How To Choose A Sleeping Bag For Your Little One

Using a Sleeping Bag

Frequent use of a safe baby sleeping bag, also called a sleep sack, helps to create a nightly ritual - the familiarity of a snug sleeping bag comes with your child and makes for easier sleep patterns to develop. Sleeping bags act like a portable comforter for your little one, whether transitioning from bassinet to cot, out during daytime sleeps, or when travelling. Research has shown that safe baby sleeping bags also delay baby rolling onto their tummy during sleep until baby’s past the age of peak risk SUDI.

The seat belt slot on the back is a great benefit of a Purebaby sleeping bag, allowing you to safely move your little one from a pram, to cot, without the need to undress them when fastening seat belts.

Are Sleep Bags Safe—and When Should You Use One?

When it comes to choosing between swaddles and sleeping bags, timing and your baby’s developmental cues are key. A swaddle offers newborns the snug, womb-like comfort they naturally crave, especially during those first few months. However, once your baby begins showing signs of rolling - typically from around 3 months of age - it’s time to make the transition. That’s when a TOG sleeping bag becomes a safer, more practical option, helping your little one rest securely as they grow. You can explore more about when and why to make the switch in our full blog: Swaddle vs Sleeping Bag.

How to Choose Your Baby’s Sleeping Bags

A safe sleeping bag should have a fitted neck and holes for their arms, without a hood. To check the size of a sleeping bag on your little one, ensure the neckline cannot slip above the shoulders and over your little one’s chin, and that they cannot push their arms inside the bag itself. The snug fit of a sleeping bag means that your baby's temperature is kept constant and sleeping babies cannot be tangled or smothered by loose fitting blankets.

Sleeping Bag Size Guide

It’s also important to consider the different seasons: a winter sleeping bag for your baby, for example, would typically be a long-sleeve sleeping bag and have thicker fabric to keep them warm. A summer sleeping bag for your baby, on the other hand, would typically have thinner fabric and no sleeves to keep them cool. Our sleeping bag TOG guide below can help decide how to choose your baby’s sleeping bags correctly.

TOG Rating Guide

Baby sleeping bags are available in different weights, to ensure your child is sleeping in a comfortable temperature throughout the change of seasons. Most sleeping bags use a TOG rating guide to measure their warmth and thermal resistance. A number of factors determine the TOG rating of the baby sleeping bag that should be used, including the number of clothes your baby is wearing, the temperature of their bedroom and your baby's health. This guide helps maintain optimal sleep conditions.

The table below will help to find the recommended room temperature to accompany our TOG rated sleeping bags.

It’s also important to consider what your baby will be wearing underneath the sleeping bag. If you’re dressing your baby for summer, a lower TOG sleeping bag can be paired with sleeveless bodysuits. If you’re layering your baby for winter, however, a higher TOG sleeping bag should also be paired with long-sleeved growsuits or long leg pyjamas. Check on your baby often to ensure that they’re neither too hot nor too cold.

Not sure what to put under your baby sleeping bag? We've put together a handy guide:

To find the perfect sleeping bag for your little one, shop in-store or online. Explore our safe baby sleeping tips and organic cotton sleeping bag collection. Purebaby sleeping bags are made from 100% organic cotton, in winter and summer weights, to allow your child’s skin to breathe and minimise over-heating.