A 1-week-old baby typically eats 1 to 2 ounces per feeding, about 8 to 12 times in a 24-hour period. That works out to roughly 12 to 24 ounces total per day, depending on whether your baby is breastfed or formula-fed and how quickly they’re growing. These amounts look small, but they match the size of your newborn’s stomach, which at one week old holds only about 1 to 2 ounces at a time.
How Much Per Feeding
For formula-fed newborns, the CDC recommends starting with 1 to 2 ounces of formula every 2 to 3 hours. By around day 10, a baby’s stomach has grown to hold roughly 2 to 2.5 ounces (about 60 to 80 ml), so feedings naturally get a little bigger as the first week progresses. On day one, your baby’s stomach is closer to the size of a cherry and holds less than half an ounce. By day seven, it’s closer to the size of an apricot.
Breastfed babies follow the same general pattern but tend to take slightly less volume per feeding. Breast milk is more nutrient-dense ounce for ounce than formula, and babies digest it more completely. That means a breastfed baby getting 1.5 ounces per feeding may be getting just as much nutrition as a formula-fed baby drinking 2 ounces. Breast milk also changes composition from feeding to feeding, adjusting fat and protein content to match what your baby needs. So comparing bottle volumes between breast milk and formula isn’t an apples-to-apples comparison.
How Often to Feed
Most newborns eat 8 to 12 times in 24 hours during the first week. That’s roughly every 2 to 3 hours around the clock, including overnight. Some babies cluster their feedings, eating several times within a couple of hours and then sleeping a longer stretch. This is normal and common, especially in breastfed newborns.
At this age, you shouldn’t try to put your baby on a feeding schedule. Their tiny stomach empties quickly, and they need frequent refills to stay nourished and hydrated. If your baby is sleeping longer than 3 to 4 hours without waking to eat, it’s worth gently waking them for a feeding until they’ve regained their birth weight.
Why Feeding Cues Matter More Than Ounces
The 1-to-2-ounce guideline is a useful starting point, but your baby’s hunger and fullness signals are the most reliable guide to how much they need. Babies are born with the ability to regulate their own intake, and pushing them to finish a bottle can override those signals.
Hunger cues to watch for:
- Hands to mouth or sucking on fingers
- Turning toward your breast or the bottle (called rooting)
- Lip smacking, puckering, or licking
- Clenched fists
Crying is actually a late hunger signal. If you catch the earlier cues, feeding will go more smoothly because your baby won’t be frantic.
Signs your baby is full:
- Closing their mouth or turning away from the breast or bottle
- Relaxing their hands (open, unclenched)
- Slowing down or stopping sucking
When your baby shows these fullness cues, stop the feeding even if there’s milk left in the bottle. One feeding might be 1 ounce, the next might be 2.5. That variation is perfectly normal.
How to Tell Your Baby Is Getting Enough
Since you can’t measure how much a breastfed baby takes at each feeding, diaper output is the most practical way to confirm they’re eating enough. After day five, a healthy newborn should produce at least 6 wet diapers per day. The number of dirty diapers varies more, but you should see at least a few each day during the first week.
Weight is the other key indicator. It’s normal for newborns to lose up to 7% of their birth weight in the first few days after delivery. This happens because babies are born with extra fluid, and colostrum (the early breast milk) comes in small, concentrated amounts. Most babies hit their lowest weight around day 3 or 4 and start gaining again, typically returning to their birth weight by day 10 to 14. Your pediatrician will check weight at the first office visit, usually within a few days of leaving the hospital.
If your baby loses more than 10% of their birth weight, seems unusually sleepy and hard to wake for feedings, or isn’t producing enough wet diapers, that’s a sign to get their feeding assessed sooner rather than later.
Formula-Fed vs. Breastfed Volumes
If you’re formula feeding, you have the advantage of seeing exactly how much your baby drinks. Start with 1 to 2 ounces per bottle and let your baby decide when to stop. Over the first month, that amount will gradually increase. By around one month old, most formula-fed babies take 3 to 4 ounces per feeding. The broad guideline for the first several months is 24 to 32 ounces of formula per day total, but a 1-week-old won’t be anywhere near that upper range yet.
If you’re breastfeeding, volume tracking isn’t practical or necessary. Instead, focus on whether your baby is latching well, feeding actively for 10 to 20 minutes per breast, producing enough wet and dirty diapers, and gaining weight on track. Breastfed babies regulate their own portions naturally, and because breast milk composition adjusts to your baby’s needs, the volume they take is less important than the overall pattern of feeding, output, and growth.
When Intake Increases
Your baby’s stomach grows rapidly in the first few weeks, and feeding amounts increase to match. By two weeks, many babies are comfortably taking 2 to 3 ounces per feeding. By one month, 3 to 4 ounces is typical. These increases happen gradually, and your baby will signal the change by seeming hungry again shortly after finishing a feeding or by draining bottles faster than before.
Growth spurts also affect intake. Many babies hit their first noticeable growth spurt around 7 to 10 days old, which can mean a day or two of seemingly nonstop eating. This is normal and temporary. For breastfeeding parents, these frequent feeding sessions also help increase your milk supply to match your baby’s growing needs.