Guide · Sleep
How to keep a baby sleep log
A sleep log is a record of what happened, not a score. A few consistent details are enough to see your own baby’s pattern and to describe it to someone else.
What to write down
Keep it short enough to do one-handed at 3 a.m.
- Start time and end time of each nap or night sleep.
- Where it happened (cot, car, carrier), if that is useful to you.
- How sleep started, for example fed to sleep or put down awake.
- A short note for anything unusual, such as a vaccination day or a visitor.
A consistent routine for logging
Pick one habit and keep it. Start a timer when sleep begins and stop it on waking, or enter the times afterwards in one batch. Switching methods makes the log harder to read.
An example day (invented data)
Night sleep ended 06:40. Nap 1: 09:10 to 10:20. Nap 2: 13:00 to 14:05. Nap 3: 16:30 to 16:55. Night sleep began 19:45. Written this way you can see wake times between sleeps at a glance.
Reading your log
Look at several days together rather than one night. Patterns in your own data are more useful than comparing with someone else’s baby. If you are worried about your baby’s sleep, take the log to a healthcare professional.
Doing it in Nurtali
- Start a sleep timer, or add a past sleep with start and end times.
- Naps and night sleep stay in one timeline next to feeds and diapers.
- Open History to review earlier days; Premium adds the Smart Sleep Planner.
- Share the log with a partner or caregiver so everyone sees the same sleep.
This guide is about keeping records. It is not medical advice. For any concern about your baby, speak to a qualified healthcare professional.