Sizing
Our diapers are available in 8 different sizes from newborn through to extra-large Please don’t be daunted by this though! Babies spend the majority of their diapered lives in only 2 to 3 different sizes, usually extra small, small and medium or medium longs, with a few larges at the end of their diapered years. All el bee baby sizes overlap somewhat to cover a broad range body types.
diaper size |
weight |
waist |
rise |
newborn |
6lb + |
9 1/2-12 in |
10 1/4 in |
extra small |
7-15 lb |
11-15 in |
12 1/2 in |
small |
10-18 lb |
12-18 in |
13 1/2 in |
small/medium |
13-21 lb |
13-20 in |
14 in |
medium |
15-25 lb |
14-21 in |
15 in |
medium long |
22-30 lb |
16-24 in |
16 in |
large |
27-35 lb |
17-26 in |
17 in |
extra large |
35 lb + |
18-29 in |
20 in |
Size specifics
- Newborn: I consider this to be a ‘novelty’ size really! It does fit newborns quite nicely but to be honest, it doesn’t fit for very long as of course, they’re quick to grow at this stage. It makes a good ‘gift’ diaper though and a great “I can’t believe they were so tiny’ memento
- XS, SM, MD and LG fit pretty much as expected. Medium is naturally the size that seems to fit the longest and is certainly the most requested.
- Sm/med: This was designed for a friend's daughter. At 12 months, she was too wide for the small, but definitely too short for the medium. Unless you happen to have a baby who is particularly short and wide your child will skip this.
- Med/long: Kind of self explanatory! Again, designed for a friend’s baby with specific size needs: long and very lean. This is a commonly requested size actually, as many children tend to thin out quite dramatically once they’re walking!
- XL: This is designed for larger and older children who are nearing the end of diapering.
Both of our children fit diapers in different ways. Our first was a ‘healthy’ babe who gained weight quickly and had true thighs of thunder. He fit into a medium by about 3 months, stayed in it until he was about 18 months, (slimming out all the while) at which point he fit the medium long. It wasn’t until the end of his diapering career when he was around 30lb that he fit the larges well.
Our daughter entered the world at an impressive 9+lb, but gained slowly until she was a little over a year. At the end of her diapering ‘career’ she still squeaked in to her mediums but was wider through the hip than our first and actually fit the larges best from around 27lb onwards.