When to Drop Naps: A Guide for Parents

As your baby grows, their sleep needs change, and navigating those changes can feel overwhelming at times. One of the key transitions in a young child’s sleep routine is knowing when to drop naps. In this guide, we’ll walk through the typical milestones for transitioning from three naps to two, two naps to one, and eventually saying goodbye to naps altogether. Hopefully, this helps you feel confident and supported as you guide your little one through these changes.

From 3 Naps to 2 (Around 6-8 Months)

In the early months, most babies take three naps a day: a morning nap, an afternoon nap, and a shorter late-afternoon nap. As they get older, typically between 6 and 8 months, you might notice that the third nap becomes trickier to achieve.

Signs it may be time to drop the third nap:

• Resisting the nap itself
• The last nap of the day pushes bedtime too late
• Baby struggles to fall asleep at bedtime

How to help with the transition, consider an earlier bedtime temporarily to avoid any overtiredness.

 

From 2 Naps to 1 (Around 13-18 Months)

The move from two naps to one typically happens sometime between 13 and 18 months. By this stage, your toddler’s growing stamina means they no longer need the morning nap as much, and they may start resisting it altogether.

Signs it may be time to move to 1 nap:

• Refusing to go down for their morning nap

• The lunch time nap becoming difficult (taking a long time to settle, or the nap becoming short)

• Bedtime refusal

• Early morning waking

Before deciding to drop the morning nap completely, you first need to try pushing out their awake time before going down for their morning nap. So you may normally be putting them down at 9.30am, but you will then start putting them down at 9.45am or 10am – to see if that helps. This will push naps a littler later in the day, but stick with their awake time of around 3-3.5 hours between morning and lunch time nap and see how they go.

If lunch nap is still not going well, early waking is still happening AND they are taking a long time to settle for their morning nap, then it might be time to drop the morning nap all together. Initially, you can give baby just a shorter morning nap, cutting it to 15-20 minutes and seeing how that goes. Again, if signs come back or baby is still refusing, then it could be time to now drop it completely.

When deciding to cut the morning nap, you will need to bring lunch forward, and lunch time nap too. This could mean lunch as early as 11am and nap as early as 11.30am to start with. Slowly over a number of weeks, you can then move this so that the main nap becomes around 12.30-2.30pm. Whilst having an earlier middle of the day nap and due to less sleep overall, your little one will NEED an earlier bedtime. Continuing to put them to bed at 7pm will increase early waking and over-tiredness. Some toddlers will need to go to bed as early as 6pm whilst getting used to this new routine.

 

Dropping the Final Nap (Around 3 Years)

Letting go of the last nap can feel like a big step, and it typically happens gradually around 3 years old, although some children will carry on napping to four years and beyond! Every child is different, and some may hold on to their nap longer than others, so don’t worry if your little one seems to be holding on to it later than some of their peers – if it’s not becoming a problem, roll with it!

Signs it may be time to drop the last nap:

• Trouble falling asleep at their usual bedtime after napping during the day
• Naps becoming shorter, or your child resists their nap altogether
• Early wakes creeping in

Many children still benefit from some quiet time in the middle of the day, even if they’re not sleeping. Offering a bit of downtime can help them recharge without needing a full nap – they could go up to their room and have a look at some books, listen to a Yoto/Tonie Box or play a calm game. As the nap disappears, you will also likely need to move bedtime earlier to ensure they’re getting enough total sleep.

 

If you’d like some help tweaking your little one’s sleep, we’re on hand! Check out our baby and toddler sleep courses or book a 1:1 consultation for some more personalised support.