Crib to toddler bed transition: when to switch and how

Switch from the crib when your toddler starts climbing out of it. That is the AAP's cue: once your toddler can climb out of their crib, it may be time to transition to a "big kid" bed. There is no magic age. Before the first night, make the whole bedroom safe, keep the bedtime routine exactly the same, and expect a few nights of walking them back to bed. A short homemade story about the new bed, starring your child, helps a lot of kids know what is coming.

When to make the switch

Climbing out is the clearest sign, because a fall from the rail is the thing to avoid. While your child is still in the crib, the AAP's crib guidance says to lower the mattress as your child gets taller and to keep large toys and stuffed animals out, since a baby may use them to get a leg up and over the rail. If your toddler is happy and safe in the crib, there is no rush.

Timing around other big changes. If a sibling is on the way, the AAP suggests finishing toilet training or switching from a crib to a bed before the baby arrives, or waiting until the baby is settled at home, so your older child is not learning new things on top of the upheaval. The same logic applies to a move or starting daycare: one big change at a time when you can manage it. Our guides on preparing a toddler for a new baby and helping a toddler with a move cover those transitions.

Make the room safe first

A child in a bed can get up whenever they like, including at 5 a.m. while you are asleep. That makes the bedroom the new crib. The AAP's big-kid-bed guidance suggests:

• Start low. While you wait for a new bed, place the crib mattress on the floor.
• Clear the floor. Move furniture and large toys, like rocking horses, that your child could fall against.
• Gate the doorway and the stairs. A gate across the bedroom door keeps them from wandering, and a gate at the top of the stairs prevents falls.
• Anchor furniture. Use childproof latches or tape so drawers cannot be pulled out and used as steps, and secure dressers so they cannot tip.

That last point is not a small one. The AAP notes that about half of fatal tip-over incidents involving children happen in bedrooms, sometimes when parents think their kids are asleep. Anti-tip straps take minutes to install.

If you are tempted by bunk beds for siblings, the AAP says children younger than 6 should not sleep in the top bunk.

Keep the bedtime routine the same

The bed changes; nothing else should. The AAP recommends continuing the same bedtime routine you have used since your child first joined the family. If you do not have one yet, the AAP's Brush, Book, Bed program is a simple start: brush teeth, read a favorite book or two, and get to bed at a regular time each night.

When they keep getting out of bed

Most kids are thrilled with a big bed. Some treat it as an open door. The AAP's approach:

1. At the end of the routine, tell your child to stay in bed until you come for them.
2. If they get up, calmly and quietly lead them back and say they need to stay in bed.
3. When they are back in, praise them briefly for being a good sleeper and leave.
4. Repeat, as many times as it takes, for several nights.

The AAP is frank that twenty "farewell appearances" in one evening is by no means an unusual number. The key is keeping those trips brief and boring, because any attention, even an upset parent, can make getting up worth it. Praise them in the morning for staying in bed all night.

Use a story to make the bed theirs

Toddlers handle change better when they know what it will look like. A short personal story, read for a week before the switch, gives them that preview. This is the same idea as a social story: a few plain pages that walk through what will happen.

A simple version you can make tonight:

1. The old crib. "When [name] was a baby, [name] slept in a crib."
2. Getting bigger. "Now [name] is bigger. Big kids sleep in big beds."
3. The new bed. A photo or drawing of the actual bed, in the actual room.
4. Choosing something. "[Name] picked the blue sheets," if they helped choose.
5. The routine. Brush teeth, read a book, lights off. Same as always.
6. Staying in bed. "When the light is off, [name] stays in the big bed until Mom or Dad comes."
7. Morning. "In the morning, [name] gets a big hug for sleeping in the big bed."

Use real photos of your child and the room if you can; a picture of the actual bed beats a cartoon one. Our guide to writing a short story for your child has more on keeping it simple. Turning those photos into coloring pages gives your child something to do with the story, not only listen to it. Colorkin makes coloring storybooks starring your family from your photos, drafted with image tools and checked by a person, but a stapled stack of printed photos works too.

If it is not working

A rough first week is normal. If your child is truly not ready, it is fine to go back to the crib for a while, as long as they are not climbing out. If sleep problems last for weeks, or you have questions about your child's sleep space, the AAP's advice is simple: talk with your pediatrician.

More guides for big changes in a small child's life are collected under big moments.

Questions parents ask