The type of steriliser that’s right for you will depend on your baby’s routine as well as your environment, so it’s perfectly alright to wait till after the birth – maybe buying a box of sterilisation bags as an interim measure – and assess your sterilising needs in the days and weeks afterwards. This innovation from MAM Baby features six valuable functions all in one product. Forget having to invest and store a steriliser and a bottle warmer separately, simply choose MAM for all your needs. We spend hours researching, speaking to parents, analysing data and listening to experts before we test out the products on our shortlist.

Finally, she looked at whether the steriliser represented good value for money considering the features it provided for a wide customer base, noting whether or not she’d buy another if the sample model broke. MAM pride themselves on designing products to help make parents’ lives easier and the 6-in-1 electric steriliser and express bottle warmer is an all-singing, all-dancing bit of kit. Capacity: Four bottles | Materials: BPA-free plastic | Included: Steriliser and heat-safe tongs Good for parents who Transparency is really important to us and that's why we're always upfront about how we tested the products we recommend. We won't always recommend the cheapest products or the ones with the most extra features. We write about products that we feel offer the best value to most parents – the ones we'd recommend to our own friends and family.The length of a sterilisation cycle varies wildly between brands. If you’ve got a set-up where you intend to batch-sterilise once a day, a longer cycle won’t matter so much. But if you’re planning on sterilising more often, you won’t want to wait by the steriliser juggling a hungry baby. 4. Noise Microwave sterilisers also use steam to sterilise their contents, which may appeal to you if you prefer to sterilise without chemicals. The MAM Baby Easy Start Anti Colic bottle is especially unique due to its self-sterilising function. Simply add water and after three minutes in the microwave you have a sterilised botte - perfect for being out and about with baby or at home. I find the nuby natural touch steam steriliser really good - it dries the bottles too. It is tall and fits lots of different shaped bottles and other bits!" Tried and tested by Mumsnet user Sjh84 Our verdict If you’re using bottles and breast pumps regularly but not intensively, you might find that a travel steriliser is sufficient for your needs – it’s certainly cheaper to buy and easier to throw into a drawer. If you’re bottle-feeding full-time, though, sterilising one or two bottles at a time will be too inefficient and labour-intensive to manage. 5. UV steriliser

Electric sterilisers attract limescale on their heating plate over time so will need regularly descaling (manufacturers will specify a frequency, but it’s usually once or twice a month). To reduce limescale build-up, pour out the water after every use and wipe down with a soft damp cloth. Getting the water level right can initially involve a bit of trial and error, but this isn’t an issue once you’ve worked out the right amount for the item you’re warming with the help of the chart provided. I recommend Mam bottles, so easy to sterilise in the microwave!" Recommended by Mumsnetter Isababybel With no need for steam, tablets or a microwave, this innovative UV steriliser from Nuby is a game-changer. While it looks a bit like a big makeup bag, the steriliser blasts bottles and dummies with ultra violet light, killing 99.9% of germs in just 3 minutes. Take the fretting out of feeding on car journeys with this travel-friendly bottle warmer, which can be plugged into a vehicle’s cigarette lighter for milk on the move. Simply input the quantity of milk to be heated and whether it’s currently frozen, refrigerated or at room temperature and the NutriSmart will do the rest.Admittedly more of a bottle ‘maker’ than a warmer, Tommee Tippee’s Perfect Prep Machine is nevertheless lauded by thousands of parents due to its ability to produce a tip-top formula feed in just a couple of minutes. Using tap water that passes through a filter to remove any impurities, the device initially releases a shot of hot water to kill any bacteria present before topping up the bottle with cooler water to reach the ideal temperature.

We used one from eight weeks and it saved my sanity."(Tried and tested by Mumsnet user Theresamagicalplace) Our verdict

I have the Nuby UV one and I love it. I wash the bottles and let them air dry and then put them in there dry for three minutes and it's done! If you're formula feeding Nuby had a sale on their UV steriliser and Rapidcool (can make milk to NHS recommendations and they be cool in 3/4 minutes) bundle." Loved by Mumsnetter Grace185 Our verdict They are essentially a large, round, plastic box with a screw-on lid, usually with an internal basket to hold the bottles. Water is poured into the bottom (under the basket) and in the microwave it boils to create steam. The items are sterile after a manufacturer-recommended 15-minute cycle – the NHS recommends 30 minutes – and remain so for as long as they’re in the solution. Plus, they don’t need rinsing off when they’re needed. Items can continue to be added and removed as necessary over 24 hours when the solution will need to be remade.

Press the programme selection button for 2 seconds to start the sterilising programme. You will hear a long beep and the lights will flash constantly while the programme is running.

Place the items to steriliser in the upper and lower baskets of the steriliser. Bottles need to be horizontal.