Last week for Works for Me Wednesday, I wrote about using Target brand baby wipes. Today, Dana's post on saving money on baby products made me think about another huge way I save money, using generic diapers.Unless I get a really fabulous deal on name-brand diapers (which occasionally happens), I generally buy Parent's Choice brand diapers at Walmart. The prices are slightly different for different sizes of diapers, but I just bought 104 size 3 diapers for $13.67. That works out to about $.13/diaper. Compare this to a box of 116 size 3 Huggies for $34.99 on Diapers.com (and this is a competive bulk price). That works out to $.30/diaper, which is more than double the Walmart brand price!
Now it is certainly possible if you are a serious "couponer" to get name brand diapers for significantly less than the regular price with sales and coupons, but in my area I have only occasionally found a deal that actually makes name brand diapers less than Walmart brand. If I do hear of such a deal, I take advantage of it, but I rarely even pay attention to the other diaper prices. I would venture to say that buying generic disposables may even be less expensive than using premium cloth diapers, if you have to purchase them all yourself. (Of course, some families may have other good reasons to use cloth diapers.)
It is suprising to me how few people actually do use generic diapers, considering the dramatic price difference. Yes, the name brand diapers have a few more premium features (e.g. extra elastic at the waistband, thinner, etc.), but as regards preventing leaks, I have never noticed a huge difference! In my experience, I would say that Pampers or Huggies might prevent 10% more leaks than Walmart or Target brand diapers. For me, that is not worth it for double the price!
I know that using generic diapers does not work for everyone. I have heard of babies with particularly sensitive skin being only able to use one particular brand of diapers. Also, I believe that different diapers work better for different babies. For instance, Huggies never fit my first daughter properly, but they fit my second daughter (who is a little chubbier) really well. You just have to figure out through trial and error what works for your babies.
For my family, using generic diapers has been a huge money saver and has really reduced the financial strain of that can sometimes come with a new little one!
Generic diapers works for me too!
ReplyDeleteI wish I could use them but they have not worked for me. I have tried them and my son leaks through and even the poopy ones are a mess. Glad you get to save more. I do coupon clip and look for bargains.
ReplyDeletei love aldi diapers
ReplyDeletewww.slovakmama.blogspot.com
great post. thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteWe used Parent's Choice brands for a lot of things, diapers and formula. Found them to be quite dependable. I love that I saved a lot of money by using Parent's Choice compared to the major brand names! They even have a savings calculator now to show you how much you save by using their infant formula! http://www.parentschoiceformula.com/baby-formula-savings-calculator.aspx
ReplyDeleteI've found that Walgreens diapers when on sale + using the in store coupon, if available, can come out to $2.50 a pack. I usually stock up. They are pretty good diapers too.
ReplyDeleteI've also noticed that RiteAid recently had a great deal on freebies so buying huggies at the same time came out to the transaction after rebates costing only a couple dollars! Not too bad for a name brand purchase. I've also been a fan of White Cloud diapers at Walmart.
I think I've spent about $250 on diapers for my daughters first year! Thanks to sales, coupons and generic diapers!