Munchkin Step Diaper Pail Review

An Acceptable Alternative to Ubbi

Designed specifically to keep stink at bay, the Munchkin Step diaper pail is up to the challenge and looks pretty good while doing it. The pail's design separates off dirty diapers so they are quarantined away and don't assault your senses every time you open the pail, which we love. But we very much dislike the artificially scented refill bags (unavoidable with this pail) and the artificially scented baking soda puck (which you can remove), since artificial fragrances are known endocrine disruptors.

Things We Love

Really Contains Stink: The Munchkin Step is top notch at containing stink, thanks mostly to its self-sealing system, which seals the bag shut once the lid closes. This pail also has a lavender scented Arm & Hammer baking soda puck, and the bags themselves are lavender scented, both of which help to mask odors. If you live in a scent-free household, the scented bags are going to assail your senses.
White, Neutral, and Mostly Inoffensive-Looking: The look of this diaper pail is neutral, simple, and inoffensive. The reason that sounds more like a veiled criticism than a compliment is because, ultimately, the Munchkin Step is made of plastic and looks like a giant white trash can. The “metallic” bits are actually painted plastic, so although it looks pretty sleek in photos, up close it’s not quite as good-looking.
Step Operation: When baby is on your hip and your hands are full, it’s especially convenient to be able to open the diaper pail with the step of a foot.
Child Lockable: When you have an infant, this feature will seem dumb. Then one day, you will have a toddler, and you will realize how genius Munchkin was to include this little lifesaver.

Things We Don't Love As Much

Unavoidable Artificial Fragrances: The same artificial fragrances mentioned above that help mask odors are also known toxins and endocrine disruptors. Artificial fragrances are integrated into two aspects of the Munchkin Step pail– the baking soda puck and the refill bags. On the bright side, you can easily jettison the baking soda puck and go without. Unfortunately, there’s no fragrance-free alternative for the refill bags at this time.
Requires Specialized Pail Bags & Deodorizers: This pail requires special Arm & Hammer refill bags, which cost roughly $1 per bag. Compared to the cost of a standard kitchen trash bag (which can be used with the Ubbi and the Bubula), this is pretty steep. Assuming you take out your diaper trash weekly, it will add about $50 to your annual diapering costs.
Not Cloth Diaper or Compostable Diaper Friendly: Because the Munchkin Step only accepts its own specialized bags, you cannot use washable wet bags or compostable bags with this diaper pail.
A Little Too Large: A whole five inches taller and an inch wider than the Ubbi, the Munchkin Step takes up a significantly bigger visual footprint. The larger size isn’t entirely necessary either, since a smaller pail holds plenty of diapers and you’ll likely want to take them out on trash day anyway.