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Battle of the Brands: Pampers vs. Huggies

Posted May 8th 2008 2:10PM by Amey Stone
Filed under: Procter and Gamble (PG), Kimberly-Clark (KMB), Battle of the Brands

This post is part of our Battle of the Brands feature. Let us know which brand you prefer, and check out other Battle of the Brands posts.

In the world of diapers, try as other brands might to gain a foothold, it is really a Pampers vs. Huggies world.

Pampers, made by Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) has been the market share winner for decades and is P&G's top global brand. But Huggies, made by Kimberly-Clark (NYSE: KMB) has made significant inroads thanks to frequent discounts.

Consumer Reports estimates parents will spend between $1,500 and $2,000 on disposable diapers before their child is potty trained. With that kind of investment, many parents have strong views about which brand is best. Leakage control and rash prevention are the main criteria. Consumer reports rates Pampers (both its Cruisers and Baby Dry brands) higher than Huggies, mainly due to Pampers' superior leakage prevention.

Baby blogs also seem to favor Pampers over Huggies. And in my experience, I do think of Pampers as the "premium" and was surprised that when I actually checked price tags in my local drug store this week, found that they were priced exactly the same.

For my diaper dollar, I don't see much of a difference between the two. I'm all for changing the baby more often and buying a cheaper diaper. If you really put the diapers to the test with, say an eight-hour day at the playground without a change, you might find a difference. But my priority is to spend as little time and money diaper shopping as possible. Costco stocks Huggies in bulk, so that's what we have now.

These days, on a run to the drugstore, I might be inspired by Pampers new "one-pack = one vaccine" campaign with UNICEF to vaccinate women (protecting their newborns as well) against tetanus. Now through August, P&G will give 5 cents per package or an estimated $2 million (read more about "cause marketing" programs like this one).

On polling a few of my diapering pro friends, I was told of one pediatrician who recommended switching to Pampers to help resolve rash issues. Bloggingstocks colleague Jonathan Berr says his family has come to favor Huggies brand for their overnights and swim diapers, but Pampers for everything else. For anyone serious about their diapering choices, that sounds like good advice to me.

Vote in our poll for Huggies or Pampers as your preferred brand, and let us know in the comments why you love it.

Tags: Battle of the Brands, diapers, Huggies, Kimberly Clark, KMB, Pampers, PG, Procter and Gamble, UNICEF

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