Melatonin Dosage Calculator
Find recommended melatonin dose from age, weight, and sleep concern.
Covers jet lag, insomnia, and shift work with timing and maximum safe dose by age.
Melatonin is a hormone your body naturally produces to regulate sleep-wake cycles. Supplemental melatonin can help with sleep onset, jet lag, and shift work adjustment.
General dosage guidelines:
| Age Group | Starting Dose | Max Dose |
|---|---|---|
| Children (3–12) | 0.5–1 mg | 3 mg |
| Teens (13–17) | 1–2 mg | 5 mg |
| Adults (18–64) | 1–3 mg | 5–10 mg |
| Seniors (65+) | 0.5–2 mg | 5 mg |
Important principles:
- Start low: Begin with the smallest effective dose. More is not better with melatonin.
- Timing matters: Take 30–60 minutes before your desired bedtime.
- Short-term use: Melatonin is generally recommended for short-term use (2–8 weeks).
- Jet lag: Use 0.5–5 mg at bedtime for the first few nights at your destination.
Factors that affect dosage:
- Body weight (heavier individuals may need slightly more).
- Age (older adults produce less natural melatonin but are also more sensitive to it).
- Light exposure (screen time before bed suppresses natural melatonin).
- Caffeine intake (can reduce melatonin effectiveness).
Side effects at high doses: Headache, dizziness, nausea, and daytime drowsiness.
Why the max column matters more than the starting dose
The maximum in that table is not a target to work up to. It is a ceiling, and the ceiling for a child is 3 mg, not the 10 mg an adult may take. Paediatric melatonin overdose calls to US poison centres rose more than 500% between 2012 and 2021, driven largely by gummies left within reach, so the gap between a child’s dose and an adult’s is the single most important number on this page.
More is not better, and the research is unusually clear about it
Melatonin is a timing signal rather than a sedative. It tells your body clock that night has started; it does not knock you out the way a sleeping pill does. Trials comparing 0.5 mg against 5 mg generally find the same effect on how fast people fall asleep, while the higher dose produces more grogginess the next morning. If 1 mg does nothing for you, 10 mg is unlikely to be the answer, and the problem is usually timing or light exposure instead.
Supplements in the US are not held to pharmaceutical standards. A 2017 analysis of 31 products found actual melatonin content ranging from 83% below the label to 478% above it, and 26% contained serotonin as a contaminant. Buy a brand carrying a USP or NSF verification mark if you can.
Always consult your doctor before giving melatonin to children or if you take other medications. Melatonin is not recommended during pregnancy or nursing without medical advice.
How we build and check this calculator
This calculator runs entirely in your browser, so the numbers you enter stay on your device. The math behind it is written by hand and tested against worked examples and standard references before the page goes live.
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