11-Month-Old Sleep Schedule

Eleven months old, and your baby is probably pulling up on every piece of furniture in the house. Maybe cruising along the couch. Maybe taking those first wobbly, terrifying, thrilling independent steps. Everything is within reach now (literally), and your baby knows it.

The sleep side of things? Still two naps. Still predictable, mostly. But you can feel something shifting. The 12-month regression is right around the corner, and walking is about to throw a wrench into those nice, settled routines.

How much sleep does an 11-month-old need?

Most 11-month-olds need about 13 hours of total sleep per day. The AASM recommends 12 to 16 hours for infants 4 to 12 months, naps included.¹ The National Sleep Foundation narrows that slightly to 12 to 15.²

That typically splits into about 10.5 hours at night and 2.5 hours during the day across 2 naps.³ A 2012 review of 34 studies found normal infant sleep ranged from 9.7 to 15.9 hours, so individual variation is real and expected.⁴

Your baby's sleep needs haven't changed much since 8 or 9 months. What has changed is their stamina. They can handle longer stretches of awake time, and their naps have consolidated into reliable blocks.

Our sleep needs by age guide breaks it down by age.

Wake windows at 11 months

At 11 months, wake windows run 3 to 4 hours, with a typical window around 3.5 hours (210 minutes). These are the longest wake windows your baby has had so far.

The first window of the day is still the shortest. Most 11-month-olds can handle about 2 hours 45 minutes to 3 hours after morning wake-up before they need that first nap. Pediatric sleep consultants consistently put this first window at about 80% of the midday window.⁵ The last window before bed is a bit shorter than midday too (about 85% of the midday window), because overtiredness at bedtime makes everything worse.

At this age, sleepy cues get subtle. The yawning and eye-rubbing of a younger baby give way to hyperactivity and clumsiness. If your baby is suddenly crashing into things and getting frustrated with toys they normally enjoy, the window is closing.

Our wake windows chart has the breakdown for every age.

How many naps at 11 months?

Two. Firmly, reliably two. Individual naps run 60 to 120 minutes at this age.³

You might notice your baby fighting the morning nap some days. This is common at 11 months and can feel like a sign that it's time to drop to one nap. It's almost certainly not. The 2-to-1 nap transition typically happens between 14 and 15 months, with the full range stretching from 12 to 18 months.⁶ Dropping to one nap at 11 months usually leads to overtiredness and worse sleep across the board.

If the morning nap is getting hard to start, try pushing it 15 minutes later. That small adjustment can make the difference.

Our nap transition guide explains how to know when your baby is genuinely ready for one nap.

A sample day

Times shift depending on when your baby wakes up. The spacing between sleeps is what matters.

Time	Activity
6:30 AM	Wake up, milk feed (breast or bottle)
7:15 AM	Play, exploration, cruising practice
9:15 AM	Solids (breakfast)
9:45 AM	Nap 1 (1 to 1.5 hours)
11:15 AM	Wake, milk feed
11:45 AM	Play, outdoor time, walking practice
12:30 PM	Solids (lunch)
2:45 PM	Nap 2 (1 to 1.5 hours)
4:15 PM	Wake, milk feed
4:45 PM	Play, family time
5:30 PM	Solids (dinner)
6:15 PM	Bedtime routine (bath, pajamas, book, feed)
7:00 PM	Bedtime

That 7 PM bedtime looks early, but research supports 6:30 to 7:30 PM for this age.⁵⁷ Earlier bedtimes are associated with longer, more consolidated nighttime sleep. The infant circadian rhythm produces a melatonin surge in the early evening, and you get better results working with it than against it.⁸

The wake windows follow a pattern: first window is about 3 hours 15 minutes, midday stretches to about 3.5 hours, and the last window before bed compresses to about 2 hours 45 minutes. That asymmetry is deliberate.⁵

On a short nap day, pull bedtime earlier. If nap 2 was only 30 minutes, a 6:15 PM bedtime is completely reasonable.

Walking, first steps, and sleep

Whether your baby is pulling to stand, cruising, or already toddling, their body is doing more physical work right now than at any point so far. And all that motor learning spills over into sleep.

Research by Atun-Einy and Scher found that infants who achieved pulling-to-stand earlier showed more sleep disruption around the time they acquired the skill.⁹ Earlier work by Scher and Cohen documented the same pattern with crawling onset.¹⁰ The motor cortex, cerebellum, and basal ganglia are all working overtime to coordinate balance and movement, and that neural activity doesn't just stop when the lights go out.

What this looks like in practice: your baby stands up in the crib at 2 AM, can't figure out how to sit back down, and cries. Or they're wide awake at naptime, bouncing on their knees and practicing pulling up on the crib rails.

The fix is daytime practice. Spend time during wake windows helping your baby practice sitting down from standing. Hold their hands, guide their hips. The faster they master this during the day, the less they'll be stuck in the crib at night.

The 12-month regression is coming

The 12-month sleep regression typically hits between 11 and 13 months.³ Some babies are already in it at 11 months. Others won't feel it until closer to their first birthday.

The triggers pile up: walking (or nearly walking), first words emerging, separation anxiety (still lingering from the 8-month peak), and molars starting to push through. That's a lot happening at once.

You might see more night wakings, bedtime resistance, nap refusals (especially the morning nap), and general crankiness. It's temporary. Most families see it resolve in 2 to 6 weeks.

Don't make big changes to the routine during a regression. Don't drop a nap. Don't shift bedtime dramatically. Consistency matters more than anything else here. A predictable bedtime routine (bath, pajamas, book, song, bed) gives your baby a sense of stability even when everything in their brain is reorganizing.⁷

Our sleep regression guide covers all the regressions in detail.

Feeding and sleep at 11 months

At 11 months, most babies are on 3 to 4 milk feeds (breast or bottle, 180 to 240 ml per feed) plus 3 solid meals and 1 to 2 snacks per day.¹¹ Table food is taking over. Your baby is probably eating what the rest of the family eats (cut into small, soft pieces), and they have opinions about it.

Night feeds at this age are rarely nutritionally necessary.¹² If your baby is still waking to eat overnight, it's almost always habit. That's not a judgment. Habits are hard to break, especially at 3 AM. But if you want to night-wean, this is a reasonable age to do it, assuming your baby is eating well during the day and gaining weight normally.

One thing on the horizon: at 12 months, the AAP recommends transitioning from formula to whole milk (if formula-fed). If you're breastfeeding, there's no pressure to wean. But if you're planning the switch, you can start thinking about the logistics now.

Our feeding guide has amounts and frequencies for every age.

Common problems at this age

Standing in the crib. The number one complaint at 11 months. Your baby pulls to stand, gets excited (or stuck), and can't or won't lie back down. Practice sitting down from standing all day long. It resolves faster than you'd expect.

Fighting the morning nap. Some 11-month-olds resist nap one, which makes parents think they're ready for one nap. They're not. Push the nap 15 minutes later instead of dropping it. The 2-to-1 transition is still months away for most babies.

Separation anxiety at bedtime. Your baby might cling, cry, or scream when you leave the room. This peaks between 8 and 12 months. Keep the bedtime routine calm and predictable. Brief verbal reassurance from outside the room can help. Practice short separations during the day (leave the room, come back quickly, act cheerful about it).

Early morning wakes. Before 6 AM is often caused by too-late bedtime, room getting light, or the afternoon nap running too long. Blackout curtains and capping nap 2 so it ends by 4 to 4:30 PM usually help.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is my 11-month-old ready to drop to one nap?

Almost certainly not. The 2-to-1 nap transition typically happens between 14 and 15 months, with the full range being 12 to 18 months.⁶ Fighting one nap occasionally is normal at 11 months. It doesn't mean they're ready. Dropping too early leads to overtiredness, shorter nighttime sleep, and crankier days. If in doubt, keep two naps and push timing slightly later.

How long should an 11-month-old nap?

Total daytime sleep should be about 2.5 hours, split between 2 naps. Individual naps typically run 60 to 120 minutes.³ Cap total daytime sleep at about 2.5 to 3 hours to protect nighttime sleep. If naps are running long and bedtime is suffering, wake your baby.

Should I worry about the 12-month regression?

Not yet. It hits between 11 and 13 months, and not every baby experiences it dramatically. The best preparation is a solid, consistent routine. Babies with established bedtime routines tend to recover from regressions faster.⁷ If it comes, ride it out. It passes.