you can get it customized with baby’s initials.

Buy it: Starting from $90, SugarPaper.com

RubyRoo Baby First Year Baby Memory Book

This baby’s first year book was created with inclusivity in mind. The binder-style format makes it easy-peasy to only include the pages you want to include. It’s adaptable for LGBTQ+ and single parents, and has memory pages for holidays from a wide range of religions.

Buy it: $30, Amazon.com

Personalized Baby Photo and Record Books

Want to go the extra mile when it comes to customization? These brands let you design a bespoke baby keepsake book by personalizing the text, colors, layout and more.

Rag & Bone Bindery Personalized Baby’s First Book With “Zodiac Blue” Cover

Personalize the front of baby’s first year book with their name, birthdate and a beautiful illustration. There are different themes to choose from, but this stellar one displays their zodiac sign. Interior pages include prompts and plenty of room for photos and big milestones, and vellum envelopes are spaced throughout to store mementos.

Buy it: $76, Etsy.com

Ruby Love Baby Book in Mod Grey Elephants

Here’s another baby memory book you can really make your own. Choose your color scheme, personalize the exterior and add a mix of extra pages (think: first holidays, sibling pages, etc.) for a completely custom keepsake. If you love keeping a baby book, Ruby Love also has a school year book so you can continue recording memories through your child’s high school graduation.

Buy it: Starting from $70, Etsy.com

Print Smitten Custom Adoption Baby Memory Book

This Etsy seller makes personalized baby memory books just for adoptive families. You pick the color scheme, and you also get to request additional customization on the cover. Better yet, all the wording is gender-neutral—for baby and their parents. You can even tear out certain pages if they’re not applicable to you.

Buy it: $62, Etsy.com

Shutterfly Baby’s First Year Photo Book

Leave it to Shutterfly to give parents an extensive amount of personalization options. Upload all your favorite snapshots from baby’s first year, type in whatever text you wish, accessorize the pages with cute frames or digital stickers—it’s really all in your hands. This baby photo book is as bespoke as they get.

Buy it: Starting from $16, Shutterfly.com

Mixbook Photo Co. Baby Magazine

Star baby in their very own glossy with this completely customizable baby photo book. Pick the size, shape, paper type and cover type (from softcover to leather jacket-bound), then get to work designing what’s inside. This is the ideal baby memory book for ultra-creative parents who want to wrap up baby’s first year with the ultimate keepsake. (Psst: Mixbook also sells an adoption-specific book.)

Buy it: Starting from $16, Mixbook.com

Unique Baby Keepsake Books

Don’t want the standard baby scrapbook? These baby keepsake books break the mold with their original prompts and designs.

Promptly Childhood History Journal

If you love to journal, this is the baby record book for you. This prompted write-in book will take you from pregnancy through baby’s 18th birthday (there’s also a book for adoptive parents). But what really sets it apart is the tech it comes with. Download Promptly’s app and you’ll get reminders to add to your baby keepsake book, so you never forget to record special milestones. How genius is that?

Buy it: $32, PromptlyJournals.com

Chronicle Books “Letters To My Baby”

Capture baby’s first years in this unique baby milestone book: a series of fold and “mail” letters. The letters can be post-dated for your child to open in the years to come. Helpful prompts make the words flow easily even for non-writers.

Buy it: $8, Amazon.com

Rockridge Press “Baby, You’re Here!” A One-Line-a-Day Baby Memory Book

Short on time? This one-line-a-day book will take you through baby’s first year, highlighting all the early emotions and memories without too much pressure. It’s a great way to remember all the smaller, everyday moments you might not think to put in a traditional baby book.

Buy it: $16, Amazon.com

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, some of which may be sponsored by paying vendors.

Updated December 2019

Plus, more from The Bump:

10 Precious Baby Keepsakes to Capture Lasting Memories

Monthly Baby Milestone Chart

Mom Hilariously Documents Baby’s First Year Using Slices Of Pizza