How much milk should a baby drink per feed? How to log what your baby actually takes

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) page “Amount and Schedule of Formula Feedings” on HealthyChildren.org gives rough figures for formula-fed babies: in the first week, about 1 to 2 ounces (30 to 60 ml) per feed, rising to about 3 to 4 ounces (90 to 120 ml) by the end of the first month, and no more than about 32 ounces (roughly 950 ml) in 24 hours.

These are formula figures. The AAP is describing typical amounts, not targets to reach, and it says amounts differ from baby to baby. This guide does not give a table for expressed breast milk: ask your pediatrician or lactation consultant what to expect for your baby.

Your tin of formula and your health worker come first. If their numbers differ from a website's, follow theirs.

A baby who takes 60 ml from a 90 ml bottle has drunk 60 ml, not 90. Babies stop when they are full, pause, spit up, and sometimes take more at one feed and less at the next. Over a day or two it evens out far more than any single bottle does.

Both the WHO and the AAP recommend responsive feeding: offer milk when your baby shows hunger cues, and stop when they show they are full (turning away, closing the mouth, slowing down), rather than urging them to finish the bottle. The number you log should be what they drank, not what you offered.

For each bottle:

• The time it started.
• How much was drunk: the amount you put in minus what was left. A half-finished bottle is a normal entry.
• What was in it: formula, expressed breast milk or a mix.
• A short note if something is different: spat up a lot, fell asleep mid-feed, was very slow, refused.

Pick one unit, ml or oz, and keep it for everyone who feeds the baby. Mixed units are the most common reason daily totals look wrong. Then add the day's bottles once, at the same time each day, and compare the last few days with each other rather than with a chart.

1. 1Tap Bottle on the Today screen.
2. 2Set the amount with the plus and minus buttons (10 ml, or half an ounce, per tap) or one of the quick amounts: 60, 90, 120 or 150 ml, or 2, 3, 4 or 5 oz.
3. 3Choose what was in the bottle: Breast milk, Formula or Mixed.
4. 4Check the time and save. Add a note if you want to.

Baton starts the sheet from the amount and content of your last bottle, so change the amount to what was actually drunk. It needs an amount above zero to save a bottle, so for a bottle that was refused, add a Note entry with the time and what happened.

Switch between ml and oz in Settings, under Units. Amounts are stored in millilitres and shown in the unit you choose, so changing it later does not break old entries.

Baton's Charts screen shows the day's bottle total, with the breast milk part next to the formula and mixed part, and a 7-day chart of bottles per day in your unit next to feeds per day. The 7-day charts are free; 30- and 90-day trends are part of Baton Plus. History lists every bottle with its time, and CSV export is free.

Look at the direction across several days. A steady number, or one that grows gently as your baby grows, is the usual picture. One low day, with a cold or a vaccination, is not a trend. Baton only records what you enter: it does not say whether an amount is enough, and it gives no feeding advice.

If your partner or a grandparent also feeds the baby, each logs into the same record through their own iCloud, and each bottle shows who gave it, so the daily total is complete.

Ask your pediatrician, midwife or health visitor if your baby regularly takes much less than they are used to, refuses feeds, vomits forcefully, seems to tire or struggle during feeds, has fewer wet diapers than you were told to expect, is not gaining weight as expected, or if you are unsure how much to offer. Bring your log: a week of real amounts is easier to discuss than a memory. Do not change how you mix formula to adjust amounts; follow the tin. In an emergency, call your local emergency number. Our guide on whether your baby is getting enough milk explains the other signs care teams look at.