Are you thinking about trying cloth diapers but you’re nervous about using cloth at bedtime? Or maybe you already cloth diaper your baby during the day but worried about cloth diapers overnight?

If either of these scenarios sounds like your situation, do not worry. You have come to the right place. Because I am gonna teach you the ins and outs of successfully cloth diapering your baby overnight without a single leak.

Why Should I Use Cloth Diapers at Night Instead of Disposables?

There are many times where parents will cloth diaper their baby during the day. And then at bedtime, will use a disposable diaper to keep their baby dry throughout the night. The biggest reason for this is they don’t yet trust cloth diapers to be absorbent enough.

(THIS POST MAY CONTAIN AFFILIATE LINKS HOWEVER, I WILL NEVER RECOMMEND ANYTHING THAT I DO NOT BELIEVE IN OR USE MYSELF. YOU CAN READ MORE ABOUT MY DISCLOSURE POLICY HERE)

But what if I gave you four real reasons to switch to cloth diapers and never go back to disposables again?

1. Disposable diapers are full of several chemicals. And they could potentially harm your baby and cause lifelong effects that are still not completely known. For example, there is much debate about how a disposable diaper can cause tons of heat to be trapped inside the diaper. It is also believed the trapped heat can negatively impact fertility.
2. There is also that comfort factor. I don’t know about you but I do not like to be uncomfortable when I am trying to relax and sleep. Cloth diapers are exceedingly more comfortable than any disposable diaper on the market.
3. Cloth Diapers are extremely customizable compared to disposable diapers. With these features, many cloth diapers can be adjusted to fit your baby size while also fitting their absorbency.
4. The last and final reason to give cloth diapering overnight a try is to save money. By ditching disposables and using cloth diapers, you can save thousands.

Goals of the PERFECT Overnight Cloth Diaper

When you think about what you want in a cloth diaper here are some perfect goals.

• First of all, I want my baby to stay dry all throughout the night.
• The diaper or diapers that I choose have to be extremely absorbent
• Lastly, I need a cloth diaper that will provide leak-proof protection for up to 8+ hours.

RELATED: 5 Reasons to Cloth Diaper Your Baby!

Overnight Cloth Diaper Options

Although there are tons of possible options for overnight cloth diapering, these are the most common.

Pocket Diaper with different insert options:

Just as it sounds, a Pocket Diaper is a cloth diaper with a pocket to allow you to add absorbent inserts.

Pocket Diapers also generally have a waterproof outer layer with stay-dry fleece on the inside layer that wicks moisture away from your baby’s skin. Pocket diapers are very popular because of their versatility. The fact that I can stuff any insert inside makes them awesome nighttime diapers.

All in One:

All in One cloth diapers are another type of cloth diaper that is just as described. They are all in one piece or pieces that can be detached.

Unfortunately, every all in one cloth diaper is not created equally due to their absorbency. There are several all in ones that are no match for other cloth diapers on this list simply because many of them aren’t as customizable.

However, I do love this all in one diaper for overnight and still use it today without any leaks.

Natural Fiber Inserts with a Waterproof Cover

Another option is to use flats, prefolds, or other different natural fiber inserts for overnight diapering. Just remember to use a waterproof cover along with your absorbent inserts.

RELATED: 6 Reasons Why I LOVE Flat Cloth Diapers

Fitted Diapers with a Waterproof Cover: 

Fitted Cloth Diapers are one or more types of absorbent fabrics that are sewn together. They are usually in the shape of a diaper and don’t require any type of folding.

Another reason that cloth diapering parents love them so much is that they are entirely absorbent. So instead of only having the absorbency in between the legs, the entire fitted diaper is absorbent. And this means maximum protection.

Nighttime Cloth Diapers that Did NOT Work

When I previously used cloth diapers with my daughter, we experienced several trials and errors before

finding a cloth diaper that would stand up to my heavy wetter toddler.

Of course, we tried the most popular overnight cloth diaper solutions. Like using a pocket diaper and stuffing it with two microfiber inserts that came with the pocket diaper. However, this option was very quickly retired after my daughter leaked through to her pajamas.

We also tried adding more inserts to the pocket diaper as well as substituting one of the microfiber inserts for a hemp or bamboo insert. But once again this combination failed as well.

It was beginning to seem as though we would never find a solution for cloth diapering our child overnight.

Cloth Diapers that Did Work

Finally, after weeks of failed attempts to find a leak-free cloth diaper solution for our then one-year-old, we decided to try using only natural fiber for absorbency. After seeing a video online demonstrating the absorbency of natural fibers compared to microfiber. That’s when we decided we should give it a try.

That night we stuffed a pocket diaper with only one 100% cotton flat that was pad folded. We also added a SUPER absorbent Thirsties Hemp Insert.

(I have had these inserts for over 5 years and they are still holding up).

The greatest surprise was in the morning when we found our baby girl completely dry. I was so happy to finally find an overnight cloth diaper solution for her.

The Best Nighttime Cloth Diaper System

We now love using a few different options to cloth diaper our son. This allows us to optimize our cloth diaper stash by using all of the diapers consistently. There have also been many times when we’ve been behind on diaper laundry and needed to create a nighttime cloth diaper in a pinch.

Of course, I have a few different overnight cloth diapers that I like to use for leakproof nights.

My first go-to nighttime cloth diaper is the GroVia O.N.E. This diaper comes with snap-in inserts that are super absorbent. You can use the GroVia O.N.E. with either a velcro or snap closure. This makes it completely user-friendly for every cloth diapering family. And lastly, I love how the diaper includes everything and I don’t have to add any absorbency for it to last all night. That is a huge plus for me.

RELATED: GroVia O.N.E. Cloth Diaper Review

In second place for overnight cloth diapers is using a fitted along with a waterproof cover. I love this system because fitted diapers are completely absorbent and dependable against leaks. This is my absolute favorite fitted cloth diaper in the world.

Finally, holding the last place is to use a pocket diaper with flats and a hemp insert. We have been able to perfect this diaper using a pad folded flat and Thirsites hemp insert stuffed in a pocket diaper for overnight. Now I have found that not all pocket diapers can hold their shape and prevent leaks with these two inserts.

Ultimately, I broke down and tried AppleCheeks Pocket Diapers for overnight stuffing and have fallen in love. The Apple Cheeks don’t leave gaps and also fit my baby like a glove.

Now it’s your turn

Of course, I am not saying that you have to use the same overnight cloth diaper that I use. But hopefully, I have left you feeling a bit more at ease about using cloth diapers overnight.

So do you cloth diaper your baby overnight? If so what are your tips? Tell me in the comments…