Establishing a sleep routine with twins

How baby sleep develops in the first year

When everyone talks about babies ‘sleeping through’, it can feel hard if one baby wakes at midnight and the other at two in the morning. You’re not doing anything wrong. Sleep is a skill your babies grow into, rather than something they switch on overnight.

In the first weeks, many babies sleep around 16 - 18 hours every 24. Sleep comes in short bursts, with no clear sense of day and night. Small tummies mean frequent feeds, often every couple of hours. Premature babies usually stay in this stage for longer, so it can help to think about their corrected age.

Reflux and colic are also common in the early months. Reflux can feel worse when babies lie flat and colic often peaks in the late afternoon and evening. Both can disturb sleep and leave you feeling helpless. If you’re worried about either, speak to a health professional for advice. (Link INF-80 Common health issues in twins including colic and reflux)

From around three to four months, sleep cycles lengthen to roughly 90 minutes. You might see a longer stretch at the start of the night, then more frequent wakes later on. Many families notice a ‘four month sleep regression’ as sleep becomes more adult-like and babies need to learn to move between sleep cycles.

Around six months, you may notice that your babies can stay awake a little longer between naps and often move towards three naps a day. Many families see a morning nap, a longer lunchtime nap and a short late afternoon nap to get them through to bedtime. That last nap is notoriously difficult, so it can be easier to take them for a walk, let them nap on a car journey or have a contact nap. As they grow, they usually drop this late afternoon nap and move to two naps a day.

Between nine and 12 months, your babies may have another tricky period of sleep when separation anxiety disrupts nights. Twins often hit these phases at different times, so one baby may be waking more just as another starts to settle.

Key factors that shape early sleep

Routines should support your life, not leave you feeling trapped at home. Think of them as flexible patterns that help everyone know what comes next, rather than strict timetables you can ‘fail’ at.

Day–night cues are a helpful starting point from birth. In the daytime, keep rooms lighter, talk during feeds and let normal household sounds continue. At night, keep lights dim, voices quiet and play to a minimum. Over time, this contrast teaches your babies that night is for resting, even though night feeds remain normal for many months.

Safe sleep is the foundation. Following current safe sleep guidance (link to INF-32), using firm mattresses, keeping cots clear and keeping the room at a steady, comfortable temperature all help. Darker rooms and consistent background sounds, such as white noise, can also make naps and evenings smoother.

It can help to notice how much each baby sleeps across a whole day, not just one nap or night. Babies need enough daytime sleep to cope with night sleep. Overtired babies often find it harder to fall and stay asleep. The table below shows average sleep needs at different ages. It’s a guide, not a target, and many children sit a little either side of these figures and are still completely typical. As mentioned earlier it helps to use the babies' corrected age especially if they were very premature as a guide to the average number of hours sleep needed.

Routine options for families with twins

With more than one baby, you’re always balancing different needs, including your own. There’s no single right way to organise feeds, naps and nights.

In the newborn phase, some parents feed one baby at a time, then gently wake the other for a feed. Others move towards tandem feeding once feeding is established. Neither choice is better. The best option is what feels safe and sustainable for your family right now.

As naps emerge, you can guide your babies towards similar timings by offering feeds at roughly the same time and sometimes waking one baby when the other wakes from a daytime nap. It can also help to have a set wake up time each morning. Over days and weeks, this can gently pull their body clocks closer together.

Some parents find staggered naps work better. This can suit a baby who naturally sleeps less and gives you rare one-to-one time with each child. You might read, sing or simply cuddle while their sibling sleeps. Most families move between synchronised and staggered naps at different ages and that’s completely fine.

From around three months, a simple bedtime routine can help everyone wind down. This might be a short bath, a quiet feed and a brief story or song. The exact steps matter less than keeping them calm, predictable and repeatable. During regressions, try to keep this routine steady. Sudden changes, such as always feeding to sleep or bringing babies into your bed, can create new habits that are hard to keep in the long term.

Encouraging self-settling can support naps over time. You can put your babies down in their cots when they’re drowsy but awake, then soothe and pick them up if they become very upset, trying again when they’re calmer. If this feels impossible some days, you haven’t failed. This phase will pass.

Room sharing is another choice. Many twins sleep happily in the same room and even find each other comforting. Around six months, parents often move babies into bigger cots and sometimes adjust where those cots are placed. You might separate cots or temporarily move one baby if they’re going through a very wakeful phase.

Caring for yourself while routines evolve

You’re doing a demanding job with two babies at once. No routine will work if you’re completely exhausted and overwhelmed.

Try to share nights where possible, for example by taking turns to be ‘on duty’ while the other adult sleeps. Accept offers of practical help with meals, laundry or pram walks between feeds so you can rest. Your energy’s precious and caring for yourself is part of caring for your babies.

There’ll be days when naps only happen in the buggy and bedtime slides late. What matters most is that your babies are loved, fed and comforted, not whether the routine ran to the minute.

As your babies grow, you’ll keep adjusting routines. The patterns that suit you at three months won’t be the same at one year.

If you feel low, anxious or overwhelmed most of the time, talk to your GP or health visitor. Reaching out is a strong, brave step, not a sign that you’re not coping. If you’d like more support, you can access our sleep expectations webinar (LINK) or join our online community (LINK) to hear from other families with twins.