It’s no secret, diapers take up the majority of the cost expense of raising children for the first 3 years of life. Between the cost of diapers and wipes, it is roughly estimated that it will cost $800 per year, per child. Keep in mind that this cost does not include clothes, travel systems, feeding supplies, sleeping equipment, or anything of the other much-needed necessities.
Therefore, it’s safe to say that diapers are definitely a necessity. The two choices that you have between Diapers are either cloth diapers or disposable diapers. Cloth diapers first and foremost, can save you the most money. This is the most cost-effective way of cutting the cost of diapers. Whereas, disposable diapers wouldn’t necessarily save you as much money. However, it is possible to save on disposable diapers. The good thing is that you do not have to be an expert to save on diapers.
I am no coupon queen, however, I have spent less than the average on diapers for the first year. I literally have spent $500 for the cost of diapers and wipes for the first time in raising 5 children. I am very proud of this achievement. In raising 5 children, I have definitely had my share of crazy expensive moments where I needed to have the best of the best at all times. I had my moments where I needed to have the best brands that existed. However, in raising baby number 5, I became a little bit more savvy and disciplined in my spending. Yes, you can say I became a frugal mama for baby No. 5.
Here’s what I suggest:
1. Start a Baby Registry
This is the easiest way to gain free diapers. Many people are going to want to bless you by purchasing items for your new baby. Therefore, creating a baby registry early in your pregnancy can allow people to begin the process of buying items that you need. There are many national stores that also provide goodie bags for completing a registry with them. Many times, in those goodie bags there are coupons that can save you up to $500. Just think about that, you can spend that all on diapers. However, they are also other useful coupons that they provide that will assist you and raising a child through the first year. In Target’s goodie bags, they also provide samples of diapers, wipes, and even bottles from reputable brands.
- Target (provides goodie bag)
- Walmart
- Amazon
- BuyBuy Baby
2. Start Stockpiling Your Diapers
With all 5 of my children, I have stocked up on diapers. I have begun buying diapers since I was six months pregnant. Typically, when I would see a sale on diapers, I would purchase a few boxes. I realized that buying diapers in bulk when they were on sale was the best way to save!
I would literally catch sales during the holiday season and purchase a bulk of diapers. This is where I found my most savings. However, I had to be strategic. I knew that I just needed a couple of boxes of each size. With all of my babies, the largest size that they all grew into was a size 4. Therefore, I would start buying diapers from size one to size 4. I wouldn’t typically buy size N for newborn because people usually gift those boxes to you.
This system is so effective for me because I didn’t waste any boxes of diapers. Meaning that I wasn’t buying too many of one size or too little of any size. Therefore, you really have to be strategic in buying in bulk. You don’t want to buy too many of one size and then having it to go to waste. However, if this ever happens, you could always try going to ask for an exchange in diaper size from most retailers.
3. Don’t Follow Top Brands
At first, I went with the most renowned brands such as Huggies, and Pampers. Therefore, I would only purchase those brands. There are many reasons why I preferred those brands. In my personal experience, I feel as though Huggies are more natural for newborns. I especially appreciate their hypoallergenic diapers for newborns.
However, after my babies grew out of the newborn stage and begun wearing a size 3 diaper, I would usually buy Luvs brand diapers. However, I have literally used many different kinds after size 3. It’s definitely up to your preference and your baby’s comfort.
4. Shop Target for Diaper Sales
It’s as though Target deals on diapers were the best-kept secret. Everyone knows that Walmart is a little bit cheaper than Target on most items. Therefore, I will shop at Walmart for most items especially my diapers. I will save about 2 to 3 dollars per box of diapers and Walmart compared to Target. However, for all of my other babies essential I will shop at target. Furthermore, one day while I was shopping, I noticed that Target had an awesome deal on diapers. The sale was spent $75 on diapers and wipes of any combination and receive an instant $15 gift card. Although the diaper boxes who are about two dollars more compared to Walmart, with a gift card I was having a bigger savings.
Ever since that day, I always shop at target for my diapers. I usually was stock up several boxes in order to get more effective savings. Therefore, I would spend about $200 to $300 on diapers and receive 3 to 4 gift cards in addition. Therefore, I strongly encourage you to check out Target when shopping for diapers and wipes. Target will give you the most savings on diapers with the utilization of their gift cards.
5. Save on Diapers Through Resell
Buying diapers through resale is a great way to save money as well. There are many couponers who purchase diapers at discounted prices and then resell them. They may resell them on popular apps such as Let Go and Offer Up. These are free apps that you can download onto your smartphone. You can literally save hundreds of dollars shopping second hand from these apps. Usually, there are tons of baby supplies available. Either people have purchased too much or had items that are in great condition that they want to get rid of. You know the saying, “ one person’s trash is the next person’s treasure”!
6. Join Diaper Rewards Programs to Save
Nowadays they have so many companies where they are sponsoring rewards. Meaning that if you are loyal to one or two companies you can save big-time by signing up for the rewards program. In doing so, with every purchase you will gain rewards back. Those rewards can be used for future purchases and can even stack up to earning free diapers. They are literally apps that are available to keep track of your purchases and earn points each time you buy diapers. You can literally save a pretty good enough amount over time.
Trust me, I was able to save on diapers after having 5 children! I definitely know how it is spending hundreds of dollars on diapers. It’s so nice knowing that there are better ways to save on diapers.
If you really want to save on diapers, I truly recommend you plan for it. Yes, planning ahead is your best bet for saving big. Wait for sales and sign up for different rewards programs that are available.
If you have any diaper saving tips you would like to share, please let me know your comments below. As I come up with new information, I will update this post. Don’t forget to save this pin! Thank you again for reading!
