What are TOG Ratings?
If you've been looking for the best sleep clothing for your baby, you've probably heard the term "TOG rating." A TOG rating tells you how warm a piece of clothing will keep your baby. Since babies can't tell you if they're too hot or cold like adults can, it's important to know the TOG rating of their clothes so you can dress them properly for the temperature of their room.
What is a TOG Rating?
A TOG rating is a measure of how much heat a baby's sleep sack or another piece of clothing traps. TOG stands for "Thermal Overall Grade." A higher TOG rating means that your baby will stay warmer at the same room temperature. It assesses the insulation—or amount of heat—provided by fabric on a scale of <1 to 3.5.
What TOG Rating Should Your Baby Sleep in?
How warmly you dress your baby depends on how warm or cool their room is. For example, a TOG 1.0 sleep sack is good for a room temperature of around 68°F.
Ratings and Recommended Room Temperatures:
- 0.2 TOG: 80°F or higher
- 0.5 TOG: 75°F-80°F
- 1 TOG: 68°F-74°F
- 2.5 TOG: 60°F-67°F
- 3.5 TOG: 59°F or lower
It's important to remember, however, that these are guidelines, not laws. Every baby has a different temperature tolerance. Make a habit of checking the temperature of the back of their neck or trunk when they wake up. If these places are cold, that could be a sign you need a higher TOG rating. If your baby consistently wakes up sweaty, you should consider cooler clothing.
If you have a house that's cold in the winter because of drafts or cold floors, your baby will also need warmer clothing. Consciously keeping room temperature between 68°F and 72°F may help your baby sleep better through the night and wake up happy and refreshed.
How to Determine TOG Rating of Baby Clothing
Some baby sleep clothes come with the rating printed on the tags. If your baby's sleepwear doesn't show the rating on its tag, it will likely be on the online listing or the company's website.
TOG ratings are hard to guess because fabrics can be deceiving. It's always a good idea to see what the manufacturer has to say.
What Clothing has a TOG Rating?
Not all clothing has a TOG rating. Articles of clothing that don't cover an infant's feet do not have a rating. Our Magic Sleepsuit does not have a TOG rating because of the openings on the legs.
Items of Clothing with TOG Ratings:
- Sleep Sacks
- Wearable Blankets
- Baby Swaddlers
Best Practices for Baby Sleep Temperature
The best practice for your baby's sleep temperature is to dress them only in the amount of sleepwear they need. If your baby is too warm, it can have a negative impact on their sleep quality. The most accurate way to see how warm your baby is is to feel the back of their neck or trunk.
If you're worried about your baby's temperature, here are a few ideas to help:
- Keep a thermometer near their crib. If your thermostat isn't reliable, you may not know the true ambient temperature of their room. Keeping a thermometer there will help you determine how warm or cold your little one may be.
- Keep a sleep journal. This can sound overwhelming, but it doesn't have to be. This can be as simple as writing down how they feel when they wake up on a small notepad near their crib. If they wake up sweaty, they will need lighter sleepwear. If they wake up feeling cold on the back of their neck or trunk, they may need warmer sleepwear.
- Invest in a variety of TOG ratings. This is especially important if you travel or live somewhere with unpredictable temperatures. Make sure you have a good sleepwear option for any temperature you encounter.
- Avoid loose sleepwear or blankets. While you should be making sure your baby is warm, if you use too many layers or put them in clothes that are too thick, they may overheat. As a rule of thumb, you should never have blankets in a baby’s crib. Make sure to follow the ABCs of safe sleep: Alone, on their Back, in a bare Crib.
The Bottom Line
Safety is most important when it comes to your baby's sleep environment. The temperature of the room can affect your baby’s quality of sleep.
Be sure to check the TOG rating on your infant's sleepwear before putting them to bed. If you're unsure about what rating they need, keep a sleep journal and adjust as needed.
If you're looking for more information about safe infant sleep, read all about it here.
Also in Our Blog
What’s the Difference Between a Swaddle and a Sleepsack
Five Questions about Early Morning Wakeups for Baby
The team at NAPS helps you tackle the issue of early wakeups. *BONUS* NAPS is hosting a webinar on February 24th. Register here and use the extra-special code MAGICMERLIN and you can join the webinar FREE of charge!
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The sound of cheery calls of “MAAAAMAAAAA” from the next room may be lovely at 7am. At 4am, or 5 am, not so much. Your baby may be up and ready to start the day, but you probably aren’t.
Answering the questions below may help you get there.
- Is your nap schedule mucking up your baby’s overnight sleep?
This might seem like an obvious question, but your baby’s sleep needs will change fast in the first few years of their lives. A quick look at the average nap number and duration might give you an idea:
- For babies from 3-6 months old, it’s normal to take 3-4 hour-long naps per day.
- For babies 6-15 months old, expect 2 naps with 3-3.5 hours of total sleep.
- For one and two-year-olds, you should expect a single 2-hour nap.
Part of the reason you might be seeing earlier wakeups is that your baby has graduated from one nap cycle to the next.
- Does your baby have enough time between their last nap and their bedtime?
We call this an “awake window,” and it can make a big difference. It might seem strange that your baby went to bed fine the night before, and you’re seeing a response to nap scheduling in the pre-dawn hours, but if your kiddo’s sleep is disrupted at night, it will impact the morning.
- 3-6 months, at least 1.5-2 hours between final nap wakeup and bedtime.
- 6-12 months, at least 2.5-3.5 hours between final nap wakeup and bed.
- 12-18+ months, 3.5-4.5 hours between final nap wakeup and bed.
- Is the room staying dark after the sun comes up?
Black 0ut curtains can make a big difference here. Remember that our brains signal wakeup when the light changes. So if dawn is at 430am, and even a little bit of light comes into your baby’s room, their little brains will PING with wake up juice.
- Is your baby going to sleep too early or too late?
It might seem counter-intuitive, but a late bedtime can actually backfire on you. Overtired kids don’t sleep as well. If you made their bedtime later and it didn’t fix the problem, try an earlier bedtime and see if that helps. You might be surprised.
- How do you make it better?
Try to make one change at a time; just one. Stick with that change for 3-5 days to see if it impacts things. (One night is usually not enough to see substantial change.) Be as consistent as you can with the change you made. For instance, if you decide to increase the space between bedtime and final nap wakeup, make sure to stick to the wakeup time you planned.
If your baby is waking up and chirping happily to themselves, feel free to leave them there for a little while. Let them get used to being alone in the crib. If you can, try to delay the start of the day by 5-10 minutes each day. This can make a big impact.
Everything else aside, remember that this is a short time in your kid’s life; as they get older, their sleep will become more regular, and so will yours. Don’t let yourself get too discouraged. Things are hard now, and you’re doing a great job.
