Here are the Best Sensitive Baby Wipes of 2018!
1. Bloom Baby Jumbo Sensitive Wipes.
About 4 cents per wipe on Amazon right now. These are very new to the baby wipes market, and are by far the best available. We first tested these for our 2017 list and were were amazed by how great they were. They smell great, they are durable and soft, they are large enough for several passes over a dirty bum, and the company making them (Bloom + Kind Inc) takes "sensitive" very seriously. They are 98% natural, without any of the harsh chemicals found in many wipes (like sodium lauryl sulfate, alcohol, chlorine or ammonium), but still contain an effective antimicrobial to make sure things are getting clean down-under. Made in the USA, these wipes are not only sensitive, they are also hypoallergenic and have never come into contact with nuts, wheat, or gluten. In our tests, even the most sensitive bottoms didn't show any signs of irritation or diaper rash after a few days of using these wipes, which is a pretty good testament to their effectiveness and sensitivity. The texture of the wipe is soft and flexible, with a little bit of stretch so they don't tear very easily. The texture is one of the best features: while most other wipes are smooth, this one adds a simple texture that helps immensely with cleanup! With pee, cleanup was extremely easy. With a poopy diaper, we folded them in half to ensure there was no break-through, and they were very effective. They are jumbo-size wipes, so even after folding them in half there is plenty of surface area to wipe effectively while keeping hands clean. We also liked the resealable packaging, which made it easy to keep the wipes fresh and moist without too much hassle. In our test, we only found one minor negative: when you pull out a wipe, the next wipe comes out of the package a bit too much before letting the first one come loose; if you leave it there without sealing it back into the pouch, a decent portion of that next wipe will dry out after a few hours. This isn't much different from any of the other options, and we're grateful that the next wipe is indeed coming out in the first place (which is more than we can say for some other options!). Overall, these are the best baby wipes on the market right now, especially given the relatively low price per wipe. If you want another excellent sensitive wipe option, check out our #2. (FTC Disclosure)
2. Water Wipes Baby Wipes, 99.9% Water.
About 4 cents per wipe. When our boys were babies these weren't an option yet, which is unfortunate because parents absolutely love them. In our testing, we found these wipes to be the least irritating for sensitive bottoms, a good thick quality with a tiny bit of texture to help clean-up, and a great scent. That scent is grapefruit seed extract, which is .1% of the ingredients; the remaining 99.9% is just purified water on a cotton and wool wipe. That little bit of extract does something great - it gives it a pleasant subtle smell and also helps with clean-up. Other baby wipes contain all sorts of chemicals, many of which we cannot (and do not care to) pronounce. These are chemical-free, hypoallergenic, and are really great at reducing the risk of diaper rash. Our reviewers thought they worked really well and did a great job of clean-up. They also commented that it was nice not to have your hands and baby smell like chemicals after a diaper change. There were a few cons, however. First, the wipes were a bit harder to pull out of the package than the competition; on the one hand this is great because you won't accidentally pull out more than you need, but on the other hand it makes it difficult sometimes during a messy clean-up. We suggest pulling out 2-3 wipes before unfastening a soiled diaper! Also, because this is a water-based option, the water tends to settle a bit at the bottom of the package, making the top wipes less moist then the bottom ones. There are a few ways to solve this issue, but the one we found helpful was to simply turn the package over once in a while to get the moisture moving throughout the wipes. Finally, we didn't find them quite as good as the Bloom wipes for cleaning up the messy stuff, but if you're looking for something that truly is just a cotton wipe with water, then that's a reality you'll need to deal with! Overall, these are excellent wipes for parents who want the best and most sensitive wipes for their baby.
3. Pampers Sensitive Baby Wipes, Hypoallergenic Perfume-free.
About 2-3 cents per wipe. These were the go-to wipes for three of the five moms who did this hands-on test. All of them swore by these wipes for their mildness, softness, thickness, durability, and scent. And you can't go wrong with the price either when you but them in decent quantity. You only need one wipe to get the wet jobs done, and likely 2 to get the dirty jobs done. That's because you can wipe then fold and wipe again. Not many other wipes are capable of that without worrying about things soaking through the wipe and getting on your hands. They are about 20% thicker than the Pampers Natural Clean variety, by the way. We also liked how they are very moist which makes clean-up easier. Some options like the Target Up&Up wipes are somewhat dry and rough. The Huggies sensitive are similar to these but not quite as thick, so even though they are cheaper you end up using more. Now for the negatives. First of all any sensitive wipe just isn't going to clean as well as the non-sensitive version; for example, the Pampers Baby Fresh wipes clean better than these, but they're not sensitive and don't do as good of a job preventing diaper rash. Second, we found these among the most oily wipes on the list. What we mean by that is they leave a thin oily film after wiping, which we are assuming is glycerine or another moisturizer. Nothing terrible, but in comparison to the Bloom or Water Wipes, it's worth mentioning. So if you're looking for a great, thick, sensitive wipe without any strong odors, the Pampers Sensitive is the right choice. If you prefer something a bit more natural, go with the Water Wipes. Note that the old Pampers Thick Care Sensitive wipes were even better than these, but they were discontinued a few years ago.
4. Babyganics Extra Gentle Hand, Face, and Baby Wipes.
About 6 cents per wipe. Babyganics has a great line of gentle baby products, including top-rated sunscreens, baby washes, and now baby wipes! In our testing, we thought these wipes were soft, sensitive, durable, and effective. In most cases, we didn't need to double-up on these to clean up a dirty diaper, which is more than we can say for most other wipes on this list. We also found them to leave a nice moist residue without any oily film left on the hands or bum, which is more than we can say for the Pampers Sensitive Baby Wipes (below). They also seemed to be very gentle on even the most sensitive cheeks and bums, and we didn't notice any increase in diaper rash or other symptoms of sensitivity. Not so surprising given the high quality, fragrance-free sensitive ingredients, including chamomile and several natural seed oils. The packaging was a little awkward to work with, and we couldn't find anything larger than a pack of 40 wipes, which is great for travel but means you're replacing them frequently around the home. There are pros and cons to that: pros are that the wipes tend to stay moist throughout the package without needing to periodically flip the package over, and it makes for a nice travel pack for your diaper bag. But the cons include the environmental impact of trashing the old packaging every few days, and not being able to purchase in relative bulk (which we believe is one aspect keeping the price high). We also didn't really like the odor. We got used to it with time, but the lack of fragrances made for odd smelling wipes, likely from some of the seed oils. Not a bad odor per se, just a little off-putting. We also don't appreciate the misleading connotation of the Babyganics branding, which suggests organic products (which they are not). In any event, if you can handle the price and want an excellent and highly effective (but maybe a bit smelly) baby wipe, this is definitely a great option for you!
5. Amazon Elements Sensitive Baby Wipes.
About 2 cents per wipe. These are new to the market, and are getting some excellent reviews from consumers. This was our first year trying them out, and we were very impressed! These wipes are marketed as sensitive and high transparency for ingredients and ingredient sourcing. The wipes contain about 98% purified water, chamomile flower extract to help soothe sensitive skin, two cleansers (one derived from coconut oil, one unnatural), some pH balancers, and some preservatives to reduce bacteria growth. Note that one of the preservatives is phenoxyethanol, which is also in the Pambers and Huggies, and a potentially irritating ingredient. They do not contain any parabens, alcohol, dyes, phthalates, methylisothiazolinone, and a few other particularly harmful ingredients. So in terms of ingredients, they are quite similar to the Pampers and Huggies. They are also similar to the Pampers in terms of odor (or lack thereof), size, texture, and effectiveness. In our tests, we really liked these wipes and think they are on par with the Pampers. However, they were a bit on the thinner side, which was the only drawback relative to ones higher on this list. But overall pretty great for the price, unless you want to move toward a more natural wipe alternative, like the Water Wipes or Seventh Generation wipes. We also want to point out that Amazon is using a unique feature with these wipes: each package has a QR code that you can scan to learn about the sourcing of ingredients in the specific pack you're using. A clever way to increase the perception of transparency, but not certain why it's particularly informative to know whether your chamomile flower extract came from Texas or Indiana. Our package used fibers from China, though to be fair they wouldn't be able to sustain these low prices if they sourced polyester and viscose locally. In any case, we found these wipes to be very effective, soft, and durable, and a great addition to our "best of" list. Will they move up the list in the future? Perhaps, but first let's see how the long-term manufacturing and quality assurance go!