With over 10 years of experience as a sleep consultant, we share sample 4 month old sleep schedules with feedings. These sample schedules include milk feedings for breastfeeding and formula-feeding babies, solids, naps, and nighttime sleep.
4 Month Old Baby’s Sleep and Development
Pediatricians disagree high and low about when a baby is capable of sleeping through the night and only a handful of parents who reach this page will have a 4 month old who sleeps all night without even a single feeding (those that do are LUCKY!).
Most 4-month-olds need 11-12 hours at night and 3-4 hours during the day. And, many 4-month-olds are still eating 1-2 times a night and some naps are just 30 minutes. In addition, most 4 month olds will take 4 naps a day. Consequently, short naps are normal development at this age as it’s highly unusual for babies to take four 1-hour naps.
At this age, if you are not lucky enough to have a baby who sleeps through the night, many 4-month-olds are still waking 1-3 times to eat at night and many breastfeeding babies will continue to eat 1-2 times until 9+ months of age. On the other hand, formula-fed babies will often be night-weaned by 6 months old. More night feedings than that and likely you have a sleep association problem.
How Many Naps for a 4 Month Old?
Most 4 month old babies take 4 naps each day totaling 3-4 hours of sleep. The reason for so many naps is primarily because babies this age can’t stay awake longer than 1-2 hours at a time. They still have short wake windows so it’s still common to spread out daytime sleep among multiple sleep periods. However, some babies this age can stay awake longer and drop the fourth nap transitioning to a 3-nap schedule early.
When Your 4 Month Old’s Sleep Gets Worse
If your baby has recently started sleeping worse, you may want to read more about 4 month old baby sleep. Keep in mind that one of the biggest sleep challenges families face around 4 months is the 4 month sleep regression. During this time period, babies change their sleep permanently and will wake up frequently at night and take shorter naps.
Obviously, all babies vary, but here are some sample (loose) schedules you can use to make your own for your unique baby. Most babies, at this age, can’t be on a strict schedule because many babies are still taking shorter naps while their brain matures and they simply can not stay up very long to get to the next scheduled nap-time. So, at this age, it’s likely naps are still on the short side, but come frequently and every day will still likely be different.
Don’t worry, that will change!
Babies typically transition to just 3 naps around 6 months or 7 months.
If you’re having trouble with naps, you might be interested in helping your baby nap better.
4 Month Old Feeding
Breast milk or formula should be the primary nutrition for the first year and solids come secondary. Below are the amounts we recommend if your pediatrician recommends solids before 6 months, the age at which most are recommending now. For more information on starting your baby on solid food, we have a series of blog posts dedicated to the subject. We include recommendations about how and when to start solids, as well as helpful information on food allergies, recommended products, baby-friendly recipes, and more.
Average amounts per day:
• At least 5-6 breastfeeding sessions per day or 2 1/2 ounces formula for each pound of weight (approx. 20-30 ounces) (decrease solids if your baby is not taking in at least this much)
• Water is unnecessary (breast milk and formula have plenty of water in them).
And, if your pediatrician recommends solids this young (it is now recommend at 6+ months):
• Up to 1-2 servings baby cereal (1 serving = 1-2 Tablespoons dry)
• Up to 1-2 servings fruit (1 serving = 1-2 Tablespoons)
• Up to 1-2 servings vegetable (1 serving = 1-2 Tablespoons)
Note: With your doctor’s approval and guidance, you will start with just one teaspoon of solids (before mixing w/ breast milk or formula) and work your way up. Don’t forget to wait at least 3-4 days before introducing a new food for food allergy reasons.
“Thank you for your articles, they’ve shown me that my 4 month old baby is perfectly normal and I’m doing the right things in relation to his sleep. This is such a relief! So many sources just don’t seem to give realistic information about baby sleep – not for myself or for any other mum I know.
Great care has obviously been taken by The Baby Sleep Site in reflecting a realistic and true picture of what a ‘normal’ baby is. Thank you.”
-Sincerely, Elizabeth
Sample 4 Month Old Schedule
This schedule assumes a baby can stay up 1 hour 15 minutes before needing to sleep again. At this age, wake-time should be 1-2 hours TOPS, to avoid baby getting overtired.
4-Month-Old Sleep Schedule | |
---|---|
Time | Activity |
6:30 AM | Wake and Breast milk or Formula |
7:15 AM | Solids (Only if your pediatrician has recommended starting this early) |
7:45 | Nap |
8:15-8:45 | Breast milk or Formula |
9:45-10:00 | Nap |
10:45-11:15 | Breast milk or Formula |
11:45-12:00 | Nap |
1:15-1:45 | Breast milk or Formula |
2:00 | Nap |
3:45-4:15 | Breast milk or Formula |
4:45 | Nap |
5:45 | Begin bedtime routine |
6:00 | Breast milk or Formula |
6:15 | Bedtime (Goal to be asleep at this time) |
+Plus probably 1-3 nighttime feedings
Note: This schedule follows the eat-play-sleep routine, however, it is sometimes hard to do at this age when the amount of time between naps is not long enough and your baby wakes too early from his nap because of a feeding.
Want more information about how to help your 4 month old sleep well? Check out our detailed case study about Nadia, Brad, and their 4 month old, Abigail.
Abigail’s Story
Read how they helped Abigail learn to sleep longer stretches at night and take better naps – and how they helped to change those sleep associations that were keeping her awake! Just join our VIP Members Area, and access the case study instantly. And that’s not all – our VIP Members Area is packed with additional premium content and resources: e-Books, assessments, more case studies, peer support, and more. It actually costs less to join than buying products separately! And best of all, members receive 20% of all consultation services – should you need more help!
Want FREE sleep help that you can put to use right away? Download a copy of our free guide, 5 Ways To Help Your Child Sleep Through The Night! The guide is available to download instantly, which means you can start using the techniques in it as early as tonight. So download now, and learn why your baby is waking at night – and what you can do about it.
Click here to learn more about how to get your free guide.
A better night’s sleep could be just a few clicks away. So don’t wait – download now, and start your journey to better sleep tonight!
You May Also Be Interested In:
- The 4 Month Sleep Regression: What It Is and How To Fix It
- Which Sleep Coaching Method Fits? (Members Area quiz)
- Abrupt Changes In Sleep Habits (Members Area article)
- 4 Month Sleep Regression Checklist
Tere says
I have problem with my 4 months Baby she doesnt want to sleep in bed . Everytime I put her she Will Wakes UP. So I have just carrying her the whole night so she can sleep good.
Thanks hope you can give ME an advise if IM doing right .
Janelle Reid says
Hi @Tere, thanks for writing to us. I’m sorry your daughter has not been wanting to sleep in bed. At 4 months there is a lot going on developmentally and it can be a struggle for many babies to sleep! This is the age where their sleep is really changing to be more like ours so the wake ups may be more frequent and you’ll need to help your baby learn how to connect their sleep cycles to have continued sleep. Here is a link to a free guide that will give you tips to help your baby sleep through the night (and remember at 4 months a few wakings for feedings is still ok as the article above outlines): https://www.babysleepsite.com/sleep-through-night-free-ebook/
If you need more help, let us know! Hang in there!
JR says
My son turns 4 months next week.
He’s already started waking in the night again hungry after a blissful few weeks of 10.30-6.30am!
He’s always been a good sleeper and easy to put down for daytime naps but this has changed in the last week! He usually has 3 naps in the day one 2 hrs the other two about 30-45mins.
He’s a hungry baby but I want to wait til he’s at least 5 months before solids. The evenings are his fussiest time. He has bath book bed and then bottle, then a whole another bottle only an hour later. We started a bedtime routine at 8.30pm but he never actually goes to sleep til 10. I’d love him to go to bed at seven every night but when I’ve tried the routine earlier it makes our house miserable!
Janelle Reid says
Hi @JR, thanks for writing to us. I’m sorry you’ve been struggling with your son’s schedule recently. 4 months is an important milestone where a lot of things change for your baby’s sleep, so I’m not surprised you’re experiencing some changes, and we’d love to help you navigate through this! First off, here is a link to download a free guide with tips to help your baby sleep through the night: https://www.babysleepsite.com/baby-toddler-sleep-consulting-services/
I will mention as the article states above, a few wake ups at 4 months is totally normal, but if you are finding he’s waking every 1-2 hours, it’s likely there’s a sleep association and he’ll just need a little help to learn how to transition through his sleep cycles on his own. If you need more tips to help him do that beyond what the free guide lays out, please let us know! We have a ton of resources that can help you get through this and get back to longer stretches of sleep for all of you. Hang in there and let us know if you have any other questions!
Maree says
The feeds seem to be so frequent!! How much should they have in each bottle?
Janelle Reid says
Hi @Maree, thanks for writing to us. That answer will depend on the size of your baby. As the article mentions, your baby will need about 2.5 ounces of formula for each pound of weight (if you are pumping it would likely be similar – I’m not sure on the conversions as it may be a little more so I’d google that if it applies to you), but that will total between 20-30 ounces in a day so you will need to divide it up accordingly. You may also find that your baby is hungrier at certain times and may want a bigger bottle at certain times rather than others it may be more of a snack. I know that can be frustrating as the milk can go back, but I’m sure you’ll be able to find your groove! Hope this helps, please let us know if you need anything else!
Heather says
I noticed that the 3 month schedule is pretty different than the 4 month schedule. How do you make the shift? (My Lo is almost 3 months. We are looking to implement the 3 month after the holidays.)
Debbye @ The Baby Sleep Site says
Hi @Heather – Thank you for writing!! Yes, the 3 and 4 month schedules are different. At roughly 4 months, most babies change in the way they sleep. Watch your baby’s cues, and change her schedule little by little when she begins to show signs of moving towards the 4 mo schedule. All babies do this at different ages, and feel free to make the schedules your own and find one that is a perfect fit for you! Have happy holidays and please contact us if you need any assistance!
Shen says
We have a 4 month old, exclusively breastfed.
5-5.30am: wake up (not ideal but our toddler wakes at 5am too and we generally start the day early as a family anyway eg husband leaves for work at 6.15). She seems very awake, alert and smiley at this time.
7-7.30am to 8.45-10am: first nap. On the four days a week the toddler goes to crèche, I wake the baby at 8.45 so that we can take the toddler. If I don’t wake her, she can sleep up to 2.5 hours.
Then, feed, play and feed again for usually no more than 2 hours.
10.30-11.30 to 1-2.30: second nap. Usually 2-2.5 hours but if she’s had a shorter first nap (less than an hour and a half), she’ll sometimes have 3 hours.
Then feed, play, feed again until about 3.30 or 4, depending on when she last woke, before she goes down for a 30-45 min nap.
This routine goes a bit out the door anytime there are appointments etc through the day because she doesn’t sleep real well in the car, pram etc – she really only sleeps well in a cool, dark room. If she misses her long morning and lunch nap, she’ll compensate by falling asleep at 3pm (or whenever we are home) and sleeping until she’s woken (once she slept until 10pm then I woke her, another time 8pm!).
We do a feed at 5pm-ish then bath around 5.30ish. She then feeds until she falls asleep between 6.30-7.
Until recently, she’d then wake up once or twice between 7pm and 5am – if she woke at 11pm, she’d wake again at 3am before waking at 5am. If she woke at 1am, she’d then sleep til 5am. During the night, I feed her, change nappy then put her back to sleep awake and she gets herself off to sleep.
Now she wakes and cries about 45 mins after she falls asleep. She then doesn’t go for more than a four hour stretch without waking and crying. At worst, it is every 2 hours from putting her down to sleep – sometimes she feeds, sometimes she’s not interested. It has been like this for a week now.
Do I need to look at the length of her day sleeps and the fact she’s often falling asleep on the breast (with the exception of the night feeds) as a sleep association in order to address these more frequent night wakings or should I give it another couple of weeks to see if it resolves itself?
She’s a very happy, smiley baby – just a big sleeper (as I’m told her father was) through the day – but I’m less happy and smiley with these night wakings!
Janelle Reid says
Hi @Shen, thanks for writing to us! I’m sorry you’ve recently been struggling with more frequent night wakings from your daughter. At this age she’s going through a big change that can often disrupt her sleep. Here is a link to explain what is going on: https://www.babysleepsite.com/how-we-sleep/4-month-old-sleep-regression/
There is a link for our free guide at the bottom of the article for tips to help your baby sleep through the night that I would encourage you to sign up to download as it will give you other tips to help this (which yes, may include adjusting your daytime a bit). If the article and free guide isn’t helping, let us know. We also offer personalized sleep consulting and would love to help walk through this with you. Feel free to contact us directly anytime at [email protected]. Hang in there! I hope you are happy and smiley again soon! 🙂
Anna says
Hi
My baby is 4 months and after the sleep regression (was hard) she finally learned how to fall asleep on her own without almost any sleep association (just white noise and a cuddle before). She falls asleep on her own before her naps and nigh sleep.
I follow her sleep routine and she drifts off to sleep at 9pm, I give her a night feed at around 11-12pm and wake her up at 8am.
The problem is she still wakes up for her night feed at 3-4am. What could I do to prevent it? Should I just wait till she’s 6 hoping she would give it up herself?
Janelle Reid says
Hi @Anna, thanks for writing to us and I’m so glad to hear your daughter is settling herself on her own at night! At this age 1-3 feedings during sleep is totally normal so we would not recommend trying to drop that feeding just yet, it sounds like she needs it. If she was to revert back to waking every 2 hours or something then that would be an issue of her feeding out of sleep association rather than needing the nutrition. I hope that helps!
Anna says
Thank you! That helps
Abigail Gilmour says
Max is a little over 4 months now, and just getting over a flu bug as well so sometimes his sinuses bother him. He was a really good sleeper all the way until now: he refuses to go to bed when it’s time (7:30pm) and stays up all night, usually until 3-4am. He will sleep until 12-1pm and then wake up and be wide awake all day. He usually takes 1-2 naps about 30 minutes tops each. He’s a very happy baby but has become impossibly fussy, cranky, and stubborn. How can we help him through the sleep regression and onto a schedule without causing a sleep association issue? I think he might already have an issue with his pacifier, he consistently needs it to sleep, but since he’s so wide awake all the time and fights sleep, pulls it out now that he can, which upsets and wakes him up all over again. Resulting in us holding his hands and/or rocking to make sure he falls asleep without removing it. Please help! Everyone is becoming sleep deprived to a state of depression and it seems impossible to know how to gently nudge him into a schedule wintiut disrupting his developing brain activity.
Janelle Reid says
@Abigail Gilmour, thanks so much for writing to us. I am so sorry to see that Max’s sleep has been so challenging (and that he got over the flu!! I’m sure that was scary.) Getting over sickness + a sleep regression can make things so difficult on a baby, I have been there myself with both of my boys. We would love to help. First off, if you would like to download a free guide on tips to help your baby sleep through the night, you can download it here: https://www.babysleepsite.com/sleep-through-night-free-ebook/
I will mention that 1-3 wake ups at this age are still normal, but the guide can still help give you a starting point for how to get things back on track.
Since it sounds though like you are at your witts end, I would highly recommend working with one of our sleep consultants. They can look at the full sleep history of what’s going on, and give you a step by step plan to get things back on track, so you don’t have to think about it as much! It will of course still be work, but at least you won’t be guessing on what to do next since you’ll have the help of your consultant. To look at our available options, you can view them online here: https://www.babysleepsite.com/baby-toddler-sleep-consulting-services/
And if you have questions about what package is best for your situation, please contact us directly anytime at [email protected]
Hang in there! I hope this helps!
Sami V says
My baby’s name is Max too! He is a difficult sleeper as well, takes after me. I’m not an expert but for my sanity I’ve found I do what I need to get him to sleep, if there is illness or teething, later we have developmental milestones like standing in the crib and screaming cuz he can’t get down! To me there was no point letting him be upset to work it out because he can’t or is too tired to. I still rock him to sleep for naps and sometimes lay with him (such as today with screaming tears because his teeth hurt.) Once he is past the issues then you can work on a plan and try to stick with for the next illness, etc. but after an hour of baby screaming at 2am I just rock him till he’s fully asleep. My guy is 9 month, breastfed, and still wakes 3 times at night. We have gotten to where he puts himself to sleep without crying for bedtime after the routine, but when he wakes and doesn’t settle I figure he needs comfort, reassurance, last night it was a leaky diaper! I too struggle with depression when not rested enough because of thyroid issues and that is way more dangerous than baby having bad sleep associations. I also recommend Elizabeth Pantley’s book no cry sleep solutions for many great tips that can help. I found success with some but eventually used a friend’s sleep training method at 8 months that worked with my mommy heart. Still hoping for those longer stretches of sleep! Praying for you and your Max!
Xzavier says
We wake up at 4:30-5am every morning.
Nap 7-9am
Nap#2 11am-1pm
Nap#3 3-5pm
And then we get ready for bed at 6:30pm
and aim to be asleep by 7pm.
Sometimes our schedule gets a little wack-ed but this is what my 4, almost 5mo goes around. He has has a sleep “regression” since about the 4mo point so I am currently feeding I’m 3 times a night, he was sleeping through the night since 2.5 weeks.
Debbye @ The Baby Sleep Site says
Hi @Xzavier – Thank you for sharing your sleep schedule! We hope that your little guy will go back to sleeping through with your minimal help! Feel free to make this sample schedule your own, and to work slowly to your goals!
Good luck and thanks again for visiting!
Digne says
Hi
My 4months baby girl was a great sleeper,but now she sleeps throughout the whole night but during the day,she has a hard time sleeping, and she seems in a good mood,she has only one nap about 45min,should I be worried?Help
Debbye @ The Baby Sleep Site says
hi @Digne – Hi @Karin –
Thank you for writing to us and for using The Baby Sleep Site as a resource for sleep! I’m sorry to hear that naps become almost non-existent for your daughter lately. This age can be a difficult one for many babies, since their sleep is permanently changing from a “newborn’s” sleep, and this often leads to more frequent wake ups and/or disrupted naps. Her schedule likely needs some adjusting and do feel free to offer more naps in the day. If you would like personalized help to work through this, we can definitely help! Please consider our Personalized Sleep Consultation packages or our selection of e-Books. If you choose to purchase a consultation package, one of our trained expert sleep consultants will craft a Personalized Sleep Plan for you and your daughter, to slowly get her back on track and on an age appropriate schedule that will work for you and for her You can read about all of our sleep consultation packages directly here:
https://www.babysleepsite.com/services
And, you can read about our Do It (Mostly) Yourself options here, if you don’t think you want or need expert help:
https://www.babysleepsite.com/diy/
Thanks again for visiting our sleepy little village, and please contact us if you have any questions!
Karin says
Hey, my 4 month old started sleeping through the night at around 3 months so she used to go to bed between 7 and 8 then we woke her up to eat at 11 and then she slept till about 6-8 in the morning. She didn’t like day naps so she probably took 2 naps of half an hour a day. She now started to take a nap during the day and I noticed that everyone said not to leave her for more than 3 hours so that is how long I let her nap and that will then be the only nap of the day or sometimes she would take an hour nap earlier and then 2hours later. I have tried putting her to bed whe she is drowsy but as soon as I put her down her eyes go wide open and she does not want to sleep. She now wakes in the morning anytime between 2 and 3:30 and it is sometimes a struggle getting her back to sleep. Not sure how I can get her back to the awesome amount of sleep we got.
Debbye @ The Baby Sleep Site says
Hi @Karin –
Thank you for writing to us and for using The Baby Sleep Site as a resource for sleep! I’m sorry to hear that sleep has become rough for your daughter lately. This age can be a difficult one for many babies, since their sleep is permanently changing from a “newborn’s” sleep, and this often leads to more frequent wake ups at night and disrupted naps. Her schedule likely needs some adjusting to get her back into sleeping better at night, and to offer a good amount of naps in the day too. If you would like personalized help to work through this, we can definitely help! Please consider our Personalized Sleep Consultation packages or our selection of e-Books. If you choose to purchase a consultation package, one of our trained expert sleep consultants will craft a Personalized Sleep Plan for you and your daughter, to slowly get her back on track and on an age appropriate schedule that will work for you and for her You can read about all of our sleep consultation packages directly here:
https://www.babysleepsite.com/services
And, you can read about our Do It (Mostly) Yourself options here, if you don’t think you want or need expert help:
https://www.babysleepsite.com/diy/
Hang in there Karin, and please contact us if you have any questions!