MAM Perfect vs Tommee Tippee Newborn Soother: The Thinner Teat Costs £5.65 a Dummy, the Four-Pack £3.25

COMPARISON · FEEDING TIME

A newborn dummy has a short, intense working life. It gets used for perhaps eight weeks before your baby moves up a size, it gets dropped on the floor of every café you visit, and it has to fit a mouth that is barely bigger than the teat itself. That is why both MAM and Tommee Tippee make a dedicated 0-2 month soother rather than just shrinking their standard one.

On paper the MAM Perfect 0-2 Months and the Tommee Tippee Newborn Soother look almost identical: silicone teat, small curved shield, air holes, under £16. In practice they take different routes. MAM has put its effort into the teat neck, making it extra-thin and very flexible to keep pressure off tiny gums. Tommee Tippee has gone smaller overall, with a miniature shield and a symmetrical teat that works whichever way up it lands, and sells it in a four-pack that works out at roughly £3.25 a dummy against MAM's £5.65.

We compared the two on the things that matter in the first two months: how readily babies take them, how they sit on a small face, how easy they are to keep clean, and how much you will spend replacing the ones that vanish down the side of the car seat. We also pulled together what parents tell us most often about each one.

Lil' Bubba's verdicts

• Best Overall: MAM Perfect Soother 0-2 Months · 8.5/10 - the thinnest, softest teat neck at this size, plus a self-sterilising travel box in the pack
• Best Value: Tommee Tippee Newborn Soother 0-2 Months · 8.0/10 - four dummies for about the price of MAM's two, so you always have a clean spare
• Best for very small faces: Tommee Tippee Newborn Soother 0-2 Months · 8.0/10 - the miniature shield sits clear of the nose on even the tiniest newborns

Quick comparison

Feature	MAM Perfect 0-2m	Tommee Tippee Newborn 0-2m
Price in our channels	£11.30 for 2 (£12 at some retailers)	From £12.99 for 4
Cost per dummy	About £5.65	About £3.25
Age stage	0-2 months	0-2 months
Teat	Extra-thin, flexible neck in SkinSoft silicone; symmetrical	Extra-small symmetrical silicone baglet with a vented teat
Shield	Curved, with large air holes	Miniature and curved, with air holes
Case	Self-sterilising carry box (microwave, around 3 minutes)	Varies by pack, so check the listing; steriliser pods are sold separately too
Moves up to	MAM 2-6 month sizes	Tommee Tippee 0-6 month ranges
Our rating

How we picked the 2

We started from the newborn soothers parents add to their Nests most often, then narrowed to the ones designed specifically for 0-2 months rather than generic 0-6 month dummies. These two are the mainstream, high-street-available choices that most UK families end up deciding between, and both are stocked by several retailers we work with.

We read the brand specifications line by line, checked live prices and pack sizes across retailers, and gathered recurring themes from parent feedback. Where a figure (like an acceptance percentage) comes from the brand's own research, we say so. Neither brand paid to be included, and the ratings are ours.

What to look for in a newborn soother

Size first. A 0-2 month dummy should have a short, slim teat and a shield small enough that it does not press against the nose or cover the chin. If your baby is born early or small, this matters even more, and it is the main reason to buy a newborn-specific size rather than a 0-6 month one.

Teat shape. Symmetrical teats look the same on both sides, so there is no wrong way up when you pop one back in at 3am. Orthodontic-style teats are flatter and are designed to reduce pressure on the gums and palate. Both of these soothers are symmetrical; they differ in how thin and flexible the neck of the teat is.

Material. Silicone is the default for newborn sizes. It is odourless, does not soften or go sticky with repeated sterilising, and is easy to inspect for damage. Latex is softer but wears faster and is not suitable for babies with a latex allergy.

Ventilation and shield shape. Air holes and a curved shield let skin breathe and reduce the dribble rash that often appears around the mouth in the early weeks.

Cleaning. Until your baby is around six months, dummies should be sterilised regularly. A case that doubles as a microwave steriliser saves a lot of faff on the go. If you already have a steriliser at home, this matters less.

When to start. UK safe sleep advice suggests that if you are breastfeeding, you wait until feeding is well established, usually around four weeks, before offering a dummy. If you use one for sleep, offer it consistently for every sleep, and do not force it if your baby spits it out. Never dip it in anything sweet, and do not attach a cord or clip in the cot.

1. MAM Perfect Soother 0-2 Months / 10 · Best overall

The MAM Perfect 0-2 Months is MAM's answer to the question of how little a dummy can push on a newborn's mouth. The teat is made from MAM's SkinSoft silicone, which has a silky, slightly matte finish, and the neck (the narrow bit between shield and teat that sits between the gums) is extra-thin and very flexible. MAM says the neck is on average 60% thinner than comparable soothers, and that the teat is accepted by 94% of babies in its own research with 1,588 babies.

It comes as a pair, packed in MAM's self-sterilising carry box: add water, microwave for around three minutes, and the box becomes a clean travel case. At £11.30 for two in our channels, it is the pricier option per dummy, but you are paying for the teat design and the case in one go.

What parents love

• Thin, soft teat neck. We hear repeatedly from parents that babies who refuse chunkier dummies will take this one, and that it feels noticeably thinner and floppier in the hand than other brands.
• Built-in steriliser box. The carry box doubles as a microwave steriliser, so there is nothing else to buy and nothing extra to pack in the changing bag.
• Good with tiny or early babies. Parents of smaller babies regularly tell us it is the one that stays in, because the teat is short and the shield curves away from the face.
• Easy to find replacements. MAM is stocked widely, so a lost dummy can be replaced the same day, and the 2-6 month size is the same family if your baby takes to it.

What to know before you buy

• Higher cost per dummy. At about £5.65 each, losing one hurts more, and newborn dummies get lost a lot.
• Only two in the pack. One in the mouth and one in the steriliser leaves you with no spare. Many families end up buying a second pack.
• Short window. The 0-2 month size is outgrown quickly; budget for moving up to the 2-6 month size around the eight-week mark.

Best for

• Babies who gag on or reject bulkier teats
• Premature and smaller newborns
• Parents who want a steriliser case included
• Families planning to stay with MAM as baby grows

2. Tommee Tippee Newborn Soother 0-2 Months / 10 · Best value

Tommee Tippee's Newborn Soother is billed as the tiny soother for tiny mouths, and it is genuinely small. The shield is a miniature curved design with air holes, and the teat is an extra-small symmetrical silicone baglet that sits correctly whichever way up it goes in. Tommee Tippee describes the teat as vented, so it compresses more easily than a traditional air-filled baglet.

Where it really pulls ahead is cost. The four-pack we list starts at £12.99, which is about £3.25 a dummy. That makes it the easy choice if you want one in the cot, one in the changing bag, one in the car and one being sterilised. Some packs come with a steriliser pod and some do not, so check the listing if a case matters to you.

What parents love

• Four for the price of two. We hear from parents again and again that the number one dummy problem in the first weeks is not shape, it is supply. A four-pack means there is always a clean one to hand.
• Really small shield. The miniature shield sits clear of the nose on even very small newborns, which parents tell us makes it easier to see their baby's face and keep skin dry.
• No wrong way up. The symmetrical teat means you can pop it back in during a night feed without looking.
• Lightweight. It is light enough that it is less likely to be dragged out of the mouth by its own weight when baby turns their head.

What to know before you buy

• Teat neck is not as thin. It is a perfectly soft newborn teat, but if your baby is fussy about bulk, the MAM is the more likely to be accepted.
• Case not always included. Pack contents vary, so you may need to sterilise them in your main steriliser or buy a pod.
• Limited colours in some packs. The four-packs come in fixed colour sets, so you cannot always choose.

Best for

• Families who want spares in every bag and room
• Very small newborns who need a tiny shield
• Parents who already own a steriliser
• Anyone testing whether their baby will take a dummy at all

Where they actually differ

Most of the time, the deciding factor is your baby. Some newborns will take anything; others are fiercely picky about the teat. If your baby is picky, the MAM's thinner, more flexible neck gives you the best first try, and it is the one parents tell us most often finally worked after other brands were spat out.

If your baby is happy with either, the Tommee Tippee makes more financial sense. Over eight weeks, most families lose or misplace at least one dummy, and with four in the pack you are far less likely to be caught short at bedtime.

A practical tip: start with one pack of each if you can. At under £25 for six dummies between them, it is the cheapest way to find out what your baby actually prefers before you commit to a brand for the next size up.

How to choose

Choose the MAM Perfect Soother 0-2 Months if your baby is small, early or has already rejected another dummy, or if you want the steriliser case included and do not mind paying a little more per dummy for the thinnest teat at this size.

Choose the Tommee Tippee Newborn Soother 0-2 Months if your baby is not fussy, you want spares everywhere, or you already have a steriliser at home. It is the better value by a clear margin.

If you are already comparing portable sterilisers, our NightGlow Pod vs Nuby UV dummy steriliser comparison covers keeping dummies clean on the go, and our FRIGG vs BIBS comparison is worth a read when your baby moves beyond the newborn size.

Add it to your Nest

Not sure which one your baby will take? Add both to your free BubsNest registry and let family pick them up. Small, inexpensive items like dummies are some of the most-gifted things on a Nest, and having both brands on hand in the first weeks saves a late-night dash to the shops.