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BabyQuip vs. Traveling Baby Company are very similar baby gear rental companies, although there are some key differences between the two. Below we break down how these two companies got started, what equipment they offer, what locations they service, and more. One thing’s for sure—they’re both making traveling way easier for families with children.

Background

BabyQuip got its start in 2016. Fran Maier, BabyQuip’s Founder & CEO, understood the dilemma of parents needing to pack and haul bulky baby gear when traveling with babies and small children. BabyQuip’s mission is to encourage families to “Pack Light & Travel Happy” with their little ones. BabyQuip has over 1000 Quality Providers who rent, deliver, and set up baby gear at hotels, Airbnbs, vacation rentals and private residences. They’ll even meet you at the airport! BabyQuip has already served over 100,000 families. 

BabyQuip is a marketplace business like Airbnb or Uber. They are members of the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association (JPMA) and were featured on Shark Tank in March of 2020.

Traveling Baby Company was founded in 2004 by Rafi Zait, who decided to create a baby gear rental service after he experienced customers asking to temporarily use baby items that he sold in his baby stores. 

Baby Gear Offered

BabyQuip knows it’s not only the large baby items that matter on vacation but the small ones as well. They offer popular items like cribs, strollers, car seats, high chairs, and toys, along with items like step stools, sound machines, baby gates, audio/video monitors, and almost any other baby item you can think of. They literally have thousands of items available to rent.

Every Quality Provider (the people who rent and deliver the gear) has their own inventory, so depending on their location, they have different offerings (along with all the major/popular items). You can rent beach packages, hiking gear, camping gear, and even pet gear!

Traveling Baby Company offers a wide variety of baby equipment to rent, including full-size cribs, car seats, strollers, high chairs, humidifiers, and more. Beach items are also available for rent if you’re planning on taking your little one to the beach.

Standards of Cleanliness

BabyQuip takes cleanliness and safety very seriously. They have strict cleaning standards and make sure that each baby item is properly cleaned between rentals. To become listed on the site to offer baby gear rentals, a Quality Provider is required to pass a background check, complete extensive training, pass quizzes and demonstrate that they have all the tools and skills to perform top-to-bottom cleanings. Every piece of equipment is meticulously cleaned after every rental and lightly cleaned again before the next rental.

Traveling Baby Company cleans and sanitizes baby equipment with non-toxic products before each rental. Unfortunately, we were unable to find more detail about cleaning standards and procedures on their website.

How They Work

BabyQuip offers a seamless reservation process through its attractive and modern website. A customer simply chooses their travel destination location, and dates of travel, and browses QP profiles to find the baby gear they’d like to rent. There is a 3-day minimum rental period and discounts for long-term rentals.

Deliveries include sets of items like the full-size crib or toys that need any assembly. Quality Providers will show you how to use each piece of gear to get your vacation started off right! Contactless delivery is available upon request. In this case, the QP will drop off the baby gear and text you to let you know it has arrived. 

In the rare event that someone gets hurt, or property is damaged during a covered rental, customers may be protected with up to $1,000,000 USD in liability insurance. Insurance is an important differentiator between BabyQuip and other baby gear rental companies and is provided on all rentals. 

Traveling Baby Company offers online ordering similar to BabyQuip. Once a location and dates are selected, customers can browse available baby gear items and then add what they’d like to their online cart. Once an order is placed, a confirmation email is sent out within 24 hours. Baby equipment is delivered to you, your hotel, and sometimes the airport (check the locations page). Some locations offer the option for customers to pick up the baby equipment themselves.

Note: Neither BabyQuip nor Traveling Baby Company will install car seats. If you need help installing a car seat, we recommend reaching out to Tot Squad for assistance!

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Available Locations

BabyQuip is expanding internationally! With over 1000 Quality Providers offering baby gear rentals in over 900 locations, they have the United States covered, so going global is the next step! Current international locations include Aruba, Barbados, Canada, Costa Rica, Estonia, Germany, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and Saint Maarten.
Traveling Baby Company services 38 locations across the United States, although, at this time, some locations are temporarily closed. Many of the locations are along the west coast and east coast. There are a couple of locations in Hawaii that Traveling Baby Company services, in addition to a location in Puerto Rico.

Pricing

BabyQuip rents a full-size crib in New York, NY (for example) for $25 per day. There is a 3-day minimum, but a 10% discount is automatically applied at checkout for rentals lasting 10 or more days. They also offer monthly discounts. There’s a service fee added to each reservation and a delivery fee that depends on travel time, same-day delivery, etc. Most QPs offer free local pickup if you want to avoid the delivery fee.

Traveling Baby Company rents a full-size crib in New York, NY, for $18 per day. There is a discount if renting for a full week. Each order requires customers to meet a minimum order amount. The minimum amounts are dependent on location and start at $35. Delivery rates start at $25 but are also dependent on your location. 

The Extras

BabyQuip knows baby gear needs to be thoroughly cleaned between rentals and decided to expand into baby gear cleaning services in 2020. The new baby gear cleaning service, BabyQuip Cleaning, offers exceptional, on-demand cleaning services for parents who don’t have the time or tools to do it themselves. Customers drop off or have a QP pick up their dirty baby gear, and certified cleaning experts clean it to perfection in 48 hours or less! There are 4 packages to choose from, and the more items you get cleaned, the more you save!

Traveling Baby Company doesn’t seem to offer a lot of extras at this time. They do try to accommodate last-minute orders, although they recommend placing a rental order at least two weeks in advance.

Summary of BabyQuip vs. Traveling Baby Company

The biggest difference between BabyQuip and Traveling Baby Company seems to be in the number of locations serviced. While Traveling Baby Company only services 38 locations, BabyQuip offers rentals to over 900 locations. BabyQuip also now offers baby gear cleaning services, which isn’t something available through Traveling Baby Company at this time (outside of cleaning their own rental gear). Hopefully, you’ve been able to easily compare these two companies so that you can make the best decision for your family next time you travel.

Have you ever used a baby gear rental service before? If so, how was your experience?