Baby bottles
Dr. Brown's vs Comotomo: which bottle should you buy?
The anti-colic specialist against the breast-refusal fixer. They are good at genuinely different things.
How this page is funded: if you buy through a link here we may earn an Amazon commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes which product we put first, and we recommend the cheaper option whenever it is the better one. Full disclosure.
The short answer
If your baby is gassy, buy Dr. Brown's. If your baby is breastfed and keeps refusing bottles, buy Comotomo. That is genuinely the whole decision, and it is the rare case where the two products barely compete. Dr. Brown's is an engineering answer to swallowed air, at the cost of five parts to wash. Comotomo is a shape-and-feel answer to bottle refusal, at the cost of no real venting and a shape that fits few warmers.
Quick picks
Our ranking, with the reasoning underneath. Tap any row to jump to the full write-up.
| # | Product | Best for | Score | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Dr. Brown's Natural Flow Options+ Wide-Neck Dr. Brown's venting behind a wide, breast-shaped nipple. The compromise pick when your baby is gassy and nursing. | A gassy breastfed baby | 8.7 | Check price on Amazon #ad Affiliate link · We show no price until we can verify it live |
| 2 |  Comotomo Natural Feel Baby Bottle The bottle babies take when they have refused everything else: a soft squeezable silicone body and a wide, breast-shaped nipple. | Breastfed babies | 8.8 | Check price on Amazon #ad Affiliate link · We show no price until we can verify it live |
Scores are our own research scores on the rubric published at how we choose. They are not star ratings from customers, and we do not show a price we cannot verify live.
Side by side
| What matters | Dr. Brown's Options+ wide-neck | Comotomo |
|---|---|---|
| Venting | Full internal vent tube. The most effective design sold. | Two simple vents in the nipple. Basic. |
| Parts to wash | Five with the vent fitted, three without. | Three, and the mouth is wide enough for a hand. |
| Body | Rigid polypropylene, or glass. | Soft, squeezable silicone. |
| Nipple | Wide, firm silicone. | Very wide, very soft, breast-shaped. |
| Acceptance by a breastfed baby | Good. | The best on the market, by reputation and by our reading of the evidence. |
| Fits warmers and sterilizers | Yes, widely. | Often not. The squat shape is the problem. |
| Flow options | Preemie upward, the widest range here. | Fewer levels. |
Pick Dr. Brown's if
- Your baby is visibly windy: arching, squirming, pulling off mid-feed, crying after feeds. The vent is the most effective answer to swallowed air, and it has the deepest evidence base. More detail in our anti-colic round-up.
- You want the widest range of nipple flow rates, including preemie.
- You own a warmer or sterilizer and want a bottle you know will fit it.
- You want the option of glass with a vent, which is nearly unique — see the glass picks.
Pick Comotomo if
- Your baby is breastfed and has already refused one or two bottles. This is the bottle most likely to work next.
- You want the fewest parts and the easiest hand-washing.
- You want a soft body you can gently assist with at the start of a feed.
- You are planning ahead for a baby holding their own bottle — soft and grippy wins.
Get neither if
Your baby is neither especially gassy nor a bottle refuser. In that case you want the bottle with the biggest parts ecosystem and the fewest compromises, which is the Philips Avent Natural Response — our overall pick in the main ranking. Buying a specialist bottle for a problem you do not have costs you either washing up or venting.
What people get wrong about both
With Dr. Brown's: they assume the leaking is a defect. It is almost always over-tightening or over-filling. And they keep the vent in long after colic has passed — take it out around three to four months and you get a three-part bottle back.
With Comotomo: they buy it for wind. It is not an anti-colic bottle, and if gas is the problem the soft body will not fix it. They also buy six before checking that the shape fits their warmer.
With both: they change bottle before changing flow rate. Try the slower nipple first — nipple flow sizes — and learn paced bottle feeding, which costs nothing.
Worth saying plainly
Prolonged inconsolable crying, forceful vomiting or poor weight gain are pediatrician questions, not bottle questions. No venting system treats reflux or an allergy.
What we would buy
Now that the decision is made, these are the products we would actually put in the basket, and why.
Photo for illustration, not a photograph of our own unit.
Dr. Brown's Natural Flow Options+ Wide-Neck
Dr. Brown's
Dr. Brown's venting behind a wide, breast-shaped nipple. The compromise pick when your baby is gassy and nursing.
- Latch
- 9
- Colic control
- 10
- Cleaning
- 6
- Durability
- 9
- Value
- 8
- Material:
- Polypropylene, glass version available
- Parts to wash:
- Five with the vent fitted
- Nipple shape:
- Wide
- Price tier:
- Mid-range
What works
- Wide nipple is easier for a nursing baby to accept than the narrow version
- Same vent system as the narrow Options+
- Easier to hand-wash than the narrow neck
What to know first
- Still five parts with the vent in
- Bulkier in a diaper bag
- Wide bottles fit fewer warmer wells
#ad Affiliate link · We show no price until we can verify it live
Photo for illustration, not a photograph of our own unit.
Comotomo Natural Feel Baby Bottle
Comotomo
The bottle babies take when they have refused everything else: a soft squeezable silicone body and a wide, breast-shaped nipple.
- Latch
- 10
- Colic control
- 7
- Cleaning
- 9
- Durability
- 7
- Value
- 7
- Material:
- Silicone body, silicone nipple
- Parts to wash:
- Three
- Nipple shape:
- Wide, breast-like
- Price tier:
- Mid-range
What works
- The most widely recommended bottle for bottle-refusing breastfed babies
- Only three parts, and the wide mouth washes by hand easily
- Soft body is easy for small hands to hold later on
What to know first
- Squat shape does not fit every bottle warmer or sterilizer rack
- No internal venting system, so it is not the anti-colic specialist
- Nipples wear faster than hard plastic ones
#ad Affiliate link · We show no price until we can verify it live
Common questions
Which bottle is better for a breastfed baby?
Comotomo, in most cases, on nipple width and softness. Dr. Brown's wide-neck is the better choice if that baby is also gassy. See best bottles for breastfed babies.
Does Comotomo help with colic?
Not much. Its vents are basic. If wind is your main problem, Dr. Brown's is the bottle designed for it.
Is the extra washing with Dr. Brown's worth it?
For a genuinely gassy baby, yes, and it is temporary: the vent comes out when things settle. For a baby who is not windy, no.
Do Comotomo bottles fit bottle warmers?
Often not, because they are short and wide. Check your warmer's well, or warm in a jug of warm water instead — see how to warm breast milk.
Can I use Dr. Brown's nipples on a Comotomo bottle?
No. Threads and nipple bases are not interchangeable between brands, and mixing them is the most common cause of a leaking bottle.