How Many Diapers? - Tampa,FL

Updated on December 01, 2009
E.K. asks from Tampa, FL
35 answers

My husband and I are expecting our first baby in a few weeks. We are wondering about how many 'newborn' size diapers we will need...roughly. We don't expect to have a large a baby, just an average size. So what are some estimates? We're trying to avoid the 'we're out of diapers' scenerio! Also, about how long do they stay in size 1 and size 2 diapers? Just trying to get an idea from other parents who have been through this! Thanks ahead of time. =)

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So What Happened?

Thanks for all of the advice. We have one pack on hand and kind of figure that will work fine for the first several days and then we can go from there. Appreciate all the responses. Happy Thanksgiving!!!! =)

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G.J.

answers from Miami on

My babies were born at 6 plus pounds, I used about 120 new born diapers before going to size 1

Good luck - have fun!

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N.H.

answers from Tampa on

They can stay in the newborn size until about 10 pounds. So that can be anywhere from 2-6 weeks. I would guess about a month and with 8-12 diapers per day...that is an average of 300 newborn diapers. My 5 month old is in size 3 diapers, but he is bigger than most. He is already 17 pounds. He also didn't poop very much so we didn't go through diapers like I expected. Just keep in mind that you can exchange diapers if unopened so don't worry about having too many.

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S.Y.

answers from Tampa on

you can anticipate around 10 diaper changes per day. At Least! I had a wonderful gift from a family member who promissed to supply diapers for the first 6 months! that was a great help because you will go through them. I suggest shopping a bulk supply type store like Sams for what you need. You will save some $ that way. Good luck and enjoy every minute! they Grow soooooo Fast

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D.W.

answers from Gainesville on

I have to second the cloth diaper suggestion! I switched when my daughter was 4 months old and at 17 months old we are still using the same diapers! Talk about savings. And we don't have to worry about running out of diapers. We simply do a load of laundry. There are so many one size diaper options out there that is makes diapering super simple and cost effective. I love pinstripesandpolkadots.com and greenmountaindiapers.com Give them a look and you will be pleasantly surprised! Feel free to message me if you have any questions. And if you plan to have more children you can use the same diapers on baby #2 so that really ups your savings.

1 mom found this helpful
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M.C.

answers from Miami on

wow this is such a situation by situation question...LOL

Personally I found threw NB-2 that pampers were great for us...and the weights are such a great gauge!! My son was always on the bigger end of the spectrum...so we went threw the sizes in weeks...most days with a newborn you go threw 8-10 diapers as you change them with every feeding. By 3-4 months to may go down to 5-10 diapers a day...6-8 months 5-6 diapers a day...I would buy the large box from Sams of which ever brand we were liking at the time...most often those would last us 3-4 weeks

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L.W.

answers from Miami on

All children are a little different. Our second child bypassed size ones altogether. Two others needed size ones for about a month, which is probably the average if I had to guess. Our youngest needed them for two months. Size two, was also about 1 month. As for actual newborn diapers with the cutout, none of our kids wore those except at the hospital. I don't recall exactly how many diapers we went through. I think we bought one of those big boxes (at Wal-mart on the bottom shelf) once or twice a month.

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L.B.

answers from Tampa on

Expect the baby to go through on average around 14-15 diapers a day. Take my advice and keep the receipt and don't open them until the baby comes home. I wasn't expecting a big baby either and mine came out 9 lbs. 4 ou and never wore newborn diapers- he went straight into size one and we had all these newborn diapers to give away because we had already opened them and put them away in the baby's room. Congrats on your first child!

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P.O.

answers from Jacksonville on

Use the weight chart as a guide. If you have an average baby weighing 6lbs - 7lbs, they will lose and double their weight to about 8-10lbs. Depending on the type diapers you buy will determine how often you have to change them. Pampers brand keep babies pretty dry so it takes less changing. Look at the size limits on the newborn diapers, considering changing at least 5-10 a day, and that should determine how many you buy. They grow fast, so a rule of thumb is always to buy the next size up so you don't "waste them". Even if you run out, you can always buy one pack at a time!

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J.C.

answers from Fort Myers on

When my daughter was first born, I went through about 12 diapers a day on average. Then after a month or so down to 9 or 10 then another month or so 7 or 8. I then used about 6 or 7 for the remainder of the first year and a half until I started to potty train.
As far as size, every baby grows differently so it's hard to say how long your baby will stay at each stage. My daughter was nearly 9 pounds when born so I only used size n for a week and had to give the rest that I had away and used size 1 for a couple months before moving up to size 2
one of your responses said something about a box for $40 at babies r us, costco or SAMs also sells large boxes for $38 that have like 300 for size one. In time the savings add up.
Also someone mentioned cloth diapers, that is a viable option as well. Check out scuttlebutts.com. They are really good diapers and don't cost a lot. They are custom fit to your kid and can be adjusted for 3 sizes!!!

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M.F.

answers from Fort Myers on

ALOT!! Well I can't estimate as to how many of each E. but I do have an awesome idea to get lots of diapers!! Our friends threw my husband and I a "Diaper Party" when I was about 8 months pregnant. They invited all of our friends and their friends and parents, coworkers etc.. They provided lawn games, food and a kegs. All the intended guest had to do was to bring a package of wipes or diaper to come. Everyone had a GREAT time and I ended up with over 1500 diapers!! All different sizes and brands(some of which I had to return for other sizes or brands I preferred) Needless to say my son is now 15 months old and I still have 2 packages of size 5 diapers I am waiting for him to grow into. Our very social friends envited pretty much their whole neighborhood and we had an awesome turn out that led well into the night(my pregnant butt was in bed well before it was over, good thing it was at THEIR house) Just wanted to share our friends generousity and unique way of helping us out. Good luck and if you dont do what we did then just plan on ALOT of diapers for the first few months. If you buy too small or big you can always return or exchange them. Beleive me I exchanged at pretty much every store you could imagine!! Once again good luck and enjoy your new special love!!

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T.A.

answers from Tampa on

let me first say congratulations on your soon to be born baby! i dont think theres any "set number". it all depends on the size your baby will be, and how fast that perticular child grows. before i had my son, i had bought regular newborn diapers, but he turned out to be a premmie, so you can never really tell. i would possibly just start with a small newborn pack, then once the baby is born, you will have a better idea. some babies are even born to fit ones, or even twos. god bless you. mom of one toddler son.

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A.G.

answers from Mayaguez on

I would recommend you get a couple of bags or boxes and do the estimates yourselves. Babies seem to grow so fast, but each one is diferent. You might want to buy some cloth diapers for backup. Congratulations on your baby.

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A.M.

answers from Lakeland on

I just wanted to chime in and say that my son, 7 lbs 11 oz at birth, never wore a newborn diaper. He went straight to size one bc he was so long torso-ed. It all depends on the baby! Congrats and good luck.

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A.S.

answers from Tampa on

You will have to change more diapers if you are breastfeeding versus formula feeding. Expect to change about 12 diapers a day for breast feed babies for the first six weeks. Then about 8-12 a day after that for the next few months. It also depends on how fast your baby grows. I just had a newborn in the beginning of October 09 and we only could use the newborn diapers for the first 3 weeks and then started using stage 1 diapers and we won't be using stage 1 much longer because he will have grown out of them. We will be in stage two by the time he is 2 months old. My baby was 6 lbs 6 ozs at birth and is over 11 lbs at 6 weeks. Hope this helps, but every baby grows at a different pace.

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R.A.

answers from Boca Raton on

E., congrats on this joy in your life.
I strongly suggest using cloth diapers. They are not like people think. They are already shaped like a disposable diaper, you add a liner and when the diaper is wet you simply put it in a container just like you do with the disposables. The only difference is when the diaper pail is full you put them in the washing machine and save the environment from tons of damage by dumping and filling land fills. If one person were to stack their child's diapers on top of each other, they will reach the moon. I received this information from solid waste authority. The chemicals in diapers, the gels, etc are toxic and dangerous to keep up against your precious baby's genitals.
Cloth diapers are also much less expensive. I spend about $150-200 for the entire time my daughter was in diapers.
They are also great for transitioning to a potty as they don't give that false sense of being dry, and a multitude of other reasons.
I have a friend who sells cloth diapers online, you may be interested in just looking at them for an interest if nothing else.
www.kidbean.com
One more thing, another great thing about cloth diapers is they can be folded and snapped in different ways for the different sizes your baby is, as he/she grows you change the way you snap them and accommodate the growth

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K.T.

answers from Orlando on

I know you already got some great advice from the other moms but I wanted to tell you about a great website...www.diapers.com. You can order online, use factory coupons if you want. The prices are equal or cheaper than in the store and there is no sales tax. Best part is that you get free shipping for orders of $49 or more. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this website. They have your order to you within 2 days so you can just place an order when you see you're running low on supplies. Good luck and congrats on the new baby...BTW January is a great month- My son was born on Jan.18th!

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D.G.

answers from Boca Raton on

I healthy baby will dirty 5-8 diapers a day.

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Y.F.

answers from Orlando on

Congrats on your 1st baby!

It varies from child to child. My son was born at 36 weeks (4 weeks early) and was 8 lbs. He did not use an entire bag of NB diapers,and went right into size 1, were my daugther was full term, weighed 6lbs 7ou and used NB for like 2 months. it all depends on how big your baby is going to be. Start of with 1 box of NB and bless someone that is about to have a baby.

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S.S.

answers from Daytona Beach on

my daughter was 5lbs 15oz when born and i didn't have any newborn size diapers at all. i had to go out and buy them. i would say i used about 4 or 5 packs. my son was 7lbs 5oz and i used a few packs for him too. i would say for mine it was about a week or 2 worth of diapers. the other sizes, it really depends on how quickly your child will grow. my daughter was in a size 2 until she was over 1yo. she was only in a size 3 going to 4 when she was being potty trained. my son was in a size 4 when he was 1.

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I.S.

answers from Miami on

i would say roughly between 8-10 daily and then as they grow they use less.

K.C.

answers from Orlando on

Unfortunately it really depends on the child. My friend has a six month old that is in size 4 and my 9 month old is still wearing size 2 comfortably. I wouldn't buy more than one of the Sam's size boxes of newborns because many children don't wear them for long.

Good luck on your new little one!

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M.C.

answers from Tampa on

My son was in the newborn diapers for about three weeks. You go through a lot though, about 10-12 per day. We then moved to our cloth diapers. You may want to look into cloth. They are a lot easier to use than our mother's generation (no pins - use a a snappy cover or all-in-one, etc). With cloth, there are fewer sizes to worry about and you get a lot of use out of each. I recommend having about 25 or so so you only have to wash them every other day. Congrats and Good luck.

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R.W.

answers from Tampa on

Honestly I wouldn't purchase a bunch of newborn daipers. Some babies don't even wear newborns depending on their weight. I would just have a few on hand. When the baby is born then you can get more. Also all babies are different. My first baby went through about a dozen diapers a day but I changed her every feeding which was every two hours. My second baby didn't use as many because she slept through the night. Congrats on the new baby....

V.W.

answers from Jacksonville on

Everybody is saying basically the same thing, and they are all right. It all depends on the baby and even the way they are shaped, not just their size. A baby with really fat thighs (no, not all babies have them, and some are REALLY HUGE, lol) might need a larger size than one with particularly thin thighs...

Regardless, what I found was that stocking the diaper stacker or drawer with multiple packs of diapers is a big no-no. If you find that your baby is getting too big for a size, you can return/exchange an unopened bag. And you won't need a receipt (I never did anyway) so don't worry about that. Go ahead and have at least one package of the NEXT size up, so you will always be ready...

I wouldn't have more than about 2 mid-size packages of NB diapers. If you find that you need them, it is easier to send hubby out to buy another package than to deal with returning them.. .and lots of babies move out of that NB size REALLY fast. You WILL, however, go through around 10 per 24 hours in the beginning... so a package of 36 (is that how many is in a standard pack ? I can't remember) will last you around 3 days or so... After a week you'll have a better idea of whether your baby is going to need a bigger size within a day or two, or not.
My son was a "steady" grower and went through 'normal' length cycles in each diaper size. My daughter had really fat thighs until she was walking... She went rapidly from one size to the next until she hit size 4 at about 6 months old! Then she stayed there until she was potty trained just before age 2. So... you just never know.

Congrats on your pending bundle of joy!

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H.O.

answers from Miami on

Every baby is different it really just depends on how big your baby is when he/she is born. My baby weighed 8.1 when she was born and she was in newborn diapers for about 1 month. I changed her all the time because I didn't want any rashes. I would estimate 10 diapers a day.

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C.P.

answers from Chicago on

I was exactly the same way. I think we have 2,000 wipes in the house before I had my daughter! I don't really remember how many we went through, but it was a lot. We used the Pampers Swaddlers sensitive, which have a wetness indicator, which I'm sure saved us a ton of diapers. The strip tells you when the baby is wet, so you don't change a lot of extra diapers.

Also, a great piece of advice someone gave me... as soon as they get within a pound or so of the next size (not really with Newborn though), switch to the next size. It really helps stop the blowout! We've always done this and have only had maybe 2 blowouts in 13 months!

Good Luck and get lots of sleep now!

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M.L.

answers from Miami on

HI E. and congratulations! Unfortunately iy is really hard to estimate how long your baby will be in each size because you aren't going to know how fast he will gain until he is here of course. But in my opinion and experience newborn size dipers are a waste of money. If you are going to buy at all don't buy more than one small pack. Your best bet is to buy size one which is from 8-12lbs. Usually babies are born at about the 8lb mark unless you are having a premie of course. I had my third a little over 2 months ago and he is already in a size 2. He used size one until he turned 2 months. I bought a huge box of the size 1 at babiesrus that had 252 in it for $40 well worth it!!! it lasted me about 3-4 weeks you'll probably use around two of those until he grows out of it. Babies go through at least 10 diapers a day especially at the beginning. Remember though it all depends on how much he weighs when he is born and how fast he gains. Good Luck!!!!

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C.S.

answers from Miami on

Dear E.,

We had an issue no one else addressed. I had one box of newborn Huggies diapers on hand, but my son seemed to be allergic to something in the Huggies diapers. I had planned on Huggies because Costco sells them in bulk. We tried Luvs next, but couldn't do those either and ended up that he could only use the Pampers brand. He got hives from either something in those diapers or the tape...

So don't buy tons of anything that you will put on baby - diapers, wipes, powders, creams, lotions, baby wash, baby laundry detergent, etc until you see how your baby reacts. Sorry if this hurts your planning, but it is part of learning to live with the fact that you can no longer plan everything - baby has some say!!

Besides, you will go out with the baby, and baby stores are the easiest places to go initially since they have changing tables and rooms where you can breastfeed. My pediatrician told us it was fine to take our son out in public at one week old, including the grocery store. I was told to leave him in the infant car seat, and put a blanket over the part not covered by the canopy of the car seat. Or put him in the travel system and completely cover him with the two canopies.

Congratulations! C.

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S.S.

answers from Miami on

Usually two packs of newborn size is sufficient maybe one if your baby is over 7 1/2 pounds or so. Just don't open the extra packs and you can bring them back for exchange on the next size up. Those newborn ones don't hold very much so you will change them doubly more than you would if you put a little bit bigger diaper on. Good luck and remember plenty of tummy time from day 1!

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B.A.

answers from Tampa on

It really depends on the baby. My first child was very average in weight and length as a baby and she was in newborn size dipes from birth to 6 weeks, size 1 from 6 weeks to 4 mos, size 2 from 4 mos to 6 mos, size 3 from 6 mos to 18 mos and size 4 until potty trained.

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H.J.

answers from Tampa on

Keep in mind there are 10 diaper changes a day with a newborn and usually 40 newborn diapers to a package, you should get enough newborns for at least 2 weeks. On size ones and two's it depends on how quickly your child grows! You may have a petite little one like me and size one will last you a couple months or you may be in size 1 briefly... With our first we stocked up on one's and two's and just bought enough newborns for a couple weeks. I think we still had to run out though because he was in newborns for at least a month. My youngest grew out of them much quicker. I know you want to be prepared but just do the best you can and you will learn along the way. Babies (and children) are fantastic teachers! Congratulations!

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C.R.

answers from Los Angeles on

i had an 8lb 8 oz boy and we went through at least 4 diapers if worst comes to worst u can take them back...unopened... i seem to go through tons of wipes though lol my son was in 1's for a good amount of time hes 5 months old hes gone through about 3packs in a month 2's seemed to be the shortest amount of time cuz hes pushing a 3 already....also u may have noticed this cuz an ideal pack of huggies or pampers size N is about 9.99 for 40 diapers and 1 probably 38 (same price) and 2 36 diapers also same price lol as the size goes up u get less diapers for the same price....also if ur getting some kind of diaper genie buy the refils cuz you go through thoes pretty quick too :) good luck mama :)

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S.C.

answers from Sarasota on

Congratulations! Our blessing will be a year in January. You will be surprised how many newborn you will use. Our E. used them for a few months. Pampers makes a 1-2 size - loved it and she wore them for a long time before going to size 3. So don't worry you will run out of the "right" size - I also went up a size when she started sleeping longer at night just so I felt better she wouldn't have any blow outs. Enjoy!!

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L.W.

answers from Jacksonville on

Every Baby is different. I would just get 1 box of newborn diapers. Because size 1s start at 8lbs. If you stock up on diapers just make sure you don't open them. That way you can always exchange sizes if you need too. I was so blessed and got over 1,000 diapers at my babyshower. I didn't have to buy diapers til he was 9 months old. He stayed in the size 1s til he was 4mons, then size 2 til 10 mons. Now he is still in size 3 at 14mons.

J.M.

answers from Orlando on

Great question, and unfortunately the answer is, "it depends on your baby." If your baby is 8lbs or more (and both of mine were), you may just want to skip the newborn size and start with the size 1. I always bought the size 1 diapers in small packs so I wouldn't end up with a bunch of extra diapers that didn't fit! If you have a BJs or Sams Club membership, they sell Pampers in a size 1-2 which is sort of an average of those two sizes, and that seemed to do well for my kids. I wouldn't buy too many small diapers, though. The hospital will give you some diapers as well, so I definitely wouldn't buy more than an extra pack or two of the N or 1. They stay in size 3 and 4 for MUCH longer than they do size 1 and 2. I'd say you'll be out of a size 2 by the time your child is 6 months old, if not sooner. I know we were into 3s by then. Good luck to you and congratulations!

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