Parenting

Why babies cry more in the evening: the witching hour explained

Rive News Research Desk

Published October 09, 2026 · 8 min read

Key takeaways

The witching hour is a predictable daily stretch of evening fussiness, usually in the late afternoon or evening, that most young babies go through and outgrow.
It is not one cause but several stacking up: overtiredness, cluster feeding, overstimulation, and an immature nervous system that is done coping by evening.
It differs from colic, which follows the rule of threes: crying more than 3 hours a day, at least 3 days a week, for more than 3 weeks.

A newborn baby girlPhotograph: Vyacheslav Argenberg/Wikimedia CommonsImage: Wikimedia Commons

This article is general information, not medical advice. If your baby's crying seems like pain, or you are ever worried, talk to your pediatrician.

The witching hour is the stretch of late-afternoon or evening fussiness that hits many newborns like clockwork. The baby cries, resists soothing, and refuses sleep, often for a few hours, then settles as if nothing happened.

It is not an official medical term or diagnosis. It is the name parents gave to a phase of increased crying that shows up at a predictable time each day.

This article explains the witching hour, including what it is, why babies get fussier in the evening, how it differs from colic, and what actually helps.

What the witching hour is

The pattern is the signature. Witching-hour fussiness arrives at roughly the same time each day, usually in the late afternoon or evening, and lasts a few hours, according to Mothers Always Right.

During the episode, the baby may be fussy, hard to calm, and refuse to sleep, even when fed, changed, and comfortable. Nothing is obviously wrong, and nothing you do seems to fix it.

Then it passes. The same baby who screamed from 6 to 8 p.

m. nurses calmly and sleeps, and the cycle repeats the next evening.

Almost every young baby goes through some version of this. It is a normal part of infant development, and babies grow out of it as they age and their nervous systems mature, per Mothers Always Right. As the baby's circadian rhythm matures, the intensity typically decreases, according to SAHM+.

Why babies get fussier in the evening

There is no single cause. Several ordinary factors pile up over the course of the day and reach critical mass by evening, as the parenting writer behind Awesome Parent explains.

First, the nervous system is immature. Newborns are still learning to regulate light, sound, hunger, digestion, temperature, and their own alertness. Crying is one of their main ways to discharge a day's worth of stimulation, and by evening the system is simply overloaded.

Second, overstimulation accumulates. Even a quiet day contains a lot for a newborn: visitors, errands, bright rooms, older siblings, barking dogs, being passed from arm to arm. By late afternoon, many babies have hit their limit.

Third, overtiredness sets in. Newborns need an almost comical amount of sleep, yet they are bad at staying asleep. When wake windows stretch too long, the baby gets flooded with stress hormones and starts fighting sleep, quite literally, according to Nested Bean.

The numbers make this concrete. Newborns from birth to 4 weeks handle only 30 to 45 minutes of wakefulness at a stretch, 45 to 60 minutes at 4 to 8 weeks, and 60 to 75 minutes at 8 to 12 weeks, per Sleep Serenity's wake-window chart. A baby awake for two hours straight at six weeks old is almost guaranteed an evening meltdown.

Fourth, feeding patterns shift in the evening. Many babies cluster feed before bedtime, nursing in frequent short bursts. For breastfeeding parents, the milk-making hormone prolactin dips as the day wears on, so flow can feel slower in the evening and the baby may fuss at the breast, according to Nested Bean.

Fifth, digestion is still under construction. Swallowed air from crying, a fast letdown, or a shallow latch can build up gas through the day. Trapped wind by early evening becomes a real source of discomfort, per SAHM+.

None of these means anything is wrong with your baby or your milk. KellyMom stresses that fussy evenings are common for all young babies, breastfed or formula-fed, and the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine specifically lists "the infant who is fussy at night or constantly feeding for several hours" as a situation where supplementation is not indicated. The behavior is normal, even when it feels anything but.

A newborn baby being cared forPhotograph: Vyacheslav Argenberg/Wikimedia CommonsImage: Wikimedia Commons

Witching hour vs colic

Parents often wonder whether the evening crying is colic. The symptoms can look identical, but the two are not the same thing, according to SAHM+.

Colic has a formal definition: the rule of threes. A baby has colic when they cry excessively for more than 3 hours a day, at least 3 days a week, for more than 3 weeks, per Mothers Always Right. Colicky babies often pull their legs up and clench their fists, looking genuinely in pain.

The witching hour is fuzzier and milder. It happens at a predictable time each day, lasts a few hours, and comes and goes rather than running all day. A baby can have witching-hour fussiness caused by a touch of colic-like gas without meeting the full colic definition.

One practical test helps. If the intense crying stretches well beyond the evening, runs most of the day, or exceeds 3 to 4 hours daily, Nested Bean suggests it may be colic or a gastrointestinal issue rather than the classic witching hour. When in doubt, a pediatrician can tell the difference.

What actually helps

Protect daytime sleep first. Newborns can sleep 18 to 20 hours a day, and a well-rested baby has a milder evening, per Tula Mama. Watch for early tired cues like red eyebrows or looking away, and put the baby down before the yawning and eye-rubbing stage.

Time a nap ahead of the fussy window. If the crying reliably starts at 6 p.

m. , aim for the baby to be asleep by 5:30. Getting a baby to sleep during the fussy period can feel impossible, so sleeping through the start of it is the easier win, according to Sleep Serenity.

Feed on demand through the evening. Cluster feeding is the baby tanking up for the night, and feeding frequently supports milk supply during growth spurts, per Tula Mama. Let the baby nurse as long and as often as they want, and recruit a helper to bring you food and water.

Reduce stimulation after mid-afternoon. Dim the lights, lower the noise, and stop passing the baby around. An overstimulated nervous system cannot settle itself, so the environment has to do the calming.

Work the gas out. Burp the baby multiple times during feeds rather than only at the end, and hold the baby upright after feeding to help digestion, per Tula Mama. For bottle-fed babies, check that the nipple flow is not too fast.

Try motion and closeness. Walking, rocking, babywearing, and a warm bath soothe many babies through the peak. Our guide to why your baby wakes the second you put them down explains the sensory side of the transfer, and when babies start sleeping through the night by month shows what the light at the end of this tunnel looks like.

And take care of the parent, too. Tag-team the evening shift with a partner when you can.

A crying baby is stressful by design, and stepping away for ten minutes while someone else holds the baby is not giving up. It is strategy.

A newborn baby girl restingPhotograph: Vyacheslav Argenberg/Wikimedia CommonsImage: Wikimedia Commons

Frequently asked questions

When does the witching hour usually start and end?

It typically begins in the late afternoon or evening and lasts a few hours, according to Mothers Always Right. Most babies outgrow it in the first few months as their nervous system and circadian rhythm mature.

Is the witching hour the same as colic?

No. Colic means crying more than 3 hours a day, at least 3 days a week, for more than 3 weeks, with signs of pain like pulled-up legs. The witching hour is a predictable daily evening fussy period that is milder and comes and goes, per SAHM+.

Does evening fussiness mean my milk supply is low?

Not necessarily. Prolactin dips later in the day, so flow can feel slower in the evening, and cluster feeding is normal behavior, according to Nested Bean. KellyMom notes the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine does not recommend supplementation for a baby who is fussy at night or feeding constantly for several hours.

How can I tell if my baby is overtired?

Watch the clock and the cues. At 0 to 4 weeks, wake windows are only 30 to 45 minutes; at 4 to 8 weeks, 45 to 60 minutes, per Sleep Serenity.

Early tired signs include red eyebrows and looking away. Yawning, eye rubbing, and arching mean the baby needed sleep already.

The bottom line

The witching hour is not a sign that something is wrong. It is an immature nervous system, a tired body, an emptying evening milk flow, and a day's worth of stimulation all arriving at once.

Protect naps, feed on demand, dim the evenings, and work out the gas. The phase is temporary, the baby is normal, and you are doing better than the 7 p.

m. screaming makes it feel.

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Tags: newborn, witching hour, colic, baby sleep, cluster feeding

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