Most formula-fed babies are ready to drop night feeds around 6 months of age, while breastfed babies often benefit from continued night feeding until 12 months or later. The exact timing depends on your baby’s feeding type, weight gain, and how well they’re eating during the day. Here’s how to know when your baby is ready and how to make the transition smoothly.
Formula-Fed vs. Breastfed: Different Timelines
The guidance differs significantly depending on how your baby eats. The American Academy of Pediatrics notes that healthy 6-month-olds do not need nighttime calories to stay healthy, and recommends working toward 7 to 8 hours of consecutive sleep by that age. Their milestone guidance suggests babies should be down to one night feed by 4 months, with parents gradually phasing out that last feed by 5 to 6 months.
That timeline fits formula-fed babies well. After 6 months, a formula-fed baby waking at night is almost certainly waking out of habit or for comfort rather than hunger.
Breastfeeding changes the picture. Prolactin, the hormone that drives milk production, peaks overnight. Nighttime nursing sessions send a strong signal to your body to keep making milk. Cutting those feeds too early can reduce your overall supply. Australia’s Raising Children Network recommends waiting until 12 months to night-wean breastfed babies, while La Leche League suggests that 18 months is a more physiologically appropriate target for many breastfeeding pairs. If you do drop night feeds while still breastfeeding during the day, you’ll likely need to pump or hand express at night to avoid engorgement and protect your supply, which means you’re awake anyway.
Signs Your Baby Is Ready
Age is one factor, but your baby’s behavior gives you more useful information. A baby who is gaining weight steadily, eating well during the day (including solids if they’re 6 months or older), and only taking a small amount of milk at their night feed is showing you they don’t need those overnight calories. If your baby drinks 60 ml (about 2 ounces) or less during a night feed, that feed is providing comfort more than nutrition, and you can stop it outright.
On the other hand, some babies genuinely need night feeds longer than average. Babies born premature, those with low birth weight, or those not tracking well on their growth curve may need those extra calories. The same is true for babies going through a growth spurt or illness. If your baby is draining a full bottle or nursing vigorously for 10 or more minutes at night, they’re telling you the feed still matters.
How Solids Fit Into the Picture
A common piece of advice is to start solids so your baby sleeps through the night. The reality is more modest but still meaningful. A large randomized trial published in JAMA Pediatrics found that babies introduced to solids earlier (around 3 months, alongside milk) slept about 17 minutes longer per night at 6 months compared to babies who started solids at the standard 6-month mark. They also woke about two fewer times per week. That adds up to roughly two extra hours of sleep per week.
So solids help, but they’re not a magic fix. A baby who is eating three small meals of solid food during the day alongside their milk feeds is better positioned to drop night feeds than one who hasn’t started solids yet. Think of daytime solids as one piece of the readiness puzzle, not the whole answer.
How to Gradually Phase Out Night Feeds
Cold turkey works if your baby is barely eating at night anyway (under 2 ounces per feed). Simply resettle them when they wake using whatever soothing method works for your family: patting, shushing, rocking, or just giving them a minute to see if they settle on their own.
If your baby is still taking a larger feed at night, a gradual approach over 5 to 7 nights works better and causes less protest. For bottle-fed babies, reduce the amount in the bottle by about 20 to 30 ml (roughly an ounce) every one to two nights until you reach that 60 ml threshold, then stop offering the bottle entirely. For breastfed babies, shorten the nursing session by one to two minutes every few nights. As you reduce the nighttime volume, your baby will naturally start eating more during the day to compensate.
Timing matters too. If your baby wakes at a predictable time each night, you can also try a “dream feed” approach: feed them before they fully wake, then gradually move that feed earlier in the evening until it merges with their bedtime feed.
When to Wait
Sleep training (which often goes hand-in-hand with night weaning) is not recommended in the first 6 months. The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine’s clinical protocol is direct on this point: sleep training in the first 6 months is contraindicated, and it’s not recommended during the first year for breastfed infants. Intentionally limiting nighttime breastfeeding is also linked to earlier cessation of breastfeeding overall.
Beyond medical guidelines, trust your instincts about your specific baby. A baby who is sick, teething, going through a developmental leap, or adjusting to daycare is dealing with enough change already. Those aren’t great windows for dropping feeds. Pick a stretch of relatively normal, calm days when you and your baby are both healthy and settled into a routine. The transition is easier when nothing else is competing for your baby’s coping resources.