Baby feeding sleeping chart

Baby Sleep and Feeding Schedules By Age

The proper baby sleep schedule can help your baby sleep better at night and take better naps. This page has sample sleep schedules including feedings for babies and toddlers at different ages. As a sleep consultant for over 10 years, it’s important for you to know there is no one-size-fits-all schedule that works for every baby. Use these as a guideline to find the right schedule for your baby!

What Age Can You Put Your Baby on a Schedule?

You can put your baby on a sleep schedule almost from birth but it’s important not to be too strict until your baby is at least 6 months old. Newborns need to eat and sleep on demand to support a rapid period of growth and development. Once your baby can tolerate staying awake for 2-3 hours at a time, a more consistent schedule can be used.

Even if your baby is young, you can put your baby on a schedule largely based on their “nap gap.” This is the amount of time between sleep periods, including the time between naps and between their last nap and bedtime.

Sample Baby Sleep and Feeding Schedules By Age

Here is a list of our free sample baby sleep and feeding schedules, for your convenience. We strongly recommend you bookmark this page; both the sample schedules below, and the customized schedules you can generate using our simple custom sleep schedule maker (see next section for details) will grow with your child, and will be useful for a long time to come.

Keep in mind that newborn schedules are generally much more variable than older children’s schedules. A baby doesn’t really get on a clock-based schedule until 6 months old, on average, though some are naturally more predictable than others. Some older babies and toddlers can struggle with schedules that are too rigid to the clock, so you will want to use what you know best about your own baby or toddler to adjust your schedule to fit his or her personality and temperament. If you need help with a personalized sleep and feeding schedule, we can help you there, too!

Newborn Schedules

Newborns need between 14 and 17 hours of sleep in a 24-hour period and can stay awake 1-2 hours at a time, on average. An early bedtime doesn’t form until around 8-12 weeks old, on average. Before then, you will want to keep bedtime later around 9 or 10 p.m. like yours. Otherwise, your baby might start the day too early.

Newborn Day / Night Confusion Explained
Newborn Sleep Patterns, Growth Spurts, and Schedules Up to 8 Weeks Old
Newborn Schedules By Week Up To 16 Weeks Old
2 Month Old Baby Sleep Schedule and Development
3 Month Old Baby Sleep Schedule and Development
Eat-Play-Sleep: Pros and Cons
>How to Get My 2, 3, or 4 Week Old To Sleep

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When Can I Put My Baby on a Schedule?

How To Put Your Baby On a Nap / Sleep Schedule

Feed on Schedule or Feed on Demand?

Baby Schedules

Babies 4 to 10 months old need an average of 14 hours of sleep a day with 11-12 hours at night and 2-3 hours during the day. Many babies night-wean in this age range but it varies depending on whether you’re breastfeeding or formula-feeding. Each schedule below will discuss what to expect for babies at that age.

4 Month Old Baby Sleep Schedule
5 Month Old Baby Sleep Schedule
6 Month Old Baby Sleep Schedule
7 Month Old Baby Sleep Schedule
8 Month Old Baby Sleep Schedule
9 Month Old Baby Sleep Schedule
10 Month Old Baby Sleep Schedule

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Wake Windows By Age Chart

Night Feedings by Age and When Do You Night-Wean?

Schedules for Breastfeeding and Formula-Fed Babies

How Rigid Should Your Baby’s Sleep Schedule Be?

Toddler Schedules

Toddlers need 13-14 hours of sleep a day with 10-12 hours at night and 2-3 hours during the day. The average age to transition to one nap is 15-18 months old though quite a few 13-14-month-olds will, too. And, the average age to stop napping is 3-4 years old.

11 Month Old Baby Sleep Schedule
12 Month Old / 1 Year Old Toddler Sleep Schedule
Why Not All 12 Month Olds Transition To One Nap
When Do Babies Drop to One Nap? 5 Signs to See Before Switching
Toddler Sleep Schedules By Month — From 12 Months to 3 Years Old
3 Signs Your Toddler Is Ready To Stop Napping

Custom Baby and Toddler Sleep Schedule Maker

Use our schedule maker to get a custom sleep schedule that’s based on your child’s age and usual morning wake-up time! Use this in combination with our sample schedules above to create the perfect schedule for your little one. With an age range that spans 4 months to 3+ years, this schedule maker is one you will want to come back to again and again as your child grows!

Click here to get your custom baby sleep schedule.

You may also be interested in…

Schedules for Breastfeeding and Formula-Fed Babies

How Rigid Should Your Baby’s Sleep Schedule Be?

Sibling Series Part 2: Juggling Different Baby and Toddler Sleep Schedules

Sibling Series, Part 3: How To Maintain Twins and Multiples Sleep and Feeding Schedules

Need Baby and Toddler Sleep Help? We Have the Resources You Need!

If you are tired of wading through stacks of baby sleep books that just aren’t working, if you are beyond exhausted and just can’t solve your child’s sleep problems on your own…than personalized sleep consulting is for you. Our team of expert consultants will create a Personalized Sleep Plan^® just for your family and then support you through every step of implementing your plan. We encourage you to consider our personalized, one-on-one baby and toddler sleep consultation packages if you want to see real, meaningful results now. Your consultation package also includes ample follow-up help, designed to help you troubleshoot problems and tweak your plan as needed.

Looking for budget-friendly custom sleep help? Enjoy customized sleep help that works without breaking the bank! Our Express Sleep Plan^® is customized to fit your baby’s unique sleep needs and to work with your parenting style and goals, and it’s also priced to work for even the tightest budgets. It’s also available instantly – just complete a brief questionnaire, submit your answers, and your Express Sleep Plan^® is ready to download in moments! Grab your Express Sleep Plan^® today!

Or, join our VIP Members Area packed with exclusive content and resources: e-Books, assessments, detailed case studies, ask the author, live chat with a sleep consultant, and more. It costs less to join than buying products separately!

About Nicole

Nicole Johnson is the founder and lead sleep consultant of The Baby Sleep Site^®. Since she began in 2008, and with the help of her team of sleep consultants, she has helped over 40,000 families improve their sleep. She has also held a position on the board of the International Association of Child Sleep Consultants (IACSC) since 2015. Millions of visitors land on The Baby Sleep Site each year, and Nicole and her team are here to find solutions for your family’s sleep problems that will match your baby’s temperament and your parenting style.

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Newborn Baby Feeding and Sleep Schedule

When you understand your newborn’s sleep patterns and habits, you can start to establish a little more structure in your daily life and build a little more confidence in your decisions and actions during the baby’s first days.

While newborns can’t stay on a strict sleep or feeding schedule – mostly due to their many growth spurts in these early months – these sample newborn sleep and feeding schedules can guide you through these stages and make sure everyone is getting the sleep and nutrition they need.

Otherwise, you may be soothing a crying baby all day.

A newborn baby cries a lot more when they are over-tired, not sleeping enough, or hungry. In other words, getting him or her on a routine (even if it’s not a strict schedule) can be a life-saver!

Your newborn’s feeding schedule should be age-appropriate, and you should never withhold food from a newborn just to stay on schedule. A newborn sleep schedule is also often based on how long your baby can stay awake (not strictly by the clock), which is usually short in the newborn days.

Keep reading to discover what you can do to get started.

Skip to the schedules

Understanding Newborn Sleep Patterns

A baby is considered a newborn from birth until about 3 months of age.

During this period, your newborn’s sleep patterns will look nothing like yours.

Your baby will sleep in short bursts – anywhere from 30 or 45 minutes to 3 or possibly 4 hours – and then eat between periods of sleep.

In other words, the typical day/night sleep cycle doesn’t really apply to newborns. Some newborns come out of the womb with their days and nights completely mixed up!

This is called day/night confusion, and babies who struggle with it tend to sleep a lot during the day and then wake up frequently at night.

Many newborns also seem extra sleepy in the first week or two after birth and must be woken up to feed or drift off while feeding before getting their fill.

Eventually, though, your newborn will definitely “wake up” within three weeks after birth. This is when you will start to deal with more wakefulness. In fact, you may start to miss the early weeks of having a super-sleepy newborn!

Babies simply cry more often as they get a bit older (depending on temperament), but you will quickly learn how to soothe a crying baby.

Working with Newborn Feeding Schedules

Newborns feed very, very frequently, but this isn’t a problem that needs to be solved.

It’s perfectly natural!

Your newborn’s tummy is quite small. They simply need to fill it up regularly.

Formula-fed newborns may need to eat slightly less often than breastfed newborns because it takes a newborn’s tummy longer to digest and break down formula.

So babies tend to feel fuller for longer periods of time. Breast milk, on the other hand, is digested fairly quickly.

How much breastmilk or formula does your baby need?

Every situation is different, of course, but if your baby is formula-fed, you can use a fairly simple formula to determine approximately how many ounces your baby needs in a day.

Simply multiply your baby’s weight by 2.5.

For example, an 8-pound baby would need about 20 ounces of formula in a 24-hour period.

If your baby is breastfed, the general rule is that most newborns need between 20 and 30 ounces of breastmilk (and between 25-35 ounces once they’re past the newborn stage).

How often should you feed your baby?

In general, if you are exclusively nursing, it’s best to nurse on demand in the first few weeks after birth to ensure that your milk supply becomes well-established. In fact, in order to maintain your supply, you’ll need to nurse every 2 to 3 hours, on average.

Once your baby is past 3 months of age and is in the infant stage, that will slowly stretch into 5-6 hours, and then 7-8, and eventually right up to 10 or 11 hours once your baby is 9 months old or 10 months old.

Newborn Growth Spurts

Believe it or not, a lot is going on with your newborn baby.

So much growth and development is happening in that little body! Your newborn will very likely go through growth spurts at the following times:

7-10 days of age
2-3 weeks of age
4-6 weeks of age
3 months of age

During these growth spurts, it will feel like your newborn is feeding almost constantly (and like when she’s not feeding, she’s sleeping). This is 100% normal – feed your newborn as often as she needs it, as the extra nourishment is important during the growth spurt.

How to Create a Newborn Feeding and Sleep Schedule

Your unique newborn’s wake times and total sleep needs may vary from what is recommended below.

These schedules are based on averages, but your baby may need more or less sleep (or shorter/longer wake times) than what is listed here.

Remember, watch your baby’s sleepy cues closely (rubbing eyes, yawning, staring off into space, etc.), and let those guide the sleep schedule.

Remember, too, that if your baby is already fussing, he or she is already overtired. Try to get your child down for his or her nap earlier next time, before the fussing starts.

2-8 Week Old Newborn, Breast Feeding

This schedule is best for babies who consume average amounts of breast milk and for moms who have average breast milk production and storage amounts.

9:00 AM	Wake and Feed*
10:00 AM	Nap (30-60 minutes)
11:00 AM	Wake and Feed
12:30 PM	Nap (30-60 minutes)
1:30 PM	Wake and Feed
3:30 PM	Nap (30 – 60 minutes)
4:30 PM	Wake and Feed
6:00 PM	Nap (30 – 60 minutes)
6:30 PM	Wake and Feed
7:30 PM	Catnap (20 – 30 minutes)
8:00 PM	Wake and Feed
9:30 PM	Catnap (20 – 30 minutes)
10:00 PM	Wake and Feed
11:30 PM	Feed and Bedtime*
3:30 AM	Feed and Right back to sleep
6:30 AM	Feed and Right back to sleep

* – We recommend you make these fixed points in your baby’s schedule. You can read more about this in our article on fixed points in a baby schedule.

Babies who eat smaller amounts, babies with reflux, and moms who produce and store smaller amounts of breastmilk will need a different schedule. So will babies who eat larger amounts per feeding and moms who produce/store greater amounts of breast milk.

Schedules for those scenarios, as well as schedules for older, breastfed newborns, are available in our newborn book, Essential Keys To Your Newborn’s Sleep.

2-8 Week Old Newborn, Formula Feeding

This schedule recommends longer naps and fewer feedings than the breastfeeding schedule above, simply because formula is more difficult for baby to digest. So, babies tend to feel fuller longer and therefore need slightly fewer feedings.

9:00 AM	Wake and Feed*
10:00 AM	Nap (60 – 90 minutes)
11:30 AM	Wake
12:30 PM	Feed and Nap (30 – 60 minutes)
1:30 PM	Wake
3:00 PM	Feed and Nap (60 – 90 minutes)
4:30 PM	Wake and Feed
6:00 PM	Nap (30 – 60 minutes)
6:30 PM	Wake
7:30 PM	Feed and Nap (30 – 60 minutes)
8:30 PM	Wake
9:30 PM	Nap (30 – 60 minutes)
10:00 PM	Wake and Feed
11:30 PM	Feed and Bedtime*
4:30 AM	Feed and Right back to sleep
7:30 AM	Feed and Right back to sleep

* – We recommend you make these fixed points in your baby’s schedule. You can read more about this in our article on fixed points in a baby schedule.

For formula-feeding schedules for older newborns, see our newborn book, Essential Keys To Your Newborn’s Sleep.

Additional Newborn Sleep Articles

Want more newborn sleep tips? Check out our other newborn sleep articles:

7 Gentle, Natural Ways To Help Your Newborn Sleep Better
How Much Your 1-Month Old Baby Should Sleep
Establishing Healthy Sleep Habits In Your Newborn (Members Area tele-seminar)
10 Tips To Help Your Newborn Sleep
What You Should Know About Newborn Sleep Patterns
Essential Keys to Your Newborn’s Sleep (Members Area digital book)
Why Newborns Are Fussy In The Evening (Besides Colic)
Your Top 5 Breastfeeding + Sleep Questions Answered by an Expert (Members Area article)

Want FREE sleep help that you can put to use right away? Download a copy of our free guide, 5 Ways To Help Your Child Sleep Through The Night! The guide is available to download instantly, which means you can start using the techniques in it as early as tonight. So download now, and learn why your baby is waking at night – and what you can do about it.

Click here to learn more about how to get your free guide.

A better night’s sleep could be just a few clicks away. So don’t wait – download now, and start your journey to better sleep tonight!

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Need Newborn Sleep Help? We Have the Resources You Need!

If you are tired of wading through stacks of baby sleep books that just aren't working, if you are beyond exhausted and just can't solve your newborn's sleep problems on your own. ..then personalized sleep consulting is for you. We have been around since 2008 and invite you to tap into 10+ years of experience. Our team of expert consultants will create a Personalized Sleep Plan^® just for your family and then support you through every step of implementing your plan. We encourage you to consider our personalized, one-on-one baby and toddler sleep consultation packages if you want to see real, meaningful results now. Your consultation package also includes ample follow-up help, designed to help you troubleshoot problems and tweak your plan as needed.

For even more help getting your newborn baby to sleep, check out our e-Book, Essential Keys to Your Newborn's Sleep . At over 90 pages long (and containing a variety of sample schedules for breastfed and formula-fed babies from birth - 16 weeks), this e-Book truly is a one-stop resource designed to help your newborn establish healthy sleep habits, right from birth. Whether you're a brand new parent or an experienced parents who needs to brush up newborn sleep basics, Essential Keys To Your Newborn's Sleep is a comprehensive and budget-friendly resource that will provide the information you need to work towards excellent sleep for your whole family, from day one. Grab your copy today!

Or, join our VIP Members Area that will grow with your family. It's packed with exclusive content and resources: e-Books, assessments, detailed case studies, expert advice, peer support, and more and actually costs less to join than buying products separately! As a VIP member, you'll also enjoy a weekly chat with an expert sleep consultant. And the best part - members receive 20% off all sleep consultation services! This is a resource that will truly grow with your child: it'll help you through the newborn phase and prepare you for the months ahead.

sleep, feeding and development of the baby

04/11/2019

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By 4 months, the biological rhythms of the child are finally formed, and the structure of his sleep becomes the same as in adults. Therefore, the old ways of laying often stop working, the baby may fall asleep longer, wake up more often at night and constantly breastfeed, and the existing daily routine may no longer work. What to do in this case?

Use our tips to improve your child's routine!

4 months

At this age, children still cannot live according to a clear daily schedule, as they still sleep short dreams during the day and are not able to stay awake for a long time. Therefore, the daily routine of four months. is built based on the time of wakefulness, which is no more than 1.5-2 hours between sleeps. At the same time, an infant needs 9-10 hours of sleep per night with awakenings for feeding and 3-4 daytime sleeps with a total duration of about 4-5 hours. That is, the baby will sleep with this schedule 3-4 times a day. The time of evening bedtime will vary and depend on the end of the last day's sleep. To get your baby to bed on time, be alert for signs of fatigue and stay awake for more than 2 hours. So you will prevent overworking the baby, which will improve the quality of his nightly sleep and reduce the number of night awakenings. Morning should start no later than 07:00-07:30 to form the physiological regime of the day.

What to do if a 4-month-old baby slept well but now has trouble getting to bed:

Enter a bedtime ritual if you haven't already done so. In the evening, this can be bathing, light massage, putting on a diaper and clothes for sleep, lullaby and feeding. During the day, the ritual can be left the same, only without hygiene procedures. The ritual should be repeated daily and consist of the same actions. It is carried out by one person - either mom or dad.
Check that the room has suitable sleeping conditions for a baby: the temperature is no more than 21-23 degrees in winter and no more than 25 degrees in summer, and the air humidity is approximately 40-60%. It is also important to darken the room for all dreams, including daytime, and use white noise.
Organize your baby's rest in the crib. The last daytime nap can be done outside in a stroller.
Prolong the child's sleep by any means, if the morning and afternoon sleep lasts no more than 30-40 minutes.
If nothing helps and the baby still constantly wakes up at night, neither motion sickness, nor the breast, nor the nipple work to prolong sleep, then it is worth teaching the child to fall asleep on his own.
Make sure your baby gets enough sleep. Otherwise, overwork will accumulate, which will manifest itself in frequent nocturnal awakenings. This is where following a routine can help.

Check our chart to see if your baby is getting enough sleep

How many feeds does a baby need at night?

At four months old, breast milk or formula is still the main food in his diet.

The diet of the breastfed baby this month will consist of feedings every 3-4 hours. The volume of breast milk drunk at a time will be about 118-210 ml. The duration of feeding may vary.

When formula-fed, the volume of the mixture should be calculated from the recommendations of the pediatrician. This is usually 1/6 of the child's actual body weight. At four months, the baby will eat 800-1000 ml. mixture per day every 3-4 hours during the day.

The baby becomes more and more interested in the world around him and during feeding he can start to be distracted, not eat enough and make up for hunger at night. Therefore, it is better to feed the baby in a calm environment.

2-3 feedings are enough at night for a four-month-old baby.

Does the baby wake up at night shortly after feeding and start crying? It's best not to refeed him, but try to calm him down in other ways, such as petting his tummy and peeing. So the child will not form the habit of falling asleep only with the help of feeding.

Should we start complementary foods at 4 months? WHO (World Health Organization) recommends introducing complementary foods from 6 months. Therefore, before introducing adult food, it is worth consulting with a pediatrician.

Physical development of a 4-month-old baby

The fourth month is the age when a child already knows a lot and masters new skills.

He is already confidently using both hands at the same time and grasping toys, colorful and shiny objects near him. Soft books, teething rings are a good choice for this age.

For reading, choose large books with different textures inside to develop tactile sensations. Read and sing to your baby every day for a few minutes. This develops the attention and speech of the child. Take a closer look at children's bathing books - their puffy pages are easy to flip through. In addition, they still often squeak, and the pictures in them are bright.⠀

The baby is already holding his head and chest well, being on his stomach and pushing off the surface with his hands. Also, the child can already begin to roll over from his stomach to his back and push with his legs.

The baby sees better, begins to distinguish colors and notice objects in the distance, although he still prefers to look at faces and things near him. During walks in the fresh air, tell the baby about the surrounding objects, point to them and describe them.

From the age of 4 months, the first teeth erupt. If the baby's salivation increased, redness appeared around the mouth, he began to bite, refuse to eat, became moody, his night's sleep worsened, then most likely the child has a new tooth. In the acute period, teething rings, anesthetic gel recommended by the pediatrician, more attention and warmth from the mother's side will help.

Important changes occur in communication with the baby at 4 months. He realizes that his mother is coming to his crying, and begins to use different sounds when communicating with others: oooh .., aah .., aha ... Catch the moment when the child “talks” more than usual and play “echo” with him. He says - you repeat.

Such a game gives the child confidence that his mother listens to him and is happy to talk to him. And, of course, develops the speech of the child. Try it - you'll like it.

Also at this age, finger games will already be useful, for example, "Ladushki", "A horned goat is coming", "Magpie-crow" - they are aimed at developing the child's fine motor skills, which in turn is important for the formation of speech.

If your 4-month-old baby does not sleep well at night, we recommend that you watch the free master class "MY BABY SLEEPS BADLY at NIGHT: 3 SOLUTIONS"

What is the daily routine of your baby at 4 months old?

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Daily routine for a child under 1 year old

Daily routine is a system for distributing periods of sleep and wakefulness, meals, hygiene and health procedures, activities and independent human activities throughout the day.

Compliance with a rational day regimen corresponding to the age characteristics of the child contributes to his healthy growth and development. Getting used to performing various types of activities at the same time, the child is prepared for the upcoming type of activity at every moment of time, which ensures their easier and faster implementation. Compliance with the correct daily routine provides a good mood for the child and maintains a keen interest in the study of the world around him, contributing to his normal motor and psychoverbal development.

The child's daily routine includes the following obligatory elements: diet, time spent outdoors during the day, frequency and duration of sleep, mandatory classes to develop skills in accordance with age, free time.

In the first months after birth, a healthy newborn baby sleeps for most of the day, since all external stimuli are very strong for the nervous system of a child, accustomed to a cozy intrauterine environment, and cause its rapid exhaustion. As the child grows older, the duration of sleep gradually decreases and the time of wakefulness increases.

Age	Daytime sleep mode	Night sleep	Wake mode
Birth to 2 months	6 x 2.5 hours	6 hours	During feeding
2-4 months	5 times 2-2.5 hours	6.5 hours	4 x 1.5 hours
4-6 months	4-5 times for 2 hours	7 hours	4 x 2 hours
6-9 months	3-4 times for 1.5-2 hours	8 hours	4 x 2.5 hours
9-12 months	2 x 1.5-2 hours	9-10 hours	4 times 3-4 hours

Closely related to the sleep-wake mode is the feeding mode of the baby. The sleep of a child in the first months of life is very sensitive and is easily disturbed under the influence of various extraneous stimuli, including hunger.

Age	Mode	Example
Birth to 2 months	7-8 times, every 3 hours	6,9,12,15,18,21,24 (no night feeding)
2 to 6 months	6-7 times, every 3.5 hours	6, 9.30, 13, 16.30, 20, 23.30 (without night feeding) 6, 9.30, 13, 16.30, 20, 23.30, 03 (with night feeding)
From 7-12 months	5 times, every 4 hours	6,10,14,18,22

The child's stay in the fresh air is essential in the daily routine. The total duration of stay in the open air for children under 1 year of age should be at least 5-6 hours a day. Fresh air has a calming effect on the baby, improves metabolic processes, and increases the body's defenses. In the summer, all games and activities should be held outdoors; in the cold and transitional seasons, two one-time walks of 1.