An 8-month-old typically drinks around 24 ounces of breastmilk per day, though the actual amount varies depending on how much solid food they’re eating. At this age, breastmilk is still the primary source of nutrition, but solids are playing a growing role in your baby’s diet, which gradually shifts the balance.
Daily Volume and Feeding Sessions
Most 8-month-olds breastfeed about 4 to 6 times in a 24-hour period. If you’re offering expressed milk in bottles, each feeding is typically 3 to 4 ounces, putting the daily total at roughly 18 to 24 ounces or more. That said, breastmilk intake is harder to measure precisely when nursing directly, because you can’t see the volume. The best approach is to continue feeding on demand, watching for hunger cues like rooting, bringing hands to the mouth, or fussing.
Breastfed babies are remarkably good at self-regulating their intake. Unlike formula, which is digested more slowly and tends to follow a more predictable schedule, breastmilk moves through the digestive system faster. That means your baby may want to nurse more frequently but take in smaller amounts each time compared to a formula-fed baby of the same age.
How Solids Change the Equation
At 8 months, your baby is likely eating solid foods two to three times a day, but breastmilk remains the main source of calories and nutrients. Think of solids at this stage as complementary. They’re building skills (chewing, swallowing, exploring textures) and adding iron and other nutrients, but they aren’t replacing milk yet.
You don’t need to follow a strict order of milk first, then solids, or vice versa. The American Academy of Pediatrics says there’s no required sequence for most children. Some parents offer the breast before a meal so the baby fills up on milk first, then explores solid food. Others do the opposite. Either way works. What matters is that your baby continues to nurse frequently enough to maintain your supply and meet their caloric needs.
As your baby eats more solids over the coming months, you’ll naturally notice a slight drop in how much milk they want. This is normal and gradual. By 12 months, solid foods will take over as the primary nutrition source, but at 8 months you’re still solidly in the transition period.
What a Typical Day Looks Like
A common pattern for an 8-month-old might look something like this: a nursing session first thing in the morning, a solid meal mid-morning with or without a short breastfeed, another nursing session before an afternoon nap, a solid meal in the late afternoon, a breastfeed in the early evening, and one more before bed. Some babies add a session or two on top of that, especially during growth spurts or teething.
Night feedings are still common at this age. Breastfed babies often continue waking once or twice overnight, and this is within the range of normal during the first year. As babies get older, they typically wake less often for feeds. Night weaning for breastfed babies is generally considered an option starting around 12 months, though every family’s situation is different.
Signs Your Baby Is Getting Enough
Since you can’t measure ounces at the breast, output is the most reliable indicator. A well-hydrated 8-month-old produces six to eight wet diapers a day. Fewer than three or four wet diapers signals possible dehydration. Other warning signs include a sunken soft spot (the fontanelle on top of the head), no tears when crying, extreme sleepiness, and a noticeable change in behavior like unusual irritability or listlessness.
Steady weight gain is the other key marker. Your pediatrician tracks this at well-child visits, but at home you can watch for general signs that your baby is thriving: active, alert, meeting developmental milestones, and interested in food and play. Babies who are getting enough breastmilk look and act like healthy, energetic babies. If your baby seems satisfied after feedings, is gaining weight appropriately, and is producing plenty of wet diapers, the volume is almost certainly fine, even if it seems like less than what you’ve read online.
If You’re Pumping or Bottle-Feeding
For parents who pump and bottle-feed expressed milk, the 3 to 4 ounce range per feeding is a good starting point. Offering smaller, more frequent bottles mimics the natural rhythm of breastfeeding better than larger, less frequent ones. Breastfed babies tend to take in a consistent daily volume between months 1 and 12 (unlike formula-fed babies, whose intake increases with size). This means the total daily amount at 8 months isn’t dramatically different from what it was at 4 or 5 months. What changes is that some of those calories now come from solid food.
If your baby is in daycare, a good rule of thumb is to send 1 to 1.5 ounces of expressed milk for every hour you’ll be away, divided into small bottles. So for an 8-hour day, that’s roughly 8 to 12 ounces while you’re apart, with the remaining feedings happening when you’re together in the morning, evening, and overnight.