As the damp and cold days set in for real, we’re all reaching for our winter coats – and snowsuits for our babies and toddlers.
Yes, babies and toddlers are lucky in a great many ways but one of them is that their “coats” extend to their legs. These insulated suits offer protection against wet weather and the cold, leaving them dry, warm and, presumably, smug.
What are baby snowsuits for?
Baby snowsuits are perfect for keeping your little one warm and dry. They more often than not zip up the middle, and are like a big cosy jumpsuit. This is ideal for pushing them around in the pram, or, when they’re older, for letting them explore the world without getting absolutely soaked.
What age are snowsuits suitable for?
Sadly, snowsuits don’t often come in adult sizes – typical. But they’re more often kit for newborns up to school age – and sometimes beyond. In our roundup, we’ve noted which ages each suit goes up to.
Depending on the age, you might want to look for slightly different things in a snowsuit. Features that are great for babies include integrated hand and feet covering, easy two-zip access for changing and breathable materials. As your child gets older, you won’t want foot coverings as they’ll get ruined, but they might like pockets for storing all the treasures they find on their adventures.
What’s the difference between pramsuits, puddlesuits and snowsuits?
Nothing, to be frank. They’re all cosy suits made for bad weather. Most puddlesuits are water resistant at the very least, but often are fully waterproof. Some pramsuits aren’t waterproof at all.
Is a water resistant or waterproof snowsuit better?
Water resistant or water repellent is not as comprehensive as waterproof. Waterproof means your child should stay completely dry even in a downpour, or an ill-judged puddle jump. Water resistant is fine in light showers, but won’t completely protect your child if it’s very wet indeed. Obviously judge it by your child’s needs – if they’re still being chauffeured around in a pram, waterproofing is less vital.
Shop the best snowsuits below
Best baby grows 2022 that are comfy and colourful
Best bath toys for babies and kids to make bathtime fun
Best sensory toys for babies and toddlers from Mamas & Papas, Jojo Maman Bebe and more
Best baby coats to keep your little ones warm and dry this winter
Best weighted blankets for kids: How to choose for your child
Best car seat bases for easy travelling with baby
Best baby shoes for your child’s first steps
Best baby changing units for a seamless nappy-changing experience
Muddy Puddles 3-in-1 scampsuit
Scampsuit/snowsuit – pota-toe, pota-tah. This suit is a seriously versatile number, with a completely removable and gorgeously soft inner Sherpa lining. Be warned, this is white and gets dirty fast. It is very toasty though, and kept our toddler tester warm for extended woodland walks and playground trips.
The outer layer is herringbone weave and feels very hard wearing. It’s also waterproof and windproof, as tested by our helper who sat in the mud in it for a good 30 minutes and was as dry as a bone underneath. We loved the pixie-style pointed hood, which looked impossibly cute. It is also adjustable and has a brim for practicality.
In sizes up to 12 months, this suit comes with waterproof fold-over hands and feet. On the older sizes (it runs up to six years), there are foot stirrups to keep it in place over shoes, and elasticated cuffs. The legs also have a storm flap to stop leaks.
For extra points, this suit is made from recycled fabrics from post-consumer plastic bottles – so it’s eco-friendly too. All in all, this is a very impressive suit – great for babies and older children alike. The sizes come up very large, so it will last and last for your child.
Buy now £80.00, Muddy Puddles
Next baby pramsuit
We won’t lie, we consider animal print a neutral. And as such, this pramsuit would look fab on a boy or a girl (if you subscribe to colours being gendered at all). It is unbearably soft. We couldn’t help but give our tiny tester extra long cuddles when they were wearing it. The little pointy ears on the lined hood are the piece de resistance!
It’s not going to win any points for waterproofing (as in it’s just not at all), but this is intended just for small babies (sizes run from 1 month to 2 years). The feet on the suit appear on sizes up to 12 months, so if you wanted it for a cruising tot then you don’t have to fear about them slipping over or trashing the feet on it. The fastenings on this are popper rather than a zip, and it’s fully lined with 100 per cent cotton to make it a bit more breathable.
Buy now £30.00, Next
Töastie Cloud quilted onesie
Aptly named Toastie, this snug suit will keep your bairn cosy when the temperatures plummet. It has eco-friendly, partially plant-based Sorona filling, and is temperature regulating and breathable. This means your bub will stay snug but shouldn’t overheat.
We love that Töastie make their products with room to grow, so this suit should see out a whole season at the very least. Two sturdy zips mean getting our tiny tester in and out of it was no problem at all. And the hood (with ears, natch) is lined with a super-soft borg material. Fold-over hands and feet covers is the perfect flexible solution too. Töastie run this in sizes 0-6 months up to 3-4 years and it comes in a gorgeous range of colours.
Buy now £79.00, Kidly
Polarn O. Pyret waterproof shell fleece-lined baby overall
Swedish brand Polarn O. Pyret is no stranger to cold-weather conditions. And they’re not mucking about with this heavy-duty snowsuit. In sizes 6 months up to two years, this suit will keep all babies and toddlers roasty toasty. The double zip makes for easy dressing and provides ventilation to prevent overheating.
The suit has a removable fleece lining (which is also elasticated on the cuffs) so you can adjust the insulation depending on how harsh the weather is. It also is water repellent and has fully taped seams, so puddle-jumping toddlers can splash to their hearts’ content and never get wet. The price tag is not something we can ignore here, but this suit is so hardwearing it will last several children and then some.
Buy now £100.00, Polarn O. Pyret
Mori recycled waterproof padded snowsuit
As cute as a button and eco-friendly, this Mori snowsuit ticks lots of our boxes. We liked the double zip for easy changing and ventilation, and the fleece-lined hood. The filling in this is plant-based, while the whole item is made from recycled materials. The fold-over mittens and feet are so great for those days when the weather suddenly changes (hello uncertain British weather!). These are also waterproofed on the outside, which is a nice touch. The whole suit is also windproof, and our tester looked very cosy in there indeed despite the November weather doing its worst. The Mori snowsuit comes in two neutral (but not dull) colours, and sizes newborn up to 12 months.
Buy now £62.50, Mori
JoJo Maman Bebe navy waterproof fleece lined all-in-one
Warm, water resistant and windproof, this durable one piece kept our tester happy outdoors in all weathers. Two robust zips, one of which goes all the way down the leg, makes getting in and out of it easy. It’s fully fleece lined – even the arms – which makes it very comfy to wear. Despite this, it’s not as bulky which is great for older active kids.
The sizing goes from newborn to three years. The cuffs are elasticated, but they’re not quite as strong as some others we tested. However, you can fold over the hands and feet to keep hands and feet warm on pram and sling rides.
Buy now £55.00, JoJo Maman Bebe
Mamas & Papas green puddlesuit
This sage-green suit is perfect for all the dino and animal lovers out there. Covered in simple line drawings of kangaroos, apes, monkeys and dinos, it’s cheerful yet subtle. The cuffs are elasticated in soft sweater fabric, which wicks away sweat and kept our tester comfy – we found that some more-plasticy cuffs didn’t feel that nice after a time. There are also adjustable stirrups on the feet to keep legs in place around wellies. A single zip is protected from rain and wind with an outer liner, and it goes right the way down to the bottom on our tester – perfect for nappy changes on the fly.
The inside is soft – lined in a fleece material, as is the brimmed, attached hood. We also liked the elasticated waist – it stopped the suit bagging around and getting in the way. Sizing on this suits from three months to three years. This all-in-one is excellently made and feels good quality – and it’s very reasonably priced too.
Buy now £31.50, Mamas & Papas
The Little White Company grey quilted pramsuit
Oh this little suit is so cute we felt our hearts break a bit when we got our hands on it. It’s such a perfect gift for a newborn this winter. The outer, made from nylon, is as soft as butter and gorgeously quilted. There are applique paws sewn on the fold-over mittens too. Of course, there are ears on the hood, but these are fleece lined for extra boujiness. And the hood is also fleece lined.
As well as two vertical zips for easy dressing, there’s a popper at the chin to keep things super snug. We liked that this suit wasn’t completely fleece lined, especially for our mini-est of testers, as it seemed to stop any overheating. It runs in sizes newborn to two years, with fold-over feet for babies up to 12 months.
Buy now £49.00, The White Company
Next blue colourblock snowsuit
Our tester looked like an Arctic explorer in this faux fur-hooded snowsuit, and we were into it in a big way. The cheerful colour blocks made them standout from the crowd, and the design feels more modern than some of the cutesy prints out there. Adjustable Velcro cuffs help keep the chill out, but so does the very padded suit itself. A single zip with large storm flap and poppers around the neck help keep things toasty.
It’s completely waterproof if your child is at the stage of roaming free of the pram. Slightly older kids will enjoy the big pockets on the hips and a little zippy chest pocket (perfect size for a dummy, FYI) – they can fill them with all the sticks and rocks and other treasures they find. This snowsuit comes in a huge age range – three months to seven years. We think this suit is an absolute bargain too, as it feels durable and well made, and offers protection even on the coldest of days.
Buy now £38.00, Next
Frugi explorer waterproof all-in-one suit
This whole puddlesuit from the outer shell to the fleece lining is made from 100 per cent recycled, post-consumer plastic bottles. And what a glow up those bottles have had. The outer layer is water repellent (this isn’t the same as hardier waterproof snowsuits) and has a finish that is said to prevent staining.
An elasticated hood kept our bambino looking nice and snug, with no chance of the wind whipping in around their tiny ears. There are dual zips, which zip to a good way down to the knees, making getting a squiggling baby in and out of it relatively easy. Integrated feet in this one provide extra levels of cosiness not seen in many snowsuits, while fold over mittens keep little paws nice and toasty too. This suit runs from newborn up to 12 months, so older children need look elsewhere.
Buy now £55.00, Frugi
Marks & Spencer hooded colour block snowsuit
This puffy little suit is water repellent, so should keep your bundle dry and toasty in the pram. In sizes newborn to three years, we’d say this is best suited to a younger baby. As such, it has integrated feet and detachable poppered mittens. These are a bit faffier to put on that the fold-over kind, and liable to get lost – but they are toasty and useful to detach and use at other times. The suit is lined in a soft fleece, which feels very cosy. The single zip has a storm flap on the inside, and a chin anti-chafe guard. We liked that it zipped down to the feet, making inserting and extracting young babies much easier.
Buy now £24.00, M&S
Verdict
We love, love, love the Muddy Puddles scampsuit. In fact, we find ourselves waxing lyrical to other parents about how good it is. Yes, it’s quite spenny, but it’ll see your child through at least one winter, if not more. And thanks to the removable lining, it’s built for both very chilly, wet weather and lighter spring and autumn days. If you want something cuter for a wee bub then the Next animal print pramsuit and The Little White Company pramsuits are both too cute for words, and cosy to boot.