Parents weighing up cloth nappies tend to land on the same questions fairly quickly: what does it actually cost compared with disposables, what happens to the environment — and what are the materials sitting against the skin?
The short answer is that it's your choice. The longer answer is about what you actually know when you make that decision. Cost, environmental impact and materials — there are real numbers on all of it, and that's what we go through here.
The cost — what do the numbers show?
The simplest place to start is to count the whole nappy changing period. Most children are out of nappies somewhere between 2.5 and 3 years.
Disposables. We price against the mid-priced nappy: SEK 2.90 each. How we work it out, item by item, is in Cloth nappies: save money and make a difference. Across the whole period a child needs roughly 5,400 nappies, and on top of that come the wipes, counted at six at every third change. Altogether the disposable route lands at around SEK 21,200.
Cloth nappies require an investment up front. A practical base set — enough to manage everyday life with a wash every third day — lands at SEK 3,400–4,600 to buy in, cloth wipes included. One nappy wash costs SEK 9 in electricity, water and detergent, and comes to ten machine loads a month. With the washing across the whole period, the cloth route lands at SEK 6,600–7,800. The base nappies are the same whether you have one child or three — the next child only costs the washing.
| Disposables | Cloth nappies | |
|---|---|---|
| Start-up cost | None | SEK 3,400–4,600 |
| Running cost, nappies and wipes | SEK 588/month | SEK 90/month (electricity, water, detergent) |
| The whole nappy period | Approx. SEK 21,200 | Approx. SEK 6,600–7,800 |
| Resale value | None | Yes — sell them on |
Compared with a mid-priced disposable, you save around SEK 13,000 over the nappy period. If you live in a municipality that charges for household waste by weight — as ours did during our nappy years — that can add roughly SEK 6,000. If the nappies go on to a sibling the saving is greater — the same nappies are used by more children.
The environment — what do we actually know?
One child leaves behind around 5,400 disposable nappies. In Sweden they go to incineration. They can't be reused.
Cloth nappies are used over and over — by the same child, and then by a sibling or a new family. It's a different relationship with the material.
What you can influence is how you wash. What makes a difference:
- Wash at 60°C — the right temperature for cleaning
- Air-dry the covers — they dry quickly on an indoor rack. The inserts take low heat in the tumble dryer, and a little sun tackles stains
- Run a full machine — if you don't have enough nappies to fill the machine, you can pre-wash them on a short 30°C cycle and then add them to another 60°C load
The most important thing is to use what you buy and look after it. That's where reusables make the biggest difference. There's more on reducing waste and the environmental upsides of cloth nappies in a guide of its own.
The materials against the skin
Our materials are OEKO-TEX Standard 100 certified. The standard allows no intentionally added PFAS and sets limit values for other harmful substances.
The Basic pocket and Basic inserts are tested by SGS.
It doesn't have to be either/or
Many families run a combination. Cloth in the daytime, disposables when you're away for a couple of days, perhaps disposables in the first weeks with a newborn. That's a perfectly reasonable setup.
The cost benefits apply in proportion to how much you actually use the cloth nappies. Environmentally, the same holds. The most important thing is to have a setup that genuinely works in everyday life — otherwise the nappies end up in a drawer, unused.
Common questions
Are cloth nappies really cheaper once you count in all the washing?
Yes, for most families. The washing costs around SEK 90 a month in electricity, water and detergent, against SEK 588 a month for disposables and wipes. The same nappies then go on to the next child.
Which materials sit against the skin?
Our materials are OEKO-TEX Standard 100 certified. The standard allows no intentionally added PFAS and sets limit values for other harmful substances.
What does a starter kit actually cost?
It depends on how many nappies you want and whether you choose a complete starter kit or build your own. We have kits in our Starter Kits set up to cover everyday life with a wash every other day. If you want to compare models first, our buying guide can help you choose.
Can you switch to cloth nappies partway through the nappy changing period?
Yes, absolutely. The most common path is to start with disposables, try cloth a little cautiously and then switch over more and more. There's no "right" moment to begin.
What happens to the cloth nappies after your child is out of nappies?
They're sold on, given away or saved for the next child. That's part of the maths — and a big part of the sustainability thinking.
Getting started if you're curious
There's no need to go all in straight away. Many start with a small test kit to see how it fits their everyday life — and that's exactly what our starter kits are for.
