An 8-month-old typically needs about 24 to 32 ounces of breast milk or formula per day, spread across 4 to 6 feedings. That’s the core of their nutrition, but at this age, solid foods are starting to play a bigger role in the daily diet too.
Formula and Breast Milk Amounts
For formula-fed babies at 8 months, the standard recommendation is 6 to 7 ounces per bottle, offered every 3 to 4 hours during the day. That works out to roughly 4 to 6 bottles in a 24-hour period, putting the daily total somewhere around 24 to 32 ounces. Some babies will land on the lower end of that range as they eat more solids, and that’s normal.
Breastfed babies at this age typically nurse on demand, about 4 to 6 times in 24 hours. Since you can’t measure exact ounces at the breast, the best gauge is your baby’s growth, wet diapers (at least 4 to 6 a day), and overall contentment between feedings. If you’re pumping and bottle-feeding, the same 24 to 32 ounce range applies.
Balancing Milk With Solid Foods
At 8 months, milk is still the primary source of calories and nutrition, but solid foods should be a consistent part of the daily routine. A good rhythm is offering something to eat or drink about every 2 to 3 hours, which adds up to roughly 3 meals and 2 to 3 snacks per day. In practice, most parents find it easiest to offer milk first thing in the morning and before naps or bedtime, then work solid foods into the gaps.
You’ll likely notice that as your baby eats more solids, they naturally drink a bit less milk. This is expected. The shift happens gradually over the next several months, with milk still providing the majority of nutrition until around 12 months. If your baby suddenly refuses milk in favor of solids, try offering the bottle or breast before the meal rather than after.
How to Tell If Your Baby Is Getting Enough
At this age, your baby can communicate hunger and fullness more clearly than they could a few months ago. Hungry signs include reaching or pointing at food, opening their mouth when offered a spoon, and getting visibly excited when food appears. Fullness looks like pushing food away, turning their head, closing their mouth when offered more, or using hand gestures to signal they’re done.
Let your baby decide when they’ve had enough. They don’t need to finish every bottle or clean every plate. Forcing the last ounce can override their natural ability to regulate intake, which is a skill worth protecting.
Drinks to Avoid Before 12 Months
Cow’s milk should not replace breast milk or formula until your baby turns 12 months old. Before that age, cow’s milk has too many proteins and minerals for a baby’s kidneys to handle, it can increase the risk of intestinal bleeding, and it doesn’t provide the right balance of nutrients that breast milk and formula deliver. Small amounts of cow’s milk mixed into foods (like in a pancake or mashed potatoes) are fine, but it shouldn’t be served as a drink.
Fruit and vegetable juice is also off the table for babies under 12 months. Water, on the other hand, is appropriate in small amounts: 4 to 8 ounces per day for babies between 6 and 12 months. Offer it in a cup with meals rather than in a bottle, and keep it to sips rather than large servings. Too much water can fill up a tiny stomach and displace the milk and food they actually need.
Night Feedings at 8 Months
Whether your 8-month-old still needs milk overnight depends partly on how they’re fed. Formula-fed babies over 6 months are generally getting enough calories during the day and are unlikely to wake from genuine hunger. Night waking at this point is more often a sleep habit than a nutritional need, so parents can consider gradually phasing out those feeds.
Breastfed babies are a different story. Breast milk digests faster than formula, and reducing night feeds before 12 months can lower your milk supply. If you’re breastfeeding and your baby still wakes to nurse, that’s biologically normal. For healthy breastfed babies, most experts suggest waiting until around 12 months to actively night wean.
Vitamin D Needs
Babies under 12 months need 400 IU of vitamin D every day. Formula-fed babies who drink at least 32 ounces daily usually get enough through the formula itself. Breastfed babies almost always need a separate vitamin D supplement, since breast milk contains very little on its own. This is one of the few supplements routinely recommended for infants, and it’s worth keeping up through the first year.