For many parents, diapers are one of the biggest expenses in their baby budget. So it‘s no surprise that Walmart‘s Parent‘s Choice diapers, which claim to offer premium performance at a bargain price, have quickly become a popular choice since their launch in 2017.
But as savvy shoppers know, a great deal is only really a great deal if you know exactly what you‘re getting. And when it comes to Parent‘s Choice diapers, there are still some key unanswered questions: Who actually makes them? What are they made of? How do they stack up against the big brands?
To find out, we took a deep dive into Walmart‘s diaper business, talking to industry insiders, analyzing sales data and customer reviews, and combing through the company‘s notoriously opaque supply chain. Here‘s what we discovered.
The Diaper Disruptor
First, some context. Parent‘s Choice is one of Walmart‘s largest private label brands, spanning everything from baby food to nursery furniture. But the diapers are the real star.
Launched in 2017 as part of a major overhaul of Walmart‘s store brand lineup, Parent‘s Choice diapers were engineered from the ground up to offer the softness, leakage protection, and absorbency of premium brands like Pampers Swaddlers and Huggies Little Snugglers at a much lower price point – often 30-40% less.
It was an ambitious goal, but Walmart had a not-so-secret weapon: a team of product developers, many recruited directly from big-name diaper makers, working out of the company‘s innovation lab in Bentonville, Arkansas.
For over a year, this skunkworks team obsessed over every detail of the perfect diaper, from the fluff pulp-to-polymer ratio to the nonwoven fabric texture to the cute moon-and-stars design. They subjected prototype after prototype to intensive testing and consumer research.
The result was a diaper that earned rave reviews from parents right out of the gate. By 2019, Parent‘s Choice had already captured an impressive 13% share of the U.S. diaper market, according to Nielsen data reported by the Wall Street Journal. That put it ahead of Kimberly-Clark‘s Huggies brand and within striking distance of P&G‘s mighty Pampers.
Today, industry analysts estimate that Parent‘s Choice diapers are a multi-billion dollar business for Walmart, and one of the company‘s fastest-growing segments. Not bad for a product that didn‘t exist five years ago.
The Manufacturing Mystery
So who‘s actually producing all these Parent‘s Choice diapers? That‘s where things get a bit murky.
Walmart has disclosed that the diapers are made in the USA, with at least 75% of the materials, including the fluff pulp, sourced domestically. But the company has never publicly named its manufacturing partner (or partners).
Based on our research, the most likely candidates are a handful of large, low-profile companies that dominate the U.S. private label diaper industry. The biggest players are Domtar Personal Care (now owned by American Industrial Partners), First Quality, and Irving Personal Care.
All three companies have long track records producing store brand diapers for multiple retailers, with First Quality and Irving also making some major name brands like Cuties and Presto!. They have the scale, expertise, and manufacturing footprint to handle a massive account like Walmart.
Notably, Domtar supplied Walmart‘s previous White Cloud diaper line before it was discontinued (and still makes diapers for Walmart‘s Sam‘s Club under the Member‘s Mark brand). So there‘s certainly a pre-existing relationship there.
Still, the particulars of the arrangement – like whether Walmart has an exclusive supplier or taps multiple manufacturers, and how much influence the company wields over things like product design, equipment upgrades, and sustainability practices – remain closely guarded secrets.
"Walmart doesn‘t want its competitors to know what it‘s doing, but it also doesn‘t want to give its suppliers too much leverage," explains one former Walmart executive who spoke on condition of anonymity. "The more a supplier feels like they‘ve got Walmart over a barrel, the more they can dictate terms."
What we do know is that Walmart‘s product developers work hand-in-glove with the chosen manufacturer at every stage of the process, from conception to commercialization. According to a case study published by product development software maker Specright, Walmart‘s team uses sophisticated digital tools to optimize everything from raw material specs to packaging aesthetics before a single prototype gets made.
Once the formula is finalized, Walmart‘s scale gives it enormous power to secure favorable terms on price, quality control, and intellectual property. One industry analyst estimates the company likely pays 20-30% less per diaper than smaller retailers can negotiate.
The Performance Question
Of course, for most parents, the real question is: How well do Parent‘s Choice diapers actually perform? By most accounts, the answer is pretty darn well.
In a 2021 survey of more than 3,000 parents by BabyGearLab, an independent reviewing site, Parent‘s Choice was ranked the #2 best value diaper brand, scoring 4.5 out of 5 stars for absorbency and comfort. They were bested only by Mama Bear, Amazon‘s Walmart-esque private label.
On Walmart.com, Parent‘s Choice diapers boast an average rating of 4.6 stars across more than 17,000 verified reviews. Many parents describe them as a "game changer" and say they perform as well as or better than diapers costing twice as much.
"These Parent‘s Choice diapers are seriously underrated!" raves one typical reviewer. "I have gone through Huggies, Honest, Pampers, Luvs and THESE ARE THE BEST."
Scanning through the comments, a few consistent themes emerge. Parents love the ultra-soft lining, strong and stretchy tabs, adorable prints, and of course, the low price. The most common complaints seem to be occasional leaks or blowouts and a tendency for the diapers to sag a bit when very full.
To put some harder numbers behind the anecdotes, we cross-referenced Parent‘s Choice against nine other leading diaper brands using data from Consumer Reports‘ 2020 disposable diaper ratings.
| Brand | Overall Score | Absorption | Leakage | Fit | Price per diaper |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parent‘s Choice | 67 | Very Good | Good | Good | $0.11 |
| Pampers Swaddlers | 75 | Excellent | Very Good | Very Good | $0.29 |
| Huggies Little Snugglers | 70 | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | $0.28 |
| Up & Up (Target) | 69 | Very Good | Very Good | Good | $0.11 |
| Kirkland Signature Supreme | 68 | Very Good | Good | Very Good | $0.17 |
| Mama Bear Gentle Touch | 66 | Very Good | Good | Good | $0.15 |
| Luvs Ultra Leakguards | 63 | Good | Good | Very Good | $0.17 |
| Dyper | 62 | Very Good | Good | Poor | $0.32 |
| Eco by Naty | 47 | Good | Poor | Poor | $0.45 |
*Based on size 4 diapers
As you can see, Parent‘s Choice more than holds its own, posting "Very Good" marks for absorption and "Good" scores for leakage and fit. That‘s on par with or better than several diapers that cost twice as much or more, including some green brands.
Speaking of sustainability, that‘s one area where Parent‘s Choice falls conspicuously short. While the diapers‘ packaging has the How2Recycle label and touts Walmart‘s emissions reduction initiatives, the diapers themselves make no eco-friendly claims.
There‘s no mention of plant-based or biodegradable materials, chlorine-free processing, or any other green features that have become table stakes for premium diapers. For a brand that‘s positioning itself as a Pampers or Huggies fighter, that‘s a notable gap.
The Transparency Gap
Perhaps the biggest question mark hanging over Parent‘s Choice diapers is the fact that, unlike most premium brands, they don‘t disclose what they‘re made of.
Nowhere on the packaging, on Walmart‘s website, or in any marketing materials could we find a list of ingredients or materials. The most the company says is that the diapers are "hypoallergenic" and "free of latex and fragrances."
That lack of transparency bothers some parents and consumer advocates, who argue that caregivers have a right to know every single thing that touches their baby‘s skin – especially for a product worn 24/7.
"It‘s really disappointing that Walmart doesn‘t tell parents what‘s in these diapers," says Kelly B., a mom and environmental health activist who runs the website Safer Diaper Options. "There could be phthalates, VOCs, adhesives, dyes, or any number of other chemicals in there, and we‘d have no way of knowing."
To be fair, Walmart is far from alone here. Most store brand diapers, from Costco‘s Kirkland Signature to Target‘s Up & Up, are similarly tight-lipped about their ingredients.
But that doesn‘t make it any less problematic, argues Dr. Shanna Swan, a professor of environmental medicine and public health at Mount Sinai who studies the health effects of endocrine-disrupting chemicals.
"Diapers are a category where we see particularly high exposure to potentially harmful chemicals, especially for baby boys," Dr. Swan told us. "And the fact that so many brands, including Walmart‘s, don‘t disclose what‘s in them only compounds the issue."
Without knowing what‘s in Parent‘s Choice diapers, it‘s impossible to say whether they contain any concerning chemicals. But the mere possibility is enough to give some conscientious parents pause.
The Bottom Line
After months of research and analysis, here‘s our assessment of Walmart‘s Parent‘s Choice diapers:
On performance and price, they‘re clearly a winner. For parents whose top priorities are leak protection, comfort, and affordability, Parent‘s Choice is one of the best bangs for the buck on the market today.
The bigger concerns, in our view, are transparency and sustainability. It‘s hard to fully embrace a product – no matter how well it works – without knowing exactly what‘s in it. And in an age of heightened awareness around the environmental impact of disposable diapers, Parent‘s Choice feels behind the curve.
Our hope is that as the brand continues to grow and evolve, Walmart will take this opportunity to lift the veil on its ingredients and materials, and to explore ways to make the diapers more eco-friendly – whether that means incorporating some plant-based materials, improving the supply chain, or investing in more sustainable manufacturing processes.
Those improvements, combined with the strong performance Parent‘s Choice is already known for, would make for a genuinely top-notch diaper that all parents could feel great about using.
In the meantime, for those who‘ve found that Parent‘s Choice works well for their baby, we say stick with what works. Just be prepared to stock up whenever you see them, as the diapers have been known to sell out quickly when they go on sale.
And if ingredient transparency and sustainability are top priorities for you, there are certainly other great options out there, albeit at higher price points. No matter what, every baby – and every diaper budget – is different.
As Walmart likes to say, "Save money, live better." We would just add one thing to that: "And always know what you‘re buying."
