A wake window is how long your baby can comfortably stay awake between sleeps. Miss it and you get the overtired fight; catch it and they drift off. Here's the chart, and how to read it.
| Age | Typical wake window | Naps a day |
|---|---|---|
| 0 to 4 weeks | 35 min to 60 min | lots, no pattern |
| 4 to 8 weeks | 45 min to 80 min | 4 to 6 |
| 2 to 3 months | 60 min to 90 min | 4 to 5 |
| 3 to 4 months | 75 min to 2 h | 3 to 4 |
| 4 to 6 months | 90 min to 2.5 h | 3 |
| 6 to 9 months | 2 h to 3 h | 2 to 3 |
| 9 to 12 months | 2.5 h to 3.5 h | 2 |
| 12 to 18 months | 3 h to 4 h | 1 to 2 |
| 18 to 24 months | 4 h to 6 h | 1 |
Ranges are typical, not rules. Premature babies usually follow their adjusted age. The first window of the day is often the shortest and the last one the longest.
Under 8 weeks, babies sleep 14 to 17 hours a day in short stretches with no day-night rhythm, and the wake window is barely longer than a feed and a diaper. If they've been up for an hour, it's time. Bright, noisy days and dark, boring nights are the only "schedule" that matters yet.
A nap drop usually looks like a week or two of short naps and bedtime battles before the new rhythm settles. Lengthen the windows a little and hold bedtime steady.
Charts give you the average baby. Your baby has their own window, and it moves. When you log sleeps, the pattern shows up in a few days: "she goes down easily at 80 minutes, never at 95." Milk and Naps does that arithmetic for you. It starts from the age-typical window above, then blends in your baby's own last ten wake windows, and shows a "next nap around 2:40" estimate on the home screen.
Log sleeps from either parent's phone and get a next-nap forecast that learns your baby's own pattern.
Free, no ads, no trackers, nothing to install. Made by a dad for the 3 a.m. feeds.
General information for parents, not medical advice. Based on AAP sleep guidance and typical ranges used by pediatric sleep consultants. Your pediatrician knows your baby.