Source: New Zealand Ministry of Health
Getting enough quality sleep is important for brain function, emotional wellbeing and physical health. The New Zealand Health Survey asks respondents how much sleep they usually get in a 24-hour period. This page summarises sleep results, focusing on how different population groups compare when it comes to meeting the sleep duration recommendations.
What are the sleep duration recommendations?
What are the sleep duration recommendations?
The Ministry of Health’s sleep recommendations are adapted from the National Sleep Foundation recommendations. Note that some people naturally sleep slightly more or less than the recommended hours.
The recommended hours of sleep in a 24-hour period, including all naps and sleeps, are:
- For children (aged 0-14 years):
- Newborn (0–3 months): 14 to 17 hours
- Infant (4–11 months): 12 to 15 hours
- Toddler (1–2 years): 11 to 14 hours
- Preschool (3–4 years): 10 to 13 hours
- School age (5–13 years): 9 to 11 hours
- Teens (14 years): 8 to 10 hours
- For adults (aged 15+ years):
- Aged 15−17 years: 8 to 10 hours
- Aged 18−64 years: 7 to 9 hours
- Aged 65+ years: 7 to 8 hours
Key findings
- Most New Zealanders are meeting sleep duration recommendations.
- Those living in the most deprived areas were less likely to meet sleep duration guidelines than those living in the least deprived areas.
- Disabled adults were less likely to meet sleep duration guidelines than non-disabled adults.
Most New Zealanders are meeting sleep duration recommendations
- In 2024/25, adults on average slept for 7.3 hours and two out of three (67.4%) usually got the recommended amount of sleep in a 24-hour period.
- Children were more likely to meet guidelines, with three out of four (77.2%) usually getting the recommended amount of sleep.
- 27.0% of adults and 18.0% of children usually slept less than recommended, while 5.7% of adults and 4.8% of children usually slept more than recommended.
Figure 1. Usually met sleep duration recommendations in a 24 hour period, by adults and children, 2017/18 – 2024/25
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Those living in the most deprived areas were less likely to meet sleep duration guidelines than those living in the least deprived areas
- 62.0% of adults living in the most deprived areas (Quintile 5) met sleep duration recommendations, compared with 72.7% of adults living in the least deprived areas (Quintile 1).
- 68.3% of children living in the most deprived areas met sleep duration recommendations, compared with 83.7% of children living in the least deprived areas.
- Across NZDep quintiles, adults and children had similar rates of usually sleeping more than the recommended guidelines. However, those living in the most deprived areas were more likely to sleep less than recommended.
- 31.5% of adults and 26.8% of children living in the most deprived areas slept less than recommended, compared with 22.8% of adults and 12.1% of children living in the least deprived areas.
Figure 2. Usually met sleep duration recommendations in a 24 hour period, by NZ Deprivation quintile, 2024/25
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Disabled adults were less likely to meet sleep duration guidelines than non-disabled adults
- In 2024/25, an estimated 45.5% of disabled adults met sleep duration recommendations, compared with 69.5% of non-disabled adults.
- Disabled adults were both more likely to sleep more than recommended (13.6% compared with 4.9%) and less than recommended (40.9% compared with 25.6%) than non-disabled adults.
Figure 3. Adults who usually met sleep duration recommendations in a 24 hour period, by disability status, 2017/18 – 2024/25
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Learn more
This data was taken from the 2024/25 New Zealand Health Survey Annual Data Explorer. For more information on the questions, methodology or design of the survey, please see the New Zealand Health Survey methodology and information page.