Baby room temperature: is 24°C too warm for a nursery?

The recommended range

The Lullaby Trust, the UK safer sleep charity, recommends keeping the room between 16°C and 20°C where possible, as part of its safer sleep advice. Read their room temperature guidance for the reasoning and the full advice. What follows is a summary of it, not a replacement. Temperature is one part of the sleep setup: our parent field guide covers the rest in safer sleep for newborns.

What to do when the room is 24°C

The Lullaby Trust's advice for a warm room, in short:

• Use lighter bedding and clothing. Fewer layers, or a lighter sleep bag that fits well. No duvets or quilts.
• Let air move. Open a window and the bedroom door if it is safe to do so.
• A fan can help cool the room, but do not point it straight at your baby.
• Keep the cot away from radiators, heaters and direct sunlight.
• No hat indoors. Babies lose heat through their heads.
• Check your baby, not just the number. Feel their chest or the back of their neck. Hands and feet are normally cooler. If the skin is hot or sweaty, take a layer off.
• Offer feeds as usual or more often in hot weather, and follow NHS advice on fluids for your baby's age.

There is no official chart that matches room temperature to tog. The Lullaby Trust explains that products and babies vary too much, which is why the chest-and-neck check matters. Sleep bag makers print their own guides.

If the room is below 16°C

The Lullaby Trust says heating all night is rarely needed, and that adding a layer usually does the job. If you do leave the heating on, keep it low and no higher than 20°C.

How to measure the room properly

Guessing a room's temperature is hard, and the Lullaby Trust recommends a room thermometer wherever your baby sleeps. Any simple one will do. To get a reading you can trust:

• Place it near the cot at about the same height, but out of your baby's reach.
• Keep it out of direct sun and away from radiators, lamps and electronics, which push the reading up.
• Read it when you put your baby down and again before you go to bed. Rooms drift overnight.

What about humidity?

There is no equivalent official target for humidity in a baby's room, so be wary of any product that prints one. Humidity is still worth seeing next to temperature, because a muggy room feels warmer than the number suggests.

Where Nova Room fits

Nova Room is our small plug-in tile for the nursery. It reads room temperature, humidity and light, and shows them live in the Nova Baby app next to your baby's sleep log. Its temperature sensor is rated to ±0.2°C (typical). It also has two keys for logging sleep: moon when your baby falls asleep, sun when they wake. It costs £59 once, with no subscription, and ships to UK addresses.

Nova Room has no camera and no microphone, and it reads the room, not your baby. It is not a medical device, a baby monitor or a safety alarm, so keep checking on your baby as you do now.

When to get help

If your baby has a fever, seems unwell or you are worried, contact your GP or call NHS 111 in the UK, or your local health service elsewhere. This page is general information, not medical advice.

Questions

Is 24 degrees too hot for a baby's room?

It is above the 16 to 20°C the Lullaby Trust recommends. If you cannot cool the room, use lighter bedding and clothing, let air move through the room, keep a fan from pointing at your baby, and check their chest or the back of their neck.

What temperature should a baby's room be?

The Lullaby Trust recommends 16 to 20°C, which is 61 to 68°F, with light bedding or a lightweight sleep bag that fits well.

Is 22 degrees too warm for a nursery?

It is slightly above the recommended 16 to 20°C. The same steps apply: lighter layers, moving air, and checking your baby's chest or the back of their neck.

What should a baby wear to sleep at 24 degrees?

There is no official chart, because sleepwear and babies vary. Use fewer and lighter layers, follow the guide printed on your sleep bag, and check your baby's chest or the back of their neck. If the skin is hot or sweaty, remove a layer.

How do I tell if my baby is too hot?

Feel their chest or the back of their neck. Hands and feet are normally cooler, so they are not a good guide. Hot or sweaty skin means a layer should come off.

Do I need a nursery thermometer with an app?

No. Any simple room thermometer works. An app helps if you want to see how the room changed overnight, or to see readings next to your baby's sleep log.

What humidity should a baby's room be?

There is no official target for a baby's room. Treat humidity as context for the temperature reading, and be cautious of products that claim an ideal figure.