Baby Wake Windows and Sleep Schedules by Age (4–24 Months)
A Canadian paediatric sleep consultant’s by-age guide to wake windows, nap counts, and how much sleep your baby actually needs — from 4 months to 2 years.
The short answer. Build your baby’s day around the wake window — the stretch they can comfortably be awake between sleeps — which grows with age, from about 1.75–2.25 hours at 4 months to 4–6 hours for toddlers on one nap. Naps fall from 3–4 a day at 4 months to a single afternoon nap somewhere between 14 and 18 months. Babies 4–12 months typically need about 12–16 hours of sleep per 24 hours and toddlers about 11–14 hours, and total sleep across the day and night matters more than hitting any exact window.
🩺 How this was checked. Written by Milos and fact-checked against current Canadian Paediatric Society, Health Canada, and AAP guidance (see Sources). Independent clinical review is being added — this page will carry a named medical reviewer once that’s in place.
The schedule question
Once your baby is past the newborn fog, the question changes. It’s no longer “why is this so chaotic?” — it’s “what should a day look like?”
The honest answer is that there’s no single correct schedule. But there is a reliable framework, and it’s built on one tool: the wake window — the stretch of time your baby can comfortably be awake between sleeps. Get the wake windows roughly right for your baby’s age, and naps lengthen, bedtime gets easier, and night sleep settles. Get them wrong, and almost everything frays.
This guide gives you wake windows, nap counts, and total sleep needs for every age from 4 to 24 months.
A quick note. This is general guidance for typically-developing babies and isn’t medical advice. Every baby sits slightly differently on these ranges — use adjusted age for babies born prematurely, and follow your healthcare provider for any concerns. If your baby is under 4 months, see Newborn Wake Windows instead. For the bigger picture, see our pillar guide, When Should You Sleep Train Your Baby?.
Wake windows by age: the chart
| Age | Typical wake window | Naps per day | Total sleep / 24 h |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 months | 1.75–2.25 hours | 3–4 | 12–16 hours |
| 5–6 months | 2–2.75 hours | 3 (→ 2) | 12–15 hours |
| 7–9 months | 2.5–3.25 hours | 2 | 12–15 hours |
| 10–12 months | 3–4 hours | 2 | 12–15 hours |
| 13–15 months | 3.25–4.5 hours | 2 (→ 1) | 11–14 hours |
| 15–18 months | 4–5.5 hours | 1 | 11–14 hours |
| 18–24 months | 5–6 hours | 1 | 11–14 hours |
Two patterns are worth noticing. The first wake window of the day is usually the shortest; the window before bed is usually the longest. And total sleep matters more than hitting any exact window — a baby who is sleeping well across 24 hours is on track even if a given day looks untidy.
What the day looks like at each stage
4 to 6 months. This is the busiest nap stage — three, sometimes four, naps. Around 5–6 months many babies drop the short fourth catnap and settle into three. Wake windows are still short in the morning and stretch through the day. A consistent, calm bedtime routine becomes a genuinely powerful anchor here.
7 to 9 months. Most babies are now on two solid naps — typically mid-morning and early afternoon — with a longer wake window before bed. This is one of the most stable, predictable stretches of the whole first two years. Enjoy it.
10 to 12 months. Still two naps, but wake windows lengthen noticeably. Many parents are tempted to drop to one nap around the first birthday — usually too early (more on that below).
13 to 18 months. The big shift: the move from two naps to one, most often somewhere between 14 and 18 months. The single nap settles into the early afternoon. Wake windows stretch dramatically — by 18 months, your toddler may be awake five-plus hours before that nap.
18 to 24 months. One solid afternoon nap, long wake windows on either side, and a bedtime that holds. This one-nap pattern usually lasts well into the preschool years.
Two sample days
These are illustrative, not prescriptions — your baby’s exact times will differ. They show how wake windows assemble into a real day.
A two-nap day (around 7–9 months):
- 7:00 a.m. — wake and feed
- 9:30 a.m. — Nap 1 (about 1–1.5 hours)
- 1:30 p.m. — Nap 2 (about 1.5 hours)
- 6:00 p.m. — bedtime routine
- 6:30 p.m. — asleep
A one-nap day (around 18–24 months):
- 7:00 a.m. — wake
- 12:30 p.m. — nap (about 1.5–2.5 hours)
- 7:00 p.m. — bedtime routine
- 7:30 p.m. — asleep
Notice the shape in both: a shorter first wake window, the longest wake window before bed, and a bedtime that lands early enough to prevent overtiredness.
How to actually use wake windows
Wake windows are a starting point, not a stopwatch. Three rules make them work:
Watch the baby, not just the clock. The chart tells you roughly when to start watching for tired cues — rubbing eyes, looking away, fussing, going quiet. The cues tell you now. When the cues and the clock disagree, the baby wins.
The window is the cue to start winding down — not the deadline to be asleep. When you’re near the end of the expected window, begin the nap or bedtime routine. The wind-down is part of the window.
Adjust for the day you’re having. A short or skipped nap means the next wake window should be shorter, to head off overtiredness. A great long nap can support a slightly longer window after it. Schedules flex; that’s normal.
When the schedule suddenly stops working
Every few months, a schedule that worked perfectly will seem to break overnight. Usually it’s one of three things:
- A nap transition is due. If your baby is fighting a nap, taking ages to fall asleep, or waking early from naps for a couple of weeks straight, they may be ready to drop one. See Baby Nap Transitions.
- A developmental leap or regression. Crawling, walking, talking, and separation anxiety all disrupt sleep temporarily. See Sleep Regressions After 4 Months.
- The wake windows have simply grown. Babies need more awake time as they age. A schedule built for a 6-month-old will overtire a 9-month-old and undertire a 12-month-old. Re-check the chart every couple of months.
A note from me
With twins, I learned to hold the schedule loosely. Two babies are never on the identical wake window, and chasing a perfect synced timetable will cost you your sanity. What worked was treating the chart as a frame, not a rule — roughly right wake windows, eyes on the tired cues, and a willingness to let an untidy day be an untidy day. A baby who is well-rested across the week does not need a flawless schedule any single afternoon.
What to do this week
Find your baby’s age band in the chart and check two things: are the wake windows you’re using roughly in range, and is total daily sleep roughly on target? If a window is well short of the range, gently stretch it over a few days. If your baby is chronically overtired, shorten it. Then watch the tired cues and let the schedule settle.
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Get the free guide →Frequently asked questions
What are wake windows by age?
Wake windows are how long a baby can comfortably be awake between sleeps. They grow with age — roughly 1.75–2.25 hours at 4 months, 2.5–3.25 hours at 7–9 months, 3–4 hours at 10–12 months, and 4–6 hours for toddlers on one nap.
How much sleep does my baby need?
Babies 4–12 months typically need about 12–16 hours of sleep per 24 hours including naps; toddlers 1–2 years need about 11–14 hours. Total sleep across the day and night matters more than any single nap or window.
How many naps should my baby have?
Roughly: 3–4 naps at 4 months, 3 naps at 5–6 months, 2 naps from about 7 months, and 1 nap from somewhere between 14 and 18 months, lasting into the preschool years.
Why has my baby’s sleep schedule suddenly stopped working?
Usually a nap transition is due, a developmental regression is underway, or the wake windows have simply outgrown the old schedule. Re-check the by-age chart every couple of months.
Should I follow wake windows or the clock?
Use wake windows and your baby’s tired cues to build the schedule, then a roughly consistent clock to anchor it. When the clock and your baby’s cues disagree, follow the baby.
Sources
- AASM 2016 — Paruthi S, Brooks LJ, D’Ambrosio C, et al. “Recommended Amount of Sleep for Pediatric Populations: A Consensus Statement of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.” J Clin Sleep Med. 2016;12(6):785–786 (DOI 10.5664/jcsm.5866); methodology paper 12(11):1549–1561 — PubMed 27250809 · PMC5078711
- Canadian Paediatric Society (Caring for Kids) — “Healthy sleep for your baby and child” (by-age chart attributed to the AASM consensus) — caringforkids.cps.ca
- National Sleep Foundation 2015 — Hirshkowitz M, et al. “National Sleep Foundation’s sleep time duration recommendations.” Sleep Health, Feb 2015 (newborns 0–3 mo: 14–17 h; infants 4–11 mo: 12–15 h) — eurekalert.org release
This is general education, not medical advice — talk to your child’s doctor about your child’s specific situation.
About Milos
Milos is the founder of Sleep Ready and Life Safe, a certified paediatric sleep and potty consultant through the Institute of Pediatric Sleep and Parenting (four specializations), a certified First Aid and CPR instructor for over a decade, and the dad of twins. Sleep Ready serves Canadian families virtually across Canada and in-home across most of Ontario.
Rested child. Prepared parent. That’s Sleep Ready.