Teenage sleep: how much do teens need, and what helps in puberty?
Teenage sleep works best at 8 to 10 hours a night for ages 13 to 18, the range in the American Academy of Sleep Medicine's 2016 consensus statement. During puberty, a similar wake time every day, daylight in the morning and a phone that charges outside the bedroom are a good place to start.
A tired teenager is common, and it is rarely a sign that anyone at home is getting something wrong. In the CDC's 2025 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 24% of US high school students reached 8 hours on an average school night, so many families are working on the same thing. When sleep stays short for weeks at a time, the research links it with trouble with attention, behavior and learning, and with low mood. These are associations rather than proof of cause, and they describe a pattern over time, not a late night now and then.
How much teenage sleep is enough?
The American Academy of Sleep Medicine's consensus statement in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine (Paruthi et al., 2016) recommends 8 to 10 hours in every 24 for ages 13 to 18, on a regular basis. The word regular matters: the guidance looks at the overall pattern, not a single night. The range sits a little lower than the one a girl has just left behind in younger childhood.
A steady teenage sleep schedule is often easier to build around the wake time than the bedtime. Many families find it gentler to agree on a morning time together, weekends included, and let bedtime settle around it, rather than starting with a lights-out rule.
If she stays tired even with steady routines, it is worth mentioning at a routine visit. Our guide to health checks in puberty explains what those visits cover and what you might like to ask.
Area, target, practical steps
| Area | Target | Practical steps |
|---|---|---|
| Sleep | 8 to 10 hours a night at ages 13 to 18; 9 to 12 hours at ages 6 to 12. | A wake time that stays similar on weekends, daylight soon after getting up, and phones charged outside the bedroom. |
| Period care | Comfort and confidence with whichever product suits her. | Pads, tampons, period pants and cups are all safe, with tampons changed every 4 to 8 hours. Ibuprofen or naproxen taken with food can ease cramps. |
| Mental health | Early help when mood dips. | A trusted adult, school counselor (counsellor in the UK) or doctor makes a good first conversation. Exercise, sleep and time with friends all help mood. |
| Social media | A phone that stays quiet at night and a feed that feels kind. | Many teens find it helps to turn notifications off at night and to unfollow accounts that leave them feeling worse about their body. |
| Body image | Food and bodies talked about in terms of strength and energy. | Homes tend to do well without dieting, 'day of eating' trends and comments about weight. |
| Alcohol | None under 21 in the US (the legal age); the UK advises an alcohol-free childhood. | NIAAA notes that alcohol harms the developing brain, and many teens find that hearing the reason lands better than a rule. |
| Smoking and vaping | None. | Free help is available at 1-800-QUIT-NOW in the US and through NHS Stop Smoking Services in the UK. |
| Sun and skin | No tanning beds and no burning. | Many US states ban tanning beds for under-18s, and the UK bans them for under-18s. |
| Sexual health | Protection and confidential advice. | Condoms protect against STIs. Doctors and sexual health clinics, including Title X family planning clinics in the US, offer confidential contraception and advice. |
Which daily habits sit alongside teenage sleep in puberty?
The CDC classes the share of US teens reaching 8 hours as worsened between 2015 and 2025, with no change between 2023 and 2025 (Youth Risk Behavior Survey). That is a trend across many households, which is a gentler way to see a tired teen at home.
Sleep also sits alongside the body changes of these years. Our page on the signs of puberty in girls shows what is typical, and many girls find it helps to know the changes are normal while they settle into new routines.
Habits shift with each stage. For the years before this one, our page on younger children, where routines and sleep training are the focus, may be useful. For the years after, sleep and lifestyle when trying to conceive is for adults in the reproductive years, including those planning a pregnancy.
When are teenage sleep problems worth a doctor's visit?
Teenage sleep problems are worth a doctor's visit when they persist despite steady habits, or when they arrive with low mood, anxiety or withdrawal from friends. In the US that is usually a pediatrician, and in the UK a GP or paediatrician.
Sleep and mood tend to travel together, so it helps to mention both in the same appointment and let the doctor look at them together. Asking early is a sensible step, and it keeps small worries from growing.
Trouble falling or staying asleep on most nights has a name and good support. Our page on insomnia explains what it is and what helps.
Facts
Common questions
What lack of sleep does to the teenage brain?
The 2016 AASM consensus links ongoing short sleep with accidents and injuries, high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes and depression, alongside the attention and learning difficulties mentioned above. It describes sleep that stays short over weeks and months, not the odd late night, and it shows association, not proof of cause. If a pattern worries you, a pediatrician or GP can look at it with you.
Do teenage girls get less sleep than boys?
In US survey data, yes, by a little: 22% of female and 26% of male high school students got at least 8 hours on school nights in the CDC's 2025 Youth Risk Behavior Survey. The survey does not say why, so it works best as a reminder that girls' rest deserves protecting, not as a reason to worry.
How long before bed is it worth putting screens away?
The CDC suggests turning devices off at least 30 minutes before bed. Some families find it easier when the adults follow the same routine, so it reads as a household habit and not a penalty. The half hour can hold whatever feels restful for her, whether that is music, a book or a chat.
Does caffeine affect teenage sleep?
The CDC's sleep advice suggests keeping caffeine out of the afternoon and evening, and skipping large meals or alcohol close to bedtime. It also describes the bedroom that helps most: quiet, relaxing and cool. For a teen who relies on an after-school coffee or energy drink, moving it earlier in the day is a gentle first experiment.
What is worth bringing to an appointment about sleep?
A sleep diary is the most useful thing, and the CDC notes it may help. Simple notes on when she went to bed, when she woke and how she felt the next day give the doctor a pattern to work from. Period dates and mood are worth adding, since they can be part of the picture.
Next steps
A good place to start is one change this week: settle on a wake time, or find the phone a charging spot away from the bed, then see how the mornings feel. If tiredness, low mood or period problems carry on, a visit to a pediatrician (paediatrician in the UK) or GP is worth booking, with a few notes on what you have noticed. Every teenager and every household is different, so take what fits yours and leave the rest: this is not one size fits all.
See a doctor promptly if you have
- Low mood, anxiety, self-criticism about food or body, or withdrawal
- Period pain that stops school or doesn't ease with painkillers
- Soaking a pad or tampon every 1–2 hours, bleeding longer than 7 days, or clots bigger than a quarter
- Periods that stop for 3 months or more, especially with weight loss or heavy training
Also in puberty & adolescence
The same topic in the stage before and after
Sources
The guidelines and studies this page draws on.
- Recommended Amount of Sleep for Pediatric Populations: A Consensus Statement of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (Paruthi et al.), Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine (2016)
- About Sleep, CDC (2024)
- Youth Health in Focus: Sleep (Youth Risk Behavior Survey), CDC (2025)
- CDC Data Show Encouraging Progress in Youth Health, CDC (2026)
- Get the Facts About Underage Drinking, NIAAA (2023)