*This post is numbers intensive, and as a momma who is REALLY bad at math I promise, in the end it will all make sense (or cents…)!! Keep reading for how to save thousands on baby diapers!*
“Baby’s are expensive”
It’s all I seemed to hear once I got pregnant, and after spending a small fortune conceiving this baby, it was the last thing I wanted to hear. My hubby and I talked a lot about it and knew were weren’t going to over buy for this tiny little baby who only cared about cuddles, a comfy place to sleep and food. We bought the basics, decided come hell or high water I was going to do my best to breast feed (formula is upwards of $150 per month), and were lucky enough to have a ton of things gifted to us – way more than we needed. BUT there was one thing that could not be avoided. Diapers. Baby’s poop. A lot.
I was told baby’s use over 2700 diapers in their first year, most are in diapers until almost the age of 3, and the average cost of a diaper varied from 20 cents for a newborn economy brand diaper to a whopping 70 cents per diaper for a size 5 high end brand name diaper. Talk about mind blowing and slightly overwhelming. Even if you go with the modestly priced diapers and add in wipes you’re talking WELL over a thousand dollars in the first year. A thousand dollars?!
“Nope, not going to happen”
We were just gaining traction on getting out of debt, had just gotten comfortable with budgeting and there was no way I was spending over a thousand dollars a year on diapers. Nope, not going to happen. So I hit the internet and did some research. I decided that even though you could slowly stock up on diapers, I was going to just dig in and get it all done as fast as I could. It does take a lot of patience and constant searching for the best deal. I was about to have a baby, move in to our new home and didn’t have time for the take it slow method.
For about 3 months I clipped every coupon, shopped every sale and stalked the clearance section at Baby’s R’ Us. I brought an estimated cost of ONE THOUSAND dollars for the first year of diapers down to an astounding $350. But do you know what? Our baby is 13 months now and we are no where near the end of our original purchase. Any time she grows out of a size I just exchange them for the next size up. I’m estimating that we have at least another year in diapers and wipes! Meaning that for $350 out of pocket our family got 2 years worth of diapers and wipes!!
There are so many other diaper saving tips I picked up along the way but Publix was the easiest and fastest way to save since we shop there so often. But don’t worry. If you don’t have a Publix near you, or you just don’t want to clip coupons there are plenty of other ways to save. I’ll include some of my best tips at the end.
So this is what I did.
First of all, ask for diapers or small gift cards as a gift. Especially if it is your first baby people will want to shower that little one with all kinds of clothes, toys and a million blankies they won’t need. So just mention that you have enough of the other items but would LOVE diapers. People just want to get you something to show you they care. Let them show you in a way that really helps your family!
Even with gifts you’re still going to need a decent supply of diapers, but at least you already have a head start.
Next, if you ever buy diapers without using a manufacturer’s coupon you’re crazy. They’re so readily available these days! Coupons.com is my go to and even though you can only print out 2 of the same coupons at a time, I found a loophole.
You have to put in your phone number and that’s how it tracks your 2 coupon limit. Well, I asked for any and every friend, family member, coworker and stranger’s number to collect my coupons. A little crazy, but no one said no to a pregnant lady.
Now, know your prices on diapers. Know when you’re getting a good deal and when you’re getting a “stock up now!!” deal.
These were my stock up prices:
- Newborn – $0.06
- Size 1 – $0.07 per diaper.
- Size 2- $0.10 per diaper.
- Size 3- $0.12 per diaper.
- Size 4- $0.14 per diaper.
- Size 5- $0.15 per diaper.
- Size 6- $0.19 per diaper.
- Pull-ups – $0.20 per diaper
- Swimmers – anywhere under $0.30 and you’re doing good
If I found diapers at this price I would get as many as the store would allow me to take!
Finally, know your stores and shop their sales.
There are so many great diaper deals out there and it’s really important that you find the ones where you can combine sale prices with store coupons and manufacturer coupons. This is where I found the most savings. I’ll give you an example of one of my best and simplest of buys.
Publix
Publix is by FAR my favorite spot for current baby diaper deals. If you have a Publix within 100 miles of you get to it!
Here’s the breakdown
- Publix put Huggies
or Pull-Ups 18-104 count packages on sale for Buy 2 get $5 off.
- Publix also has a Pamphlet in store that offers $2.00 off any one package of Huggies
- On top of that you can use a printable manufacturer’s coupon of $2.00 off any one(1) package of Huggies
Here’s how you do it.
- Buy (2) Huggies
- Use (2) $2.00 off any one (1) package of Huggies
- Use (2) $2.00 off any one (1) package of Huggies
Right now you pay $4.98 for 2 packs or $2.49 each
That is already a savings of 73%. That’s 73% of your money back in your pocket!
And as icing on the cake Publix accepts Target ad coupons. When you get the publix diaper sale happening the same time as the Target baby ad you better jump on that fast! Target “spend $50 on baby items get $10 gift card”, you can use that at Publix too!
– As a side note. This is for the couponers like me at 7 months pregnant. It’s not for the casual frugal mom who just wants to cut costs. The ones who aren’t afraid to stand in the customer service line with their 40 coupons and sometimes have to ask nicely to really make it work, BUT IT’S SO WORTH IT!!
It saves you that extra $10 which brings your savings up to 78%. It’s up to you whether the extra hassle is worth it, but for momma’s on a mission it can be.
Random diaper price saving tips for those that don’t want to be crazy couponers.
Clearance at Baby’s R’ Us, Target or Wal-Mart. Randomly you’ll find a pack of diapers that was either returned or ordered online and never picked up and they mark it down like crazy!
Subscribe and Save on Amazon. This can get you up to 20% plus they regularly have coupons to add to your purchase. If you don’t feel like going through all of the hassle of true couponing, Amazon is your best choice for diapers. Plus they’re delivered to your door in 2 days or less. An example for pricing would be Huggies Snug N’ Dry Size 3
Wholesale Clubs. This only works if you are already a member or know a member you can go shopping with. It’s not worth it to buy the membership just for the savings. Sometimes they have great deals, but remember your “stock up” prices!
Walgreens, CVS, or other local drug stores. Keep an eye on their ads. Diapers are something they actually have great prices on when they’re on sale, and often offer an incredible number of their “points” on the purchase. Their sale prices and points offers are only good if you have one of their membership cards, but they’re free! And those points translate in to cash which can be used for more diaper purchases!
This is a big one!
One of my go to money saving mommas, Jessica, over at Wise Little Hoots, has an amazing post on getting mind blowing diaper deals at CVS. She shows you how to easily combine coupons, store sales, and those “points” I mentioned, and she does so in a way that anyone can replicate!
There are so many more tips out there and one of my favorite blog articles right now is The Thrifty Couple with lots of tips and tricks on how they save.
Saving thousands of dollars on diapers doesn’t have to be as complicated as it sounds. Just like with everything I talk about with budgeting, it just takes a plan. Your family too can turn $350 in to 2 years worth of diapers. “Make our money work for you so that you can work less for the money”
*This post may contain affiliate links. That means that I may make a small commission through talking about products that we use, love and believe in. It is at no extra cost to you and helps pay for site fees! Thank you!*
“Baby’s are expensive”
Yes, they can be. Only if you let them. There is obviously extra cost involved when you bring a little person in to this world, but just like with everything budgeting related, it just takes a plan. A plan, some hard work and even a little creativity can save your family thousands of dollars a year.
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Have you looked into reusable cloth diapers or potty training at a really young age? That could potentially save you way more on diapers!
Hi Zack,
We did consider cloth diapers. They are a great option for a lot of people and, if done correctly, can really decrease your cost. They just weren’t right for our family. As far as the potty training goes, I’ve read some really neat articles on early potty training. This potty training was from an age of around 8 or 9 months though which is impressive, but again, not for us necessarily. We will be starting soon though. The baby is only 12 months and if she catches on quickly then I can give my left over diapers to a friend!
Awesome tips. I really need to start using coupons and going to different stores to check out different prices lol
It seemed so complicated before I did it, but now it’s so easy. There are great deals everywhere and as long as you know what you want to pay per diaper you know you’ll never get ripped off.
I just did a little tip of the day YouTube video on the sale going on at target right now. Doesn’t required crazy coupons and saves you 50%. Free money!