I started cloth diapering my little one when she turned 7 months old and seemed to be developing an allergic reaction to disposables. I wrote all about the switch to cloth diapering and my first impressions on the blog (there is a link at the bottom of this article to that post). Since then I am still cloth diapering and loving it! Of course there is an extra task of laundering these diapers which you wouldn’t have to do with disposables but after adding this into my routine, it hasn’t felt like a great deal of extra work.
So to add a little cherry on top of my successful switch to cloth, I wanted to check out how much I was saving. I knew I would be saving a good chunk of change but when I ran the numbers for my current scenario and then I also ran the numbers if I were to have one more child, and also if I were to have two more children. The savings totally floored me so I decided to share them here with you all.
Here’s how I broke down my costs of disposable diapering versus cloth diapering. I began by adding up all of the costs I have for each diapering system for the next three years with one child. Here’s the general breakdown:
Disposables:
pampers $50 per month = 600$ per year
wipes $20 per month = $240 per year
bum cream $30 per month = $360 per year
disposable bags for diaper pail $15 per month = $180 per year
Total annual cost: $1380
3 years (for one child) = $4140
Cloth Diapers:
24 Diapers (recommended full set 26.50 each CDN) $636 = ONE TIME COST
wipes $20 per month = $240 per year
bum cream $15 per month = $180 per year
Cloth bag insert for diaper pail $15 for one $15 = ONE TIME COST
Total annual cost: 1071
3 years (for one child) = $1911
So basically, my calculations showed me that after only one baby for three years I would have spent $4,140 for diapering with disposables which was $2,229 more than cloth diapering for those same three years!
Then I decided to calculate my savings if I were to use those same cloth diapers for my next child. After two babies for 3 years each I would have spent $8,280 for diapering with disposables which was $5,064 more than cloth diapering two children ($3,216 for cloth diapering two children for three years each).
And last but not least I had to run the numbers for just one more child to see what the savings will be if I am blessed with three children eventually. After three babies for 3 years I would have spent $12,420 for diapering with disposables. This was $7,899 more than cloth diapering for three children ($4,521 for cloth diapering three children for three years each).
After running these numbers I think it’s safe to say that I am really glad I made the switch. Most importantly I made this switch for my little girl who was reacting poorly to disposables.. secondly for the environment.. and these savings were more than enough to confirm my choice was the right one for me. Hopefully this incentive will help others parents decide if cloth diapering is a possibility.
If you want to read about my first impressions of cloth diapering and why I made the switch you can check it out at the link below: MY SWITCH TO CLOTH DIAPERING
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