How Much Sleep Do I Need? Recommended Hours by Age
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Eight hours is the number everyone knows, but it isn't the right number for everyone. How much sleep you need depends mostly on your age, and a little on you. This guide covers how much sleep you need by age, how to tell if you're getting enough, and what to do if you aren't.
The short answer: most adults need between 7 and 9 hours of sleep a night. Teenagers need 8 to 10, school-aged children need 9 to 11, and younger children need more. The best test is how you feel and function during the day, not the number on the clock.
How much sleep do you need by age?
These are the recommended ranges published by the Sleep Health Foundation, based on an expert panel convened by the US National Sleep Foundation (source).
| Age | Recommended sleep |
|---|---|
| Newborns (0–3 months) | 14 to 17 hours |
| Infants (4–11 months) | 12 to 15 hours |
| Toddlers (1–2 years) | 11 to 14 hours |
| Preschoolers (3–5 years) | 10 to 13 hours |
| School-aged children (6–13 years) | 9 to 11 hours |
| Teenagers (14–17 years) | 8 to 10 hours |
| Young adults (18–25 years) | 7 to 9 hours |
| Adults (26–64 years) | 7 to 9 hours |
| Older adults (65 and over) | 7 to 8 hours |
For babies and young children, the total includes daytime naps.
Why the range is so wide
The ranges are a guide, not a rule. The Sleep Health Foundation notes that some people are genuine short sleepers, while others need considerably more. An hour either side of the range can be fine for some people.
Sleep needs settle in early adult life, around the age of 20, and stay fairly stable after that.
Do older people need less sleep?
Not much less. The Sleep Health Foundation lists this as a sleep myth: sleep needs are stable through adult life. What changes with age is the sleep itself. Older adults tend to take longer to fall asleep and wake more often in the night, so they may get less sleep without needing less. See alarm clocks for older people.
How to tell if you're getting enough
The practical test is how you act and function during the day. You're probably getting enough if you:
- wake up without much trouble most days
- stay alert through the day without leaning on caffeine
- don't fall asleep the moment you sit still.
healthdirect lists short-term signs of too little sleep, including being more irritable, snappy or teary, and having slower reaction times. Over the long term, poor sleep is linked with developing or worsening chronic conditions such as diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure (source).
How many Australians get enough sleep?
Most Australian adults report sleeping 7 to 8 hours a day on average, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. But sleep problems are common. Its 2021 report found that nearly half (48%) of Australian adults report at least two sleep-related problems (source).
Quality matters as well as hours
Eight hours of broken sleep isn't the same as eight hours of solid sleep. The Sleep Health Foundation says good sleep needs the right length, timing and quality. If you're in bed long enough but still tired, look at:
- What's waking you. See why do I keep waking up at 3am?
- Your timing. Irregular bed and wake times leave you tired even when the hours add up.
- Snoring and gasping, which can be signs of sleep apnoea. Talk to your GP.
How to get more sleep
- Work back from your wake-up time. See what time should I go to bed?
- Keep the same wake-up time every day.
- Get daylight in the morning and keep evenings dim.
- Keep caffeine to the morning.
- Use a short nap if you need one. See how long should a power nap be?
If you've tried these and you're still tired most days, see your GP. This guide is general information, not medical advice.
Where the Sovune Nudge fits
We make the Sovune Nudge, a vibrating alarm wristband, so we're not neutral. It can't give you more hours, but it can protect the ones you have:
- Your alarm doesn't cut your partner's sleep short. It's silent, and felt only by the person wearing it.
- No snooze spiral. Each alarm builds through three intensity levels over a full minute, so set it for the latest time you actually need to get up and get up on the first one.
- Three separate alarms, for different wake-up times in the same household or across a roster.
- Set on the band, so your phone can stay out of the bedroom.
It comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Quick answers
How many hours of sleep do adults need? Most adults need between 7 and 9 hours a night.
How much sleep does a teenager need? Teenagers aged 14 to 17 need 8 to 10 hours.
Is 6 hours of sleep enough? It's below the recommended range of 7 to 9 hours. Six hours may be appropriate for some adults, but if you're tired during the day, you need more.
Can you sleep too much? Regularly sleeping well beyond the recommended range and still feeling tired is worth mentioning to your GP.
For every type of silent alarm compared, see our complete guide to vibrating alarms in Australia.