How much should my baby eat?

The short answer: about 2.5 ounces per pound of body weight per day (150 to 200 mL per kilogram), split across 6 to 12 feeds, and rarely more than 32 oz a day. Here's what that means at each age, and a calculator for your baby.

Quick calculator

PoundsOunces

Enter your baby's weight to see a daily and per-feed range.

The first week: tiny stomach, tiny feeds

A newborn's stomach is the size of a cherry on day one and a walnut by day three. Small, frequent feeds are exactly right.

Age	Per feed	Feeds a day
Day 1	5 to 7 mL (a teaspoon)	8 to 12
Day 2	14 to 22 mL	8 to 12
Day 3	22 to 27 mL (about 1 oz)	8 to 12
Day 4 to 5	30 to 45 mL (1 to 1.5 oz)	8 to 12
Day 6 to 7	45 to 60 mL (1.5 to 2 oz)	8 to 12

Feed on demand, and wake the baby if 3 hours pass without a feed until they're back to birth weight (usually by day 10 to 14). Losing 5 to 7% of birth weight in the first days is normal.

Weeks 2 and up: it scales with weight

From the second week, pediatricians use the weight rule: 150 to 200 mL per kg per day, which is 2.5 oz per pound. Formula-fed babies tend to sit at the top of the range; breastfed babies average about 750 mL (25 oz) a day after the first month, and that stays surprisingly flat until solids start.

Baby weighs	Per day	Per feed (8 feeds)
6.6 lb (3 kg)	15 to 20.5 oz (450 to 600 mL)	2 to 2.5 oz
7.7 lb (3.5 kg)	18 to 23.5 oz (525 to 700 mL)	2 to 3 oz
8.8 lb (4 kg)	20.5 to 27 oz (600 to 800 mL)	2.5 to 3.5 oz
9.9 lb (4.5 kg)	23 to 30.5 oz (675 to 900 mL)	3 to 4 oz
11 lb (5 kg)	25.5 to 32.5 oz (750 to 960 mL)	3 to 4 oz
12.1 lb (5.5 kg)	28 to 32.5 oz (825 to 960 mL)	3.5 to 4 oz
13.2 lb (6 kg)	30.5 to 32.5 oz (900 to 960 mL)	4 to 4 oz
15.4 lb (7 kg)	32.5 to 32.5 oz (960 to 960 mL)	4 to 4 oz
17.6 lb (8 kg)	32.5 to 32.5 oz (960 to 960 mL)	4 to 4 oz

Typical amounts by age

2 to 4 weeks: 60 to 90 mL (2 to 3 oz) per feed, 8 to 12 feeds a day.
1 to 3 months: 90 to 150 mL (3 to 5 oz) per feed, 7 to 9 feeds. Growth spurts at 3 and 6 weeks mean a few days of wanting more.
3 to 6 months: 120 to 210 mL (4 to 7 oz) per feed, 6 to 8 feeds. Total usually tops out around 900 to 960 mL (30 to 32 oz).
6 to 12 months: 180 to 240 mL (6 to 8 oz) per feed, 4 to 6 feeds, plus solids. Milk stays the main food until 12 months; aim for 720 to 960 mL (24 to 32 oz) a day.

Signs they're getting enough

Diapers: at least 6 wet ones a day from day 5. Pale urine. In the early weeks, 3 to 4 stools a day (fewer is fine for older breastfed babies).
Weight: back to birth weight by 2 weeks, then roughly 150 to 200 g (5 to 7 oz) a week for the first 4 months.
At the feed: hunger cues are rooting, hands to mouth and lip smacking. Crying is a late cue. Fullness looks like turning away, relaxed hands and dozing off.
Mood: content for a stretch after most feeds, alert when awake.

Bottle-feeding tips that change the numbers

Paced feeding (baby upright, bottle horizontal, pauses) lets them stop when full. It's the single biggest reason bottle-fed babies overshoot the chart.
Don't finish the bottle for them. A half-ounce left in the bottle is fine.
Top-ups after nursing count toward the same feed, not an extra one. Milk and Naps groups entries within an hour as one feed for exactly this reason.
Never add cereal to the bottle or water down formula.

Call the doctor if

Fewer than 6 wet diapers a day after day 5, dark urine, or a dry mouth.
No weight gain across two weigh-ins, or weight still below birth weight at 2 weeks.
Refusing several feeds in a row, or forceful (projectile) vomiting after feeds.
Extreme sleepiness, hard to wake for feeds, or a fever of 100.4 °F (38 °C) under 3 months.

Keep track with Milk and Naps

Milk and Naps shows a daily and per-feed range for your baby's actual weight, right next to what they've had in the last 24 hours.

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More guides

Wake windows by age: How long a baby can stay up between naps, from newborn to toddler.
Baby development by age: What's happening each stage, what helps, and when to call the doctor.
Switch from Huckleberry: Bring your whole history over in a minute, for free.

General information for parents, not medical advice. Based on AAP and CDC feeding guidance. Your pediatrician knows your baby.