What to dress baby in for sleep: by room temperature, with the safe sleep basics
In shortDress your baby for the temperature of the room, and keep warmth on your baby, not in the crib: a wearable blanket or an extra layer of clothing, never a loose blanket. Cotokim's proposal for a room at 68 to 72 °F (20 to 22 °C) is: Bodysuit and a light sleeper inside a 1.5 TOG sleep sack. We found no room temperature in degrees, or TOG, in the US government safe sleep pages we read, so the bands and the clothes are a Cotokim proposal.
For sleep, dress your baby for the room they sleep in, not for the weather outside. The NICHD's Safe to Sleep campaign asks you to dress your baby in clothes suitable for the temperature of the room 3, and to keep your baby warm with a wearable blanket or an extra layer of clothing, without adding anything to the sleep area 3. Then check your baby: sweating, flushed or hot skin, or a chest that feels hot to the touch are signs that your baby is too hot 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 cityWhat to wear by room temperature
Cotokim's proposal, for a healthy baby born at term:
| Room temperature | What your baby wears to 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. Below that, the warmth comes from a layer of clothing under the sleep sack, never from a blanket 3.
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. The TOG chart explains the sleep sack column, and how many layers at night shows the layers one by one.
The safe sleep basics
- On the back, every sleep. Place babies on their backs to sleep for naps and at night, including babies born preterm and those with reflux, until they are 1 year old 3. Sides and stomach are not safe, not even for a nap 3. Once your baby can roll both ways on their own, you can leave them in the position they choose after starting on their back 3.
- A firm, flat, bare surface. Use a sleep surface that is firm, flat, level and covered only with a fitted sheet 3. The CDC says the same: a firm, flat surface, such as a mattress in a safety-approved crib with a fitted sheet 1.
- Nothing in the crib. Nothing but a fitted sheet in a crib, bassinet or play yard 4. Keep soft bedding out: blankets, pillows, bumper pads and soft toys 1.
- Bumpers and inclined sleepers are banned. Federal law treats crib bumpers and inclined sleepers as banned hazardous products 5, unlawful to sell, make or import in the US since November 12, 2022 6.
- Same room, not the same bed. Share a room with your baby for at least the first 6 months, with your baby in their own sleep space, separate from your bed 3. Couches and armchairs are never safe places for babies to sleep 3.
- Car seats and strollers are not beds. If your baby falls asleep in a sitting or carrying device, move your baby to their regular sleep space as soon as possible 3.
- Head and face uncovered. Keep your baby's head and face uncovered during sleep, and do not let your baby get too hot 3. Take the hat off indoors 3.
- Pacifier. The NICHD and the CDC recommend offering a pacifier for naps and at night 3 1. If you breastfeed, the NICHD says to wait until breastfeeding is well established, following your pediatrician's guidance, before trying a pacifier 3. Never attach it to clothing, stuffed toys or blankets 3. Pacifiers are not on Cotokim's list, which does not promote them.
- No product prevents SIDS. The NICHD says no product can prevent SIDS 3.
- Swaddling has an end. Stop at the first sign that your baby is trying to roll over: how many swaddles, and when to stop.
Frequently asked questions
Should my baby wear a hat to sleep?
No. Keep your baby's head and face uncovered during sleep 3, and take the hat off when you are indoors 3.
Can my baby sleep with a blanket?
Not with a regular blanket, loose or tucked in. Keep comforters, quilts, pillows and blankets out of the sleep area 3: the NICHD counts tucked-in blankets among the things in the sleep area that can pose dangers for your baby 3. For warmth, a wearable blanket or an extra layer of clothing 3.
Is a sleep sack safe?
A wearable blanket is one of the two ways the NICHD lists to keep a baby warm without adding items to the sleep area 3. Choose one that is not weighted: the CPSC says not to use weighted blankets or weighted swaddles 4.
How do I know if my baby is too warm?
Sweating, flushed or hot skin, or a chest that feels hot to the touch 3. If you see them, take off a layer.
Can my baby sleep in the car seat?
Not as a place to sleep. If your baby falls asleep on the ride, move your baby to their regular sleep space as soon as possible once you are out of the vehicle 3.
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.
- U.S. Government Publishing Office (govinfo.gov), Public Law 117-126: Safe Sleep for Babies Act of 2021. Read on October 14, 2026.
- U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Safe Sleep for Babies Act Business Guidance. Read on October 14, 2026.