Kids Bedtime Calculator by Age
Pick your child's age and the time they have to be up, and this works backwards to the bedtime that actually fits the sleep they need. The ranges come from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, which the American Academy of Pediatrics endorses, and they are the same numbers used on our daily needs chart.
One thing most bedtime advice skips: falling asleep is not instant. Children take roughly 15 minutes to drop off, so the lights-out time below is already 15 minutes earlier than the asleep-by time. Bedtime is when the light goes off, not when you start brushing teeth.
Pick an age to see a bedtime. The full table below covers every age already.
Bedtime by age and wake-up time
Lights-out times, already adjusted for the 15 minutes it takes to fall asleep. Each cell is the middle of that age's healthy sleep range.
| Age | Sleep needed | Up at 6:00 AM | Up at 6:30 AM | Up at 7:00 AM | Up at 7:30 AM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 10 to 13 hours | 6:15 PM | 6:45 PM | 7:15 PM | 7:45 PM |
| 5 | 10 to 13 hours | 6:15 PM | 6:45 PM | 7:15 PM | 7:45 PM |
| 6 | 9 to 12 hours | 7:15 PM | 7:45 PM | 8:15 PM | 8:45 PM |
| 7 | 9 to 12 hours | 7:15 PM | 7:45 PM | 8:15 PM | 8:45 PM |
| 8 | 9 to 12 hours | 7:15 PM | 7:45 PM | 8:15 PM | 8:45 PM |
| 9 | 9 to 12 hours | 7:15 PM | 7:45 PM | 8:15 PM | 8:45 PM |
| 10 | 9 to 12 hours | 7:15 PM | 7:45 PM | 8:15 PM | 8:45 PM |
| 11 | 9 to 12 hours | 7:15 PM | 7:45 PM | 8:15 PM | 8:45 PM |
| 12 | 9 to 12 hours | 7:15 PM | 7:45 PM | 8:15 PM | 8:45 PM |
| 13 | 8 to 10 hours | 8:45 PM | 9:15 PM | 9:45 PM | 10:15 PM |
Where these numbers come from
The sleep ranges are the American Academy of Sleep Medicine's consensus recommendations, endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics. They are not our numbers, and they are the same figures, from the same sources, as our kids' daily needs chart, which lists each source in full. For the reasoning behind them, see how much sleep children need by age and resetting a sleep schedule before school.
This is a general reference for healthy children, not medical advice. Sleep needs vary, and a child who is persistently exhausted despite enough hours is worth raising with your pediatrician.
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