What Time Should My Baby Go to Bed? A Guide for Every Age

If there is one question that comes up more than any other in baby sleep, it is this: "What time should my baby go to bed?"

The honest answer is: it depends. There is no single correct bedtime for all babies, and the cultural expectation in the UK that all babies go to bed at 7pm is not evidence-based as a universal recommendation.

The optimal bedtime for your baby depends on several factors: their age, their wake-up time, their nap schedule, their individual sleep needs, and your family's routine. What works for the baby in your NCT group may not work for yours — and that is completely fine.

Neither the NHS nor the Lullaby Trust recommends a specific bedtime. The NHS guidance says that "some people find a regular bedtime routine helpful from around 3 months." The Lullaby Trust emphasises that baby should sleep in the same room as the parent for at least the first six months — but does not specify when that bedtime should be.

Understanding the science behind why bedtimes change with age, and the principles for finding the right one for your baby, is far more useful than chasing a number on the clock.

Your baby's ideal bedtime is closely linked to the development of their circadian rhythm — the internal body clock that governs when they feel sleepy and when they feel awake.

Newborns (0-3 months): A late bedtime is biologically normal. Newborns do not produce meaningful amounts of melatonin until approximately nine weeks of age, and the circadian rhythm is not established until around three to four months. A bedtime of 9-11pm is completely expected at this age. Attempting to force a 7pm bedtime on a newborn will likely result in a long, frustrating evening with a baby who is simply not ready to sleep. If your newborn is wide awake at 9pm, nothing has gone wrong.

3-6 months: As melatonin production increases and a day/night pattern emerges, bedtime naturally begins to drift earlier. Most babies settle into a 7-8pm bedtime window by four to five months — but this is a tendency, not a rule. If your baby is still happier with a later bedtime, that is within the range of normal.

6-12 months: Research suggests that dim light melatonin onset (DLMO) — the point at which the body starts producing the sleep hormone melatonin — typically occurs between 6:30 and 7:30pm for most babies in this age range. This supports a bedtime window of roughly 7-8pm for many families. But not all.

Toddlers (12-36 months): DLMO varies significantly between toddlers. One study found a range from 5:48pm to 9:16pm. Bedtime depends heavily on nap timing — a toddler who naps late may not be ready for sleep until 7:30 or 8pm, and that is perfectly fine.

The "7pm bedtime" has become almost a cultural institution in UK parenting. It is passed down from grandparents, recommended by well-meaning health visitors, and reinforced by social media. But there is nothing magical about it.

7pm works well when:

• Your baby wakes naturally between 6 and 7am
• They are on an age-appropriate nap schedule
• The last nap of the day ends by 4-5pm (depending on age)
• Your family schedule supports a 6:30pm routine start

7pm does NOT work when:

• Your baby naturally wakes at 8am — in which case bedtime could reasonably be later
• You have a newborn with no circadian rhythm yet
• Your toddler is in a nap transition and the single nap runs late
• A parent does not get home from work until 7pm — pushing bedtime to 7:30 or 8pm to allow quality time together is a valid choice
• Your baby consistently wakes at 5am after a 7pm bedtime — a later bedtime may actually help

One of the most common misconceptions is that an earlier bedtime will fix early morning waking. Often the opposite is true: an early bedtime can cause early waking because the baby has had enough total sleep. Before making bedtime earlier, it is worth considering whether the current bedtime might actually be too early.

Similarly, the belief that keeping a baby up late will make them sleep later in the morning usually backfires with overtired babies — they often wake earlier. But for a well-rested baby, a modest shift of fifteen to thirty minutes can sometimes nudge the wake-up time later.

Rather than aiming for a specific clock time, the most useful approach is to think about bedtime in relation to when your baby last slept. The principle is straightforward: last nap end time + age-appropriate wake window = ideal bedtime.

The last wake window of the day is almost always the longest. This makes sense: your baby has been building up sleep pressure all day, and the final stretch before bed needs to be long enough to generate enough tiredness for a solid night's sleep.

As a rough guide:

• 3-4 months (4 naps): Wake window before bed of roughly 1.5-2 hours. Bedtime around 7:00-7:30pm.
• 5-6 months (3 naps): Wake window before bed of roughly 2-2.5 hours. Bedtime around 6:30-7:30pm.
• 7-8 months (2-3 naps): Wake window before bed of roughly 2.5-3 hours. Bedtime around 6:30-7:30pm.
• 9-12 months (2 naps): Wake window before bed of roughly 3-3.5 hours. Bedtime around 6:30-7:00pm.
• 13-17 months (1-2 naps): Wake window before bed of roughly 3.5-4 hours. Bedtime around 7:00-7:30pm.
• 18-24 months (1 nap): Wake window before bed of roughly 4-5 hours. Bedtime around 7:00-8:00pm.
• 2-3 years (1 nap or dropping): Wake window before bed of roughly 4.5-5.5 hours. Bedtime around 7:00-8:00pm.

These are ranges, not prescriptions. Every baby is different. Use these as a starting point and adjust based on how your baby responds. If they are falling asleep within ten to twenty minutes of being put down and sleeping reasonably well, the timing is probably right. If they are fighting bedtime for forty-five minutes or waking very early, the timing may need adjusting.

There are several situations where a later bedtime is not only acceptable but genuinely better for your baby's sleep:

Newborns. A late bedtime of 9-11pm is biologically normal in the first three months. Forcing a 7pm bedtime before the circadian rhythm develops creates unnecessary stress for everyone.

During nap transitions. When your baby is dropping a nap, the remaining nap may run later than usual, which means bedtime needs to shift later temporarily. A toddler whose single nap ends at 3:30pm may need a 7:30 or 8pm bedtime — and that is fine.

Families with late-working parents. A child who gets thirty minutes of quality time with a parent before bed is getting something genuinely important. If that means bedtime is 7:30 or 8pm instead of 7pm, the trade-off is worth it. What matters is total sleep in twenty-four hours, not which specific hour bedtime falls on.

Babies waking before 6am. If your baby is consistently waking very early, a slightly later bedtime (shifted by fifteen to thirty minutes) may help move the wake-up time later. Total sleep stays roughly the same; it just shifts along the clock.

Split nights. If your baby is awake for a long stretch in the middle of the night (typically 1-3am), bedtime may actually be too early. A later bedtime compresses night sleep and can eliminate the split. This is counterintuitive but well supported by sleep science.

In many cultures worldwide, 8-9pm bedtimes for babies and toddlers are completely normal. What matters is whether your baby is getting enough total sleep across the full twenty-four hours — not what the clock says at lights-off.

The best bedtime for your baby is the one that results in them falling asleep within a reasonable time (typically ten to thirty minutes), sleeping well through the night for their age, and waking at a time that works for your family.

If your baby is consistently fighting bedtime, it may be too early (not enough sleep pressure) or too late (overtiredness making it harder to settle). If they are waking very early in the morning, bedtime may be too early. If they are waking frequently at night, the issue may not be bedtime at all — it could be related to sleep associations, environment, or developmental changes.

Bedtime is one piece of a much larger puzzle. It interacts with naps, wake windows, the sleep environment, your baby's temperament, and what else is happening in their development. Adjusting one element without considering the others rarely solves the problem on its own.

If you are feeling judged because your baby's bedtime is "late" compared to others in your NCT group, remember: the NHS does not specify a particular bedtime. Your baby's sleep needs are individual. A baby who goes to bed at 8pm and sleeps well is in a far better position than a baby who goes to bed at 7pm and fights it for an hour.

Trust your baby's cues, pay attention to wake windows, and be willing to adjust. The right bedtime for your family is the one that works for your family.