4 month old sleep schedule

A sample day for a 4 month old: 3 or 4 naps, about 1.25 to 2.5 hours awake at a stretch and 12 to 16 hours of sleep in 24 hours. Here are the times, and how to fit them to your baby.

Sleep in 24 hours
12 to 16 hours, naps included (American Academy of Sleep Medicine)
Naps
3 or 4 naps
Awake between sleeps
About 1.25 to 2.5 hours (a rule of thumb)
Night feeds
Some babies this age still wake to feed, breastfed babies especially. Many no longer need a feed in the middle of the night.

A sample day at 4 months

Built from a 7:00 am wake-up. Times can move 15 minutes either way.

  1. 7:00 amWake upStart the day at about the same time every day
  2. 8:45 amto 10:15 amNap 1After 1 hr 45 min awake
  3. 12:15 pmto 1:45 pmNap 2After 2 hr awake
  4. 4:00 pmto 5:00 pmNap 3After 2 hr 15 min awake
  5. 7:00 pmBedtime routineSame steps, same order, every night
  6. 7:30 pmIn bed, lights outAfter 2 hr 30 min awake
4 hrnaps
11 hr 30 minnight, bedtime to wake-up
15.5 hrin 24 hours

Nap times are worked out from rule-of-thumb awake times. They have not been tested in studies, and healthy babies vary.

Build this around my wake-up time

Bedtime for a 4 month old

In the sample day, lights out is at 7:30 pm, 2 hr 30 min after the last nap ends. The bedtime routine starts 30 minutes before that.

Bedtime follows from the wake-up time and the naps, not from the clock. If your day starts at 6:30 am, bring every time forward by 30 minutes. If it starts at 8:00 am, move every time an hour later.

How much sleep does a 4 month old need?

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends 12 to 16 hours of sleep in 24 hours, naps included, for babies of 4 to 12 months. The American Academy of Pediatrics supports that recommendation.

The sample day adds up to 15.5 hours: 4 hr of naps and 11 hr 30 min from bedtime to wake-up. The night figure includes any feeds and wakings, so the sleep itself is a little less.

These are ranges for most children, not targets to hit. The National Sleep Foundation notes that an hour or two either side of its range can be appropriate.

Wake windows at 4 months

About 1.25 to 2.5 hours between sleeps. That is the range Cleveland Clinic publishes for 3 to 4 months. Its next range, 2 to 4 hours, starts at 5 months.

Wake windows are a rule of thumb. They have not been tested in research and no medical body publishes a table of them. The first stretch of the day is usually the shortest and the last one before bed the longest.

Watch your baby as well as the clock. Yawning, staring and fussing are signs that sleep is close, and when the clock and your baby disagree, go by your baby.

Naps at 4 months

Babies of 4 to 12 months take 2 or 3 naps a day (Nemours). At 4 to 7 months, day sleep adds up to about 3 to 4 hours on average.

The last nap of the day is a short one. It only has to carry your baby to bedtime.

Short naps are still common. Nap patterns get clearer at 5 to 6 months, later than night sleep does.

Night feeds at 4 months

Some babies this age still wake to feed, breastfed babies especially. Many no longer need a feed in the middle of the night.

Keep feeding your baby when they wake hungry, and do not cut a night feed at this age without your pediatrician.

Can you sleep train a 4 month old?

It depends who you ask, and no medical body sets an age. Cleveland Clinic says babies are often ready at about 4 months. Dr. Richard Ferber's book says five or six months, and the published trials enrolled babies of 6 months and older.

Our plans use a method where you stay in the room at this age, and add timed checks and the say-goodnight method from 6 months. If you are unsure, start with the schedule and the bedtime routine and ask your pediatrician about the rest.

Safe sleep

For every sleep, naps included: on the back, on a firm, flat surface that is not inclined, with a fitted sheet and nothing else in the crib or bassinet. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends keeping the crib or bassinet in your room for at least the first 6 months and advises against sharing a bed with a baby.

Stop swaddling as soon as your baby shows any sign of trying to roll over. Do not use weighted swaddles, sleepers or blankets.

Get this schedule built around your baby

Answer nine quick questions. Your plan sets nap times and bedtime from your own wake-up time and gives you the steps for bedtime, night wakings and naps.

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Related guides

Sources

  • Paruthi S, 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.
  • Cleveland Clinic. What Are Baby Wake Windows? And How Long Should They Be? April 2024.
  • Nemours KidsHealth. Sleep and Your Baby, by age; Naps.
  • Nationwide Children's Hospital. Sleep in Infants; Sleep in Toddlers.
  • Mindell JA, et al. Behavioral treatment of bedtime problems and night wakings in infants and young children. Sleep, 2006 (review for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine).
  • Moon RY, et al. Sleep-Related Infant Deaths: Updated 2022 Recommendations for Reducing Infant Deaths in the Sleep Environment. Pediatrics, 2022.

General information for parents, not medical advice. Independent, not affiliated with the American Academy of Pediatrics or any medical body. Talk to your pediatrician about your baby's health.