Best Baby Wipes 2023 - Forbes Vetted

New caregivers spend thousands of dollars each year on diapers and wipes; in most cases, you’ll find yourself using baby wipes for years, even as your kids enter toddlerhood. In our house, you can find a pack of baby wipes in every room. We use them to wipe butts and faces and even to clean up typical kid messes. I’ve rounded up some of the best baby wipes according to my own experience, experts’ advice and feedback from parents.

“You want to look for wipes that do not contain any alcohol, perfume, dyes and are hypoallergenic, and free of parabens and phenoxyethanol,” says Dr. Laura Purdy, MD, a family medicine physician. Wet Ones Antibacterial Wipes

The best baby wipes are gentle on skin and clean messes with ease.

The good news is that there are many kinds of baby wipes available. And many are high-quality, too. I love Pampers Sensitive Baby Wipes, because they’re soft and kind to new skin, but we’ve also used Kirkland Signature Baby Wipes for years without complaints. If you want a wipe that’s fully water-based, the WaterWipes Original Baby Wipes are beloved by parents and experts alike. In fact, Samantha Eaker, a board-certified pediatric nurse practitioner specializing in pediatric urology, recommends looking for water-based and plant-based wipe options, which may be gentler on your child’s skin and help to avoid diaper rash.

“As you will be using wipes a lot on your baby's sensitive skin, you want to look for wipes that are soft and thick enough to effectively clean without excessive rubbing, reducing friction on sensitive skin,” adds Christine Hernandez, a certified doula, early childhood and parenting expert, and the founder of Allo Saratoga.

See our top picks for the best baby wipes in every situation below. After reading this story, you may want to peruse the best diapers according to testing or stock up on some of the best diaper rash creams.

Soft, hypoallergenic and skin-friendly, these baby wipes are a staple at many hospitals due to their gentle makeup, affordable cost and effectiveness. Pampers wipes are thick enough to handle most jobs; even if one isn’t enough, at only around 4 cents a wipe, you know you aren’t literally throwing away too much of your baby budget. They’re marked as hypoallergenic and fragrance free too.

Pamper’s one-wipe pop-top removes the frustration of one-handed use (after all, you can’t let go of the baby without risking a poop mess) and allows the easy dispense and release of each wipe so you aren’t stuck with a wad of wet ones with your hands already full.

The overwhelming anecdotal caregiver support for these budget baby wipes, along with the 2 cents per-wipe price, make these our value pick. I’ve used these baby wipes with my kids for years with no complaints and no rashes. Some of my favorite benefits of these Costco-brand wipes: no fragrance, easy to dispense and the sheer volume of wipes you get in each box makes for a great value alternative for caregivers who don’t need the tip-top quality for their littles one’s skin.

Kirkland’s use of Tencel fibers in its wipes is also important: Tencel is made from biodegradable plant-based sources, like eucalyptus, which are softer on your baby’s skin. Tencel also doesn’t require a formaldehyde-based preservative to stay fresh. Usually, Costco products require a yearly membership; but these wipes are available at both Amazon and Walmart (if you don’t mind paying a few extra dollars in lieu of a membership). Kirkland-brand wipes come with 100 per package.

WaterWipes come highly recommended by our experts, because they’re incredibly kind to children’s skin: They’re 99% water, with the last 1% being a cellulose-based material plus a drop of grapefruit extract.

Made by a father who was unhappy with his young daughter’s constant diaper rashes from less skin-sensitive wipes, WaterWipes were designed with a focus on minimalism and a dash of eco-friendliness. All that water goes through a seven-step purification process to make sure it’s as clean as possible and, according to the manufacturer, this lowers the surface tension of all that water which “results in a deeper clean.”

No plastic, no fragrance, no alcohol, plus only water and fruit—it’s hard not to love this super-clean option. “I loved these for the newborn months, because they’re extra gentle,” adds Rose Gordon Sala, senior baby and kids gear editor at Forbes Vetted. The only downside she experienced with these is that they can be hard to remove from the pack and sometimes come out in a clump of wipes all stuck together.

These Amazon brand Mama Bear baby wipes are also made from 99% purified water but are significantly cheaper than the original WaterWipes. Of course, they do have a few more ingredients than the more pure WaterWipes, including phenoxyethanol, which can potentially irritate skin. They are, however, free of alcohol, parabens and phthalates. They include a touch of cotton for a softer feel, and they also clump less than the WaterWipes, according to Sala. “I can definitely grab these out of the pack more easily,” she says. “And we never experienced rashes with these wipes, including on my eczema-prone baby.” These are a solid option for parents looking for a water-based wipe at an attractive price—just be sure to keep an eye out for irritation given the additional ingredients.

Much like the other water baby wipes, Pampers Aqua Pure wipes are made with a focus on sensitive skin, using purified water as the primary ingredient. They’re also made with cotton for even more of a gentle touch.

Caregivers give these wipes top reviews for how soft and thick they are. At 5 cents a wipe, these won’t break the bank or your little one’s sensitive skin, either. Plus, they’re durable: You can often get away with using just one, whereas other sensitive skin brands often require a handful of wipes to get the job done.

When it comes to cleaning up bigger messes, many parents prefer a thick baby wipe, which wipe kids clean better and keeps them feeling cleaner longer. Huggies wipes are on the thicker side in general, and these Natural Care Sensitive Baby Wipes from the brand are no different, with multiple reviews attesting to their thickness and sturdiness. Sala says she used these with her children, especially during the messy toddler years. “Because of the thickness, you often only need one or two wipes max to get them cleaned up,” she says. “I’ve always stashed a pack of these in the car, too, to clean up spills and sticky fingers.”

Made from 99% purified water, the wipes are free of fragrances, parabens and alcohol, proving safe and gentle for babies’ skin, and they’re also infused with aloe and Vitamin E to help keep skin moisturized.

Worrying about all the diapers and wipes you’re putting in the landfills? Honest Company’s compostable wipes claim to disintegrate in eight weeks. Made without plastics and alcohol, these aren’t washed in tough detergents like chlorine (which often leach out of landfills). And they’re only 1 cent more per wipe than many of the other wipes on this list. That said, in the past, we’ve found eco-conscious diapers to be a bit less-good at holding in liquid; reviews suggest that this issue comes up in wipes, too, and you may need a few wipes to handle bigger messes. Still, as one reviewer put it: “You get what you pay for!”

Given these are almost completely water, useful, biodegradable and without the premium markup, these are clearly the best eco-friendly disposable baby wipe. They also carry the National Eczema Association Seal of approval and the Environmental Working Group’s verified stamp.

Although these are not as widely used as they were a couple of generations ago, cloth baby wipes are still an incredibly good option for wiping kids down without filling up the local landfill. You can stow them in a wipes warmer to keep them ready to go. GroVia wipes are made using a particular type of cotton weave called terry cloth, which absorbs well. Plus, these wipes won’t break down—even after years of undergoing constant washer/dryer cycles. Several reviewers note that they’ve kept using their GroVia wipes for messes (and cleaning the house) even after their kids grow up.

At just over a dollar per wipe, this is a big jump over even the most expensive disposable wipes. That said, over the life of each individual wipe, that jump scales down significantly. Just plan to have your washer and dryer running more frequently.

The Forbes Vetted’s team has deep experience in testing and reviewing baby and kids gear—and includes a number of parents with years of experience in the category. We’re focused on sharing safe and useful products that make this parenting journey a bit easier and enjoyable.

For this story, writer Jenni Gritters tapped into the expertise of physicians and nurses, childcare providers and beyond. She spoke with Christine Hernandez, a certified doula, early childhood and parenting expert, and the founder of Allo Saratoga; Dr. Laura Purdy, MD, a family medicine physician; and Samantha Eaker, a board-certified pediatric nurse practitioner specializing in pediatric urology. Eaker is also a new mom herself and a medical advisor at Aeroflow Urology.

Gritters is also a journalist with a decade of experience reviewing kids products, outdoor gear and apparel. You can find her bylines on Wirecutter, Forbes, Slate and elsewhere. Most recently, she tested baby carriers and diapers for Forbes Vetted. She also has two kids, ages 1 and 3.5, and reports that “I’ve been wiping butts for nearly four years and have a lot of opinions about baby wipes; we use them for everything in our house.”

I spent a lot of time researching the best baby wipes. I read online reviews and consulted the parents in my community, but I also interviewed several experts, including those quoted in this story. Ultimately, I narrowed my list down to the options in this guide based on the materials used (including the presence—or lack thereof—of dyes and perfumes), price, their thickness and how well they clean up messes based on customer reviews and firsthand feedback.

I write about the world’s richest people and their businesses. I am a CPA and former Big Four financial statement auditor. I graduated from Miami University (OH) with a B.S. and M.S. in Accounting. I recently completed an M.S. in Journalism at Columbia University with an investigative journalism focus. I am a Chicago native living in New York City. Follow me on Twitter @DurotMatthew or email me at mdurotATforbes.com.

I am an accomplished author, journalist, and photographer who specializes in consumer technologies. Please visit my website at www.JasonRich.com and check out my eBook, \"iPhone 14 Pro Max Digital Photography\" (www.iPhoneBookShop.com). I am also the author of The Remote Worker's Handbook (Entrepreneur Books) that'll be published in March 2023.