I don’t think you can get the Smart Bottoms organic cotton prefolds anymore, but they were so nice, and such a fantastic product. We see this happen in the cloth diaper community – eb and flow of products and right now the industry has been a little nuts. If you ever find one of these, they are awesome.

I love prefold cloth diapers. My first prefold diapers have been an essential in my stash and continue to be. However, sometimes you want to see what the hype is about. The Smart Bottoms Prefold is a high quality, organic cotton, prefold. This review was originally written in 2016 and updated in 2020.

Curious how the Smart Bottoms Prefold compares to other products? Check out this absorbency list.

Disclosure: this is not a sponsored post. It does contain affiliate links.

What is a Prefold?

A Prefold is is a multilayer rectangle used as absorbency within a cloth diaper. It is typically made of 6-8 layers of gauze and sewn into thirds. There are variations. Many cloth diaper brands manufacture more modern variations including Smart Bottoms that feature 2-3 layers of high quality material like bamboo or hemp.

Prefolds are folded into thirds – like a trifold – or folded onto baby. The Smart Bottoms prefold can be used both ways depending on the size purchased and preferred intent. Order a smaller prefold if you just want to fold and a larger one if you want to fold onto baby. There are many variations that can be used to make the the product work.

About Smart Bottoms

Smart Bottoms is an American-based cloth diaper brand manufacturing a wide array of different products. the primary focus is organic cotton products. Most Smart Bottoms products are made in the USA.

Check out these other Smart Bottoms Products

• Too Smart Cover
• Smart Bottoms Dream Diaper
• Cloth Diaper Podcast Guest Post: Why I Love Smart Bottoms

Smart Bottoms is available at many cloth diaper retailers across the world, including:

• • LagoonBaby (Canada)
  • Cloth Diaper Kids (Canada)
  • Nicki’s Diapers (USA)
  • Amazon (USA)

Smartfold Organic Prefold

The Smart Bottoms prefold is aptly known as the Smartfold and is available in three sizes

• Small: babies under 16lbs
• Medium: 16-24lbs
• Large: +24lbs and heavy wetters

The Smartfold is 45% organic cotton and 55% hemp and consists of three panel rectangle (2 layers on the outside, 3 layers in the middle).

Sizing amongst prefolds varies greatly amongst differ brands and so I picked up one of each size. I wasn’t sure what size would work best (after shrinking) for my 27lb toddler, and knew for sure we would need smaller prefolds for the upcoming baby. Straight out of the package the Smart Bottoms prefold is already a familiar shape and size. It looks very similiar to the shape of other brands I was familiar with (GroVia & Bummi’s).

What’s to Love <3

• Absorbency:  The LARGE SmartFold is AMAZING. Watching it absorb was magical.
• Snappi! The Snappi catches on prefold! This is a win! And it was pretty easy too (I also trust a Boingo would catch too)
• Sizing: Three very versatile and perfect size options.
  • Small should be perfect for little newborns!
  • Medium is perfect for babies and beyond. Fold it on early on, or pad fold it for later on. 
  • Large is a great size for folding onto 25lb+ toddlers! 
• Relatively Trim: I’m not about to rave that it’s the trimmest, because I don’t believe it is. But it’s not overly fluffy and thats something to love.Pad folded into a medium (as seen below) it’s a nice trim tush in a Smart Cover Naturally, folded on its a little bulkier, but my my folding skills are only subpar.
• It’s a PREFOLD: not just some foldable insert. Super easy to trifold and use as an insert in your favourite diaper,  or to boost your 3.1. And perfect for folding onto little babies (extra absorbency down the middle!)
• Reasonable Price Point. It’s on par for similar products, of similar quality. I’d argue that the Large size is the most bang for your buck. With a modest increase over the smaller sizes, the price per ounce of absorbency is AMAZING – considering it rivals the Nighttime Flip Insert which comes with a pricier price tag. 

What’s Not to Love </3

• I don’t love that the SMALL and MEDIUM Smart Fold is just a SMALL change in size, and a SMALL change in absorbency. (I think I measured a difference of a couple oz…). I really expect more from a size change.
• The edges curl. thats pretty petty, but its true, they curl and it looks funny, but thats about it. 
• I’m not so sold on the lack of stitching down of the insert… I can feel the middle triple layer beginning to riffle a little. Will see how that fares with further wash and wear, but makes me skeptical its not visibly stitched down.

Recommendation

Of course you should invest in some SmartBottoms SmartFolds. You definitely need them. But I’m always going to be an enabler. I think these are an amazing USA MADE option for families looking for some absorbency in their stash.

The Large sized SmartFold is the best investment for those heavy wetter toddlers out there. I would fold it up lengthwise, or snappi it on with a booster to make it thru the night for smaller tykes my 27lb chunk.

The Small Sized SmartFold looks, feels, and acts perfect for the little squishes in your life. and guess what it is perfect for a newborn!  I’m beginning to understand most newborn sized prefolds are not very absorbent, and this small sized prefold matches most larger sizes without the added size bulk. I love stuffing it pad folded in an AMP size Small pocket diaper, or a Size 1 apple cheek. I also love using it on her with a snappi. 

Smart Bottoms is available at many cloth diaper retailers across the world, including:

• • LagoonBaby (Canada)
  • Cloth Diaper Kids (Canada)
  • Nicki’s Diapers (USA)
  • My Sweet Pickles (USA)
  • Amazon (USA)