A side-by-side comparison based on expert reviews and community consensus. We analyzed the sources to figure out which one actually belongs in your cart.
These two products aren't really competing — they're serving different stages of childhood. Carter's wins on pure economics for the diaper-and-crawling crowd, where four pairs for $18 makes total sense when sizing changes every season. But once kids hit the playground, PowerSoft's buttery compression fabric and rare tall sizing make Old Navy the clear upgrade. The Reddit consensus on tall sizing alone is enough to make PowerSoft a cult favorite among parents of long-legged kids.
Old Navy's PowerSoft fabric is a community favorite for active kids and teens — buttery soft, lightl
Simple Joys by Carter's delivers four pairs of leggings for around $18 — one of the best per-unit va
PowerSoft is a performance fabric with light compression that moves with active kids and stays soft wash after wash. Carter's is basic cotton — fine for a baby lying on a play mat, genuinely limiting for a kid doing cartwheels. Cotton doesn't wick moisture, loses shape faster under repeated stress, and has almost no stretch recovery. Once your kid is running around, this difference is felt every single day.
Four pairs for roughly $18 means you're paying about $4.50 per legging. Old Navy's PowerSoft starts at $15 for a single pair, even on sale. For babies and young toddlers who'll size out in a season, the Carter's math is unbeatable. But for older kids who'll actually wear a pair for a full year, paying more for something that holds up and performs is the smarter long-term spend.
Finding leggings in tall or long kids' sizes is genuinely hard — most brands don't bother. Old Navy offers tall/long sizing online, and the Reddit community has noticed: parents specifically call it out as a reason they keep coming back. If your kid is tall for their age and constantly showing ankle, this isn't a minor perk — it's the entire reason to choose Old Navy.
Carter's 4-pack is a volume play — you buy it, you use it, you replace it when kids grow. Old Navy PowerSoft is a quality play — parents buy fewer pairs but reach for them first because the fit and feel are noticeably better. These are different purchasing philosophies, and the right one depends entirely on your kid's age and how fast they're growing.
These two products aren't really competing — they're serving different stages of childhood. Carter's wins on pure economics for the diaper-and-crawling crowd, where four pairs for $18 makes total sense when sizing changes every season. But once kids hit the playground, PowerSoft's buttery compression fabric and rare tall sizing make Old Navy the clear upgrade. The Reddit consensus on tall sizing alone is enough to make PowerSoft a cult favorite among parents of long-legged kids.
