How long can a baby sleep in a Moses Basket?

How long can a baby sleep in a Moses Basket?

How long can a baby sleep in a Moses Basket?

Moses baskets provide a secure, lightweight and cosy sleeping environment for your baby. Most baskets are made from maize or wicker. Wicker baskets tend to be the most long-lasting and the most expensive. 

Moses baskets have carrying handles so that you can move them easily from room to room. They come with a set of bedding, a fabric-covered hood for cosmetic reason purposes, and their own foam mattress.

Moses baskets can be rested on the floor, the Super Nanny range includes a NZ Pine wooden stand so that it can be placed at a more convenient height next to your bed.

Pros of having a Moses Basket

  • Your baby may feel more secure in a snug Moses basket than a large cot.
  • Very portable, so it's easy to move from room to room.

Cons of having a Moses Basket

  • Only used for the first three months or so, which makes it an expensive purchase if you buy new.
  • Your baby can sleep in a cot from birth. A crib or Moses basket is not necessary if space is tight, or your budget is limited.

Safety tip: Check when buying a Moses basket that its handles are sturdy and meet in the middle. Carry the basket with the handles together and with one hand underneath supporting your baby. If you're at all worried, take your baby out of the basket before you move it.

Parents' tip: If you want to gradually get your baby used to being in his cot, start by putting your baby to sleep in his Moses basket inside the cot.


How Long Can a Baby Sleep in a Moses Basket?

As hard as it is to imagine, your tiny, gorgeous, snuffling baby will soon start to grow, and the items that seem too big for them now will quickly become very small. Their moses basket, for example, will soon need to be replaced by a cot, but when should you make the move?

Top tips for making better use of your Moses Basket

1. Generally, moses baskets are perfect for the first 3 months, as they keep your baby safe, secure and comforted whilst they adjust to the outside world. Moses basket stands are increasingly popular and are used to help your baby drift off to sleep as it replicates the gentle rocking motion they felt whilst in the womb.

2. When you put your baby down to sleep you must ensure their feet are at the bottom of the basket, this reduces the chance of them wriggling underneath their covers whilst sleeping. As your baby grows taller you will find that their head starts to get closer to the top of the basket, at this point the move to a cot is appropriate.

3. As soon as your baby can roll over. The move to a cot is especially important if this occurs in a rocking moses basket, as this rolling could cause injury.

4. Moses baskets are generally suitable for babies with a weight of 9kg or below, as soon as your child gets heavier then you should move them into a cot.

5. Whilst babies tend to learn to sit up on their own from about 4 to 7 months, if your child does start to develop this ability early then you must move them out of their moses basket as soon as possible. This is also true if your child starts to push themselves onto their knees and hands.

Transitioning from Moses basket to cot

To make the transition from moses basket to cot easier for your little one, you may want to place the moses basket inside the cot for a few days so your baby becomes used to their new surroundings before they go into their big bed.

For more information about getting your baby or toddler to sleep longer, make sure you take a look at our recent blog post on this issue

Related Posts

Your Tommee Tippee Bottle Questions Answered

Choosing the right bottle for your baby takes more thought than most people expect. Below we've answered the questions Kiwi parents ask us most often about Tommee Tippee. If you need more help, our team at Babies.co.nz is always happy to assist — call us on 09 274 3099 or visit our Auckland showroom in East Tamaki.

Learn more

Both use the same wide, breast-shaped teat design — the difference is in how they handle air reduction. Closer to Nature has a built-in anti-colic valve in the teat that reduces air ingestion during feeds. Advanced Anti-Colic goes further, with a heat-sensing tube at the bottom of the bottle that actively vents air out of the milk before it reaches your baby. For most babies, Closer to Nature is plenty. For babies with more significant colic, wind, or reflux, Advanced Anti-Colic is the better choice.

Yes — the Closer to Nature range is one of the most recommended bottles for combination feeding. The wide, breast-shaped teat encourages the same broad latch breastfed babies use at the breast, reducing the risk of nipple confusion. Always start with a slow flow teat for a breastfed baby regardless of age, and introduce the bottle around three to four weeks once breastfeeding is well established.

For many parents, yes. The Natural Start glass bottle is made from premium borosilicate glass — odour-free, heat resistant, and very easy to sterilise. It's particularly practical in the newborn period when you're sterilising frequently and mostly feeding at home. The main trade-offs are weight and the risk of breakage. Many parents use glass at home and plastic when out and about.

Start with slow flow for all newborns — whether breastfed or formula fed. Move up to variable flow when your baby shows signs of frustration, takes too long to finish feeds, or falls asleep before finishing. Fast flow suits confident, efficient feeders from around six months. Always let your baby's cues guide the decision rather than age alone.

Yes — both ranges include anti-colic features. Closer to Nature has a built-in anti-colic valve that reduces air ingestion. Advanced Anti-Colic takes this further with an active venting system that removes air bubbles from the milk during the feed. For babies with significant colic, the Advanced Anti-Colic bottle is the stronger solution. For a more powerful anti-colic system, Dr Brown's bottles use a fully internal vent system that is clinically proven to reduce colic.

The Perfect Prep Machine makes a fresh, perfectly mixed, body-temperature formula bottle in under two minutes — safely. It delivers a shot of hot water (over 70°C) to kill bacteria in the formula powder, then tops the bottle up to the correct volume with filtered water at room temperature. The result is a safe, correctly mixed bottle at the ideal feeding temperature, every time. The Day and Night version adds a quiet pump and soft night light for night feeds. It requires replacement filters every three months — available at Babies.co.nz.

As a guide: 2–3 bottles for occasional bottle feeding of a breastfed baby; 4–6 for combination feeding; 6–8 for exclusive formula feeding. The Closer to Nature 260ml 3-pack is the most practical starting point as it gives you enough bottles for a full day without constant washing.

Yes — all Closer to Nature, Advanced Anti-Colic, and Natural Start glass bottles and teats are dishwasher safe on the top rack. Replace teats every two to three months or sooner if you notice any thinning, stickiness, or discolouration.

Shop the full Tommee Tippee range online at Babies.co.nz with nationwide delivery, or visit our Auckland showroom in East Tamaki. We stock bottles, teats, the Perfect Prep Machine, sterilisers, breast pumps, and the full Tommee Tippee range. Price Match available and 5% back in Rewards on every purchase.

Both are excellent, widely trusted brands. Tommee Tippee's Closer to Nature teat is slightly softer and more flexible, which some babies find easier to latch onto. Philips AVENT's Natural Response teat uses a unique J-shape that releases milk only when your baby actively drinks — a more precise mimicry of breastfeeding. AVENT also offers more granular teat flow options (six levels vs Tommee Tippee's three). If you're combination feeding and want the most breast-like bottle experience, AVENT Natural Response is worth comparing. If you want a trusted, simple bottle with strong anti-colic performance, Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature is hard to beat. Read our full Philips AVENT buying guide →

The key difference is anti-colic power. Dr Brown's internal vent system is clinically proven to reduce colic and is the stronger solution for babies with significant wind or reflux. Tommee Tippee's anti-colic valve (Closer to Nature) and heat-sensing tube (Advanced Anti-Colic) are effective for most babies but less comprehensive than Dr Brown's approach. On the other hand, Tommee Tippee is simpler to clean — fewer parts, no internal vent tube to wash — and the breast-shaped teat is widely regarded as one of the best for combination feeding. Read our full Dr Brown's buying guide →

Most paediatric guidance recommends transitioning from a bottle to a cup around 12 months. Tommee Tippee makes this easy with their integrated cup and sippy range. The transition from bottle to sippy cup is smoother when you stay within the same brand — the familiar Tommee Tippee feel and quality helps babies accept the change more readily.