Nothing you type leaves this phone.
Pick a birth date, or tap an age.
A sample day at 6 months
Woke at 7:00 am, naps around 9:00 am, 12:10 pm and 4:00 pm, bedtime 7:00 pm.
- Wake windows: 35–60 minutes, counted from waking up to falling asleep again, feed included.
- Naps: no fixed number. Sleep follows feeds, often 6 or more stretches a day.
- Day sleep: 6–9 hours, in pieces.
- Total sleep: 14–17 hours in 24 hours (National Sleep Foundation, 0–3 months).
- Bedtime: late, often 9–11 pm. That's normal in the first weeks.
A sample day with a newborn
This is what the planner sketches for a 2-week-old who wakes at 7:00 am. Read it as a loose rhythm, not a timetable: in real life the feeds decide, and no two days look alike.
Wake 7:00 am · Nap 1 7:45–8:35 am · Nap 2 9:20–10:10 am · Nap 3 10:55–11:45 am · Nap 4 12:30–1:20 pm · Nap 5 2:05–2:55 pm · Nap 6 3:40–4:30 pm · Nap 7 5:15–6:05 pm · Nap 8 6:50–7:40 pm · Nap 9 8:25–9:15 pm · Bedtime 10:00 pm
Nine sleeps sounds like a lot, and it is: at this age a baby wakes, feeds, looks around for a few minutes and is tired again. Some of those naps will be two hours, some twenty minutes, and some will happen on your chest. All of them count. The planner's live countdown helps most when you've lost track of when your baby last woke up, which in the newborn fog is often.
What's different about the newborn weeks
There is no schedule yet, and that's by design. A newborn's body clock isn't running: the hormones that make us sleepy at night and alert by day take weeks to settle into a 24-hour rhythm. Until then sleep comes in short blocks spread evenly across day and night, each one ended by hunger. Trying to fit a 2-week-old to clock times mostly makes parents feel they are failing at something no baby can do yet.
Feeds drive the day. Most newborns feed every 2 to 3 hours, sometimes more often, around the clock (HealthyChildren.org). A wake window at this age is mostly the feed itself, a diaper change and a few minutes of looking at you. That is why 35–60 minutes is plenty. If you're bottle-feeding, our feeding calculator shows how much and how often by age and weight. Whether to wake a sleeping newborn for a feed is your pediatrician's call, especially in the first weeks while weight gain is being checked.
Day and night are mixed up. Many newborns have their longest awake stretch at 11 pm. You can nudge the clock along gently: daylight and normal household noise during the day, and at night keep feeds dim, quiet and boring, with no play. Over the first weeks most babies start sleeping a little more at night than by day.
A late bedtime is normal. In the first six weeks “bedtime” is often 9, 10 or 11 pm, simply when the longest stretch of the night happens to begin. It moves earlier by itself over the next couple of months; you'll see it on the 2-month page.
Every sleep is a safe sleep. Naps follow the same rules as the night: on the back, on a firm, flat surface, in an empty crib or bassinet, with no pillows, bumpers or loose blankets. The AAP recommends sharing your room, not your bed, for at least the first six months. A nap in the car seat is fine in the car; once you arrive, move your baby to a flat surface. Contact naps on an awake adult are fine too; if you feel yourself dozing off, put the baby down.
Sleepy cues beat the clock
- Early cues: a glazed stare, looking away, a quieter body, red eyebrows or eyelids.
- Late cues: yawning, jerky arms and legs, rubbing the face into your shoulder, fussing.
- Overtired: hard crying that won't settle, arching, a baby who is clearly exhausted but can't drop off.
Under about 3 months the cues come first and the clock second. Use the 35–60 minute window as a reminder to start looking for cues, not as an alarm. If your baby shows early cues after 30 minutes, start winding down; if they're calm and alert at an hour, that's fine too. Swaddling, holding, rocking and feeding to sleep are all fine at this age; there are no habits to undo yet.
Born early?
For a baby born more than about 3 weeks early, newborn sleep lasts longer: plan by adjusted age, counted from the due date. A baby born 4 weeks early who is 6 weeks old today still sleeps like a 2-week-old. The planner shows this when you tap “Born more than 3 weeks early?”; here is how adjusted age works.
Frequently asked questions
Do newborns have wake windows at all?
Yes, but they're short and loose: about 35 to 60 minutes, feed included. In the first weeks they're a reminder to watch for sleepy cues, not a timetable. A real nap routine usually appears somewhere around 2 to 4 months.
Should a newborn only be awake 45 minutes?
About that, yes. Most newborns are ready to sleep again 35 to 60 minutes after waking up. Some days a baby stays awake longer, especially in the evening, and that's fine. If your baby is often hard to wake, sleepy at feeds or not feeding well, call your pediatrician.
Why is my newborn's bedtime so late?
Because the body clock isn't running yet. In the first six weeks the longest stretch of the night often starts at 9, 10 or 11 pm, and that's normal. Bedtime moves earlier by itself over the next two months as day and night sort themselves out.
How do I know my newborn is overtired?
Hard crying that won't settle, arching and a baby who seems exhausted but can't fall asleep. Try a dim, quiet room, holding, swaddling (until signs of rolling) and a feed. Next time, start winding down a little earlier, at the first glazed stare or yawn.
Sources
- Hirshkowitz M. et al., National Sleep Foundation's sleep time duration recommendations, Sleep Health 2015: 0–3 months 14–17 h in 24 h
- Moon R.Y. et al., Sleep-Related Infant Deaths: Updated 2022 Recommendations for Reducing Infant Deaths in the Sleep Environment, Pediatrics 2022
- Galland B.C. et al., Normal sleep patterns in infants and children: a systematic review, Sleep Med Rev 2012
- HealthyChildren.org (AAP): How Often and How Much Should Your Baby Eat?
- HealthyChildren.org (AAP): Getting Your Baby to Sleep
- NHS: Helping your baby to sleep
- Cleveland Clinic: Wake Windows by Age
Spotted a mistake or an outdated figure? Write to [email protected].
All ages: wake windows by age · the full nap schedule planner, newborn to 3 years.