When to Move Your Toddler from a Cot to a Bed

Most toddlers move from a cot to a bed somewhere between 18 months and 3 years old, and later is usually easier than earlier — a toddler bed removes the physical barrier that's been quietly doing a lot of the work of keeping your child asleep and safely contained. The exception is safety: if your toddler is climbing out of the cot, that overrides every other consideration and the switch should happen straight away, since a climbing fall from cot height is a genuine injury risk.

Why later is usually easier

A cot's sides are a sleep aid whether we think of them that way or not — they remove the option of getting up, which removes a huge source of bedtime negotiation. A bed hands that option back. The longer your toddler can stay happily settled in a cot, the more developmentally ready they'll be to handle that new freedom without it turning into a nightly game of "pop back to bed."

Signs it's time, beyond climbing

• You need the cot back for a new baby (aim to move at least 6-8 weeks before the due date, so the switch isn't tangled up with a new-sibling adjustment).
• Potty training is under way and they need to get up independently in the night.
• They've simply outgrown the cot's size limit (most cots are rated to around 2 years or a certain height/weight, check your specific model).

Making the switch smoother

Keep as much the same as possible — same room, same bedding style, same bedtime routine — and change only the bed itself. A low-to-the-ground toddler bed with a guard rail (like the IKEA KRITTER or SNIGLAR) reduces the height of any accidental night-time tumble and keeps the visual transition small, since it looks and feels closer to the cot than a full-size bed would. A stair gate on the bedroom door for the first few weeks is a common, sensible safety step while your toddler learns the new boundaries of getting up at night.

What to expect in the first few weeks

Some regression in sleep is normal — more nighttime wake-ups, testing whether they can get up, requests for "one more" story. This usually settles within 2-4 weeks with a calm, consistent response: walk them back to bed each time, keep the interaction brief and boring, and avoid turning it into extra attention or negotiation.