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Going into motherhood, I had done some research on how sensitive baby skin can be but if I'm being honest, I didn't get further than worrying about my laundry soap. So when our daughter was born and (very quickly) showed us that she has a sensitive bottom, I went back to Google to find the best diaper rash creams.

Additionally, there is some trial and error that needs to be done with diapers themselves. If you find that regardless of the cream or ointment used, baby's bottom isn't healing or still seems irritated, consider changing diaper brands. We, personally, cannot use Luvs. We had used about half a box of Size Ones when she broke out into a rash that lasted until we changed her diaper brand.

​Each diaper rash cream on this list is one that we have used in the house, have bought multiple times, and is completely effective for us. But for the sake of this article, they have been ranked from #5 to #1, with #1 being the most preferred option. The order they are ranked is based on effectiveness, clean up, and price.

This is not medical advice and is to be taken as general advice. If you have concerns about your baby's health, please consult their pediatrician.

According to the Mayo Clinic:

>> Diaper rash is a form of dermatitis that looks like patches of inflamed skin on the buttocks, thighs and genitals. It can be caused by wet or soiled diapers that aren't changed often enough. Or it may be due to skin sensitivity and chafing.

There is also the chance that baby developed a rash from soaps/lotions used for bath time, humidity, their diaper being too tight, or even trying a new food/milk/formula.

Narrowing down the cause of their sore bottom can take some time. But thankfully this is typically treatable at home and starts to clear up within a few days.

​One way to help prevent and/or treat diaper rash is with diaper rash creams

Most diaper rash creams are made with zinc oxide as their active ingredient.

​Zinc oxide is just that, a medicated cream used to treat and prevent skin irritations. Actually, some sunscreens are also zinc oxide as it helps protect against the sun's ultraviolet rays.

>> Zinc oxide-based ointments act as a physical barrier to water absorption and reduces bacterial infections in mild dermatitis by inhibiting the adhesion and penetration of microorganisms (germs and bacteria). More importantly, no serious side effects have been reported in many decades of use.

​https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8484940

Each of the following diaper rash creams can be, at minimum, found on Amazon or the brand's website. Numbers 5, 4, and 3 can also be found at your local Walmart, Target, or grocery store.

Coming in at #5 is Bourdeaux's Butt Paste. This brand offers five different varieties: max strength, barrier ointment, original, aloe, and sensitive skin. We have only used the Max Strength.

In effort of transparency, while this brand is effective overall, I find it to be the slowest in terms of helping to heal. Now some variables could be my daughter's particular dermatitis. For us, using Butt Paste means that her skin will take about 2-3 full days to heal.

I prefer to use Bourdeaux's preventatively rather than for treatment.

​This is a pediatrician recommended brand. Their Butt Barrier Ointment has been accepted by the Eczema Foundation.

Bourdeaux's, in my opinion, is the most difficult diaper rash cream to clean off of fabric. With the nature of having a baby turned toddler, this diaper cream has been kicked into by baby feet and spread on to couch cushions by little hands. On their website, Bourdeaux's warns that because this product is oil-based it will stain fabrics.

Also read: How To Remove (Just About) Any Stain

​As for clean up on skin, it somewhat difficult to wipe off completely going from one diaper change to the next. My guess is that this is part of it's barrier effectiveness. The paste repels the water in baby wipes similarly to creating a barrier between baby's skin and their urine. So 10/10 it is moisture resistant.

Bourdeaux's diaper rash cream (specifically Max Strength) comes in at about $7 on Amazon, Target, and Walmart for their standard 4oz tube.

Before finding out that my brother is a Celiac, he had consistent and unexplained incontinence as a baby. This led to a very sore bottom and my mother buying more Desitin than anything else. The use of it was so prevalent that even though I was only 4/5 at the time, I clearly remember her changing him and using the "white stuff" every time.

We have tested the Daily Defense only. Desitin also offers a Max Strength and a Multi Purpose Ointment.

Again, this is one that I like to use preventatively. However, when we do have a small rash we're fighting, this diaper rash cream is effective. Using this product generally takes about 1-2 days for our daughter's skin to heal. This is not the cream I would pick for a more intense rash or even sores though. I don't find it to be strong enough. The Daily Defense is very good at keeping her comfortable overall on the, well, daily.

​This product is also pediatrician recommended and dermatologist tested.

Clean up for this diaper cream is much easier than #5. It doesn't seem to cling to fabrics as strong and is easy to wipe off of skin. So you know you're completely refreshing baby's skin gently rather than wiping more forcefully trying to remove the old cream. This is very helpful if baby's skin is already red and sore. The removability makes it easier to pat-wipe rather than rub-wipe them clean.

​Also, the tub version has a screw cap which (for now) means that it can't be accidentally opened by a curious toddler and spread everywhere.

The 4oz tube of Daily Defense will be about $7 at Target and about $6 at Walmart or on Amazon.

Vaseline was recommended to us back before our daughter was even born. It's an old nurses trick for helping with those first few newborn poos. You know, that super sticky, almost black-as-tar poop? This is super handy for packing in your hospital bag. That way when baby is cleaned off and handed to you, before putting on their diaper, give a good thin layer of Vaseline. When they have that sticky poop, wiping them clean will be much easier. And gentler on their very sensitive skin.

​Vaseline is a petroleum based jelly, not zinc oxide. This means that as a product, it is clearer but can behave like a grease stain.

I have found Vaseline to be pretty darn effective in terms of preventing and treating diaper rash. When we're out or low on my #1 & #2 choices, Vaseline comes in at a tight third. It generally takes about 1-2 days for my daughter's skin to heal but noticeable improvement is seen within half a day.

​I will add that it is a con for the tub of Vaseline to be as wide and deep at it is. Sure, you're getting quite a bit of product but when you get to using the last of it, it absolutely will get under your finger nails. I personally cannot stand the feeling. But maybe that's just me.

Clean up on baby's skin is pretty easy. Vaseline wipes away without too much of a fuss. And it actually makes poopy diapers so much faster to clean too.

​While Vaseline can act as a moisturizer and is absorbed by the skin, it isn't completely gone by the next time you need to do a change. That little bit of a layer left over on baby's skin keeps a skin-jelly-poop order. This means that if baby did a ninja poop and you didn't notice for a little while, the feces won't have started to stick and dry to those little bum cheeks. And we all know about how strong something so little can be. So anything that makes diaper changes faster with less alligator rolling is a win.

The 13oz flip-top container of Vaseline Baby Healing Jelly is about $5.50 at Walmart, $7 at Target, and about $9 on Amazon.

This one is for my crunchy parents out there and is my husband's preferred diaper rash cream to use. Emily's Skin Soother is made with clean, limited ingredients, is PETA certified, and was created by parents for parents.

Emily's is wonderfully effective while being gentle to baby's skin. With it's clean, natural ingredients, you don't have to worry about what baby's skin is absorbing and if it's harmful for them.

I also love that this is an unscented product. If you're already trying to figure out why baby is breaking out into a rash, one thing you don't have to worry about with using Emily's is any fragrance or perfume irritants. This is also helpful if you yourself are sensitive to manufactured smells.

Another bonus is that this cream is very effective for helping with dried or cracked skin from eczema and even scraped knees for your walkers or bigger kids.

​This is one diaper rash cream that I would use on anything from mild to severe and weeping rashes. Within a few hours the redness is reduced and within a day or so, the skin is completely healed.

Clean up on baby's skin is also pretty easy with Emily's. Similarly to the Vaseline, it creates a nice soft barrier between the diaper contents and baby's bottom. So if they're already sore and red, you don't have to rub too much with a wipe to get them clean and dry.

​It is an oil-based, beeswax product however so it could potentially leave an oil stain on fabrics.

Depending on your viewpoint, Emily's might lose a bit in terms of price. One 1.8oz jar is $17.99 on their website or $21.95 on Amazon.

​This definitely comes down to "you get what you pay for". While this is the most expensive recommended product on this list, it's also one of the best.

And with that, we have reached our #1 diaper rash cream: Calmoseptine. If you've never heard of it before, don't worry, I hadn't either. It was introduced to us at the pediatrician's office after a check up and discussion about a particularly angry rash my daughter had.

​For the fourth consecutive year, Calmoseptine® Ointment has been names #1 Pharmacist Recommended Incontinence-Related Skin Protectants Product of 2022-2023 by U.S. News & World Report.

1000/10 is what I would rate this for effectiveness. Any time my daughter has shown even an inkling of a rash or irritation, Calmoseptine is the first cream I grab. It's a thick, pink, unscented ointment that creates a perfect barrier between the skin and any and all moisture. It promotes the perfect opportunity for the skin to heal.

Almost as if it's magic, this diaper rash cream works wonders in even an 8-12 hour time frame. The calamine zinc-oxide menthol ointment also temporarily relieves discomfort and itching. So you can rest assured that if the rash is moderate to somewhat severe, this rash cream will help make baby not only clean and protected, but also relieve some discomfort they may be feeling from the sores.

A little goes a long way with this and spreads to cover a decent amount of skin. But use as much as you think helps your baby. I've been known to be pretty generous with application.

​A small, small con is that the paste is somewhat sensitive to temperature. If your house is cold or it was left somewhere cool (think in the diaper bag left in the car) then the ointment can be a bit stiff to squeeze out of the tube. Thankfully, it warms up pretty quickly between putting it on your fingers and applying it to baby's skin.

Clean up is a bit of a pain if this gets onto clothes and fabric. Because it is a thicker, very-effective-at-avoiding-water-removal ointment, it is very likely to stain clothing or furniture.

​On baby's skin however, because it is such an effective barrier, if they are fighting a pretty bad rash, you don't have to worry about trying to completely clean the ointment off their skin. Obviously, wipe your baby but know that their skin is still protected under the layer of Calmoseptine that is left over.

My biggest point of contention with this is that for me, it's somewhat difficult to find. Their website indicates that it can be found at Walmart, Costco, Walgreens, or CVS. I haven't seen it in any of those stores. (Except Costco, I don't have a membership). So we generally resort to ordering it off Amazon in their two pack. This will cost you about $24.99 for 2-4oz tubes. Set it up for subscribe-and-save and you're all set!

In baby's first year, you will change nearly 3,000 (yes, three THOUSAND) diapers! As newborns, babies will go through about 8-12 diapers per day. This drops to about 10 a day by the time they're 2-4 months old. My point is, that you will spend a lot of time sitting on the floor, avoiding being peed on, and cleaning up liquid milk-diet poo. While you're down there, you'll want to know that the products you're using are quality and effective.

So test around and find out what works best for you and your little one. Use this list as a starting point but maybe you try a different brand you like better. If that's the case, drop it in the comments! I'm sure other parents would love a peer-tested recommendation.

With love,

​Dakota

Sources:
​
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/diaper-rash/symptoms-causes/syc-20371636
https://www.buttpaste.com/where-to-buy-boudreauxs-butt-paste?sku=362103323043
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/drugs/18700-zinc-oxide-cream-ointment-paste
https://www.desitin.com
​https://www.vaseline.com/za/en/articles/products-and-ingredients/difference-between-petroleum-jelly-moisturisers