A baby blanket has no place in the cot during the first year: health authorities in France, Canada and the United States all agree that it is the baby sleeping bag that keeps your little one warm. After the first birthday, no French guideline sets a precise date for the blanket itself. The only dated reference comes from the Assurance Maladie (France’s national health insurance): a sheet or duvet “from 3 years old”. In between, the change happens in steps, often when your child moves to a bigger bed. Here is what the sources say, and how to choose a blanket when the time comes.
From what age can a baby blanket go in the cot?
Not before 12 months, and there is no rush after that. French guidance on safe sleep calls for a sleeping bag suited to the season, “with no pillow, duvet, blanket or cot bumper”. The American Academy of Pediatrics (the US association of paediatricians) states that all its safe sleep rules apply “until 1 year of age”. Santé Canada (Canada’s federal health department) says the same: babies “do not need a hat or a blanket”, and many parents use a sleeping bag instead.
Why so firm? Loose fabric can slide over the face of a young baby who cannot yet push it away. It can also cause overheating. Both are well-established risk factors for sudden infant death. The official guidance on safe sleep for babies sets out all these rules, including sleeping on the back.
What the sources say exactly
- Assurance Maladie (ameli, 10 October 2024): no soft objects in the cot, a sleeping bag in the right size, a room between 18 and 20 °C. “Do not cover your baby with a sheet or a duvet (only suitable from 3 years old).”
- American Academy of Pediatrics (updated 11 September 2026): no pillow, duvet, blanket or cot bumper in the sleep space. To keep baby warm, layers of clothing or a “wearable blanket”. No weighted blankets.
- Santé Canada (9 October 2024): a flat, firm surface with no soft bedding; no blanket; a sleeping bag in the right size.
- Naître et grandir (a Quebec parenting resource, October 2022, reviewed by the injury prevention team at the Hôpital de Montréal pour enfants): no duvet or thick blanket in the cot. If a blanket is truly needed, a fabric that is “thin, light and breathable”. A small pillow is fine “once your child is 2 or sleeps in a big bed”.
Between 1 and 3 years: sleeping bag, light blanket or duvet?
After the first birthday, the official guidance goes quiet on blankets, and habits vary from one family to the next. Three markers can help you decide.
The sleeping bag is still the simplest option
Nothing says you have to give up the sleeping bag at 12 months. They come in sizes up to 110 cm, or roughly 3 years, and in versions with legs for children who are walking. It avoids the problem of a child who kicks off the covers at night, and of fabric riding up. Our guide to choosing a sleeping bag and reading its TOG rating covers sizes and seasons.
The light blanket comes with the toddler bed
The most common moment to introduce a blanket is the move to a bed without bars, between 2 and 3 years. By then your child can roll over, sit up, push fabric away and climb out of bed alone. It is also the age at which Naître et grandir allows a small pillow. A thin blanket, tucked under the mattress at the foot end and coming no higher than the shoulders, is a sensible compromise. The move to a toddler bed has its own safety criteria, including the bed guard and where the bed sits in the room.
The duvet waits until 3
This is the clearest marker: the Assurance Maladie keeps sheets and duvets for children aged 3 and over. A duvet is bulky, holds in heat and can cover a small body completely. Before that age, it offers nothing that a sleeping bag or light blanket does not do better.
Do you need a baby blanket for going out?
Yes, this is the least problematic use, as long as an adult is there. In the pushchair or carrycot, a blanket tucked over the legs makes up for the fact that your child is sitting still and feels the cold more than the parent who is walking. Two limits. It never covers the carrycot like a roof, which blocks the air and makes the temperature rise. And in the car seat, it goes over the straps, never between the harness and your child. For everyday winter trips, a pushchair footmuff is a better choice than a blanket that keeps slipping off. Our tips on dressing your baby in cold weather round off this point.
A blanket on the floor is not a play mat
Many parents spread a blanket on the floor for playtime. For a newborn who is not yet moving, that is fine for a few minutes. As soon as your baby rolls, crawls or tries to sit up, the fabric slides, bunches up underneath and cushions nothing. A 15 mm thick play mat stays put, insulates from the cold floor and absorbs the backward tumbles of the first sitting attempts. The blanket can then go back to its real job: covering, not supporting.
Weighted blankets for babies: best avoided
Weighted blankets, sold to “soothe” or help with falling asleep, are advised against for babies by the American Academy of Pediatrics. It recommends not using weighted blankets, sleeping bags or swaddles on or near a baby. The weight restricts the movement of the chest and stops the child from wriggling free. No health authority recommends these products before the age of 3.
How to choose a baby blanket
When the time comes, five criteria are all you need.
The material
- Waffle cotton or open-knit cellular fabric: breathable, washable at 60 °C, the safest choice for a first blanket in the bed.
- Merino wool or thick cotton: for the pushchair in winter, not for the bed of a child under 3.
- Synthetic fleece and minky: very warm and not very breathable; they encourage overheating. Keep them for outings, and never against the face.
The size
A 70 × 90 cm or 75 × 100 cm blanket suits the pushchair and the Moses basket. For a 70 × 140 cm toddler bed, go for 100 × 140 cm: enough to tuck in at the foot end, not enough to get wrapped up in. An adult throw is too big and too heavy.
The finishing
No fringes, ribbons, pompoms or buttons: these are parts that come loose or wrap around little fingers. The seams should stand up to frequent washing. A fabric carrying a label showing it is free from unwanted substances is a plus; our guide to labels and standards for baby products explains what each label guarantees.
Care
A baby blanket gets washed often: spit-up, nappy leaks, sweat. Choose one that can handle 60 °C and the tumble dryer without felting. Two are enough to rotate.
New or second-hand
A second-hand cotton blanket, washed hot, is perfectly fine. Just check for pulled threads and heavy pilling, which are signs of a worn-out fibre.
The most common mistakes
- Adding a blanket on top of the sleeping bag “because it’s cold”: the sleeping bag replaces the blanket, it does not add to it. Go up one TOG, or add a pair of pyjamas.
- Heating the room above 20 °C to make up for the lack of a blanket. The recommended temperature is still 18 to 20 °C.
- Using a blanket to keep a baby on their back or prop them up: positioning cushions and rolled-up fabric are advised against.
- Mixing up a blanket and a swaddle: a swaddle is wrapped snugly around the body using a specific technique, and stops as soon as your baby first tries to roll over. Our article on swaddling explains its limits.
- Switching to a duvet as soon as your child moves to a big bed at 2: the French guideline is 3 years.
Key takeaways
Before 12 months, no blanket in the cot: a sleeping bag, a room at 18-20 °C, nothing else. From 1 to 3 years, the sleeping bag is still a simple option; a light blanket, tucked in at the foot end, can go along with the move to a toddler bed. The duvet waits until 3. For going out, the blanket or footmuff goes over your child, never over the carrycot. And on the floor, it is the mat that does the supporting, not the fabric.
Sources
- Assurance Maladie, “Comment bien coucher un bébé ?”, ameli.fr, 10 October 2024.
- American Academy of Pediatrics, “How to Keep Your Sleeping Baby Safe: AAP Policy Explained”, HealthyChildren.org, updated 11 September 2026.
- Santé Canada, “Safe Sleep Tips”, canada.ca, updated 9 October 2024.
- Naître et grandir, “De la bassinette au lit d'enfant : les règles de sécurité”, scientific review by Debbie Friedman and Liane Fransblow (Hôpital de Montréal pour enfants), updated October 2022.
