Our Cloth Setup for Less Than $200

…because I’d rather spend money on baby snuggles and beef than diapers I throw away.

If you would’ve told me years ago that I’d be cloth diapering my baby—on purpose, and loving it—I would’ve raised an eyebrow and backed away slowly with a bottle of Dreft in hand.

Cloth diapering?

It sounded like a Pinterest trap wrapped in poop.

But here’s the thing no one tells you: once you get past the weird learning curve and the “Am I really doing this?” moments, cloth diapering can actually be… simple. And dare I say—fun?

And no, you don’t need a stash that costs $600 or looks like a rainbow exploded in your laundry room.

We built our entire setup for under $150.

And it works. Like, actually works.

The Moment It Clicked

It started during a grocery run when I tossed our usual jumbo box of disposables into the cart and felt a pang of guilt. I wasn’t just tossing money—I was tossing peace of mind.

The chemicals. The rashes. The cost. The waste.

Back home, I opened my browser and searched:

“Can you cloth diaper on a budget?”

Spoiler: You can.

But no one was telling the story I needed to hear.

I didn’t want a spreadsheet. I wanted to hear from a real mom who didn’t love the idea at first either—but who found a way to make it doable.

My sister in law and I had had our boys just a month apart. She was also interested in cloth diapering. We had a mutual friend that had a crunchy shop. She helped us understand all things easily and quickly. Between this blog and your decision, you can totally make this work.

What We Actually Bought (And What We Skipped)

I didn’t want 35 diaper prints and 7 different types of inserts.

I wanted one system that worked—fast.

So here’s what we went with:

🧺 10 Blueberry Simplex AIO Organic Cotton Diapers

Pricier, but easy to clean, great quality, very absorbent.

Cost: $290

🧺 12 Alva Baby pocket diapers

The more affordable option, easy to clean, surprisingly good quality.

Cost: $80 (they came in a bundle of 6 with inserts included)

🧴 2 wet bag when you're out and about + 2 pail liner for home

These handle smells like a dream.

Cost: $45

🫧 Diaper sprayer + spray pal

Yes it's essential...

Cost: $51

Total? $186

(Okay, okay—round up with tax.)

The Best Part? It’s Not Just About Saving Money.

This isn’t just about the diapers.

It’s about how I feel folding them.

How I don’t panic when we run out.

How my baby’s skin looks and smells like, well… baby.

Not baby powder.

It’s about reclaiming rhythms.

It’s about making slow choices in a fast world.

And sometimes—it’s about proving to yourself that you can do the thing you said you never would.

Want to Try Cloth Without Going Broke?

Here’s what I’d tell any mom wondering if this is for her:

• Start small. You don’t need 30 diapers.

• Pick one system and stick with it.

• Buy used if you want. Seriously.

• Don’t worry about doing it perfectly—just do it with love.

And if you ever need a pep talk mid-diaper sprayer meltdown, I’m just an Instagram DM away.

💬 Tell me below: What’s the one baby decision you made that surprised even you?

Or head back to the blog homepage for more raw, real mom moments that smell better than your diaper pail.