How many tog sleeping bags do I need for the year UK?

What does the NHS list imply for a year-set?

The NHS safer-sleep page is not a shopping list, but it only names three commercial togs. Most heated UK bedrooms live in the first two. The third is the heatwave bag.

1.5 tog and 3.5 tog are shop ratings. NHS does not list them. They can sit in a cupboard as extras; they are not the official year.

How many bags do shops and magazines tell you to buy?

They disagree, which is the gap a year-set page can close without becoming a deal feed.

• JoJo (sleeping-bag guide): one lighter tog for summer, one heavier tog for winter, and at least one spare of each for illness or leaky nappies. They also call 2.5 tog a strong all-year option if the room cooperates.
• Modern Parenting (August 2026 bags guide): an all-season 1.0↔2.5 panel bag as the flexible route; a fixed 2.5 two-pack when the spare matters more than adjustable tog; a 1.5 'year-round' bag as a premium middle, with 0.5 or 2.5 still needed at the extremes.
• PlayPennies: Grobag price posts, not a year-set. A deal on one 2.5 tog bag is not a wardrobe.
• Love to Dream (UK tog FAQ): some families hold two to four ratings. That is a brand maximum, not a default shopping list.

The useful pile is two official everyday togs + a wash spare, and a 0.5 tog bag only if last summer's cot-height log actually hit 24°C. Four togs in every size is how the airing cupboard fills up.

Why does a wash spare matter more than a fourth tog?

NHS already told you there should be no other bedding with a bag. When the bag is in the machine, you still need a bag (or a feet-to-foot blanket setup). JoJo's spare is for leaks and vomit, not for a new temperature. A second 2.5 tog in the same size covers more UK nights than a 1.5 tog you use six times a year.

Size still leads tog. NHS: the bag must fit around the shoulders so the head cannot slip down. Buying the next age band "to last the year" gives you a spare that does not fit. Hold the spare in the size the baby is in now.

How do I build a year-set without buying four togs?

1. 1
   Log the room, not the season names A week of cot-height readings in the season you are in, plus a note from last summer's hottest nights. NHS bands care about 16–20, 20–24 and 24–27°C, not about "spring".
2. 2
   Buy the official pair that matches the log Most UK rooms need 2.5 tog and 1.0 tog. Skip 1.5 tog unless a maker you already like does not sell 1.0 and your nights sit in their 1.5 window.
3. 3
   Add one wash spare in the tog you use most Usually a second 2.5 tog in the current size. That is JoJo's leak logic without doubling every tog.
4. 4
   Add 0.5 tog only if the log says so NHS places it at 24–27°C. Lullaby Trust also allows vest or nappy-only when the room will not cool — so a 0.5 bag is useful, not mandatory, if you already strip layers in a heatwave.
5. 5
   Or collapse 2.5 and 1.0 into one panel bag An all-season 1.0↔2.5 bag can replace those two everyday togs. Modern Parenting still notes it does not replace a very light hot-weather bag.

Do all-season panel bags cut the pile?

They cut one spare tog, not the laundry spare. You still want a second garment in the current size when the first is wet. You still need a plan for 24°C+ nights (0.5 tog or nappy-only on the charity pages). You still grow out of the neck opening.

In shortNHS implies 2.5 and 1.0 for ordinary UK rooms, plus 0.5 when the bedroom hits 24–27°C. JoJo's buyer note is summer + winter + a spare. Start with two everyday togs and a wash spare — not four togs as the default. Year-set only; not a price calculator.