It is easy to find information about how many naps your child should be having at a certain age, what wake windows to follow and how much overnight/total sleep they should be getting.
However, we don’t often talk much about HOW MUCH daytime sleep your child should be having and we need to be talking about it!
All children only have so much sleep to give in a 24 hour period, and this will be unique to each and every child. For this reason it is important to know the recommendations of total daytime sleep for your little one so that you can set them up for successful sleep overnight.
Too much daytime sleep: leads to an imbalance of overall sleep and we will often see an impact on overnight sleep (fragmented nights, early mornings, split nights)
Too little daytime sleep: also leads to an imbalance and we see it impact overall sleep due to overtiredness.
If you have a child that is struggling with early mornings, short naps or night wakings then this blog will help set your little one up for the correct balance of daytime sleep.
Newborns (0-15 weeks or ~3 months)
The amount of daytime sleep can vary quite a bit, especially because newborns require A LOT of sleep. In general, I would plan for approximately 5-6 hours of daytime sleep at this age, but do not stress if your baby falls outside of this guideline.
The National Sleep Foundation recommends about 14-17 hours in a 24 hour period. Again, I would encourage you to focus on awake time at this age (45-90 minutes) versus total daytime sleep. Knowing that naps as a newborn can vary between 20 minutes -3 hours!
If you have a newborn and you are looking to start building a healthy sleep foundation and shape their sleep, I encourage you to take a look at my newborn masterclass. This will provide you with all the education you need to feel confident with your baby’s sleep from day 1.
Infants 3-4 months
As your little one is heading through their third month and into their fourth month you will start to notice their sleep needs changing. Wake windows will start getting a bit longer and daytime sleep needs will decrease down to about 4 hours per day.
These 4 hours are generally split over 3-4 naps (depending on nap length)
At this age you do want to start paying closer attention to that total daytime sleep because if your little one is sleeping ALL day, then you will definitely start to see that impact overnight sleep.
Infants 5 months
For a 5 month old baby, they will probably need about 3.5 hours of daytime sleep split over 3 (sometimes 4) naps. Some babies at this age will still experience short naps. Naps tend to lengthen somewhere between 4-6 months once timings are correct and independent sleep skills are established.
Babies 6-12 months
You will notice that at this age your baby’s daytime sleep needs decrease to about 3 hours per day in order to preserve that overnight sleep! Around 6-7 months is a common time to see naps drop to 2 per day, so you will split the 3 hours over 2 naps.
Once your child is on 2 naps, you will move to more of a “set schedule” to properly balance the daytime sleep. Should you still be struggling with short naps, be sure to grab a copy of my short naps masterclass to help you troubleshoot and fix those short naps ASAP!
As your child gets closer to 12 months, daytime sleep needs often decrease again to about 2.5 hours per day split between 2 naps. Your child’s sleep latency (see blog here) can really help you assess whether or not their wake time needs to increase.
Once your child transitions to 1 nap per day
This transition generally occurs somewhere between 12-18 months. When this transition happens we can see daytime sleep increase for a period of time from 2 hours to 2.5-3 hours for the mid day nap.
Between 2-3 years your child may need anywhere from 1-2 hours of daytime sleep.
Between 3-4 years your child may need anywhere from 0-1 hour of daytime sleep depending on their unique sleep needs.
For children 3 years + a daytime nap will likely mean slightly less night time sleep. This is totally okay if your child needs that rest and a later bedtime works for your family.
To maintain an earlier bedtime you can start capping that mid day nap to ensure a 6 hour wake window between waking from nap and bedtime.
Should you still be struggling to find the right balance of daytime sleep for your child, please know you are not alone! It can be complicated and totally overwhelming. My Ask Me Anything Calls are the perfect option should you need help to optimize your child’s schedule!
Thanks for reading and please share with families who might benefit from this information!
Rosalie Kassen (She/her)
Founder of Plume Sleep Solutions, RN and Paediatric Sleep Consultant.
Working with families all over the world to bring healthy sleep habits and rest back into their homes. Stop surviving and start thriving!