We’ve been there, standing around late at night, waiting for the kettle to boil and then warming a bottle of breast milk in a cup of boiling water while you have a screaming baby in the background. It can be slow and painful (literally!)
We personally got sick of using this method to heat our breast milk bottles after a few too many accidental burns from boiling water splashing out of the cup and the breast milk bottles getting too hot if we had to step away to pacify our twins.
For this reason we researched baby bottle warmers to help heat our baby bottles and were pleasantly surprised what was out there.
Our pick of the bunch was the Gourmia Jr. Baby Bottle Sterilizer. As the name suggests, the Gourmia Jr is capable of:
- Heating baby bottles
- Sterilising 6 baby bottles and pacifiers at a time
- Slowly defrosting baby bottles by immersing the bottle in water
Baby Bottle Warmers Compared
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What to Look For When Buying a Bottle Warmer
How it heats the baby bottle
When buying a baby bottle warmer your priority is to look for one that heats milk evenly to avoid any hot spots in the milk which would burn your little one's mouth.
Generally there are two types of baby bottle warmers on the market. Some machines include both so you have the luxury of a slow and fast heat available to you. These include:
- Chamber based - Immerses the bottle in water which heats the the bottle slower but results in a more even heat without the risk of burning your babies milk.
- Steam based - Fast and express way of heating your babies milk by immersing the baby bottle in steam. Generally is faster than chamber water based heating however can run the risk of burning your baby milk if you don't keep a watchful eye.
We recommend using chamber water based heaters as they don't take much longer than a steam based heater (1-2 minutes if that) and result in the baby bottle receiving a more consistent heat to avoid burning the milk.
Ability to set the temperature
No baby is the same as another baby and your baby may have a preference to how warm they like their milk. For this reason it's handy to have a unit that allows you to dial in the temperature of the milk in case your little one likes it slightly cooler than others!
Heating Time
When buying a baby bottle warmer, you're buying it for convenience and to speed things up. For this reason it's important to review how long each baby bottle warmer takes to heat a bottle while ensuring the device doesn't over heat the milk.
Generally from our experience, bottles which warm the bottle by submerging the bottle in water are quickest.
Timer Mode
When heating a baby bottle, sometimes other things pop up as you’re heating the milk whether that be a crying baby or perhaps you’ve just lost track of time due to being that sleep deprived.
This is why it’s great to purchase a machine that has either a timer or auto shut off mode to stop heating and avoid burning the milk after a certain amount of time.
Keep Warm
Similar to the above point, things happen when you’re warming baby milk that require you to step away so having a baby bottle warmer that keeps and regulates the milk at a safe temperature
We also found having a machine that keeps milk warm is handy if you want to keep a bottle at the ready and warm for an unexpected feed.
Heats Multiple Bottles
If you have twins like us, having a baby bottle warmer that is able to heat two bottles at once is a life saver.
We've included some of our favourites products that heat two baby bottles at once in the reviews below.
Portability of the unit
Are you looking for a unit that will sit on your bench top at home permanently or also something that you can also use when you're out and about? After all, we mostly use bottles when we are out and about so have found having a portable unit is super handy.
Cleaning the Unit
Like anything baby related, you need to ensure the device is sanitary at all times to avoid the build up of residue and germs.
Fortunately baby bottle warmers don't require much in the way of cleaning. Generally only devices that use a water tank require the occasional descaling to remove the build up of any residue.
Price
When you find out you're having a baby, it can be quite overwhelming with how many different things you need to buy. For this reason, you don't necessarily need the 'best and most expensive' baby bottle warmer. The Philips Avent Baby Warmer is affordable and won't break the bank.
Philips Avent Fast Baby Bottle Warmer
The evenly heats the baby bottle by circulating water around the bottle. This helps prevent hot spots from developing but also heats the milk in 3 minutes.
Including a 'keep warm' feature means you can put a bottle in the Avent and keep it warm and ready for when you need it.
Another plus for the Philips Avent Baby Bottle Warmer is that it can also be used to defrost bottles of milk you have in the freezer or even gently warm baby food for when your little one gets a bit older.
The Philips Avent Fast Baby Bottle Warmer includes a range of different baby bottle brands including:
- Philips Avent
- Doc Brown
- Medela
- Plus many more.
Unfortunately the the Philips Avent Baby Bottle Warmer isn't perfect and one big negative is that it does not include a timer or auto shut down feature. This means if you step away from the device, it won't automatically stop warming the baby bottle once it reaches the peak temperature and may continue to over-heat the milk if you're not careful.
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The First Years 2-in-1 Simple Serve Bottle Warmer
The was one of our least preferred bottle warmers on the market.
The First Years 2-in-1 Simple Serve Bottle Warmer heats the baby bottle by submerging it in water. By using this heating method, the device requires you to fill up the measurement vial (in front of the unit) each time before using which can be quite inconvenient.
When filling up the vial with water before each use, it's important to get the water measurement correct as failing to put the correct amount of water in can result in the device burning your milk. This can be a bit of a pain at 1 am in the morning!
Another down side of this machine is that heating times can be inconsistent where sometimes it can take 5 minutes while other time it can take 10 minutes. This is largely a result of how much water you put in the front vial and also how much milk is in your baby bottle.
For the price this is an OK unit but we feel there is better value for money in other machines we reviewed.
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Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature Electric Baby Bottle and Food Warmer
The is one of the more refined bottle warmers that is a no BS option without breaking the bank.
The Tommee Tippee Baby Bottle Warmer is able to warm bottles in 4 minutes and comes with a variety of warming settings so you have the ability to warm bottles from:
- Room temperature
- Refrigerated temperature
- Defrost
- Different bottle sizes
Another plus for the Tommee Tippee is that it also comes with an automatic shut off and timer mode so you don't need to worry about your baby milk overheating if you step away.
One thing we liked about the Tomee Tipee is that you pour water into the warming chamber rather than into a separate reservoir like the First Years 2-in-1 Simple Serve Bottle Warmer as previously reviewed.
The Tommee Tippee Baby Bottle Warmer heats a range of baby bottle brands including but not limited to:
- Tommy Tippee
- Philips Avent
- Como Tomos
- Life Factory
- Doc Brown
- Medela
There are two negatives about the Tommee Tippee we had:
- The heating modes are best suited for people that own Tommee Tippee bottles due to the bottles being a thinner plastic so they heat quicker. You may find other bottle brands take longer to heat in the Tommee Tippee baby bottle warmer due to being a thicker plastic.
- Not the quickest bottle warmer out there especially when using bigger bottles.
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Baby Brezza Safe & Smart Electric Baby Bottle Warmer
The is one of the more expensive baby bottle warmers on the market but with the higher cost, also comes some great premium options which other units we reviewed didn't include.
The Baby Brezza Safe & Smart Baby Warmer is capable of heating bottles in 4 minutes and comers with two different warming options:
- Rapid - This uses steam to quickly heat to body temperature
- Slow - This uses warm water to gently heat the bottle and preserve nutrients
A big difference with the Baby Brezza is the smart phone integration that allows you to control the machine remotely. This isn't as gimmicky as it sounds as it means you can put a cold bottle of baby milk in the unit and start the warming process from the convenience of the application on your smart phone. Just be careful not to let breast milk sitting out in the open too long though.
The Baby Brezza Baby Bottle Warmer has been designed to universally fit all baby bottles on the market which is a huge plus. With this said, you may find that some bottles take longer to warm than others due to the thickness of the plastic of some brands compared to others.
There are two negatives about the Baby Brezza that we wanted to touch on:
- The lid that sits on top of the unit acts as a seal to help warm the bottle as quick as possible however people have found when they open the lid that this can also result in a huge dump of steam coming out of the device and can possibly result in light burns to the skin. Just something to be wary of!
- The unit requires re-filling with water which is perfectly acceptable however it is difficult to see the water 'top up' line in the device especially at night time.
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Elechomes Baby Bottle Warmer
The is a bit different to other units that we reviewed largely due to it being a 6 in 1 device (!!). The Elechomes is capable of many things including:
- Warm bottles
- Brew formula
- Heat baby food
- Defrost frozen food
- Bottle steriliser
- Egg boiler (bit random...!)
So you're thinking... That's great that it does all these things but is it good at what it does?
Really well actually!
The Elechomes is the perfect baby bottle warmer for people with twins thanks to its twin bottle design that means you can warm two bottles simultaneously. Perfect for those nights that you have two twins both screaming at once! Don't worry... We can relate!
The Elechomes Baby Bottle Warmer is able to warm bottles in 6 minutes. While not the fastest unit we reviewed, it's still quite impressive considering all the other things it's capable of doing.
Another nice touch with the Elechomes Baby Bottle Warmer is the fact that it comes with a delayed start and keep warm setting. Perfect when you know your baby will be ready for a top up in an hour and want to have the bottle warm and ready to go!
The sterilizer in the Elechomes also works really well and allows you to sterilizer baby bottles, pacifiers and baby milk bags. Like most sterilizers on the market, The Elechome only cleans and doesn't dry so you will need to remove things at the end of a clean and put them on a dryer to properly dry out. Including a sterilizer in the device is a great idea as it lets you cut down to one device and save on previous kitchen bench real estate.
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MIMLI Baby Bottle Warmer
The is a 6 in 1 unit that is capable of a variety of things including:
- Baby bottle warmer
- Formula warmer
- Baby bottle sterilizer
- Baby food heater
- Defrost bottles
- Yoghurt maker
The MIMLI Baby Bottle Warmer is capable of heating two bottles in just 3 minutes making it the perfect baby bottle warmer if you have twins. Some reviews have highlighted that this can be longer for some baby bottle brands. We suspect this is due to some baby bottle brands using a more thicker plastic which results in longer heat times.
A big plus for the MIMLI Baby is that it is also able to sterilise bottles helping you save on your precious kitchen bench real estate.
The MIMLI is able to heat all major baby bottle brands. You may find that some bottles take longer to heat than others due to some bottles having a thicker plastic than others.
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Babebay Baby Bottle Warmer
is another device that does more than just warm baby bottles. The Babebay baby bottle warmer is a 4 in 1 device capable of:
- Breast milk warmer
- Formula heater
- Food heater
- Bottle sterilisation
A big plus for the Babebay bottle warmer is its ability to heat 2 bottles in just 3 minutes making it another perfect baby bottle warmer for people with twins.
The Babebay Baby Bottle Warmer is capable of heating all major bottle brands including but not limited to:
- Medela
- Dr Brown
- Philips Avent
- Plus more
You may find with some brands that they take longer to heat than advertised due to the bottle being designed with a thicker plastic than other brands.
We saw two downsides for the Babebay Baby Bottle Warmer:
- Temperature settings on the device being in Celsius and not Fahrenheit. The device does not give you the option to change between temperature settings either which was disappointing.
- Prone to heating the milk past the set temperature and thus burning the milk. Not great if you're a busy mum and need to step away briefly!
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Gourmia Jr. Baby Bottle Sterilizer and Bottle Warmer
Our favourite bottle warmer was the .
The Gourmia Jr not only is capable of heating baby bottles but also capable of simultaneously sterilise 6 baby bottles and pacifiers WHILE you are warming a baby bottle. Pretty neat hey!
Capable of heating a baby bottle in 3 minutes makes the unit one of the more faster units we reviewed. Unfortunately the unit is only able to heat one bottle at a time which is less ideal for people like us with twins.
The Gourmia Jr is compatible with all major bottle brands on the market such as
- Dr Brown
- Medela
- Philips Avent
- Tommy Tippee
- Plus more
Another plus for the Gourmia Jr Baby Bottle Warmer was the defrosting mode which uses a water bath to slowly thaw your baby milk back to life.
One minor criticism about the device is that you are locked in to the temperature presets that come with the device. This means you are not able to manually set the temperature to your choosing which we didn't find a big issue but may bother some.
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Affiliate Disclosure – This post may contain affiliate links where we may receive compensation if you purchase products linked below. As an Amazon Associate, I can earn from qualifying purchases. This doesn’t cost you anything and helps keep our little blog running. Read our privacy policy for further information.
My name’s Alex and I’m a husband, dad to beautiful identical twin boys, cyclist, photographer and connoisseur of great coffee!
Help I’m Having Twins has been created for me to share what I found useful as a new parent and dad to twins.
