It doesn’t matter if you’re hesitating to add diapers to your baby registry and staring at the wide diaper aisles, or getting your panicked partner out to buy diapers the moment you feel contractions – making a diaper decision isn’t easy! There are a lot of baby diaper questions that need to be answered, such as how many diapers do I need? How do I know what size diaper to buy? Is there a difference between diaper brands? Yes! Before you buy too many (or too little) diapers, let us help you zero in on the number of diapers you really need.
How Many Diapers Does a Newborn Use in a Day?
If you’re breastfeeding your newborn, there’s a good chance your child will poop after each feeding. (Because newborns have small bellies, they may breastfeed every one to three hours, or eight to twelve times a day.) At the same time, some breastfed newborns will poop only three to four times a day. (When your baby grows 1 to 2 months old, their poop will thicken and once a day or less.) We haven’t even mentioned yet! According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), your child may urinate every one to three hours, or as little as four to six times a day. So…What is the impact of diaper math? You should plan to use up to 12 diapers per day for the first month because diaper math is not an exact science!
How Many Diapers Does a Baby Use a Day?
While every baby is different, studies show that the average American baby uses 6 to 10 diapers per day. Kicker? The number of diapers changed five times a day is the average for three years of diaper changing, and diapers at 2 months old are the same as the Xi at 12 months old. When it comes to the real diaper volume crunch, AAP states that most American parents use nearly 3,000 diapers in their child’s first year! Here’s a monthly breakdown of how many diapers your baby needs:
- Babies 2 to 4 months of age: up to 10 diapers per day (or 300 per month)
- Babies 5 to 8 months of age: up to 9 diapers per day (or 270 per month)
- Babies 9 to 12 months of age: up to 7 diapers per day (or 210 per month)
How Many Cloth Diapers Does a Baby Use a Day?
In general, babies use 8 to 10 cloth diapers per day. It is generally recommended that you have a total of 20 to 24 cloth diapers – whichever style you choose. This gives you a little breathing room to wash your cloth diapers every other day. When using cloth diapers, you need to change your poop diapers as soon as possible, and you’ll want to change wet diapers…
- Newborns: Every 2 hours and before or after nightly feedings
- Infants under 6 months of age: Every 2.5 hours, nightly as needed
- Infants 6 to 12 months: every 3 hours during the day and as needed at night
How Many Baby Wipes Does My Baby Use a Day?
While it all depends on your baby’s poo, three to four wipes are usually needed each time you change a dirty diaper. But wet diapers are a different story entirely. The AAP proves that you don’t need to use baby wipes after every diaper change! (Exciting, right?) The reason is: urinating for a long time rarely irritates the baby, and today’s super-absorbent disposable diapers do irritate the baby. It’s done an excellent job of limiting the amount of urine your baby has come into contact with skin. Here’s their advice: keep wipes to clean up poop diapers. Also, know that wet wipes, wet towels, and even a quick flush of the tub can all serve the same purpose as baby wipes.
What Is the Size of Baby Diapers?
Need to break down baby diaper sizes by age and weight? Here’s a handy diaper size and weight chart:
Diaper Size: Premature Baby
Weight: Less than 6 lbs
Age Range: Premature Infants
Diaper Size: Newborn
Weight: Up to 10 lbs
Age Range: For the first few weeks only
Diaper Size: Size1
Weight: 8 to 14 lbs
Age range: B0 to 4 months
Diaper Size: Size 2
Weight: 12 to 18 lbs
Age range: 3 to 8 months
Diaper Size: Size 3
Weight: 16 to 28 lbs
Age range: 5 to 24 months
Diaper Size: Size 4
Weight: 22 to 37 lbs
Age range: 18 to 36 months
Diaper Size: Size 5Weight
: Over 27 lbs
Age Range: 3 years and up
If your baby’s weight spans two diaper sizes, it’s usually best to choose one size larger. (Diapers that are too tight can cause chafing and diaper rash.)
How Do I Know if My Baby’s Diaper Fits?
Not sure if your child’s diaper will fit? Check their belly button. A suitable diaper should be located below the navel. When your baby’s diaper is tightened, you should be able to use two fingers to slide around the waistband of the diaper and your baby’s tummy. Diapers should look straight and proportioned on your baby. Finally, it is best to check the tightness of the diaper leg to make sure there is no gap. (Place your finger under the cuff to make sure it’s properly placed.)
Should I Stock up on Diapers?
Yes and no. Yes, once your baby is born, it is best to be prepared and have some diapers on hand. But you don’t want to overdo it for a couple of reasons: you might end up with 300 diapers that you or your baby don’t like. (Leaking urine!) Rash! Wrong size! Or you may have diapers that are the wrong size. (Maybe you stock up on newborn-sized diapers, but you barely fit 10 pounds.) The best way to reserve:
- Consider your baby’s weight: Diaper sizes are based on weight, and newborn diapers are suitable for babies weighing up to 9 pounds. (Premature diapers are for children under 6 pounds.) If your baby is close to the average U.S. birth weight, which is about 7.5 pounds, you could theoretically store a month’s worth of newborn diapers, up to 300 diapers. But a few weeks may be a wiser move, as newborns typically gain three pounds in their first month. (Huggies, Pampers, and All Good Newborn diapers sold 128,140 and 100, respectively.)
- Focus more on size 1 diapers: There’s a good chance your baby won’t need these newborn diapers anymore in just a few weeks – or simply use size 1 and skip the newborn diaper stage altogether. Since size 1 diapers are suitable for babies weighing 8 to 14 pounds, it is wise to add more of these diapers to the baby registry than newborn diapers. Generally, size 1 diapers are suitable for babies under 4 months of age. (Huggies, Pampers, and All Good Size 1 diapers sold in 198, 164, and 198 pieces, respectively.)
- Try different brands. After a few diaper changes (and possibly some cases of leaky diapers), some parents start to gravitate towards a particular diaper brand. For example, a diaper brand works like a charm for a baby, but it might be a bit too big for your child. Because figuring out which diaper is best for your baby can take some trial and error, consider testing a few different brands before buying too much.
- Use your storage space! If you have space to store diapers, it’s helpful to know most of the time your baby spends changing diapers: they’ll be using size 3 and size 4 diapers. Typically, a size 3 diaper will last you for 5 to 25 months (16 to 28 pounds). Meanwhile, size 4 diapers are suitable for children between 18 and 36 months of age who weigh 22 to 37 pounds.
How Often Should I Change My Baby’s Diaper?
Dr. Harvey Karp recommends changing your baby’s diaper about every two to three hours and whenever you notice your baby pooping. This is important because peeing and pooping can irritate the baby’s sensitive diaper area and cause diaper rash. Baby stool is particularly acidic – especially in the first few weeks of life. When urine stays in a baby’s diaper for too long, it turns into ammonia, which is very irritating.
How Often Should I Change My Baby’s Overnight Diaper?
If your baby is sleeping soundly, then there’s no need to wake them up to change their diaper – unless, of course, their diaper is leaking and making a mess. If you’re providing your baby with a dream feed, be aware that you don’t need to automatically change your baby’s diaper in advance. But if your baby’s diaper is dirty, change it before feeding.
To help keep your baby dry and free of diaper rash at night, follow these tips:
- Spend the night in the most absorbent diaper you can find. Many diaper companies sell overnight diapers made of superabsorbent materials and leak-proof devices that are specifically designed to keep your baby dry for longer.
- Make sure your baby’s diaper (and onesie) isn’t too tight, as this can lead to chafing and rashes.
- Applying a thick layer of zinc oxide base cream to areas where your baby is prone to rashes can help prevent diaper rash. Vaseline also has a good effect. (You don’t have to wash off the diaper cream between diaper changes unless the diaper gets bigger.) Just apply diaper cream as needed.)
- If you’re using cloth diapers, add a multiplier or extra padding to increase absorption.