Whether you have a newborn baby or a toddler or a baby aged in between, there comes a time in most parent’s lives when you ask yourself if your baby is sleeping too much. Granted, many people arrive at The Baby Sleep Site® because your baby is not sleeping enough, but once you have helped your baby sleep through the night and helped your baby nap better, you may come across a time when you aren’t sure if your baby is sleeping too much or not. On the other hand, there are babies who are naturally good sleepers whose parents may wonder how their baby will learn to sit up, crawl, walk, or talk, if all they do is sleep! What would parenthood be without worry? This article will help you figure out if your baby is sleeping too much.
Before we get started, if you EVER have any questions about the health of your baby, talk to your doctor first and foremost! That is why they are there and don’t worry about being an over-protective parent. Trust your instincts and if you feel like something might be wrong, it does not hurt to ask, but it might hurt not to!
Your Newborn Baby’s Sleep
Newborn babies need to sleep A LOT. If you have read the book, The Happiest Baby on the Block, you know the author, Dr. Karp, believes that babies actually need another trimester in the womb. But if a baby were to stay longer, we’d never be able to give birth to such a large baby. I can’t even imagine! So, if you consider the possibility that this is true, that means the first 2-3 months of your baby’s life is still full of rapid growth. Therefore, your newborn needs a lot of sleep.
Unless your baby literally never wakes up, not even to eat, there is most likely no reason to worry your baby is sleeping too much. In the first few weeks, it’s also very common for you to need to wake your baby every 2-3 hours to ensure he eats, and he may go right back to sleep afterward. Again, talk to your doctor if this goes on too long.
It is very typical for newborns to sleep anywhere from 14 to 18 hours a day, on average. Some newborns need even more sleep and wake for 30 minutes or less at a time and sleep most of the day and night away. If your baby is sleeping too much during the day, but wants to party at night, she most likely has her days and nights confused and you should review our newborn sleep tips.
My biggest tip in this stage is if you have a newborn baby who sleeps a lot, take advantage now because it will change rapidly. If your baby isn’t sleeping as much as other newborns do, your baby is most likely normal, too. There is a wide range of what “normal” is and your baby’s sleep needs are as unique as she is.
Your Baby’s Sleep
Beyond the newborn phase, you may start to worry about your baby’s development, if she sleeps too much. After all, how can she learn to roll or crawl when she is sleeping? What is too much sleep?
When your baby is sleeping 13-15 hours per day, this is within normal ranges for a very long time. If your baby is sleeping less, this may or may not be enough sleep. Depending on your baby’s age, a typical baby will sleep 11-12 hours at night and 2-3 hours during the day. Since averages are just those, your baby may indeed need more like 12 hours at night and 4 hours of sleep during the day. This is unlikely to be a cause for concern.
It is a lot of sleep, but a great 12-hour night sleeper and great long napper is fantastic! There is still enough awake-time to learn all the wonderful skills such as rolling, crawling, walking, and talking. She likely needs more time to process all of it and simply needs more sleep than other babies her age. Watching her behavior when she is up is a good sign everything is okay. Again, enjoy it while it lasts. 🙂
If your 6 month or older baby is sleeping like a newborn, though, hardly up during the day for more than an hour at a time, for example, I believe this would warrant a talk with the doctor. There are medical conditions that can cause the need for too much sleep and you do want to rule them out.
If your baby is napping really well, but waking at night, or sleeping really long at night, but napping very little, this may be one of the 5 times you should wake your baby.
Your Toddler’s Sleep
As your baby grows into a toddler, her sleep needs will decrease, however, long luxurious afternoon naps are very common in toddlers. Some toddlers can sleep 3 hours in the afternoon and still go to sleep by 7 p.m. Not mine, though! 🙂 So, just as it’s normal to have toddlers who can sleep 12 hours at night and take a 3 hour nap, there are also toddlers who sleep 11-12 hours at night and take a 1-2 hour nap. Again, there is a wide range of “normal” and the only time I’d be concerned is if your toddler sleeps so much that she doesn’t have time for a gross motor activity or spending awake time with you where she can learn to communicate and other life skills.
All in all, your instincts will be a good guide as to whether your baby is sleeping too much or not enough. Keep in mind that temporary increases in sleep can also be due to illness or growth spurts, too. If your baby is happy, growing, learning, and thriving, there is likely no cause to be worried she is sleeping too much. Even if your baby or toddler does not hit all his milestones exactly “on time” that doesn’t mean he is not “normal.” Talk to your doctor if you have any concerns whatsoever, but otherwise, enjoy your baby or toddler, and enjoy the downtime if he’s sleeping a lot!
Lynn says
My daughter is 3yrs and 5 months old , she sleeps from 5pm to 6 am in the morning, is this too much sleep for her
Danielle says
Hi Lynn,
Thanks for reading The Baby Sleep Site! Most children your daughter’s age sleep between 10-12 hours per 24 hour day. There are exceptions of course, so doing a 13 hour night may be fine. If you have any concerns at all about your daughter’s behavior, do check in with her pediatrician though, because there are certain rare medical conditions that can cause a child to sleep too much. I hope this helps!
Wes Woodworth says
My 2 and a half month old daughter just today has been asleep most of the day. Before today she would sleep through the night and like 1 or 2 hours during the day. She has eaten only 2 bottles today when she is not eating she’s asleep. Tried to play with her and she falls asleep. I’m a little concerned. Please help
Janelle Reid says
@Wes Woodworth – Thank you for writing to us. I am sorry you’ve been concerned with your daughter sleeping too much. If this is still going on and she is spending a lot of time sleeping, it could be fighting a sickness, growth spurt, or perhaps another cause, so it would never hurt to call your doctor. I would make sure she is getting the appropriate amount of breastmilk/formula during that time and if not to definitely give them a call right away. I hope things have improved since you commented!
Brooke says
My 20 week old sleeps 12-14 hourz during the night then about 4+ hours during the day. Is that sleeping to much?
Janelle Reid says
@Brooke, thank you for writing to us! Here is a link to a sample schedule for a 5 month old to give you an idea of the amount of sleep they should be getting, as well as food consumption if you have begun to introduce solids: https://www.babysleepsite.com/schedules/5-month-old-baby-schedule/
I would mention it at your next doctor’s appointment or if your baby is not properly gaining weight. At this age, so much is changing and developing for them so quickly, they often need lots of sleep and even that still will vary from child to child.
I hope this helps!
Muhammed Lamin says
If your baby sleep more than 15hour and sleep more during the day than night
Janelle Reid says
@Muhammed Lamin – Thank you for your comment! I am not quite sure what you are asking – if you could provide a little more information on your baby, I would be happy to help point you in the direction for additional help. 🙂
Susmita Khanra says
My baby is 15 days old. She sleeps all the day and night…hardly 15-30 minutes she awake all the day. She does not even awake for breast feeding. Sould I consult with a doctor? Or is it normal. She is starting loosing weight. I am worried . please help me.
Janelle Reid says
@Susmita Khanra – Thank you for your comment and congratulations on your daughter! I am sorry to hear you are concerned about her sleeping too much, I would definitely give her doctor a call and see what additional advise they can give. My youngest son was VERY sleepy for those first few weeks as well, and so I had to be very proactive to wake him to make sure he got the calories he needed, and it is a lot of work to wake up a super tired newborn but it is important to make sure they are gaining weight and eating every few hours. Your daughter’s doctor should be able to let you know if you need to wake her so I would be sure to check with them. Hang in there!
Nicole says
My almost 3 month old sleeps from about 930 pm to 9 am with a feeding around 530 am. She stays awake from 9am to about 11 but later in the day I’ll try to play with her and she will just fall asleep. While Playing! This can’t be normal. Family even makes jokes that she is always sleeping
Janelle Reid says
Hi @Nicole, thanks for your comment! That’s great your daughter has been giving you such long stretches at night! 3 month olds do need quite a lot of sleep during the day as well as at night. You can view a sample 3 month old schedule and read more about their sleep here: https://www.babysleepsite.com/schedules/3-month-old-baby-sleep-and-feeding-schedule/
If you have any concern that she may be sleeping too much and not getting enough breastmilk/formula during a 24 hour period, I would be sure to reach out to your pediatrician.
I hope this helps! Thanks for using the Baby Sleep Site as a resource for sleep.
Furtari22 says
She is 10weeka. She eats quite a lot so I never know when she’s satisfied. She slept almost throughout the day yesterday and I totally freaked out. I woke her up to eat twice but she ate while she slept too…. then she had her bath still sleeping. I was totally freaked out. She was breastfeeding this morning and then she drifts off again. Instead of freaking out, I blasted some music with my phone close to her. Should I be worried?
Janelle Reid says
@Furtari22, Thank you for writing to us, I am sorry you are freaked out about the amount your baby is sleeping. At this age your baby will sleep on average about 14-16 hours a day, so it is a lot of sleeping! Here is a link to an article about newborn sleep patterns: https://www.babysleepsite.com/newborns/newborn-sleep-schedule-patterns/
If you have any concern though or are afraid she is not getting enough because she is sleeping so much, I would recommend giving your pediatrician a call and checking in there. I hope this helps!
Emelia Gomez says
My son is 12 weeks and he usually goes to sleep at night from 7 or 8pm till 1 or 2am I’ll feed him 5 oz then he will go right back to sleep until 6am to 7:30am. He will be up for about 1hr-1 1/2. Than nap get back up and eat and stay awake 1hr- 1 1/2. His nap times during the day are usually 9am, 12, 4pm and stays asleep for usually 2 or 3 hrs at a time. Is that a lot?
Nicole Johnson says
@Emilia Hello and welcome to our sleepy little village! Some babies need more sleep than others. Have you compared your baby’s sleep against averages? Here’s our blog post with baby sleep averages: https://www.babysleepsite.com/baby-sleep-needs/baby-how-much-sleep Of course, if you ever have serious concerns, please share this with his doctor. Hope this helps!
JJ says
My son’s 12 months old usually go to bed around midnight and would wake up around noon or 1pm the nxt day and then have her nap 3-4 later is that to much sleeping?!?
Janelle Reid says
@JJ Thank you for your comment! At the age of 12 months, your baby needs about 14-15 hours of sleep per day, so depending on how long his naps are, it sounds like he is not getting too much sleep.
For your reference, here is a link to a sample schedule for a 12 month old, if you would like to compare it to your current schedule – often 12 month olds still take 2 naps during the day, usually lasting at least an hour each, the average transition to 1 nap is between 15-18 months (although some babies do transition early): https://www.babysleepsite.com/schedules/toddler-schedule/
If you need any help with scheduling, we are here to help so let us know! Thank you for using the Baby Sleep Site as a resource for sleep.
Belinda says
Why is he going to bed at midnight and waking at midday? Wouldn’t you want your baby to go to bed about 7pm and wake about 8am to start the day! Your one year old is missing out on half the day/daylight? My babe does he exact same as yours but sleeps 7pm-8am then 11am-1.30pm
Lisa says
we have a 15 month old granddaughter. she sleeps from 8 pm until 10 am and then by 1 pm wants to sleep again for 2 to 3 hours. am I crazy or is this just to much?
Jessica Diller says
@Lisa, Thank you for your comment. Knowing that all children have different sleep needs, it can be unusual for children to sleep for that amount of time, but it may be completely normal for her. If she is not exhibiting worrisome behavior, then it may be nothing to be concerned about. However, if you have any doubts, I would suggest speaking with your granddaughter’s pediatrician. Best of luck!