What's the difference between prefolds and flats?

[NSmomtobe]

This is a spin-off from my thread about pocket diapers because this question seems to have taken on a life of its own. Both pre-folds and flats need to be folded, right? Are pre-folds stitched so that the folds don't come out? Are they easier to work with? Are they more limited in the size of baby they will fit?

[ShwarmaQueen]

Both need to be folded, though prefolds considerably less. Prefolds do not come unfolded unless you remove the stiches. You are somewhat limited in the size of baby you can use each size of PFs for, though some moms get a bigger PF from the start and fold it down to fit baby from newborn to PLing (it's bulky but works). I would imagine ease of use depends on the user and experience, I think PFs are easier, but I've seen some moms fold flats faster than I can snappy on a PF!

[Juliacat]

A flat is generally a big, one-layer piece of cloth, like 27" square or 20" by 40" rectangular. You have to fold it a LOT to get it to fit the baby, and you have to double it on a baby older than a month or so. However, it will fit a baby of any age, and washes and dries in a flash.

A prefold is smaller, rectangular, has several layers with extra thickness in the middle (like 4x8x4 with four layers in the outer thirds and 8 layers in the middle). It still needs to be folded to fit the baby, but not nearly as much, and is less likely to need doubling, except at night. Prefolds come in different sizes and do not wash or dry as well as flats, although if you have a washer and dryer this is no big deal since they still launder great compared with every other type of diaper.

I vastly prefer prefolds unless I am in a hand-washing, line-drying-indoors type of situation, in which case flats are the only way to go.