Ok, just to be clear. When I say need, I am talking the absolute bare minimum. Then we will talk about numbers of diapers that are more convenient to have. And then we will talk about how many cloth diapers we actually want…LOL…just kidding. I know we all want to…buy…all…the…diapers!
The truth is, you really don’t need as many as you think. The actual number depends a lot on how often you want to be washing them. Before you buy any read through our new to cloth page to see what else you may need. Also, check our recommendations page for our tried and true cloth diaper favorites.
The number of diapers needed varies based on the age of your child.
How Many Diapers at Birth
Newborns poop A LOT. I remember that it seemed like every time I changed a diaper it had a number 2 in it! They eat an average of every two hours. This also happens to be around the time they need to go. So it comes out to about 12 diaper changes a day.
If you want to wash every other day, 24 diapers seems to be a good place to be for the newborn stage. I only had 18 myself. I did a newborn cloth diaper rental. I got 4 different brands of diapers to try out and I hated one brand because they leaked every single time. I was able to wash every other day with the 18 I had. The 18 I had was enough to go through the entire first day and until the night of the second and that is when I washed. There are many moms that have less when they start. You could have 12-15 diapers and just wash every day. Cloth diapers are the best thing for your baby. Starting small is ok. Every cloth diaper change you do keeps one disposable diaper out of a landfill.
How Many Diapers Do Toddlers Need?
Toddlers (16 months-potty training) actually need less diapers than newborns. While it is true that around that age they start to poop more often again, they sometimes go a few hours in a dry diaper. So sometimes I only change every 3 or so hours as needed. Also at this point, they are sleeping through the night (hopefully) and only need one overnight diaper for those 12 hours. At this stage you could get by easily with around 18-20 diapers. (Again doable with less and washing more often.)
There are reasons to have more than that. I prefer to go 3 days between washes around here, which requires a few more diapers. Also, you can rotate which diapers you use so the same ones aren’t getting washed over and over again. This helps to extend the life of the diaper as it gets a little break from washing once in a while. To accomplish this you might find that 25-30 diapers is the ideal number.
When asking how many cloth diapers you need, you have to understand that this is not an exact science and there is no exactly right answer. The number varies slightly person to person based on age of child, how often you want to wash and if you want to have a larger rotation to help keep every diaper from being washed every single load.
What do you find is the ideal number of cloth diapers in your stash?
Jenn is a long-time cloth diaper educator and a passionate small business advocate. She has worked in the reusable diaper industry for over a decade, helping millions of families via her websites All About Cloth Diapers, Thinking About Cloth Diapers and Cloth Diaper Geek as well as hundreds of small businesses during that time. Her goal always to provide simple, reliable information.
Melissa says
I have 10 month old twin boys, I have 17 Wegreeco diapers (started with 18, but accidentally flushed one down the toilet?). I change their diapers about every 2 hours and do laundry once a day, and 17 is enough to get through the day with 2 boys (disposable diapers at night).
Elezibeth says
I don’t think it’s abnormal to need 20+ diapers for any age if switching to cloth from disposables. At least the first few weeks.
I CDd my first exclusively due to necessity. She cried from birth for a clean diaper. I never felt like I had enough in the beginning. Then she got used to it, potty training was hard. I washed diapers no less than every other day.
My second had a year of cloth, and nearly 2 years in disposables. Going back to cloth, she’s learning bladder control. 3 small pees for every super soaker. 18-22 diapers daily. It’s completely normal.
I have the diapers: I’m not buying that many pairs of training pants. And I’m not cleaning up that many puddles. Once it cuts down to 8, I’ll try again. But my mother gave her toilet anxiety at 18 months. I’m looking to start real toilet training at 8-9 diapers a day.
I suppose the point of this reply is, with my 2 kids, I’ve had 4 hour increments (repeatedly) with both where “bare minimums” wouldn’t have gotten me through. I was frustrated for years with these numbers that felt just thrown out there.
Diaper services have always been a no go, too, as their largest packages wouldn’t have lasted me 3 days.
Ps- my kids aren’t developmentally impaired, nor are they diabetic, nor are their electrolytes off. I did have that checked.
Otherwise, lucky for those of you who don’t have a Rubbermaid container full!
Elezibeth says
I don’t think it’s abnormal to need 20+ diapers for any age if switching to cloth from disposables. At least the first few weeks.
I CDd my first exclusively due to necessity. She cried from birth for a clean diaper. I never felt like I had enough in the beginning. Then she got used to it, potty training was hard. I washed diapers no less than every other day.
My second had a year of cloth, and nearly 2 years in disposables. Going back to cloth, she’s learning bladder control. 3 small pees for every super soaker. 18-22 diapers daily. It’s completely normal.
I have the diapers: I’m not buying that many pairs of training pants. And I’m not cleaning up that many puddles. Once it cuts down to 8, I’ll try again. But my mother gave her toilet anxiety at 18 months. I’m looking to start real toilet training at 8-9 diapers a day.
I suppose the point of this reply is, with my 2 kids, I’ve had 4 hour increments (repeatedly) with both where “bare minimums” wouldn’t have gotten me through. I was frustrated for years with these numbers that felt just thrown out there.
Diaper services have always been a no go, too, as their largest packages wouldn’t have lasted me 3 days.
Ps- my kids aren’t developmentally impaired, nor are they diabetic, nor are their electrolytes off. I did have that checked.
Otherwise, great post.
Paige LaGrene says
I have been doing a lot of research on CD and I still have some questions. My husband and I are currently TTC, but I am already obsessed with this haha!
My question is, are prefolds really necessary in a cloth diapering stash? Could the stash be made up of Pocket Diapers, Covers and AIO’s? And say use flower sack towels and the inserts that already come in the pocket diapers? Or would you recommend getting prefolds to have because of their absorbency?
I just feel like using a prefold with a snappi and then a cover is extra steps compared to just using an AIO or a Pocket diaper.
Thank you for all the information!
Jennifer Reinhardt says
There are many styles of cloth diapers because we all have different wants and needs. No need to use prefolds if you don’t want to. I suggest buying a little bit of a variety including different styles and brands. No cloth diaper works for everyone and you’ll find that you have things you like or dislike. Once you get to use them and get a better idea then go ahead and buy more of the ones you love.
Kimberly says
During the early stages, I found a newborn AIO to be the best (especially the kind with Velcro). There are some brands that the newborns fit until 16 pounds, so definitely worth the investment. I’ve used flower sack towels and prefold and actually prefer the FSTs over the prefolds. We like the pickman fold.
Denise says
I’m due in June with my first and have been researching cloth diapering. It is appealing to us because of the financial and environmental benefits.
Over my research I have found BumGenius to be the most recommended, with the pocket style to be highest rated.
I’ve read above that some of you prefer variety. Would I be making a mistake if I bought all the same style of CD?
I’m leaning towards the BumGenius 4.0 or 5.0 One Size Pocket Cloth Diapers.
TIA <3
Jennifer Reinhardt says
The biggest mistake any new to cloth person can make is stocking up on any one brand or style. No cloth diaper works for every baby and you will find there are things you like and dislike. Try something to see if it works before you stock up.
Allison says
Look up Tidy Tots!! I highly recommend them!
Annie says
I’m not even expecting yet, but I’ve always wanted to CD and saw a friend selling a KILLER deal- 26 OS bum genius pocket diapers, 1 OS prefold, and 63 inserts for $80 and I HAD to get it. So I got that bunch, and even though they’ve been through two babes, I’ll just replace the elastic in the legs and get so much good wear out of them I think!
I also want to diaper newborns, after maybe using disposable coming from the hospital and the first week at home- but I don’t know if the OS will fit super well on a newborn for the first weeks/months or so, so I want to invest in a good stock of newborn size. So I’ve purchased 6 NB AIO Happy flute diapers, 3 NB AIO THX and another 7 from an unbranded so maybe homemade (purhcased from seller on ebay). I got this set of 16 for about what I spent on the bumgenious from my friend.
MY question is, is 16 enough you think? Will i have to do laundry every day? How long do newborns usually fit in the newborn size (I know all babies are different) but I’m just curious.
Jennifer Reinhardt says
At the newborn stage. 16 would get you about a day and a half. To go two full days I needed 20. If you want to go 3 days. 30 or so would be a good number. How long they fit depends on the brand as some are sized larger. And also how big the baby is. My kids were both around 7.5 lbs at birth. They fit newborns for 3 months and then we went to the one size.
Mitchell says
I’m expecting my first in May, and I just placed an order for 50 diapers from DHGate. Every four days sounds good to me.
M Hobson says
Hi – thanks for your recommendations. My question is I’m thinking about pockets that I would actually just not stuff and lay the inserts in. That way from what I understand the covers can be reused. So…24 covers still with 24 insert sets? Just need to budget it out for my husband to understand. I should have insisted for our first, but circumstances were stressful.
Jennifer Reinhardt says
Hi, You can use any pocket like that. You lose the stay-dry layer. And you just wouldn’t be able to use microfiber inserts on top of the pocket as those can’t go against skin. But any other inserts work great. That’s actually how I use my pockets because I hate stuffing. You could reuse covers that are no soiled. Just lay them out after a change to let them dry. You could get a few uses as long as little doesn’t poo. And the thing is new babies poo a lot! I would say 24 is a good number at the newborn stage for 2 days. You could get away with less as baby gets older.
M Hobson says
Thanks!
Misa says
Just remember pockets and covers are not the same thing. Pockets have a cloth lining and covers have a plastic lining.
Sandra Caballero says
Awesome read! I’m new and still haven’t tried diaper cloth. Fear of the cost to buy more than two diapers and washing them in public with the poopy smell in a wet bag. But for sure I love to buy cloth diaper for a friend when she has a baby or my sister.
Tish says
Hi Sandra, I have been using Cloth diapers full time for 5 months since my Bub was 5 days old. When I’m in public I just put the entire diaper (poo and all) in the wet bag and deal with it when I get home. Wet bags are amazing. One shopping trip I had 6 poo diapers in the wet bag and couldn’t smell them at all.
Alicia Owen says
We are up to 13 one size covers and 2 newborn covers and honestly, it’s probably twice what we NEED. And we are on our second baby who is 2 months old. I wash diapers about every 3 days or so.
Hope Dickinson says
I am a single mom and started with 12 diapers (pockets ) I kept buying every time I could and building slowly. I found out that I didn’t like pockets because of all the time it took to stuff and organize. I then moved onto All in twos we chose best bottoms they are diaper covers with snap in inserts that you can re-use until LO soils it or its wash day. So basically you can get away with using 3 a day as long as you have enough snap in inserts to change out. I however used them like all in one’s and never re-use a cover so I ended up changing my stash yet again to smart bottoms. They are all organic cotton all in one’s they have everything you need built into the diaper so you don’t need to stuff with anything else they are ready to use. Which in my opinion is the best. Takes less time to put them away and I don’t forget to take out an insert or have to stuff after I do the laundry. I have about 50+ diapers and I go about 4 days before washing. I never have mold or stink issues. As long g as your wash routine is solid and you keep them in a spot where they get enough air flow you should never get mold. So I would say buy a few of each kind of diaper i.e. pocket, all in one, cover, fitted, and find which system works best for your LO. I also don’t have a heavy wetter so I don’t need to have the bulkier options. Pockets are nice for heavy wetting LO as you can add or bulk up a diaper to fit your lo. I also have wanted to try some hybrid fitted for nighttime. But I am waiting to sell off some of my other diapers first.
Mima says
I’m just planning to start cd for my 1st 19 month and my 2nd is due on April. Can you help me With how Many that is enough? Need directions Badly :)
Mima says
Ou almost forgot.. I Know it needs trial and error.. I would really like to get the pict on how Many for prefold/cover/fitted etc.. Thank you
Jennifer Reinhardt says
That is actually explained above. I’m not sure what you are asking me.
Tiffany says
We have 9 covers 30 or so flats 6 fitteds 14 prefolds 4 elementals 1 freetime, maybe 12 pockets and entirely too many doublers and mf inserts to count. I also have 5 fleece lined WAHM covers I dontreally care for but work nicely for an extended nap. I wash when the pail is full; about every 4-5 days as we dont have a washer and dryer. I hand wash and hang nightly anything with pul tho so they dont really sit. Everything we have is pre loved and bought off a locsl swap site. We started with a diaper loan, two small covers and 1 os cover. I have bought/sold and traded and gone full circle. Most of our flats are fst and recieving blankets. I know this isnt about cost but Ive spent over time maybe 100$ (my stash has prints snd some really nice dipes too!) and my list doent include my loan which as of yesterday has been sent back. LO is 4 months and I sent back more than we borrowed… everything that was too little :) Its safe to say, ill never go back to disposables… oh and i made half my fitteds out of prefolds.
Jennifer Reinhardt says
That’s awesome Tiffany! Thanks for commenting! :)
Neha Rathi says
Thank you so much for the great post. My daughter is 19 month old and I will be using cloth diaper for first time.could you suggest me which brand of diaper should I buy ? And her pee is big, I think she will need soemthing that can hold more quantity and no sagging.
Also I would appreciate if you can tell me any affordable store or website to buy it as well.
Maggie says
I have over 100 but I have a fluff problem I’m just now starting to sell them off but it doesn’t help bc I find more I like….it’s the thought right?!! Lol I want one more kid anyways what’s a couple more diapers….
Jennifer Reinhardt says
Absolutely ;) I think you can never have too much fluff!
Kristy says
I am still trying to decide what I want to buy. Out little one is coming in April and the baby shower is in February. I am thinking that I will do the wash everyday when possible (this is my first, so just taking care of them and the dog). I just don’t want to have to end up stripping them.
Jennifer Reinhardt says
As long as you have a good wash routine you should never have to strip cloth diapers Kristy. Try to keep everything as simple as possible. You can also go a good 3 or so days with out any problems at all. How often you wash in the beginning is more determined my how many diapers you have and how long they last before you run out and HAVE to wash! Congrats and good luck!
sue says
We have 42 flats 10 covers, 24 AIO bumgenius(12 freetime and 12 elemental) and 2 pocket diapers and I still wash them every two days. I am scared about going further in case of mold or something.
Kirstin says
I have a bunch of diapers, mostly because I was simultaneously diapering 2 until recently. Now I have WAY too many!
Lana says
I wash about 25 diapers at a time (every 2 days when he was little, every 3 days now). It is really important to us to avoid using the dryer if at all possible so in the winter that means 2 days on the line in our basement. So for us a minimum of 40 to not feel rushed to do diaper laundry or use the dryer!
Michelle B says
I had 18 prefolds, 3 snappi’s and 7 covers, we CD’d from the hospital, and it was fine. My DD is now one, I have 18 prefolds and 7 (flip and flip style covers) they work wonderfully. I have recently received 10 WAHM AI2’s and use them when we go out. (they are super cute) But the fact of the matter is, you can totally do it with 18. Yes, I wash every other day, but really, when you are using prefolds, it’s not rocket science, and it’s probably one of the cheapest ways to go. I don’t regret CDing this way at all.
Lisa says
May I ask what brand of newborn covers you used while at the hospital? Did they have the umbilical cord snap or scoop so that it didnt may directly over it? I’m wanting to cloth with my first from birth but having issues finding newborn covers.
Jennifer Reinhardt says
Hi Michelle, I did use ones that had the umbilical snap down. A great way to use newborns is also doing a trial or rental. Is that something you might try.
dancinglady says
I did newborn with either 24 or 36 prefolds. My memory is kind of hazy. For the rest of my cloth diapering experience, I’ve had multiple boys in diapers at the same time. I wash mine daily to every 1.5 and survived with 16. 8 ready to go for each boy. I have a different stash than those now, and probably have the same number for one boy. I would rather have fewer, high quality diapers than tons of ones that may or may not work as well.
Kelly says
I’ve been Cding 9 years with my 4 youngest kiddos, but only two started at birth. By the time our youngest was born last year I had about 24 newborn dipes and another 24 that were newborn/infant dipes. I could go 3 days before I had to wash. It was wonderful. I love my flannel newborn fitteds and my Mutts, but the most simple is the UBIPF w/a doubler of single layer bamboo jersey washcloth folded in 1/2 layed right into a cover. Easy Peasy!
Jenny says
Our second child is 6 weeks old now and we are using 30 diapers in rotation. I don’t feel that is too many at all. I wash them on the third day. We have 12 pockets, 12 pre folds with 4 covers, and 6 aio. This is a great number for us and lets me keep a couple in the diaper bag at all times and also not wash as often.
Michelle T says
I’m pretty curious to know what brand it was that leaked every time….
Jennifer Reinhardt says
Michelle it has since been redesigned so I can’t speak to the current version. However, the old version of Grovia’s newborn aio leaked every single time on my daughter.
Laura says
I am diapering a newborn (three weeks old) and a 2.5yo who has no interest in the potty. For the newborn, we have 20 diapers. For the toddler, we have 12. It’s more than enough, because with two in diapers there is no way I can go longer than washing every other day. For both, the majority of their diapers are prefolds. I have two pockets for the toddler for night time, and 2 AIOs and one fitted that were gifts for the newbie.
With my oldest, after trying absolutely everything and having mini stashes of every diaper on the market we finally settled on 12 pockets for daycare and 12 prefolds and 4 covers for home. That was when he was about 18 months old. And again, it was more than enough.
Because I have a tendency to slip into obsession with diapers, I NEED to keeps stash small and basic and functional. That’s the only way I am ever going to save money with cloth.
Linda says
When I teach cloth 101 classes, I’m often asked about how many diapers that are needed. I usually recommend 18 at a minimum since it is just a little more than a one day supply and will allow you not to have to race to wash. One the other side, I joke that if you have more than about 36 diapers in your stash you are working on an addiction as that is as a three day supply since you’ll be washing about every 2-3 days you shouldn’t need more than that.
Jennifer Reinhardt says
Linda, I totally agree 18 is probably as low as you should go. Also, what is this addiction you speak of? :)