Recommended sleep duration by age group, from newborns to older adults, with the two research panels behind each range.
| Input | Result |
|---|---|
| Newborn (0-3 months) | 14-17 hours |
| Teen (13-17 years) | 8-10 hours |
| Adult (18-60 years) | 7 or more hours |
| Older adult (65+) | 7-8 hours |
| Age group | Recommended sleep |
|---|---|
| Adult (18-60 years) | 7 or more hours |
| Older adult (65+) | 7-8 hours |
| Teen (13-17 years) | 8-10 hours |
| School age (6-12 years) | 9-12 hours |
| Preschool (3-5 years) | 10-13 hours |
| Toddler (1-2 years) | 11-14 hours |
| Infant (4-11 months) | 12-16 hours |
| Newborn (0-3 months) | 14-17 hours |
Two independent panels agree closely. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine, in its 2016 consensus statement, recommends 7 or more hours per night for adults aged 18–60, 8–10 hours for teens 13–17 and 9–12 hours for children 6–12. The US National Sleep Foundation, after reviewing the evidence in 2015, published narrower bands: 7–9 hours for adults 18–64 and 7–8 hours for those 65 and over. Where the two differ they differ by degree, not by direction.
Note what the AASM deliberately did not do: it set no upper limit for younger adults. Regularly sleeping more than 9 hours can be appropriate while recovering from sleep debt or illness.
Sleep need is partly genetic. The range covers people who are fully functional at 7 hours and people who need 9. What the panels rule out is the bottom: chronic sleep under 7 hours is associated with higher cardiovascular and metabolic risk, and insufficient sleep is the direct cause of drowsy-driving crashes. The CDC reports that about one in three adults falls below the 7-hour floor.
The practical test is daytime function, not the clock: if you can stay awake through a boring meeting without fighting it, you are probably in range. For children the extra consideration is growth and learning — deep sleep is when growth hormone peaks and memory consolidates, so short sleep in childhood is not simply a mood issue.
| Complete cycles | Time asleep | Time in bed (with 15 min to fall asleep) |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | 6 h 00 m | 6 h 15 m |
| 5 | 7 h 30 m | 7 h 45 m |
| 6 | 9 h 00 m | 9 h 15 m |
Five cycles is the usual target for an adult: 7.5 hours asleep, which lands inside the 7–9 hour guidance. A night is normally 4–6 cycles, and the cycles are not identical — deep sleep is concentrated in the first half of the night and REM sleep in the second half, which is why cutting the last hour or two costs a disproportionate share of REM.
Adults aged 18–60 should get 7 or more hours per night according to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine; the National Sleep Foundation's band for 18–64 is 7–9 hours.
8–10 hours for ages 13–17. Teen circadian rhythms are shifted later, so a 7-hour night on a 7:00 AM school start is genuinely below the recommendation.
9–12 hours for ages 6–12, 10–13 for ages 3–5, and 11–14 for toddlers, counting naps. Infants 4–11 months need 12–16 hours and newborns 14–17 hours.
The AASM set no upper limit for adults 18–60, so occasionally sleeping 10 hours is not harmful in itself. Habitually long sleep alongside fatigue is worth mentioning to a doctor, because it can signal a sleep disorder rather than a high sleep need.
It falls sharply in early childhood and then settles at 7–9 hours for most adults. After about 60 the recommended band narrows to 7–8 hours because sleep becomes lighter and more fragmented.