Newborn babies should sleep in a safety-approved crib, bassinet, or play yard with a firm, flat mattress and nothing else inside. That’s the short answer, but choosing the right setup and knowing what to avoid matters more than most new parents realize. Soft bedding alone increases the risk of sleep-related suffocation by 16 times compared to a bare, firm surface.
Cribs, Bassinets, and Play Yards
These three are the only types of furniture recommended for newborn sleep. Each must meet federal safety standards enforced by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, which sets requirements for structural integrity, mattress flatness, side height, and stability. Any product you buy new in the U.S. will have been tested against these standards, but secondhand items may not meet current requirements.
A bassinet is a small, portable bed designed specifically for newborns. Its sleep surface must sit at 10 degrees or less from horizontal. Bassinets work well for the first few months because they’re compact enough to keep next to your bed, but most have weight limits around 15 to 20 pounds, so babies outgrow them quickly.
A full-size crib lasts much longer, typically until your child is around 2 or 3 years old. It’s the best long-term investment if you have space for it in your room during the early months.
A play yard (sometimes called a pack-and-play) can double as a sleep space when used with its original, manufacturer-provided mattress pad. Some play yards come with bassinet attachments, which must meet both bassinet and play yard safety standards. Don’t add an aftermarket mattress to a play yard; the one it came with is designed to fit precisely.
What the Sleep Surface Should Look Like
The mattress needs to be firm and flat. A firm mattress is safer because many cases originally attributed to SIDS are actually caused by suffocation when a baby’s face presses into a soft surface. If a mattress conforms to your baby’s face, it can block airflow.
There’s a simple at-home test used in childcare settings to check firmness. You stack 12 CDs wrapped in cling film on the mattress, then balance two 1-liter milk cartons on top. If the bottom carton’s overhang (about 1.5 inches past the CD stack) touches the mattress surface, the mattress is too soft. It’s a practical check if you’re unsure about a hand-me-down mattress.
Cover the mattress with a single fitted sheet and nothing else. No blankets, no pillows, no bumper pads, no stuffed animals, no positioning devices. The sleep area should look bare to an adult’s eye, and that’s exactly right.
Products That Are Banned or Unsafe
Since November 2022, federal law bans the sale of inclined sleepers and crib bumpers in the United States. An inclined sleeper is any product with a sleep surface angled more than 10 degrees that’s marketed for infants. These were linked to dozens of infant deaths before the ban. It is illegal to sell, distribute, or import them, but you may still see them at garage sales or online resale sites. Don’t use them.
Crib bumpers, including padded bumpers, vinyl bumper guards, and vertical slat covers, are also banned. The only exception is non-padded mesh crib liners. Weighted products of any kind, including weighted swaddles, sleep sacks, and blankets, are not safe for infants either. The extra weight can put dangerous pressure on a baby’s chest and lungs.
Swaddles and Sleep Sacks
Swaddling a newborn in a lightweight blanket or swaddle wrap can help calm fussiness and manage the startle reflex, the involuntary arm-flinging motion that wakes babies up. The snug feeling mimics the womb and can be especially soothing for colicky babies. Swaddling also helps newborns regulate their body temperature in the first weeks.
The critical rule with swaddling: stop as soon as your baby shows any signs of trying to roll over. Most babies start showing these signs between 8 and 12 weeks. A swaddled baby who rolls onto their stomach can suffocate because their arms aren’t free to push up or reposition. There is no evidence that swaddling itself reduces the risk of SIDS, so it’s a comfort tool, not a safety measure.
Once you stop swaddling, wearable blankets (sleep sacks) are an excellent alternative. They keep your baby warm without any loose fabric in the crib, and because they leave the arms free, a baby who rolls can also roll back. The AAP says unswaddled sleep sacks can be used for as long as you want, with no age-based cutoff.
Always on Their Back
Place your baby on their back for every sleep, including naps. Since the national Back-to-Sleep campaign began in 1994, the U.S. SIDS rate has dropped by more than 50%. Before the campaign, 84% of SIDS cases involved babies found face-down. That number has fallen significantly, but prone sleeping remains a major risk factor.
Side sleeping is not a safe alternative. Research shows that nearly half of SIDS cases where babies were placed on their side involved infants who were later found face-down. Babies placed on their sides tend to roll onto their stomachs. Once your baby can roll both ways on their own, you don’t need to reposition them, but always start them on their back.
Room-Sharing Without Bed-Sharing
Keep your baby’s crib or bassinet in your bedroom for at least the first six months. Room-sharing makes nighttime feeding easier and lets you monitor your baby, but the baby needs their own separate sleep surface.
Bed-sharing carries serious risks that scale with circumstances. For babies under 4 months old, the risk of sleep-related death while bed-sharing is 5 to 10 times higher than sleeping on a separate surface. For premature or low-birth-weight babies, the risk is 2 to 5 times higher. If the adult sharing the bed has consumed alcohol, taken sedating medications, or is simply exhausted, the risk jumps to more than 10 times higher. The most dangerous scenario is falling asleep with a baby on a couch, armchair, or cushioned surface, which raises the risk by up to 67 times.
Setting Up a Safe Sleep Space
The checklist is straightforward. Use a crib, bassinet, or play yard that meets current safety standards. Put a firm, flat mattress inside with only a fitted sheet. Place your baby on their back. Keep the sleep area in your bedroom. Remove everything else from the surface: no blankets, no toys, no pillows, no bumpers.
For warmth, dress your baby in a swaddle (in the first weeks before rolling starts) or a sleep sack. Choose lightweight, breathable fabrics and avoid anything labeled “weighted.” The room itself should be comfortable, not overly warm. If you’re comfortable in a t-shirt, your baby is likely fine in one additional layer.