Best Bedtime for Kids and Teenagers by Age

Science-backed sleep schedules for healthy development.

Children and teenagers need significantly more sleep than adults for proper growth, development, and cognitive function. Yet studies show most young people aren't getting enough. Here's your guide to age-appropriate bedtimes and sleep duration.

Sleep Needs by Age

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends these sleep durations:

  • Infants (4-12 months): 12-16 hours (including naps)
  • Toddlers (1-2 years): 11-14 hours (including naps)
  • Preschool (3-5 years): 10-13 hours (including naps)
  • School age (6-12 years): 9-12 hours
  • Teenagers (13-18 years): 8-10 hours

Bedtime Charts by Wake Time

For School-Age Children (6-12 years)

If your child needs 10 hours of sleep and must wake at:

  • 6:00 AM wake: 8:00 PM bedtime
  • 6:30 AM wake: 8:30 PM bedtime
  • 7:00 AM wake: 9:00 PM bedtime
  • 7:30 AM wake: 9:30 PM bedtime

For Teenagers (13-18 years)

If your teen needs 9 hours of sleep and must wake at:

  • 6:00 AM wake: 9:00 PM bedtime
  • 6:30 AM wake: 9:30 PM bedtime
  • 7:00 AM wake: 10:00 PM bedtime
  • 7:30 AM wake: 10:30 PM bedtime

Worked Example: Fixing a Real Family Schedule

Consider a 15-year-old who currently falls asleep around 12:30 AM (scrolling on a phone) and must wake at 6:45 AM for school—only 6 hours 15 minutes of sleep against a recommended 8-10 hours. Here's a realistic four-week plan to close that gap:

  • Week 1: Move phone charging station outside the bedroom; set a "lights down" time of 11:30 PM (1 hour earlier than baseline)
  • Week 2: Shift lights-down to 11:00 PM; add 10 minutes of morning sunlight exposure right after waking to help anchor the circadian rhythm earlier
  • Week 3: Shift lights-down to 10:30 PM; cut all caffeine (soda, energy drinks) after 2:00 PM
  • Week 4: Target lights-down of 10:00 PM, yielding roughly 8 hours 45 minutes of sleep opportunity—within the recommended range

The key mechanism is that circadian phase shifts of more than 15-20 minutes per day are hard to sustain, so gradual, weekly adjustments succeed far more often than trying to move bedtime by 2+ hours overnight.

The Teenage Sleep Challenge

Teenagers face a unique biological challenge. During puberty, the circadian rhythm shifts later, making teens naturally want to fall asleep around 11 PM or later and wake around 8 AM or later. This "phase delay" conflicts with early school start times.

This isn't laziness—it's biology. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends middle and high schools start no earlier than 8:30 AM to align with teenage sleep biology.

Who This Guide Is For

  • Parents of school-age children: Use the wake-time charts above as a starting point, then adjust by 15-minute increments based on how easily your child wakes and their daytime mood.
  • Parents of teenagers: Focus less on rigid clock times and more on protecting the biological window teens need (8-10 hours), since exact bedtime will vary with each teen's natural phase delay.
  • Families managing school-night versus weekend schedules: Pay particular attention to limiting weekend "social jet lag" of more than 1-2 hours to avoid a Monday-morning circadian mismatch.
  • Caregivers of children with ADHD or anxiety: These conditions are strongly associated with delayed sleep onset; consult our guide on delayed sleep phase and ADHD for tailored strategies.

Signs Your Child Isn't Getting Enough Sleep

  • Difficulty waking in the morning
  • Falling asleep in school or during homework
  • Irritability, mood swings, or emotional reactivity
  • Difficulty concentrating or remembering
  • Hyperactivity (especially in younger children)
  • Frequent illness
  • Excessive sleeping on weekends

Why Sleep Matters for Development

Sleep is critical during childhood and adolescence:

  • Growth hormone: Primarily released during deep sleep
  • Brain development: Sleep supports neural pruning and development
  • Learning: Memory consolidation occurs during sleep
  • Emotional regulation: Sleep-deprived kids struggle with emotions
  • Physical health: Sleep affects metabolism, immunity, and growth

Common Mistakes Parents Make

  • Allowing devices in the bedroom "just for now": Even a muted phone within reach creates a strong temptation and a light source that can delay melatonin release.
  • Trying to fix bedtime with weekday changes only: A late weekend bedtime can undo an entire week of earlier weekday bedtimes because of how sensitive the adolescent circadian clock is to light exposure timing.
  • Overcorrecting with excessive weekend sleep-ins: Sleeping until noon on Saturday delays the body clock further and makes Sunday-night sleep onset harder, worsening "Sunday scaries" insomnia.
  • Ignoring caffeine in soda and energy drinks: Many parents monitor coffee but overlook caffeinated sodas and energy drinks that teens consume in the afternoon.
  • Treating all children the same regardless of chronotype: Some children are naturally earlier or later types even before puberty; forcing an early-bird schedule onto a naturally later-typed child can create nightly battles.

The Screen Time Challenge

Blue light from devices suppresses melatonin and delays sleep onset. For children and teens, screen time before bed is particularly problematic:

  • Stimulating content keeps the mind active
  • Social media can cause emotional arousal
  • The "one more video" phenomenon delays bedtime
  • Devices in the bedroom tempt nighttime use

Consider charging all devices outside the bedroom and using screen time controls. Our blue light and sleep guide covers the underlying mechanism in more detail.

Creating Healthy Sleep Habits

For Children

  • Establish a consistent bedtime routine (bath, books, bed)
  • Keep the same sleep schedule on weekends
  • Create a dark, cool, quiet sleep environment
  • Limit screen time before bed (at least 1 hour)
  • Avoid sugary snacks close to bedtime
  • Use a night light if needed (dim, warm-colored)

For Teenagers

  • Set a tech curfew 1 hour before bed
  • Encourage winding down with books or relaxing activities
  • Limit caffeine, especially after noon
  • Allow later weekend wake times, but limit to 1-2 hours difference
  • Get morning sunlight to help regulate the circadian rhythm
  • Discuss the importance of sleep for their goals (sports, grades, mood)

The Evidence Behind These Recommendations

These age-based sleep duration ranges come directly from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine's 2016 consensus statement, endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics, which reviewed hundreds of pediatric sleep studies to set evidence-based targets. The National Institutes of Health also funds ongoing research into the adolescent circadian phase delay, confirming that the biological shift toward later sleep timing during puberty is measurable via melatonin onset timing, not simply reported behavior.

When to Seek Help

Consult a pediatrician if your child:

  • Snores loudly or seems to stop breathing during sleep
  • Has persistent difficulty falling or staying asleep
  • Experiences nightmares or night terrors regularly
  • Shows signs of a sleep disorder (sleepwalking, sleep talking)
  • Has excessive daytime sleepiness despite adequate sleep time

How to Handle Bedtime Resistance Without Nightly Battles

Bedtime resistance is developmentally normal and rarely responds to negotiation in the moment. What works is making the routine predictable enough that the decision is already made before the argument can start. Three techniques have the strongest support in behavioural sleep research:

  • Fade the bedtime toward the child, not away from them: If a child fights a 8:00 PM bedtime but reliably falls asleep at 8:45 PM, start the routine at 8:40 PM for a few nights so lights-out is genuinely close to natural sleep onset, then move it earlier by 10 to 15 minutes every third night. Lying awake in the dark teaches a child that bed means frustration.
  • Use a visual routine chart for younger children: Four or five pictures — bath, pyjamas, teeth, two books, lights out — hand control of the sequence to the child while the parent keeps control of the timing.
  • Give bounded choices: "Two books or one long one?" preserves autonomy without moving the lights-out time, which is the variable that actually matters.

For teenagers, replace enforcement with negotiation around the wake time. Most teens will accept a fixed wake time and a phone-charging rule far more readily than a parent-set bedtime, and the fixed wake time does most of the circadian work on its own.

The Bottom Line

Adequate sleep is essential for your child's physical, cognitive, and emotional development. Work backward from wake time to determine appropriate bedtimes, establish consistent routines, and create an environment conducive to sleep. Remember that teenagers have a biological shift that makes early mornings challenging—understanding this can help reduce conflicts and promote better family sleep habits.