Jack Be Natural

So you have read all the facts and compelling arguments on why you should switch to cloth.  One consideration which is as important as all the others, maybe even more to some, is the cost comparison between cloth and disposable.  We have argued that you can save anywhere from $2000 to $3000 per child from birth to potty training.  We extrapolated this from our own personal spending acknowledging that we could have made disposables less costly by shopping around for the best deal but at the same time knowing that people don't always shop around for diapers.  We ran the numbers several ways and every way you sliced it cloth diapers saved a lot of money.  Keep in mind that these savings are for 1 child!  If you have 2 or 3 then the savings really pile on. 

In case you don't believe our research, Consumer Reports found that cloth diapers can save you $1500 to $2000 by the time your baby is potty trained. 

Below is a cost analysis looking at 3 different diaper systems, cost of detergent and washing of the diapers and accessories (i.e. reusable wipes). 

Assumption 1: 3 year time frame which is the common duration until potty training is completed. 

Assumption 2:  9000 (15 diapers per day for the first 3 months then 8 diapers per day thereafter) disposable diapers being used for 1 child from birth to potty training.  Assuming buying a 100ct box every time from a price club that would be a total of 90 boxes.  At $40 a box, on average, you're looking at $3,600 for disposable diapers.  This is just for diapers.  Does not include wipes, rash cream, driving to the store and so on).

Assumption 3:  Assuming you use a natural detergent such as Crunchy Clean, Eco Sprout, Rockin' Green or Tiny Bubbles, you're looking at .14 cents per load.  The frequency in which you wash is the gray area since you can combine your kids clothing with his/hers diapers so if you are doing a wash for their clothing anyway you can reasonably assume that there will be some overlap.  We do a load every 2 days so we will use that as our bench mark.  The cost per load for washing and drying is all over the map depending on the washer/dryer (top load or front load and so on) but on balance it costs about .65 cents per load.  So, for a 3 year span you will do ~ 548 loads.

Please note that one BIG factor that is not considered in this quick analysis is that your cloth diapers, if cared for properly, can be resold and you can often recoup 50% of what you paid.  The best way to care for them properly is to always follow the manufacturer instructions and have a big enough stash so that the wear and tear is minimized.