Name Brand vs Store Brand Diapers

When you have a baby there are instantly a million choices in front of you. What do we name the baby? Which bottle is best? Which pacifier will the baby like? What kind of diapers should we use? Having had three children, I have been around the block on all of those questions. Each baby is different, and, after having three of them I have concluded which diaper works best for your money.

Let's start with Pampers. At the hospital you are given a special hospital edition bag of Pampers Swaddlers with new AbsorbAway liner. You then think to yourself, if the hospital wants me to diaper my baby in Pampers, then these must be the best diapers out there. Whether or not that is the case, at your normal Target or Wal-Mart store you can expect to pay $19.99 for a pack of 88 count size 1 diapers. Calculating this it comes out to be .227 cents per diaper. Pretty expensive in my book, seeing that this size package might last approximately eight days if your baby is changed ten times in one day. Still, expensive or not, these diapers hold well and keep your baby dry throughout the night. Their side tabs are thick and are able to overlap, which is a big plus.

From Pampers we move on to Huggies, the next biggest brand name diaper out there. Huggies, in my mind, work best on baby girls. Having had two girls and one boy, this so far has been my experience for Huggies. To buy a 112 count package of Huggies in size 1 you are looking to spend about $16.99, a whopping $3 less than Pampers diapers. This comes out to be .151 cents per diaper. Of course, if you choose to buy Huggies Supreme diapers, you are adding at least another $1.50 - $2 to your cost. In my personal opinion, I have yet to find a difference in the original Huggies as to the Huggies Supreme diapers other than the cute new polka dot designs on the Supreme diapers along with the Winnie the Pooh characters. All in all, Huggies diapers hold well, keep the baby dry, do not irritate the baby's skin, and are at a better price than Pampers. They have thick sides, overlapping fasteners, and will last you through the night as well as on long car trips.

Aside from the two top brands there is the Luvs brand diapers. Luvs feature the adorable Blues Clues character that most toddlers love. I purchased Luvs diapers for the majority of my son's babyhood. These Luvs diapers I came to find out are made from the same producers of Pampers diapers, Procter & Gamble, yet retailed at a cheaper cost to the consumer. They advertise that Luvs will cost you less, no coupons needed. Still, you will be paying around $16.99 for a 112 count size 1 bag of diapers. That is .127 cents per diaper, not much less than the Huggies, but significantly less than the Pampers. These diapers hold well, are great for all-nighters and in my opinion worked great... while my son was a baby. Once he got over that one year mark the diapers were not holding up as well, he experienced a lot of leaks and their overall quality seemed to have gone downhill. You could smell the urine the second he would pee. Just to make sure this was not only happening to my child, I spoke with a few other mothers who had experienced the same thing. I have tried Luvs on my six month old daughter and the cut of the diaper is just too square it doesn't fit her body properly.

Another diaper to try is the Target brand diaper. These diapers are very cheap, and for the money you spend, they hold up. It will cost you $10.59 for a package of 112 count size 1 diapers of the Target Brand. Breaking it down, you are only paying .094 cents per diaper. This is a large difference from the other three diapers, but then again you are only paying for the quality you get. I tried these diapers recently on my six month old and every night she would wake up with her clothes soaked from peeing through the diaper. I switched back to Huggies when the package of Target brand was finished and she was dry throughout the night once again. The Target diapers are thin and flimsy on the sides with rough Velcro fastener tabs. These tabs are wide and do not always stick very well, sometimes rubbing on the baby's skin. All in all, if you do not have a lot of money to spend and can spare a few leaks here and there in the night, these diapers will work for you.

You will be paying about the same as for the Target brand if you choose to buy Wal-Mart's brand Parents Choice diapers. These in my opinion are made the same and hold the same as the Target brand. They are okay for a younger baby, as long as the skin does not become irritated, but once the baby is over the two month mark, I would not recommend them.

Once you break it all down you can see that when you pay a few extra dollars it is usually worth it. The cheaper brands are just that, cheap. They are made with low cost in mind. A few of these low cost diaper varieties have caused rashes on my children. For my children, Huggies diapers win. With their great leak protection, good fit, and a price that doesn't break the bank, these diapers are the choice for me. Of course, you may have had a different experience and you will have to remember that every baby is different. What works for one baby may not be what is best for the next.