The Best Overnight Diapers to Keep Your Baby Dry and (🤞) Asleep
Nighttime diapers can help your baby stay comfortable for up to 12 hours—these are our favorites.
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Changing a diaper may not be fun, but it’s a parenting reality that you’ll soon be able to do with your eyes closed. But changing your little one's diaper + crib sheet + pajamas at 2 a.m.? Pass.
Overnight diapers to the rescue. A good nighttime diaper can keep your baby dry and comfortable for up to 12 hours. “The benefit of an overnight diaper is that it absorbs a larger volume and usually wicks moisture away from the skin faster,” explains Giovanna Otavalo, a certified doula at Partum Health. “This helps address a baby’s waking from feeling a cold diaper, as well as minimize diaper leaks.”
After researching and testing overnight diapers and analyzing feedback from thousands of parents, we think Pampers Swaddlers Overnights are the best nighttime diapers for most babies (and most parents). They’re ultra-absorbent, do an excellent job of wicking moisture away from baby’s sensitive skin and are soft and comfortable through hours of overnight wear. We also chose three other top picks—and a diaper booster pad—for a few more options.
Why Trust Babylist?
Babylist is the expert in baby; we know baby gear inside and out. We talk with parents face-to-face in our showroom and on our user panels and hear from thousands annually via our Best Baby Products online survey. We know what items millions of expecting parents are adding to their baby registries.
Firsthand professional and personal experience. As Babylist’s gear editor since 2019, I’ve tested almost every diaper on the market, including numerous overnight diapers. During my diaper research, I spoke to a 35-year veteran chemist in the superabsorbent polymers space—AKA the stuff in diapers that allows them to absorb and retain a lot of liquid across a very small surface area. I once even ran a diaper testing lab in my dining room. (True story.) I’m also the mom of two kids seven years apart—so I’ve been overnight diapering on and off for about a decade.
Expert input. We consulted several experts in researching and writing this guide. Giovanna Otavalo is a certified doula at Partum Health, a Chicago-based maternal and family care company offering birth and postpartum doula care, mental health support, lactation consultations, nutrition, physical therapy and childbirth education. We also talked with Laura Hunter, LPN, co-founder of Moms on Call, pediatric nurse, podcast host and mom of five.
Diaper data. I regularly analyze which baby products our users are adding to their baby registries the most (and which ones they aren’t) and what our team of Merchandising experts—our buyers who are responsible for ensuring the Babylist Shop is stocked with the best and newest gear—is excited about. Studying this kind of data helped us choose which overnight diapers to narrow in on and which ones to recommend to new and expecting parents.
Feedback and reviews. I reviewed comments and feedback from Babylist’s annual product survey of thousands of parents, read customer reviews from hundreds of Babylist users and spoke to parents on our staff about their real-life diaper experiences.
How We Judged the Best Overnight Diapers
Best Overnight Diaper Overall
Pros
- Parent favorite
- 50% more absorbent than regular diapers
- Leak and blowout guards + moisture-wicking liner
Cons
- Strong fragrance
Thousands of parents (including many Babylist team member parents) ranked Pampers Swaddlers as their number one disposable diaper in our annual favorite products survey. These popular diapers also clinched the top spot as the best newborn diaper and won out in our best disposable diapers testing, beating out 10 other brands. So it’s no surprise that the brand’s overnight diaper is also on the top of our list.
Loved for their perfect mix of softness and absorbency, Pampers Swaddlers Overnights are 50% more absorbent than regular diapers and offer 12 hours of overnight protection. The diaper’s topsheet is moisture-wicking to pull away dryness, and the diaper features both a blowout barrier and a leak-guard barrier, two important features when you’re trying to contain a mess overnight.
The only downside of Swaddlers Overnights is if you’re fragrance-averse; these diapers do have a distinct scent. Some parents see this is a con, while for others, it’s a sentimental pro.
Runner Up
Pros
- Another parent favorite
- Core pulls away moisture quickly and effectively
- Wide, grippy tabs
Cons
- Outer diaper not quite as soft as some other brands
Another parent-favorite pick (Huggies Little Snugglers, the brand’s daytime diaper, was another top performer in our head-to-head diaper testing and excelled in our dryness testing), Huggies Overnites are the most absorbent diaper the brand makes. They’re specially designed for sleep and offer 12 hours of protection.
I especially appreciate the tabs on these diapers. They’re wide, easy to grip and even easier to open and close, making it effortless to get a good fit, even with a few adjustments. The way these diapers pull moisture into their core is also impressive—which is really important when your baby is in the same diaper for long stretches of time.
The only slight con here is softness. Huggies Overnites are soft, but they’re not quite as soft as other brands, like Pampers.
Best for Day and Night
Pros
- Work well for day and overnight
- Ultra soft
- Made with 25% plant-based material
Cons
- Expensive
Coterie’s diapers aren’t designed specifically for overnight, but multiple parents we spoke to said they work just as well as many of the overnight diapers on our list—and I agree. When my first son was born, I used a different daytime diaper and needed to switch to overnights as soon as he started solids around six months old. When my second came along, I used Coterie as my daytime diaper and didn’t need to switch to a different brand’s overnight until he was much closer to one.
The other standout feature of these diapers is their softness. They’re hands-down the softest diaper I’ve ever used and likely the softest on the market. They’re also made from 25% plant-based materials and free of fragrances, rubber, latex, parabens, phthalates and chlorine bleaching.
The downside here is price. Coterie are the most expensive diapers on our overnights list, and if you plan on using them during the daytime, too, the price can really add up.
Best Booster Pads
Pros
- Increases diaper’s absorption capacity
- Great for heavy overnight wetters
Cons
- Non-adhesive, so pad may shift during sleep
Many babies and toddlers are heavy wetters overnight, so it’s possible to use an overnight diaper and still experience leaks. Meet the diaper booster pad: a soft, hypoallergenic pad that slips right into your little one’s diaper and increases absorbancy by eight fluid ounces. All you need to do is place the pad seam-side down into an overnight diaper (you may have to play around with location to see what works best for your baby) and you’re good to go.
Sposies were a lifesaver for my first son who for a few months seemed to leak through every single overnight diaper I tried. After a little trial and error for placement, these solved the problem beautifully. Just note they are non-adhesive, so they will shift around a bit as your baby moves around during sleep.
Best for Toddlers
Pros
- Good option for potty-trained toddlers overnight
- Easy on, easy off
- Fun character options
Cons
- Slightly less absorbent than overnight diapers
If you have a toddler who’s either already potty trained or on their way, most will still need some sort of overnight protection—and that’s where Pull-Ups come in. These easy-on, easy-off training pants are designed for up to 12 hours of nighttime protection. (They’re not quite as absorbent as overnight diapers, but they generally work well, especially considering many older toddlers tend to pee less overnight than younger ones.) They’re soft and breathable and feature re-fastenable, easy-open sides in case your little one wants to use the toilet overnight or needs a quick change. They come with lots of different character options, too, like Mickey Mouse, Frozen and Toy Story.
If you have an older or bigger toddler who needs overnight diapers, check out Goodnites.
What Are Overnight Diapers?
Think of overnight diapers like a souped-up version of a normal diaper. Designed with 12 hours of leak protection to keep your baby dry throughout the night, overnight diapers (sometimes also called nighttime diapers) feature super-absorbent cores, often with around 25-50% more capacity than regular diapers.
“Regular diapers do a fantastic job of keeping things contained during the day, but at night? That’s when the stakes are higher,” explains Hunter. “Babies who sleep longer stretches (yay, progress!) are also producing more urine over those extended hours. This is where overnight diapers step in like the superheroes of absorbency.”
These absorbent diapers are ideal for heavy wetters (and for average wetters, too) and can help your baby stay dry and comfortable for long stretches of sleep. They may even help reduce the chance of diaper rash. They’re a bit bulkier than daytime diapers, but thanks to diaper technology, the best ones don’t look, fit or feel much different than your average daytime diaper.
Do You Need Overnight Diapers?
Whether or not you need overnight diapers will depend on how wet your baby or toddler gets throughout the night. Most parents say the need for overnight diapers begins right around the six-month mark—the time most babies add solids and water to an already robust amount of formula or breast milk, resulting in a greater volume of liquid and food intake throughout the day.
“Overnight diapers are particularly helpful as babies increase their milk/formula intake,” says Otavalo. “Most babies are consuming about six to eight ounces per bottle by six months old, so that is a good time to consider transitioning to overnight diapers to ensure that a wet diaper is not the cause of frequent wakings.”
“Every baby is different,” adds Hunter. “Some do just fine with a regular diaper overnight, while others need the extra absorbency. If leaks aren’t an issue, regular diapers are perfectly fine! But if you’re finding puddles in the morning, it’s time to level up to overnight protection.”
Just keep in mind that overnight diapers do tend to cost a bit more than your average diaper. “Overnight diapers are typically more expensive than regular diapers, but keep in mind—you’re only using them once per day (or night, rather),” she adds. “During the day, regular diapers work just fine since most babies aren’t sleeping long enough to need the extra absorbency.”
Overnight Diaper Tips
Overnight diapers are fairly similar to regular diapers, but there is a bit of a learning curve to ensure the most protection possible.
Size up. This is the biggest tip to keep in mind when shopping for overnight diapers. Most parents find it useful to size up in overnight diapers. You’ll still want to be sure the diaper fits snugly around your little one’s waist and through the legs, but a size up from your baby’s daytime diaper size will give your overnight an extra boost when it comes to absorbency and ensure maximum dryness.
Try before you buy in bulk. Just like with daytime diapers, finding the right overnight diaper usually involves some trial and error. Each brand fits differently on each baby, and what works for one may not work at all for another. Don’t buy big at first; instead, try a small package of a brand’s overnight diaper option first before committing to a big haul.
Remember anatomy. Boys and girls urinate differently, which results in a different wetness pattern in a diaper. You may have to experiment with a few different brands to see what works best for your baby.
Add a pad. Leaks happen, even with overnight diapers. (And especially when you start adding solids and water to breast milk or formula) Diaper booster pads slip right into your baby’s diaper and add an extra layer of protection for overnight.
Load up on diaper cream. Twelve hours is a long time to be in one diaper. Adding a healthy amount of diaper cream can help stave off a rash. “Babies with sensitive skin benefit from using a diaper cream with their last change of the night to create a protective barrier,” advises Otavalo.
Expert Sources
Babylist content uses high-quality subject matter experts to provide accurate and reliable information to our users. Sources for this story include:
Giovanna Otavalo, a certified doula at Partum Health, a Chicago-based maternal and family care company offering birth and postpartum doula care, mental health support, lactation consultations, nutrition, physical therapy and childbirth education
Laura Hunter, LPN, co-founder of Moms on Call, pediatric nurse, podcast host and mom of five
