Best Training Pants

Buying guide for Best training pants

Training pants are designed to help your child transition from diapers to big kid underwear. Toddlers can benefit from spending time in these underwear-like “pants” that catch accidents without embarrassment. Given time, a child in training pants will develop the ability to anticipate bodily functions and head to the bathroom before an accident happens.

How do training pants work? Unlike diapers, a child wearing training pants feels uncomfortable wetness after an accident. Some training pants feel more uncomfortable than others, though, and it’s up to you to determine the amount of absorbency that’s best for your child.

Like diapers, some disposable training pants are perfumed to conceal odor. If your child has an allergy, or if you simply don’t want to mask accidents because you’re trying to potty train your child, check the label before purchasing training pants.

Key considerations

Cloth vs. disposable

Cloth training pants are reusable, making them cost-effective and environmentally friendly. Most cloth training pants are highly padded to keep messes contained. The wearer feels a slight discomfort when the pants are wet, which provides motivation for the child to use the toilet in a timely manner.

On the downside, cloth training pants vary in absorbency, and you must wash them after every wear. Cloth pants aren’t sold in large packs like disposable pants are: most packages contain two to four pairs. This creates more dirty laundry for parents, although potty training might take less time overall.

Disposable training pants function like diapers, and many children find them easier to put on than cloth trainers. Their convenient use-and-toss design is great for busy schedules, but the pants cost more money and create environmental waste. What’s more, children often take longer to potty train with disposable training pants. The reason: wet disposable training pants are quite comfortable and feel a lot like the diapers your child is already accustomed to.

Seasoned parents admit that cloth training pants are more work, but they also tend to agree that potty training is a shorter ordeal than it would be with disposable training pants.

Washability

Cloth training pants are made of cotton. Some have a waterproof barrier to help prevent messes from spreading to furniture, carpets, and other areas. Many cloth training pants have elastic waistbands and leg holes to create a snug fit.

Because the pants are mostly cotton, it’s expected that you’ll launder rather than toss them. Invest in a gentle baby laundry detergent that won’t irritate your child’s delicate skin. Wash the pants in hot water to kill all germs. Also keep a bottle of bleach on hand to cut through fecal particles and destroy bacteria.

Disposable pants may be made of a number of materials, none of them washable: tissue paper, fluff, wood pulp, and chemical crystals known as superabsorbent polymer (SAP), to name a few. To attempt to wash a pair of disposable training pants would be to invite disaster (and possible destruction) to your washing machine. Don’t do it. Anyone who has ever seen a diaper explode due to oversaturation already knows what can happen.

Features

Comfort and ease of wear

Although you want your child to sense wetness and learn healthy pottying behaviors as a result, training pants must be comfortable enough that the child doesn’t mind putting them on. For example, if the leg band is too tight, the child won’t want to wear it. If the material is scratchy or makes an irritating sound as the child moves, they may not want to wear it.

The best training pants are not only comfortable but also easy to pull down and up again. Look for pants with a soft, stretchy waistband. Make sure you buy a size that is roomy rather than tight because this can affect how difficult the pants are to manipulate. If you go the disposable route, consider pants with stretchy, tearable side material. These pants are easy for the child to remove when standing and also easy for a caretaker to remove when the child is lying down.

Size

Comfort matters, but how do you know you’ve got the right size? To help you choose correctly, manufacturers provide clues related to clothing size and/or body weight.

By clothing size: Some companies list compatible clothing sizes on the package. For example, if your child wears size 4T clothes, reach for a package of 4T training pants. We’ve seen training pants in sizes from 12 months to 6T. However, you won’t find this large size range offered by every manufacturer.

By weight: Some manufacturers provide a weight range for which their products are suitable. For example, a package of “small” disposable training pants may be designated for kids between 35 and 50 pounds, whereas a package of “medium” pants may be marked for children between 50 and 65 pounds.

Design

Whether plain, printed, or decked out with beloved cartoon characters, the look of your child’s training pants could make or break potty training. If your child resists potty training, you want every possible weapon in your arsenal to entice them to the other side. For some kids, awesome-looking training pants are irresistible. You can use this to your advantage.

Training pants prices

Cloth

Cloth training pants cost $2 to $5 apiece, and most are sold in packages of two to eight. They are decidedly cheaper than disposable training pants, but, ideally, your child will get a lot more wear out of them over the course of the potty-training months. 

Disposable

Disposable training pants cost between $0.20 and $0.60 each. Packages vary in quantity, from 24 to 99 pairs. It’s not necessary to buy at the high end of this range to get something that works. However, at the low end of the price range, you are more likely to experience problems with leakage or poor fit.

Notably, the number of training pants you get for the money may go down with size. For $15, for example, you might be able to get 66 pairs of disposable pants for a size 4T child but only 56 pairs for a size 6T child. This makes sense because 6T pants require more material to make.

Tips

• Keep a lookout for leaks. If your child’s training pants don’t hold in liquid, check that the waist and leg bands fit correctly. You might need something in a different size. Also, note that some products don’t promise leak protection at all. These pants are for parents with a strong focus on potty training who don’t mind cleaning up messes.

• Know how to tell front from back. Your child is gaining independence, and you might not always be there to help them put on a fresh pair of training pants. Both of you should be able to discern the front of the pants from the back. Often, there will be a printed design on the front but not the back.

• Note that some brands carry more sizes than others. If you’re shopping for an older child, say one who wears 5T clothing, you’ll have better luck finding what you need from some brands over others. For example, one well-known maker of baby products only carries training pants up to size 2T. With such a large market, however, you’re likely to find the right size if you keep looking.

Non-disposable training pants usually have a minimum of three layers. At least one layer may be waterproof. Thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) is common: it’s a flexible fabric often paired with other fabrics to make them stronger.

FAQ

Q. I’m allergic to latex, and I’m afraid my grandchild might be, too. Do I have to worry about latex in training pants?

A. Probably not. In generations past, latex was a key component of disposable diapers and training pants. Today, the majority of manufacturers have replaced latex with spandex or a similar material. However, you should check the packaging to be sure. Many companies boast that their products are latex-free as a selling point. 

Q. I’ve seen disposable “bedwetting underwear” grouped on a store shelf with regular training pants. What’s the difference?

A. Bedwetting underwear and training underpants look and feel similar. In fact, a toddler who needs training pants could feasibly wear bedwetting underwear and gain the same benefits. But bedwetting underwear has a narrower target audience than regular training pants: it is designed for children who have issues wetting the bed. As such, there may be more than the standard three layers in a pair of bedwetting underwear. Also, the underwear may be available in a broader range of sizes in order to accommodate older kids with bedwetting issues.

Q. Do I have to buy “boy underwear” for boys and “girl underwear” for girls? What’s the difference?

A. Aside from color and print (“boy” training pants may be the traditional blue, while “girl” training pants may be the traditional pink), there may be no difference. In fact, many training pants are advertised as suitable for both boys and girls. That said, there are a few companies that place extra quilting in the front for boys and in the center for girls.