Two of the leading forces in the baby industry are Pampers (owned by Procter & Gamble)and Huggies (owned by Kimberly-Clarke). The most popular wipes that I hear about parents using on their kids are Pampers Sensitive and the Huggies Natural Care. When I had my baby shower my sister-in-law suggested we go with all Huggies. She has twin girls with extremely sensitive skin and she tried practically every wipe and diaper in the industry. Having twins, you can imagine just how many that would be! So on my registry, I asked for all Huggies everything.
Fast forward to my son just turning four months – photo for cuteness! 🙂
My son seems to have really sensitive skin. For instance, we can not use Luvs diapers on him for whatever reason, because he’ll get a diaper rash within 24 hours. When he was born, our hospital carried Pampers Swaddlers diapers and Pampers Sensitive baby wipes. That was my first time ever trying either of them. He seemed to do amazingly well with those in the hospital. Once we came home, we finished the Swaddlers and moved on the Huggies Little Snugglers diapers and Natural Care wipes since that is what I registered for. Within his first week home he already had a diaper rash. I just thought it was normal since he was sitting his in his poo sometimes, so we tried to change his diaper after he finished right away. We’re talkin’ around twelve diapers a day people. Can you hear the dollar signs cha-chinging?
We used Resinol on him and his rash diminished and we kept with our normal routine. A week later he had another rash, so it was Resinol to the rescue! Finally, I ran out of my Huggies Natural Care bag of wipes and decided to try my Pampers Sensitive that a friend purchased for me at my baby shower. She’s a die-hard Pampers fan! Once I switched to the Pampers wipes Eli had no rash issues at all. Here are some comparison photos so you can see the texture of the two wipes.
Huggies Natural Care: provides a gentle touch of aloe + vitamin E, alcohol-free, hypoallergenic, formula and fragrance free.
Pampers Sensitive: clinically proven mild, dermatologist-tested, hypoallergenic, and perfume-free.
Convenience: Both wipes come in soft packs, tubs, and refill packs for the tubs. I prefer the Pampers refills for the tub, because the wipes are broken up into smaller packs so the wipes stay moist. All you do is remove the top sticker and place the individual pack into the tub – voila! The Huggies refills come in a large bag and when you want to refill your tub you constantly have to open and reseal the bag to grab however many wipes you want out by hand. I will admit though, that the Huggies wipes come out of the tubs flawlessly and do not drag out additional wipes. I have always had an issue with Pampers pulling out multiple wipes during a diaper change.
Texture: You can see a big difference in the texture of the wipes. I’m a big texture person and am extremely picky when it comes makeup removing wipes and more. The Huggies wipes seem “scratchy” to me, but my sister-in-law would describe them as more having more of a grip for messes. I personally found the Huggies to always be dry with the first chunk of wipes then the bottom of the package would be overly-moist. Pampers wins the texture war for me, but it really is personal preference. I just feel the Huggies wipes are too rough for my baby’s skin.
Scent: The Huggies wipes have no smell to me which is a big bonus since I’m very sensitive to fragrances. The Pampers wipes have a light scent, but it’s nothing over-powering (especially if I can handle it). I’ve read reviews where folks think they smell like alcohol, but I tend to disagree. In my opinion, no scent is better than a light scent so Huggies does win the scent battle.
Price: A box of refill wipes for the Pampers plastic tub retails for $11.99 and comes with 448 wipes. This averages out to 2 cents per wipe. A refill box for the Huggies plastic tub retails for $9.99 for 368 wipes, which averages out to 2 cents per wipe. They really are comparable in price. There are varying box options for both brands, but those are examples of the box size that I would more than likely purchase at my Target store.
Cleaning: Both of the wipes do a fantastic job of cleaning up messy babies. Since the Huggies wipes are “stiffer” they are easier to fold and reuse during a diaper change. The Pampers wipes are thicker than the Huggies and a softer in texture, but they can still be folded for multiple uses. The Huggies wipes leave nothing behind on my baby once I’m done cleaning, while the Pampers does leave a wet “film” on my baby afterward but it does dry in a matter of seconds. I find this film to be moisturizing for his tooshie. I also find that the Pampers wipes easily remove small poo particles, while the Huggies just roll the particles around on the skin.
In conclusion, both wipes are great buys for the price. I think that it all comes down to your preferences as a parent, if your baby has sensitive skin, or maybe which wipes you can get coupons and deals on easier. After trying Huggies wipes out three different times (just to be sure) each time my baby ends up with a rash within a day. So for our family it’s Pampers all the way! Good thing I was able to exchange the wipes I received at my baby shower. 🙂
Have you tried either of these brands and have a preference for your baby? I would love to know the experiences you have had with them. Or maybe you use a different brand that you love.
If you’re going to be a first time mom, my suggestion to you is to buy a few different varieties of wipes rather than stocking up on one brand. You’ll never know what will work for you and your baby. 🙂
Feel free to keep up with me + Elijah on Instagram: IAMBEAUTYBEEXO
XOXO, Bee
i am beauty bee xo 