Best baby sleeping bags to keep them safe and cosy

There's a surprising amount to say about this sleeping bag, but the main thing is that it converts from an arms-in to arms-in sleeping bag. Available in different tog ratings for different seasons—and with the option to buy coordinating sleep suits with padded sleeves—all your baby sleepwear and bedding needs are covered.

"My baby absolutely loves the cocoon swaddle bag," said our own Mother&Baby reviewer Katie. "It’s simple to use, and she sleeps so much better than before. She would regularly twitch and wake herself, but she hasn’t since we’ve been using the swaddle bag, allowing us both to get a better night's sleep. I can quickly swaddle my wriggling baby in no time with the handy zip feature, which is also great for nappy changes during the night. It’s perfect for staying at her grandparent's house without needing blankets. I would definitely recommend it to all new parents!"

Made from organic cotton and bamboo and dyed with natural water-based dyes, the materials used are gentle enough not to aggravate sensitive skin and are lovely and soft. There is a two-way front zipper for easy nappy access. Ergopouch also makes sleeping bags for children past the swaddle stage available in a wide range of sizes and togs.

Read our full Ergopouch Organic Cocoon Swaddle Bag review

With multiple useful features and adjustable sizing, this is a well-thought-through design and the material is super soft to touch and cosy for baby. It also has a zipper that fastens at the bottom to make night-time changes that little bit easier.

"We love these sleeping bags. Our son has been using them for around 6 months, and I just got another one because they're just so good," said one reviewer. "He has never been able to get himself out of it (yet!) and they're super cute, too." Designed for babies from 4kg to 24 months, the sleeping bag can be adjusted for size via poppers. This ensures a secure fit and doesn't ride up and cover your baby's face. It's not recommended for babies under 4kg.

At 1.5 tog, it will keep your little one comfortable all year around, although the brand recommends using 2.5 tog in the winter months. It's made from organic cotton and bamboo fabric, which is breathable and thermoregulating, helping to keep your baby or toddler at the ideal temperature. We also love the character prints available including the Peter Rabbit sleeping bag, Peppa Pig and The Gruffalo too.

Sleeping with arms up is a natural position for some babies, and this sleeping bag supports that with its clever wing design. The stretchy jersey fabric keeps arms as snug and warm as the rest of the body, and a two-way zip makes nappy changes quick and easy. This product is also recognised as a hip-healthy product by the International Hip Dysplasia Institute and are inherently hip-healthy due to their extra wide shape & garment construction.

Mum tester Emily noticed her little one would shrug off his blankets and worried about him being chilly so this bag was life saver. "The Love To Dream Swaddle Up really appealed to me because of the clever “arms-up” design where, unlike traditional swaddles or sleeping bags, it lets your baby sleep with their hands near their face, so they can self-soothe while still feeling snug and secure."

Emily was so impressed with the sleeping bag, she's purchased the next size up now that her baby has outgrown the swaddle.

This sleeping bag is also useful if your little one tends to scratch their face as their hands are completely covered up. It's also machine—and tumble-drier-friendly and won't lose its shape once washed.

The SnüzPouch Baby Sleeping Bag was shortlisted for Best Bedding at the Mother&Baby Awards 2021

The SnüzPouch Rainbow Baby Sleeping Bag is super soft and comes in adorable designs. It's a safe choice for parents and babies as it has underarm poppers, a side zip, and an innovative curved nappy change zip on the front for quick changes with minimal disturbance. It's also 100% cotton, making it machine and tumble drier safe. This one ticks all the baby sleeping bag boxes and our mum testers felt the same.

"Yes yes yes! It’s so easy to change your little one without a fuss, just unzip and off you go! My little one never really woke up, and it was so easy to fasten back up as quickly as I unzipped! It’s easy to get on without a fuss and comfy for my little on and also cosy and warm so you don’t worry about the temperature in the night!" Said our mum tester Amy.

Charlotte agreed saying it was great for newborns, "The changing zip is a great design feature and helps to keep the little one warm and snug while doing nappy changes and I found it to be very convenient for the very early newborn days." She did however mention that once her baby started rolling, the front zip left marks on her baby's legs.

Read our full SnüzPouch nappy change sleeping bag review

Sleeping when your baby is a newborn can feel like a challenge, but this sleeping bag may help in catching some much-needed z's. Newborns like to feel secure, and the PurfloSwaddle helps to achieve that with an arms-zipped-in design that converts into an arms-zipped-out design once the baby is a little older. It also features breathable mesh panels to help regulate temperature and access at the bottom of the bag for nappy changes in the night.

"I'm very impressed with this swaddle-to-sleep bag," said one M&B tester. Baby has been sleeping well for the past few days. I particularly like how versatile it is, lasting up to four months with a few clever poppers at the shoulders and feet. The breathable panels to avoid overheating and stop sweating are fab! This is by far the best compared to other big brands I have tried."

The Purflo features a loose-leg design, which enables use in a car seat and allows parents to transfer a sleeping baby straight to the cot. The specific bag has also been designed to allow for healthy hip growth and is certified as hip healthy by the International Hip Dysplasia Institute.

Parents will be impressed that this swaddle bag easily transitions into a sleeping bag for older babies. It also has a two-way zip, which makes getting baby in and out and nappy changes a breeze, and the flap covering the zip is secure to prevent any irritation from the zip.

The soft cotton material is comfy, and the quilted padding makes it feel extra cosy. One tester said “It’s a small thing, but I like that the external label tells you what it is; it just makes life so much easier when grabbing a sleeping bag for bedtime.” 

Our tester also liked the fit of this sleeping bag: “Being a smaller size 0-3 months means the fit is snugger and stops me from worrying that it’s too big for my baby. Although it means buying more sleeping bags in the long run, I’d rather have this snugger fit, especially in the fourth trimester.”  

The skin-friendly material is hypoallergenic, so super soft and gentle on babies skin which means one less thing for parents to worry about.

These sleeping bags are incredibly soft, and our testers were impressed by the beautiful illustrative designs. Our personal favourite, Folktails, is full of cute characters like foxes, bears, squirrels, and deer for a woodland scene full of interest and colour.

This sleeping bag fits 3-18 months so a massive bonus is it's going to fit the baby for a long time, so there will be less switching between sizes. It is a fair bit larger than some of the others on our list to accommodate that extra growing space, but there are poppers on the bottom you can open up, making it easy to expand when needed. Our testers commented how easy it was to wash and got softer after washing plus, the colours of the pattern held their vibrancy well.

One tester did comments on the label at the top of the bag, "It was good as a distraction, but once he started trying to pull it into his mouth, I decided to cut it off!"

Since it's a larger size and will fit the baby for longer, it's also great value for money. Every purchase funds a donation programme called The Better Sleep Project, which gives baby bedding to families who need it, so you're supporting a good cause too.

The material of this sleeping bag is lovely and soft, with quilting to the front of the thicker 2.5 tog option (they do also make a 1 tog for summer). The zip fastens on the left-hand side, at the top near the baby’s arm, and there is a fabric flap to cover the zip to prevent irritation. In terms of safety features, the addition of an extra popper at the arm holes is great for securing smaller sleepers, and there’s also a pair of poppers on each shoulder.

Our testers were impressed with the quality of the fabric, “I loved the softness of this sleeping bag, and the pattern was understated and neutral but different from the usual grey options for unisex designs. I love the ochre, which is just as suitable for boys as it is for girls.” 

However, they did find the position of the zip made nappy changes a bit more of a challenge than with other sleeping bags: “Having tried other brands that have a front zip that opens from the bottom, I did find this zip a bit trickier to get at when my baby was stirring, if I was trying to check his nappy without him waking up completely.”

Something our testers thought could be improved upon was having a way to secure the flap over the zip, "Although my baby was in a sleepsuit as well, I was a bit concerned the placement of the zip could rub him.”

Available in a range of neutral patterns, our favourite is honey rice, pictured below. You can also get matching bedding.

This versatile swaddle can be secured in three different ways; arms in, arms out, and hands-to-face. The velcro fasteners mean you can adjust it to your baby’s preferred fit, knowing they will be safe and secure all night.

Our dad tester said, “Especially with my newborn, I found it reassuring to be able to wrap her in this and that it wouldn’t come undone halfway through the night. She seemed to prefer the fit of a swaddle, but I was always worried I was doing it wrong.” He adds, “Having this swaddle sleeping bag combo has given me peace of mind at bedtime.”

There’s a large stitched label on one of the swaddle ‘arms’ that gives a breakdown of how to wrap the swaddle, so you have the instructions there and ready for you at all times. It’s tucked away from the baby when folded, so you don’t have to worry about it irritating them. The soft micro-fleece material is all that touches them. 

Another tester added, “Thanks to the bottom zip, I liked that you could keep baby’s arms swaddled while checking the nappy.”

One problem one tester noted was that once your little one doesn’t want to be swaddled, the flaps become a bit redundant, but there’s no way to remove them, so you may end up having to buy a new baby sleeping bag.

Catering for babies from newborn through to 24 months with three available sizes, the Kumala Cotton Muslin sleeping bags are a great option for between seasons because of their removable sleeves. This 3.5 tog design lets parents choose whether to keep their child's arms padded and warm or take the sleeves off via a simple press-stud attachment on warmer nights.

"This sleeping bag is perfect for winter for my little one," said one reviewer. "The arms are detachable, so you can remove them for the warmer months. The fabric and quality of this is lovely. I would definitely recommend it.

"The fabric is 100% cotton. Available in seven colours and easy to throw in the wash and tumble dry, the only gripe some reviewers have is with the zip which they say is not easy to manage, particularly in the night when managing a nappy change. The zip runs along the side and feet of the sleeping bag.

The Love To Dream Sleeping Bag is like a onesie blanket for babies and toddlers. It also comes with optional feet covers to keep those little toes cosy and warm or cool, depending on the weather. The feet covers are helpfully gripped underneath for toddling before and after sleep. There are both options with sleeves and sleeveless options to choose from.

"As a first-time mum, I felt really overwhelmed in the warmer months about what to dress my son in at night," says M&B Reviews Editor Emily Gilbert. "Having a one tog option was such a huge help as I wanted to continue to steer clear of blankets. While he's always used a sleeping bag, once he could stand up, I worried about him tripping over. That's why I love the sleep suit option from Love To Dream - it has all the benefits of a sleeping bag, just with legs!"

Made with organic cotton and elastane, these are super soft and comfy to sleep in and move in. They also have a lighter, upper chest fabric so that your little one can better regulate their temperature. On the expensive side, these are particularly useful for toddlers who are between the sleeping bag and blanket stages and also want the freedom to crawl and toddle. Available in five sizes.

This two-pack of organic cartoon sleep bags has a double zipper design for convenient changes in the middle of the night. The Lictin Baby Sleeping bags are a lighter tog for the warmer weather at 0.5 and are made from breathable 100 per cent cotton fabric. Available in two sizes, each is adjustable in length, extending over time with your baby's growth.

The smaller size is for 3-18 months, and the larger is for 18-36 months. Many sleeping bag designs only cater to 24 months, so these have a little extra longevity.

"Great value - two baby sleeping bags for the price you can pay for just one!" said one reviewer. "The material is soft and thin so perfect for summer nights for the baby. I’m no expert with tog ratings, but these feel more like my baby’s 1.0 tog sleeping bags than 0.5. Either way, they’re not thick with padding and are definitely suitable for baby sleeping in warmer conditions. The designs on the sleeping bags are lovely. Even nicer than they look in the picture. The double zip is very handy, as are the poppers under the arms, so the arm hole size can be adjusted depending on the baby's size. My baby is just over 6 months and the whole sleeping bag fits nicely. I do the poppers up for him, so the sleeves aren’t too big. I’d recommend this product."

For cozy and secure sleep, the blanket-free Ditsy Print design is ideal for summer with its 1 tog rating. This pretty flower print sleep sack is designed in the thinnest rating and is ideal for hot summer nights and holidays. Utilising the softest cotton muslin with a charming, vintage floral print, it’s a soothing seasonal bedtime look that’s perfect for the summer months. Adjustable poppers change the sleep sheet’s length to best fit your child, and the sleeveless cut keeps kids cool.