A small white crochet baby hat laid flat on a soft grey rug beside a bunch of dried flowers

Crochet Baby Hat: Free Pattern and Sizes From 0 to 3 Years

A one year old’s head is not 16 in around. The WHO growth standard puts the median at 44.9 cm for girls and 46.1 cm for boys, which is 17.7 to 18.1 in, so a crochet baby hat sized from the smaller number comes out about 3 in too small and sits on top of the head like a cap.

That figure appears on a page ranking for this search, and you only find it after the last round. So this guide does the sizing first: head sizes from preemie to 3 years, the hat each needs, a crown formula for your own gauge, a step by step hat in any size, and five free designer patterns. For newborns only, see our crochet hat for newborns roundup.

Finished size11.5 to 17.5 in around, newborn to 36 months
YarnWorsted weight (CYC 4), soft acrylic or acrylic blend
Hook5 mm (H-8), the hook two of the five designers below call for
Example gauge12 dc over 4 in (3 dc per in). Use your own swatch
YardageRoughly 25 to 55 yd, going by the per size yards one designer prints
StitchesMagic ring, double crochet (dc), slip stitch, single crochet
A small white crochet baby hat laid flat on a soft grey rug beside a bunch of dried flowers
A small textured crochet baby hat photographed flat. This is a stock photo, not the hat in the step by step below.

Baby hat size by age, preemie to 3 years

A crochet baby hat should be about 2 in smaller around than the head it is for, and a head grows fastest in the first three months. The median newborn head is 13.3 to 13.6 in, and by 3 months it is already 15.6 to 15.9 in. A crochet baby hat made at birth size is outgrown in weeks.

The table below is our own calculation, not a measured crochet baby hat. We converted the WHO head circumference medians for girls and for boys to inches, averaged them, took off 2 in of negative ease and rounded to the half inch. Stitches assume 3 dc per in, crown width is circumference divided by pi, and heights are the range the five designers below print.

AgeHead (WHO median, girls to boys)Hat aroundStitches at 3 dc per inCrown acrossHat height printed
Newborn13.3 to 13.6 in11.5 in353.7 in4 to 5.5 in
3 months15.6 to 15.9 in13.5 in414.3 in5.5 to 6 in
6 months16.6 to 17 in15 in454.8 in6 to 6.5 in
12 months17.7 to 18.1 in16 in485.1 in6.5 to 7 in
24 months18.6 to 19 in17 in515.4 in7 to 7.5 in
36 months19.1 to 19.5 in17.5 in535.6 in7.5 to 8 in

Preemies are too varied for a median, so use the Craft Yarn Council head circumference chart, which gives a preemie head as 9 to 12 in (23 to 30.5 cm); three designers below print a preemie height of 4 in. That chart has no ages, and its toddler row stops at 18 in (46 cm), under the median for a 2 year old, so use it as a range and the age table as the target.

How much smaller than the head the hat should be

Make a crochet baby hat up to 2 in smaller around than the head. That gap, negative ease, keeps a stretchy hat from sliding over a baby’s eyes. The designer behind this crochet hat size chart allows 2 in of negative ease for acrylic yarn, and our age table uses that figure.

Designers do not agree. One pattern below prints the hat size as the head size, which is zero ease. For a newborn, 2 in is the snug end, so with a firm fabric take off 1 in. The real test is the head: try the hat on before the brim.

What yarn, hook and yardage a crochet baby hat needs

A crochet baby hat needs a soft light or worsted yarn, a hook a little smaller than the chart suggests, and less than one ball. The Craft Yarn Council yarn weight system gives 5.5 to 6.5 mm (I-9 to K-10.5) for worsted (4) and 4.5 to 5.5 mm (7 to I-9) for light (3).

Crochet baby hat designers go under that range on purpose. Two worsted patterns below use 5 mm, 0.5 mm below the CYC range, and one uses 4 mm with DK. The Bernat Softee Baby label, a light (3) yarn, also recommends 4 mm and prints 362 yd (331 m) per 140 g. A smaller hook closes the gaps between stitches.

Yardage is what crochet baby hat patterns leave out. Four of the five below print none. The Junie beanie prints yards per size in worsted half double crochet: 25 yd preemie, 30 yd newborn, 33 yd at 3 months, 35 yd at 6 months, 45 yd toddler and 55 yd child.

The crown math: stitches around and the increase multiple

Stitches around equals hat circumference times your stitches per inch, and the flat crown stops growing when it is the circumference divided by pi across. At 3 dc per in, a 16 in crochet baby hat needs 48 dc around and a crown 5.1 in across. It works for any yarn once you know your gauge.

A flat circle stays flat by adding the same number of stitches every round, and that number is the multiple. Single crochet usually works on a multiple of 6. Double crochet is taller and needs about twice as many; the designers in our sources start a dc crown with 10 to 14. We use 12, so the rounds run 12, 24, 36, 48 and 60 stitches, and a partial round in step 4 covers the sizes in between.

How to make a crochet baby hat, step by step

This basic crochet baby hat is worked top down in joined rounds of double crochet, and one set of steps makes every size. There are two naming conventions and we give both: double crochet (dc) here is treble (tr) in the other, and single crochet (sc) is double (dc). Pick your size from the age table first.

Step 1: Swatch and find your stitches per inch

Work a few rows of dc with your yarn and hook, count the stitches in 4 in and divide by 4. At 12 dc over 4 in the table works as printed; otherwise multiply the hat circumference by your own figure.

The first rows of a small crochet swatch still on the hook, used to measure gauge before a crochet baby hat
A small swatch still on the hook. Measure it flat before you count a single hat stitch.

Step 2: Round 1, the magic ring

Make a magic ring. Chain 2, which does not count as a stitch, and work 12 dc into the ring. Pull the tail to close it and slip stitch to the top of the first dc. You have 12 stitches.

Step 3: Increase rounds

Round 2: chain 2, work 2 dc in every stitch, join (24). Round 3: chain 2, *1 dc in the next stitch, 2 dc in the next*, repeat around, join (36). Round 4: chain 2, *1 dc in each of the next 2 stitches, 2 dc in the next*, repeat, join (48). Stop at the round that reaches your stitch count or your crown width.

Step 4: A partial increase round for in-between sizes

Take the 6 month crochet baby hat: it needs 45 stitches, and a full Round 4 would give 48. Work Round 4 with only 9 increases instead, spaced evenly. With 36 stitches and 9 increases, that is 2 dc in every 4th stitch. Measure the crown now; it should be close to 4.8 in across.

Step 5: Work even to height

Chain 2 and work 1 dc in every stitch, join, with no more increases, so the sides drop straight down. Stop about one round short of the table height, measured from the centre of the ring.

Step 6: The brim and finishing

Work 2 rounds of sc for a firm edge that does not flare. A ribbed brim of front post and back post dc needs an even stitch count, so adjust by one on the last body round. Fasten off and weave the ends in securely.

Where a crochet baby hat goes wrong

Most failed crochet baby hat projects fail in the crown, in one of three ways you can see at the end of the increase rounds, when a fix costs one round instead of the hat.

The ruffled crown. The circle edge waves. There are more stitches than a flat circle holds, usually one full increase round too many. Pull it out and use the partial round from step 4.

The cupped crown. The circle curls into a bowl before reaching crown width. That is too few stitches, almost always a missed increase, so count every round against step 3.

The drifting seam. The join walks diagonally and the count creeps up. The chain 2 was counted as a stitch in one round and not the next; mark the first dc of each round and join into it.

Finally, never measure a crochet baby hat stretched. Lay it flat, measure across and double it.

Five free crochet baby hat patterns in more than one size

Each of these five free crochet baby hat patterns covers several sizes, and none is in our newborn roundup. We link to the designers and leave their instructions on their own pages. A missing number means the designer does not print it.

Junie Baby Beanie, High Desert Yarn

The Junie Baby Beanie runs preemie to child in half double crochet, worsted and 5 mm, and is the only one with yardage per size. It prints head sizes of 12, 13, 14, 16, 18 and 19 in and heights of 4 to 8 in. Gauge is given as 6 rounds making a 4 in circle, not stitches per inch, and there is no size between 16 and 18 in.

Newborn crochet hat in 4 sizes, Lovable Loops

Despite the name, the Lovable Loops hat runs preemie to 12 months, 12 to 17 in, in dc with worsted and 5 mm. It starts from 11 dc, then slows to 4 increases per round, ending on 44, 48, 52 or 56 stitches. The hat size is printed as the head size, so it has zero ease, and there is no gauge or yardage.

Basic Baby Hat Preemie to Toddler, Crafting Happiness

The Crafting Happiness basic hat uses single crochet, DK and 4.5 mm in six sizes, 4 to 7.5 in tall. It prints crown width, height and base width instead of circumference, with no gauge or yardage. Its preemie and newborn to 3 month sizes print identical measurements, 9 x 10 x 14 cm, so check fit as you go.

Crochet Baby Beanie Hat, Maisie and Ruth

The Maisie and Ruth beanie changes yarn with size: Debbie Bliss Rialto DK, 115 yd (105 m) per 50 g, on 4 mm for the three smallest, and Stylecraft Special Aran, 214 yd (196 m) per 100 g, on 5 mm for 6 months to 2 years. It prints flat widths of 6 to 8 in and heights of 4.5 to 6.5 in, with no gauge or yardage.

Easy Baby Beanie, Aunt B’s Loops and Stitches

The Aunt B’s easy beanie is the only one with a stitch gauge, 14 hdc and 10 rows over 4 in, on 5.5 mm with worsted. It lists sizes from 13 to 16.5 in, 5.5 to 7 in tall, but the free page covers only 0 to 3 months; the rest is a paid PDF. No yardage.

When not to use a crochet baby hat

Never put a crochet baby hat on a sleeping baby, or on a baby indoors once home. The paediatric safe sleep guide at HealthyChildren.org warns that a hat indoors can overheat a baby, and the Safe to Sleep campaign advises keeping the head and face uncovered during sleep.

Leave ties, cords and long ribbons off any crochet baby hat; product safety guidance on children’s clothing strings records strangulation from exactly those. For anything about a specific baby, the paediatrician has the final word.

Crochet baby hat FAQ

What size crochet hat for a newborn?

About 11.5 in around. The median newborn head is 13.3 to 13.6 in, and 2 in of negative ease brings that to 11.5 in. With a firm, less stretchy fabric, take off only 1 in.

How many stitches do I need for a crochet baby hat?

Multiply the hat circumference by your stitches per inch. At 3 dc per in, that is 35 for a newborn, 41 at 3 months, 45 at 6 months, 48 at 12 months, 51 at 24 months and 53 at 36 months.

How tall should a crochet baby hat be?

The five designers above print 4 in for a preemie, 4 to 5.5 in for a newborn, 6 to 6.5 in around 6 months and 7.5 to 8 in for a toddler or small child.

How much yarn does a baby hat take?

Less than one ball. The one designer who prints it gives 30 yd for a newborn and 45 yd for a toddler hat in worsted.

What hook size is best for a baby hat?

Slightly smaller than the chart. For worsted, the patterns here use 5 to 5.5 mm against a CYC range of 5.5 to 6.5 mm; for DK, 4 to 4.5 mm.

Can a baby sleep in a crochet hat?

No. Safe sleep guidance is to keep a sleeping baby’s head uncovered, and a hat indoors can make a baby too hot.

Where to go next

Sources

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