Store Brand Savings & Quality: A Diaper Odyssey Part 1

As you may know, I've been reviewing store brand diapers for the past three months. Here's a summary of what I've learned. It's long, so I''m splitting it into two parts. This part is about savings. Check back Thursday for part two, quality.

I don't know what I thought would happen if I tried store brand diapers. I suppose I envisioned pee running through them like coffee in a filter, soaking baby's clothes, his parents, and the furniture. I won't even describe the horrible poop scenarios I had imagined. But I was brave, readers, and my son's perfect little bum became a product tester for your benefit. I tried six premium store brand diapers available locally: Kroger Comforts, Publix Premium, Walgreens Premium, CVS Explorers, Target Premium, and Walmart White Cloud. Fatima, a.k.a. The Shopping Queen tried and reviewed the Costco Kirkland Signature diapers. Here's what I've learned:

Part One: The Savings:
There are two rules in diaper deals. The first is to know the per-diaper cost. The second is to stock up when you find a great deal. Premium diaper pricing is supposed to be confusing. That way you won't be able to keep track of the cost per diaper; Pampers Cruisers Size 3 comes in three different size jumbo packs alone. Don't get caught without a calculator. Plus, when I find a great deal, I stock up. I try to have a month's worth of diapers on hand. That way, I never have to pay full price because I've run out.

In the year that I've been tracking prices, there has been, I think, ONE week when neither Pampers nor Huggies was on sale. For a good sale, the CPD (cost per diaper) for Huggies Supreme and Pampers Cruisers size 3 is about 20 cents. There's no need to ever pay more than this for a size 3 or smaller diaper. Also, be wary of bulk packages. Premium diapers are often MORE expensive when you buy mega or super mega packages.

Store brands do go on sale, but not as often, and some go on sale more often than others. Kroger, CVS, and Walgreens diapers can occasionally be bought BOGO 50% off or BOGO Free. Other stores, like Target, rarely put their diapers on sale. It is also rare to find a coupon for store brands, though if you join the stores' baby clubs you'll probably get a few. Here is the CPD (at regular price, size 3) for the store brand premiums:

Target 14.3
Kroger 17.4
Publix 19.7
CVS 23.6
Walgreens 22.8
Walmart 14.4
Costco 16.2 (plus membership fee costs)

As you can see, the CPD for store brands varies a lot. Publix, CVS and Walgreens price their diapers about the same as the Pampers and Huggies CPD, so I would only buy these diapers again if they're on special. Bottom line, so to speak: If pennies are what matter most to you, stick with Target or Walmart, or be braver than I was and try the non-premium store brand diapers.

On to Part Two: Quality