If you have typed "training pants" into Google, you are probably standing at the start of toilet training wondering what to actually buy. There is a wall of options: disposable pull-ups, cloth trainers, padded undies, all promising to make this stage easier.
Here is the honest version. Reusable training pants are the workhorse of toilet training. They are the product your toddler spends the most time in, and getting the right ones makes the whole stage faster and cheaper. This guide covers what they are, how the sizing works, and how to pick the right pair for your child.
What are reusable training pants?
Reusable training pants are pull-up style undies with an absorbent core sewn inside soft fabric. They pull up and down like normal underwear, but they hold a full accident so it does not end up on your floor or car seat.
The key thing that separates them from a disposable pull-up: they let your child feel wet. That uncomfortable feeling is the lesson. It builds the connection between needing to go and getting to the toilet. A disposable pull-up wicks the wet away and feels dry, which is exactly why kids treat them like a nappy and training drags on.
So a good training pant does two jobs at once: catches the accident so your day is not a disaster, and lets your child notice it so they learn.
Our Toilet Training Pants
Our Toilet Training Pants are built for the messy middle of training, when accidents happen a few times a day and you need something that holds a full wet without the bulk of a nappy.
What makes them work:
- Feel-wet lining. No stay-dry layer on purpose. Your child notices straight away, which is what speeds up learning.
- Holds a full accident. A complete bladder release stays inside the pants. No puddles, no soaked clothes.
- Pull on and off like undies. This matters more than people think. Self-toileting means your child learns to pull them down before and up after.
- Soft and reusable. They feel like real undies, and one pair replaces dozens of disposables.
They come in five prints (Whales, Unicorns, Giraffe, Watermelon, and Bobby the Bear) so your toddler can pick their favourite. Kids who choose their own print are far more keen to put them on.
How the sizing works (by weight, not age)
This is the part most parents get wrong. Training pants are sized by weight, not age, because a snug fit is what stops leaks at the legs and waist. Our sizing:
- Small: 5 to 13 kg
- Medium: 13 to 18 kg
- Large: 18 to 25 kg
Weigh your toddler and match the range. If they are right on the line between two sizes, go up: a slightly roomier pant still holds an accident, but one that is too tight digs in and leaks at the legs. Most toddlers starting toilet training land in Medium.
How many training pants do you actually need?
In the early weeks, accidents happen several times a day, so you cycle through pairs quickly. Most families need 6 to 10 pairs to get through a normal week without constantly running the washing machine.
This is where the 10-pack makes sense. At $101 it works out to about $10 a pair instead of $29, and 10 pairs is genuinely the number that keeps you sane: enough on the rail, in the wash, and in the drawer that you are never caught short mid-morning.
If you just want to try them first, grab a single pair or two at $29 each, then size up to the 10-pack once you know the fit is right.
Reusable vs disposable: the real cost
A toddler goes through thousands of disposable pull-ups across the training stage. At supermarket prices that adds up fast, and every one goes to landfill.
A pack of reusable training pants replaces around 1,000 disposables over the training period. You break even within a few weeks, then keep saving, and the pants pass down to a younger sibling after. Beyond the money, the feel-wet design genuinely trains faster, so you are usually out of the stage sooner.
We go deeper on this in our disposable vs reusable comparison if you want the full breakdown.
When to move on from training pants
Training pants are Stage 2 of toilet training, the absorbent middle. Once your toddler is mostly dry and only having the odd accident, they are ready for Stage 3: slim training underwear that looks and feels like proper undies with just a light hidden layer.
The signs they are ready to graduate: accidents are down to one a day or fewer, they are telling you before they need to go, and the pants are coming off dry at the end of the day. At that point our Toilet Training Underwear is the next step. For the full picture, see our training pants vs training underwear guide.
The bottom line
Reusable training pants are the single most-used product of the whole toilet training stage. Get the fit right (size by weight, go up if in doubt), buy enough to cover a week of accidents (the 10-pack is the sweet spot), and let your toddler pick a print they love.
Start with our Toilet Training Pants at $29, or save with the 10-pack at $101. Both ship from our Melbourne warehouse, usually on your doorstep within 2 to 4 business days.
Not sure on size or how many to start with? Send us an email and we will help you work it out. We have guided over 75,000 Aussie families through toilet training, and we are happy to talk you through it.
