Best shops for buying baby clothes May 2013

Baby clothes shops rated

  • The best and worst baby clothes shops, as voted for by hundreds of parents
  • Baby clothes shops rated for factors such as price, quality and customer service
  • Where to head to on the high street for children's clothes, shoes and accessories
baby taster

We've surveyed thousands of consumers to find out the best and worst shops for buying baby and children's clothes in the UK - and reveal the results below.

Our table ranks 35 shops for buying baby and child clothes, and includes big name brands such as Clarks, Mothercare and Baby Gap, with scores for factors such as price, product quality and service. As well as those brands synonymous with babywear, we've also got ratings for shops not traditionally associated with clothes for little ones. You may be surprised which stores top our table.

To find out the best and worst, Which? members should log in to unlock the table below. If you're not already a member, get instant access now with a £1 trial to Which?.

Baby and children's clothes shops reviewed
ShopProduct rangeProduct qualityServiceStore environmentPricingAfter sales and returnsCustomer score (%)
John Lewis4 stars5 stars5 stars5 stars3 stars5 stars79
Selfridges4 stars5 stars4 stars4 stars2 stars4 stars75
Fat Face3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars2 stars3 stars72
Mamas & Papas3 stars5 stars5 stars5 stars2 stars4 stars72
Zara3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars2 stars3 stars71
Clarks2 stars4 stars3 stars3 stars2 stars3 stars70
Jones Bootmaker3 stars4 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars69
Monsoon3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars69
New Look3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars2 stars69
Marks and Spencer3 stars5 stars4 stars4 stars3 stars5 stars69
House of Fraser4 stars5 stars4 stars4 stars3 stars4 stars68
Independent
department stores
3 stars4 stars5 stars3 stars4 stars3 stars67
Debenhams3 stars4 stars3 stars4 stars3 stars4 stars67
Asda3 stars3 stars4 stars4 stars5 stars5 stars67
Matalan3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars4 stars4 stars67
Gap / Baby Gap3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars67
French Connection2 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars2 stars2 stars66
Shoe Zone3 stars2 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars2 stars64
Blacks3 stars4 stars4 stars4 stars3 stars3 stars64
M&Co2 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars2 stars3 stars64
H&M3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars2 stars63
Primark3 stars2 stars2 stars2 stars5 stars3 stars63
BHS3 stars3 stars4 stars4 stars3 stars4 stars63
Next3 stars4 stars4 stars4 stars2 stars5 stars63
Mothercare3 stars4 stars4 stars4 stars2 stars5 stars62
Laura Ashley3 stars4 stars3 stars4 stars2 stars3 stars61
Stead & Simpson2 stars2 stars3 stars3 stars2 stars2 stars61
TK Maxx3 stars3 stars3 stars2 stars4 stars3 stars60
Millets3 stars4 stars4 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars59
Sainsbury's3 stars3 stars3 stars4 stars4 stars4 stars58
Sports Direct3 stars3 stars2 stars2 stars4 stars3 stars58
JD Sports3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars58
Topshop / Topman2 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars2 stars3 stars58
Argos3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars4 stars3 stars57
Tesco2 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars3 stars53

Using the table
Sample sizes: John Lewis 107, Selfridges 105, Fat Face 107, Mamas & Papas 104, Zara 107, Clarks 105, Jones Bootmaker 105, Monsoon 110, New Look 105, Marks and Spencer 106, House of Fraser 105, Independent department stores 107, Debenhams 104, Asda 104, Matalan 106, Gap / Baby Gap 109, French Connection 105, Shoe Zone 105, Blacks 103, M&Co 105, H&M 105, Primark 105, BHS 105, Next 104, Mothercare 105, Laura Ashley 105, Stead & Simpson 108, TK Maxx 105, Millets 105, Sainsbury's 106, Sports Direct 106, JD Sports 105, Topshop / Topman 112, Argos 99, Tesco 103
Star ratings: These range from one to five - the more stars the better
Customer score: This is based on a combination of overall satisfaction and how likely people are to recommend the store to a friend

How Which? rates shops that sell baby and children's clothes

How Which? rates shops that sell baby and children's clothes
The table of the top shops selling baby and children's clothing was taken from the Which? shops survey, the biggest of its kind in the UK. We asked people whether they had bought any clothes and shoes from the stores in the table over the past six months, and then compiled a table of those stores in our clothes and shoes category that also sell clothes for babies and children.

For the survey, Which? surveyed 11,784 members of the general public online between February and March 2013 about the shops they had visited in the past six months. Shoppers were asked how satisfied they were and how likely they were to recommend the shops. These factors make up the Which? customer score.

Our survey respondents also rated each shop selling baby and children's clothing on 14 factors covering price, service, store environment, product quality, product range and after sales service. These are shown as star ratings in our table and were made up of the factors below:

  • Customer service – staff knowledge about products, staff helpfulness and staff availability
  • Store environment – ease of finding products, tidiness of store, store environment and queuing time
  • Price – price, sales and special offers
  • Product quality - product quality and how well products last
  • Product range – range of products and products being in stock
  • After sales and returns

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