Getting your baby's sleep schedule right can feel like a moving target — just when you think you've cracked it, a growth spurt shifts everything again. This page shows you how long your baby should generally be sleeping and waking during the day, at every stage from newborn to toddler. Pick your baby's age to see typical wake windows, nap counts, and total sleep needs as a starting guide, not a strict schedule. If you want to track your baby's actual sleep patterns instead of just averages, our BabyQuil app is for you.
Prefer to see every age side by side rather than clicking through one at a time? Here's the full picture in one table.
| Age | Wake window* | Naps/day* | Total sleep (24hr)† |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–2 months | 45–60 min | 4–6+ | 11–19 hrs |
| 3–4 months | 1–2 hrs | 3–4 | 12–15 hrs |
| 5–6 months | 2–2.5 hrs | 3 | 12–15 hrs |
| 7–9 months | 2.5–3.5 hrs | 2–3 | 11–16 hrs |
| 10–12 months | 3–4 hrs | 2 | 11–16 hrs |
| 13–18 months | 4–5 hrs | 1–2 | 12–14 hrs |
| 19–24 months | 5–6 hrs | 1 | 12–14 hrs |
| 2–3 years | 5–6 hrs | 0–1 | 12–13 hrs |
*Wake window and nap counts are practical estimates commonly used by pediatric sleep consultants, not official medical targets — they vary from baby to baby and source to source.
†Total sleep ranges are based on published guidance from Pregnancy, Birth and Baby, Raising Children Network and the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (see Sources & methodology below). These organisations use somewhat different age bands, so ranges are presented as general guidance rather than one exact figure.
A baby's sleep needs change fast in that first year. Newborn sleep tends to be spread across many short stretches, day and night, while older babies gradually settle into longer, more predictable blocks. Published guidance gives a range rather than one exact number because individual sleep needs genuinely vary — the table above reflects that spread rather than a single target to hit.
A wake window is the period your baby is awake between sleep periods. It's a commonly used practical parenting tool rather than an official medical target, and it varies considerably between babies. That said, many babies do become harder to settle once they've been awake longer than they can comfortably manage — so a wake window can be one useful clue, alongside your baby's own tired signs, especially in those early newborn weeks.
These two numbers answer different questions. Wake window is how long your baby has been awake since their last sleep. Total sleep is how much sleep they get across the full 24 hours. A baby with shorter, more frequent naps can still land on a similar total sleep number to a baby with fewer, longer ones. If your baby's naps look different from another baby's, that doesn't necessarily mean there's a problem — sleep needs and patterns vary considerably. If you're ever concerned about your baby's sleep, feeding, growth or behaviour, speak with your child's doctor.
Every baby is different, and sleep needs can vary a lot in that first year. Think of the table as a starting point rather than a rule — your baby's individual sleep pattern, tired signs, feeding and overall wellbeing matter just as much as where they fall on any chart.
These cues vary with age and from baby to baby — one sign on its own doesn't necessarily mean your baby is ready to sleep right that moment.
Once nap schedules settle, keep an eye on developmental milestones, and if feeding is part of the sleep-fighting puzzle, see latch and feeding fixes.
Total sleep guidance on this page is based on the American Academy of Sleep Medicine's consensus recommendations, cross-checked against national health guidance from Australia and elsewhere. Because different health bodies use somewhat different age bands and methodologies, the ranges shown here are general guidance rather than one exact figure. Wake window and nap counts are a different kind of number entirely — practical estimates used by pediatric sleep consultants rather than figures set by any official body, so treat them as a starting point rather than a target to hit.
This calculator provides general informational guidance and is not a substitute for medical advice. If you have concerns about your baby's sleep, breathing, or development, talk to your child's doctor.
Sleep guidance describes what's common across large groups of babies — it can't tell you exactly what your baby needs on a given day. Our BabyQuil app lets you log every nap and night sleep and see the pattern over time, so you can tell whether your baby's routine is genuinely changing as they grow, not just guess from an average.
Get BabyQuil — free on iOS