Baby Sleep Calculator
Short answer
Babies aged 4–12 months need 12–16 hours of sleep in 24 hours, including naps. Toddlers aged 1–2 need 11–14 hours, and children aged 3–5 need 10–13 hours. Take away the naps, then count back from the wake-up time. The calculator below does this for you and suggests a bedtime.
Make bedtime easier
BRW plays brown or white noise offline at bedtime, with a sleep timer that stops the sound for you.
How Much Sleep Does a Baby Need?
These are the hours in 24 hours, including naps, from the CDC [1]. From 4 months, they follow the advice of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine [2].
| Age | Sleep in 24 hours |
|---|---|
| 0–3 months | 14–17 hours |
| 4–12 months | 12–16 hours, including naps |
| 1–2 years | 11–14 hours, including naps |
| 3–5 years | 10–13 hours, including naps |
| 6–12 years | 9–12 hours |
Source: CDC, “About Sleep” [1].
How the Calculator Works
It takes the sleep hours for your child’s age, takes away the time your child naps in the day, and counts back from the wake-up time.
An example. A toddler aged 1–2 needs 11–14 hours. With 2 hours of naps, that leaves 9–12 hours at night. For a 7:00 am wake-up, the bedtime is between 7:00 pm and 10:00 pm. The calculator suggests the middle, 8:30 pm, as a place to start.
Enter your child’s real nap time. The calculator starts with a common value for each age, but every child is different.
Newborns: No Bedtime Yet
Babies aged 0–3 months need 14–17 hours of sleep, but they sleep in short stretches, day and night. A set bedtime does not fit this age yet.
Whatever the age, the safe-sleep basics come first: put your baby to sleep on their back, in their own cot, with nothing else in it [3].
Tips for an Easier Bedtime
Keep the same order every night. For example: bath, pyjamas, a book, then bed. A routine tells your child what comes next.
Keep the times steady. Bedtime and wake-up time at about the same time each day, also at the weekend.
Dim the lights before bed. A dark room helps. If your child is afraid of the dark, a very dim, warm light is better than a bright one.
Cover household noise, quietly. A steady sound can make a door or a dog stand out less. Keep it quiet, across the room and on a timer. Try the baby sound machine, and for toddlers the OK-to-wake clock.
When to Talk to a Doctor
The hours are ranges, and healthy children differ. Talk to your child’s doctor if your child snores loudly most nights, seems to stop breathing for a moment in sleep, is very hard to wake, or is often very sleepy in the day. Also talk to a doctor if you are worried for any other reason.
References
- About Sleep: How much sleep do I need? Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). cdc.gov/sleep/about
- Paruthi S, Brooks LJ, D’Ambrosio C, et al. Recommended Amount of Sleep for Pediatric Populations: A Consensus Statement of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine. 2016;12(6):785–786. doi:10.5664/jcsm.5866 · PubMed 27250809
- Moon RY, Carlin RF, Hand I; Task Force on Sudden Infant Death Syndrome; Committee on Fetus and Newborn. Sleep-Related Infant Deaths: Updated 2022 Recommendations for Reducing Infant Deaths in the Sleep Environment. Pediatrics. 2022;150(1):e2022057990. doi:10.1542/peds.2022-057990 · PubMed 35726558
Frequently Asked Questions
How many hours should a 6-month-old sleep?
Babies aged 4–12 months need 12–16 hours of sleep in 24 hours, including naps.
How much sleep does a toddler need?
Toddlers aged 1–2 need 11–14 hours of sleep in 24 hours, including naps. Children aged 3–5 need 10–13 hours.
What time should a 1-year-old go to bed?
It depends on the wake-up time and the naps. For a 7:00 am wake-up and 2 hours of naps, a bedtime between 7:00 pm and 10:00 pm gives 11–14 hours in total. Many families start in the middle of that range.
Do newborns need a bedtime?
Not yet. Babies aged 0–3 months sleep 14–17 hours in short stretches, day and night. A bedtime starts to make sense later.
My child sleeps less than the range. Is that a problem?
Not always: the ranges are guides, and healthy children differ. If your child seems tired in the day, snores loudly or you are worried, talk to their doctor.