Infant Feeding 101:
Newborn Feeding Schedule
Week-by-Week
Feeding a baby can feel overwhelming, especially when you’re hearing different advice about schedules, ounces, wake windows, and how often your baby “should” eat. The truth is that infant feeding isn’t about following a one-size-fits-all schedule or reaching a specific ounce goal. Most babies thrive with frequent, full feedings that support healthy growth, sleep, and development. While feeding needs change quickly from week to week during the first months of life, understanding what is normal for your baby’s age can help you feel more confident and better equipped to meet their needs.
The Short Answer: Most newborns need to eat every 2–3 hours, but feeding patterns change rapidly throughout infancy. Rather than focusing on a strict feeding schedule, prioritize full feedings®, respond to your baby’s hunger cues, and adjust intake as they grow. When babies consume enough calories during the day, they’re better able to support growth, development, and eventually longer stretches of nighttime sleep.
At full feedings®, we believe one of the most common reasons babies wake at night is hunger—and the solution starts with ensuring babies get enough calories during the day.
In the newborn stage, it’s completely normal for babies to eat around the clock. Their bodies are growing rapidly, their stomachs are small, and they need frequent opportunities to feed in order to stay full and satisfied.
By around 8–12 weeks old (yes, weeks!), an average-size baby is physically capable of consuming all the calories they need during daytime hours—especially when those daytime feeds are full feedings® and are paired with a dreamfeed between 10–11pm.
When you prioritize full feedings® from birth and continue adjusting intake as your baby grows, calories naturally begin to shift from nighttime to daytime. This supports your baby’s developing circadian rhythm and helps lay the foundation for longer stretches of nighttime sleep.
The concept is simple: if your baby isn’t getting enough calories during the day, they’ll continue waking at night to make up for them. And if your baby wakes because they’re hungry, they should always be fed.
Most newborn sleep struggles are rooted in feeding
— not bad habits.
Our Online Infant Sleep Programs show you how to support full feedings®
and naturally move calories to the daytime, without cry it out.
The “Milk Management” Approach
This is why we created our milk management approach — to show parents how full feedings® gradually move from nighttime to daytime as babies develop.
This isn’t the only ingredient for sleep, but it is one of the most important.
Every baby is different. A 1st percentile baby and a 99th percentile baby will have very different amounts of “full.” We never recommend pushing or force-feeding. Instead, we gently work toward full feedings® at every opportunity, always respecting cues.
While this blog uses bottle-feeding amounts as examples, the concept of full feedings applies to breastfeeding as well. With breastfeeding, we use time as our measurement — each feed below represents a full 30-minute breastfeeding session.
Want help applying this without guessing week by week?
The Full Feedings Method® is taught step-by-step
inside our Infant Sleep Programs.
What Is a “Full Feeding”?
In the early weeks, we increase milk intake slowly and intentionally.
A full feeding is defined as:
30 minutes to complete an age-appropriate amount of milk (including burp time, as long as burping isn’t excessive).
When your baby starts finishing their usual amount faster than 30 minutes, it’s a sign they’re ready for a small increase. We typically recommend increasing by 0.5 oz per feeding.
These small increases are what allow feeds to stretch further apart overnight — and ultimately support sleeping through the night earlier.
What Does This Look Like in Real Life?
Below is a week-by-week newborn feeding framework to help you know what’s typical and what to expect.
Birth to 1 Week Old Feeding Schedule
From birth to 1 week old, your baby is eating every 2 to 3 hours during the day and night. Their stomach is still small, and they cannot fully regulate their blood sugar yet, so they need to eat regularly to maintain fullness and stable blood sugar levels.
Feeds are small and frequent at this age, but keeping your baby awake for a full feeding is a large part of the work. If your baby is actively eating, we count that as awake time, even if their eyes are closed.
This is also a good time to ask your pediatrician whether you need to keep waking your baby overnight to eat.
BOTTLE FEEDING GUIDELINES: 1.5 to 3 oz, or 45 to 90 ml, at least every 2 to 3 hours.
In this sample birth to 1 week feeding schedule, your baby has 12 feeds in 24 hours, with about 1.5 oz per feed, for an estimated total of 18 oz per day. This breaks down to approximately 12 oz during the day and 6 oz overnight.
For breastfeeding, each full feeding session should take about 30 minutes total, including burp time.
Sample feeding times:
7:00am — 1.5 oz — Daytime
9:00am — 1.5 oz — Daytime
11:00am — 1.5 oz — Daytime
1:00pm — 1.5 oz — Daytime
3:00pm — 1.5 oz — Daytime
5:00pm — 1.5 oz — Daytime
7:00pm — 1.5 oz — Daytime
9:00pm — 1.5 oz — Daytime
11:00pm — 1.5 oz — Nighttime / Dreamfeed
1:00am — 1.5 oz — Nighttime
3:00am — 1.5 oz — Nighttime
5:00am — 1.5 oz — Nighttime
1 to 2 Week Old Feeding Schedule
From 1 to 2 weeks old, your baby’s feeds are slightly larger, which usually means they are eating one less feed during the day but still taking in more milk overall. At this age, we are aiming for at least 8 feeds during the day and likely 4 feeds overnight.
Even though there is one less daytime feed and one less overnight feed compared to the first week, the larger feed amounts, even by 0.5 oz, mean your baby is still getting more food in a 24-hour period. This is why the schedule can include fewer feeds while still increasing total daily intake.
Waking your baby regularly to eat during this stage can help them develop full feedings and continue building healthy feeding patterns.
This is also a good time to continue checking with your pediatrician about whether you need to wake your baby overnight to eat, especially if they are still working on weight gain or have any medical considerations.
BOTTLE FEEDING GUIDELINES: 1.5 to 3 oz, or 45 to 90 ml, at least every 2 to 3 hours.
In this sample 1 to 2 week feeding schedule, your baby has 10 feeds in 24 hours, with about 2 oz per feed, for an estimated total of 20 oz per day. This breaks down to approximately 14 oz during the day and 6 oz overnight.
For breastfeeding, each full feeding session should take about 30 minutes total, including burp time.
Sample feeding times:
7:00am — 2 oz — Daytime
9:30am — 2 oz — Daytime
12:00pm — 2 oz — Daytime
2:30pm — 2 oz — Daytime
5:00pm — 2 oz — Daytime
7:30pm — 2 oz — Daytime
10:00pm — 2 oz — Nighttime / Dreamfeed
12:30am — 2 oz — Nighttime
3:00am — 2 oz — Nighttime
5:30am — 2 oz — Nighttime
2 to 3 Week Old Feeding Schedule
From 2 to 3 weeks old, your baby’s ounces per feeding increase again. With another slight increase in milk per feed, enough milk moves into the other feeds that your baby may need one less feed during the day and one less feed overnight again.
Because babies’ stomachs are growing quickly at this age, we often see a quick change in the number of feeds during the first few weeks — yay!
At this stage, your baby will likely still have two full overnight feeds, and it is important to keep the dreamfeed in place.
BOTTLE FEEDING GUIDELINES: 2 to 4.5 oz, or 60 to 135 ml, at least every 2 to 3 hours.
In this sample 2 to 3 week feeding schedule, your baby has 9 feeds in 24 hours, with about 2.5 oz per feed, for an estimated total of 22.5 oz per day. This breaks down to approximately 17.5 oz during the day and 5 oz overnight.
For breastfeeding, each full feeding session should take about 30 minutes total, including burp time.
Sample feeding times:
7:00am — 2.5 oz — Daytime
9:30am — 2.5 oz — Daytime
12:00pm — 2.5 oz — Daytime
2:30pm — 2.5 oz — Daytime
5:00pm — 2.5 oz — Daytime
7:30pm — 2.5 oz — Daytime
10:00pm — 2.5 oz — Nighttime / Dreamfeed
1:00am — 2.5 oz — Nighttime
4:00am — 2.5 oz — Nighttime
3 to 4 Week Old Feeding Schedule
From 3 to 4 weeks old, your baby’s milk intake continues to increase slightly. Daytime feeds are now usually at least every 2.5 hours, which means night feeds may start to stretch a little further apart, even though your baby will likely still have two full overnight feedings.
At this stage, your baby is continuing to build fuller feeds during the day while keeping the dreamfeed in place.
BOTTLE FEEDING GUIDELINES: 2 to 4.5 oz, or 60 to 135 ml, at least every 2 to 3 hours.
In this sample 3 to 4 week feeding schedule, your baby has 9 feeds in 24 hours, with about 3 oz per feed, for an estimated total of 27 oz per day. This breaks down to approximately 21 oz during the day and 6 oz overnight.
For breastfeeding, each full feeding session should take about 30 minutes total, including burp time.
Sample feeding times:
7:00am — 3 oz — Daytime
9:30am — 3 oz — Daytime
12:00pm — 3 oz — Daytime
2:30pm — 3 oz — Daytime
5:00pm — 3 oz — Daytime
7:30pm — 3 oz — Daytime
10:00pm — 3 oz — Nighttime / Dreamfeed
1:00am — 3 oz — Nighttime
4:00am — 3 oz — Nighttime
Curious what a 1-Month Old Sleep Routine looks like?
A realistic 1 month old sleep schedule with wake windows, feeding times, naps, dreamfeed tips, and how full feeds can support longer night stretches.
Many parents have heard that breastfed babies should never take more than 4 ounces per feeding, but that advice isn’t supported by research.
Learn why in our guide to the 4 oz bottle myth.
4 to 5 Week Old Feeding Schedule
From 4 to 5 weeks old, your baby’s intake per feed continues to increase slightly. As feeds become fuller during the day, night feeds may begin stretching to every 3 to 3.5 hours.
At this stage, you will likely still have two full overnight feedings, but your baby may begin taking more of their total milk intake during the daytime and early evening hours.
This stage also often involves moving the dreamfeed slightly later, around 10:30pm. When this happens, we recommend starting your baby’s day no later than 7:30am.
BOTTLE FEEDING GUIDELINES: 3 to 5 oz, or 90 to 150 ml, about 7 to 9 times per 24 hours.
In this sample 4 to 5 week feeding schedule, your baby has 9 feeds in 24 hours, with about 3.5 oz per feed, for an estimated total of 31.5 oz per day. This breaks down to approximately 24.5 oz during the day and 7 oz overnight.
For breastfeeding, each full feeding session should take about 30 minutes total, including burp time.
5 to 6 Week Old Feeding Schedule
At 5 to 6 weeks old, babies often begin to consolidate feeds, and nighttime patterns may start to shift.
This stage is important for maintaining full feedings while beginning to support longer stretches of sleep without dropping intake. The goal is to keep enough milk moving into the daytime and early evening feeds so your baby can continue getting the calories they need while sleep begins to organize.
At this age, night feeds may start to extend to about every 4 hours. This often involves moving the dreamfeed to around 11:00pm.
We walk you step-by-step through how to adjust feeds, timing, and overnight structure inside the program and monthly guides.
BOTTLE FEEDING GUIDELINES: 3 to 5 oz, or 90 to 150 ml, 7 to 9 times per 24 hours.
In this sample 5 to 6 week feeding schedule, your baby has 8 feeds in 24 hours, with about 4 oz per feed, for an estimated total of 32 oz per day. This breaks down to approximately 28 oz during the day and 4 oz overnight.
For breastfeeding, each full feeding session should take about 30 minutes total, including burp time.
6 to 7 Week Old Feeding Schedule
By 6 to 7 weeks old, many babies are capable of taking in more milk per feeding, which can naturally support longer stretches between feeds overnight.
This is often when parents begin to see sleep changing, but how feeds are structured during the day plays a big role in how this progresses. The goal is to continue building full daytime feeds while keeping overall intake consistent.
At this age, night feeds may start to extend to every 4 or more hours. Your baby may still need one full overnight feeding, and the dreamfeed usually remains in place to help support the longer nighttime stretch.
Inside the program, we show you exactly how to support these longer stretches while keeping full feedings consistent.
BOTTLE FEEDING GUIDELINES: 4 to 6 oz, or 120 to 180 ml, 7 to 8 times per 24 hours.
In this sample 6 to 7 week feeding schedule, your baby has 8 feeds in 24 hours, with about 4.5 oz per feed, for an estimated total of 36 oz per day. This breaks down to approximately 31.5 oz during the day and 4.5 oz overnight.
For breastfeeding, each full feeding session should take about 30 minutes total, including burp time.
7 to 8 Week Old Feeding Schedule
At 7 to 8 weeks old, with consistent full feedings, many babies begin sleeping longer stretches overnight.
Feeding continues to evolve quickly at this stage, and small weekly adjustments are what support both growth and sleep progression. The goal is to keep total intake consistent while gradually consolidating more milk into the daytime and early evening hours.
At this age, some babies may no longer need a separate full nighttime feed, though the dreamfeed usually remains in place. The dreamfeed is often continued until approximately 12 to 16 weeks old, when many babies are more developmentally capable of going a longer stretch overnight without needing to eat.
We map this out week by week inside the program PDFs and monthly guides so you know exactly what to expect and when.
BOTTLE FEEDING GUIDELINES: 4 to 6 oz, or 120 to 180 ml, 7 to 8 times per 24 hours.
In this sample 7 to 8 week feeding schedule, your baby has 7 feeds during the day and evening, with about 5 oz per feed, for an estimated total of 35+ oz per day. This sample does not include a separate overnight feed, but it does still include a dreamfeed.
For breastfeeding, each full feeding session should take about 30 minutes total, including burp time.
A Quick Reminder
These bottle-feeding amounts are guidelines, not rules.
- Eating more may mean earlier consolidation.
- Eating less may simply reflect stomach size or weight.
- We never recommend force-feeding.
Feed your baby fully, on demand, and the sleep will come. We promise.
Whether you’re breastfeeding, bottle feeding, or combination feeding, feeding and sleep go hand in hand.
Our Online Infant Sleep Programs teach a simple, needs-based, no cry it out approach to sleep
— rooted in feeding, development, and responsiveness from birth.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often should a newborn eat?
Most newborns need to eat every 2–3 hours around the clock. Some babies may feed more frequently during growth spurts or cluster feeding periods. Focus on offering frequent opportunities to feed and ensuring your baby is getting enough milk rather than watching the clock.
How do I know if my baby is getting enough milk?
Signs your baby is getting enough milk include steady weight gain, plenty of wet and dirty diapers, periods of contentment after feeding, and meeting developmental milestones. If you have concerns about your baby’s intake or growth, speak with your pediatrician.
What is a full feeding?
A full feeding® is a feeding where your baby consumes enough milk to become genuinely full and satisfied. Full feedings help support healthy growth, encourage longer stretches between feeds, and can help babies gradually shift calories from nighttime to daytime as they mature.
Is it normal for my baby to eat every hour?
Sometimes. Newborns may cluster feed during growth spurts, in the evenings, or while establishing milk supply. However, if your baby consistently wants to eat every hour, it may be worth evaluating whether they are taking full feedings at each feeding opportunity.
When can babies go longer between feedings?
As babies grow and their stomach capacity increases, they often become more efficient feeders and naturally go longer between feedings. Many babies begin spacing feeds farther apart between 8 and 12 weeks of age.
When do babies stop eating at night?
Every baby is different, but many healthy, average-size babies are physically capable of getting all the calories they need during daytime hours by around 8–12 weeks old when full feedings and a dreamfeed are consistently offered. Some babies may continue to need nighttime feeds beyond this age.
Should I wake my baby to feed?
In the early weeks, many newborns should be woken to feed if they are not waking on their own frequently enough. Once your pediatrician confirms appropriate weight gain, you may receive guidance about allowing longer stretches of sleep.
What is cluster feeding?
Cluster feeding is when a baby wants to feed more frequently than usual over a short period of time. It commonly occurs in the evening and during growth spurts and is considered a normal part of infant development.
How many ounces should my baby drink?
There is no single ounce amount that is right for every baby. Intake varies based on age, size, growth rate, and feeding frequency. Rather than comparing your baby to averages online, focus on growth, diaper output, and overall feeding patterns.
What is a dreamfeed?
A dreamfeed is a feeding offered while your baby is still asleep, typically between 10–11pm. Many families use a dreamfeed to help ensure adequate calorie intake and support longer stretches of nighttime sleep.
Other Helpful Blogs
Learn about The Full Feedings Method® NO CRY IT OUT approach to sleep.
3-hour feeds
vs.
4-hour feeds
how to
deal with
cluster feeding
MY BABY
REFUSES TO
EAT MORE
