How many layers should a baby wear at night? By room temperature
In shortIt depends on the room, not on the weather outside, and more layers are not safer: the NICHD warns that too many layers of clothes and bedding for the room temperature can overheat a baby. Cotokim's proposal at 68 to 72 °F (20 to 22 °C): Bodysuit and a light sleeper inside a 1.5 TOG sleep sack.
Count the layers from the skin out: a bodysuit is the first layer, a sleeper over it is the second, and a sleep sack is the outer layer, with its warmth on the label as a TOG rating. How many your baby needs depends on the temperature of the room. The NICHD asks you to dress your baby in clothes suitable for the temperature of the room 3, and to add warmth with a wearable blanket or an extra layer of clothing, not with things in the crib 3.
At 70 °F (21 °C), the band is 68 to 72 °F (20 to 22 °C).
During the day
Bodysuit, short or long sleeve, with pants or a light sleeper.
For sleep
Bodysuit and a light sleeper inside a 1.5 TOG sleep sack.
Sleep sack: 1.5 TOG, from one maker's chart. Source: HALO (sleep sack maker).
Cotokim proposal. We did not find a room temperature in degrees, or TOG ratings, in the U.S. government safe sleep pages we read (NICHD Safe to Sleep and the CDC). They ask you to dress your baby for the room and to watch for signs of overheating. The temperature bands and the clothes in this table are a Cotokim proposal; the TOG column is the chart of one sleep sack maker. Source: NICHD Safe to Sleep, CDC.
Check on your baby
- Dress your baby for the temperature of the room they are in. Source: NICHD Safe to Sleep.
- Sweating or a hot chest are signs that your baby is too hot: take off a layer. Source: CDC, NICHD Safe to Sleep.
- Too many layers of clothes and bedding for the room temperature can overheat a baby, and overheated babies are at higher risk of SIDS. Source: NICHD Safe to Sleep.
For safe sleep
- For sleep, keep your baby's head uncovered. Source: CDC.
- Take your baby's hat off when you are indoors. Source: NICHD Safe to Sleep.
- For warmth in the crib, use a wearable blanket or an extra layer of clothing. The crib holds only a fitted sheet. Source: NICHD Safe to Sleep, CPSC.
- No weighted blankets or weighted swaddles, and no other weighted objects in your baby's sleep. Source: CPSC, NICHD Safe to Sleep.
- Stop swaddling at the first sign that your baby is trying to roll over, at any age. NICHD says to stop when babies start rolling over; Cotokim follows the earlier sign. Source: NICHD Safe to Sleep.
A guide, not a rule: every baby is different. Feel your baby's chest and adjust. For a premature or sick baby, follow your baby's care team.
Cotokim's list counts the clothes for each size by your city's climate and your due date.
Build my list for my cityLayers by room temperature
Cotokim's proposal, for a healthy baby born at term:
| Room temperature | Layers for sleep | Sleep sack TOG, one maker's chart |
|---|---|---|
| below 64 °F (18 °C) | Long-sleeve bodysuit and a footed sleeper inside a sleep sack of 2.5 TOG at most. No blanket and no hat. | not in the chart |
| 64 to 68 °F (18 to 20 °C) | Bodysuit and a sleeper inside a 2.0 TOG sleep sack. | 2.0 |
| 68 to 72 °F (20 to 22 °C) | Bodysuit and a light sleeper inside a 1.5 TOG sleep sack. | 1.5 |
| 72 to 75 °F (22 to 24 °C) | Short-sleeve bodysuit or a light sleeper inside a 1.0 TOG sleep sack. | 1.0 |
| 75 °F (24 °C) or more | Short-sleeve bodysuit, with or without a 0.5 TOG sleep sack. On hotter nights, the bodysuit alone. | 0.5 |
We did not find a room temperature in degrees, or TOG ratings, in the U.S. government safe sleep pages we read (NICHD Safe to Sleep and the CDC). They ask you to dress your baby for the room and to watch for signs of overheating. The temperature bands and the clothes in this table are a Cotokim proposal; the TOG column is the chart of one sleep sack maker. The TOG figures are the ones the maker lists for each range of room temperature, from 64 to 77 °F 2.
Is there a rule of thumb?
We found no rule that counts a baby's layers against what an adult wears in the US government safe sleep pages we read, from the NICHD, the CDC and the CPSC. What they give is the room and the signs: the NICHD asks you to dress your baby for the temperature of the room 3, and the CDC asks you not to let your baby get too hot, with sweating or a chest that feels hot as signs 1. Cotokim's chart turns the room temperature into clothes, band by band; your baby has the last word.
One layer too many
- Signs. Signs that your baby is too hot include sweating, flushed or hot skin, or a chest that feels hot to the touch 3. If you see them, take off a layer.
- Why it matters. A baby can get overheated with too many layers of clothes and bedding for the room temperature, and overheated babies are at higher risk for SIDS 3.
- No hat, nothing over the face. Keep your baby's head and face uncovered during sleep 3.
- No blanket on top. Keep comforters, quilts, pillows and blankets out of the sleep area 3. The crib holds nothing but a fitted sheet 4.
- Nothing weighted. The NICHD lists weighted blankets, weighted swaddles and other weighted objects among the things in the sleep area that can pose dangers for your baby 3, and the CPSC says not to use weighted blankets or weighted swaddles 4.
Frequently asked questions
How many layers should a baby wear at 72 degrees?
A room at 72 °F falls in Cotokim's band of 72 to 75 °F (22 to 24 °C): Short-sleeve bodysuit or a light sleeper inside a 1.0 TOG sleep sack.
How many layers at 68 degrees?
A room at 68 °F falls in the band of 68 to 72 °F (20 to 22 °C): Bodysuit and a light sleeper inside a 1.5 TOG sleep sack.
And at 65 degrees?
A room at 65 °F falls in the band of 64 to 68 °F (18 to 20 °C): Bodysuit and a sleeper inside a 2.0 TOG sleep sack.
Does a sleep sack count as a layer?
Yes, on Cotokim's chart it is the outer layer, and its TOG says how warm it is. It replaces the blanket: the NICHD lists a wearable blanket as a way to keep your baby warm without adding items to the sleep area 3.
Can I add a blanket on a cold night?
No. Add a layer of clothing under the sleep sack instead 3, and keep blankets out of the crib 4.
Source credits
Material from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is available at no charge on cdc.gov. Our use of it, including links to CDC pages, does not mean that the CDC, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) or the U.S. Government endorses Cotokim. Reference to specific commercial products, manufacturers, companies, or trademarks does not constitute its endorsement or recommendation by the U.S. Government, Department of Health and Human Services, or Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Courtesy: Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. Safe to Sleep® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
We link to pages of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) in our own words; this does not mean that the CPSC endorses Cotokim.
Brands appear only for the charts of their own products (sizes, packs, TOG). Cotokim has no deal with any brand.
Written by the Cotokim teamChecked by the Cotokim team against the sources on this page, on October 14, 2026
Sources
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Providing Care for Babies to Sleep Safely. Read on October 14, 2026.
- HALO Innovations, sleep sack maker, What TOG values are SleepSack Wearable Blankets available in?. Read on October 14, 2026.
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), NIH, Ways to Reduce Baby's Risk (Safe to Sleep). Read on October 14, 2026.
- U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Safe Sleep: Cribs and Infant Products. Read on October 14, 2026.