Federal law requires that full-size baby cribs comply with the full-size crib standard and with additional requirements, including those of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA).
Manufacturers and importers of cribs must certify in a Children's Product Certificate that the cribs comply with the standard and the additional requirements after the cribs have been tested for compliance at a CPSC-accepted, third party laboratory. These requirements are reviewed in greater detail at www.cpsc.gov/cpsia.
What is a full-size baby crib?
A full-size crib is a bed that: (1) is designed to provide sleeping accommodations for an infant; (2) is intended for use in the home, in a child care facility, in a family child care home, or in places of public accommodation affecting commerce; and (3) that has interior dimensions of 28 ± 5/8 inches (71 ± 1.6 centimeters) in width x 52 3/8 ± 5/8 inches (133 ± 1.6 centimeters) in length.
For information about non-full-size baby cribs, click here.
What is the purpose of the full-size baby crib standard?
The standard seeks to prevent the risk of deaths and injuries from falls or entrapment due to parts failure, dislodgment, or poor maintenance or assembly of the crib.
Where can I find the standard for full-size baby cribs?
The standard is published in the Code of Federal Regulations at 16 CFR Part 1219. The standard incorporates by reference ASTM F1169-19. The specific requirements and descriptions of the tests for full-size cribs are in ASTM F1169-19 with no modifications, which can be purchased from ASTM.
What type of mattress should I use in a full-size crib?
To prevent head entrapment and suffocation between the mattress and crib sides, a mattress used in a full-size crib must be at least 27 1/4 inches x 51 1/4 inches, with a thickness not exceeding 6 inches. The assembly instructions, the retail carton for the crib, and the crib itself must contain a specific warning statement that notes these dimensions.
What are the requirements for crib mattresses?
Crib mattresses are not covered by the full-size crib standard. However, crib mattresses are subject to the mattress flammability testing requirements of 16 CFR Part 1632 and 16 CFR Part 1633. In addition, there is a voluntary standard for crib mattresses, ASTM F2933. For more information on these requirements please see the Mattress Flammability Information Guidance page.
Additionally, crib mattresses are categorized as child care articles that facilitate sleeping for children under age 3; therefore, they are subject to limits on certain phthalates and require testing and certification to those limits on plasticized component parts of the crib mattress pursuant to 15 USC §2057c. For more information on the phthalates requirements, please see our Phthalates Guidance page. In addition, crib mattresses are also subject to the lead content and lead surface coating limits of 100 ppm and 90 ppm, respectively. For more information on these requirements, please see our Total Lead Content Guidance and Lead in Paint Guidance pages.
Crib mattresses, including those sold separately from a full-size crib, are children’s products that would additionally need permanent tracking information on the mattress and its packaging, including the (1) name of the manufacturer or private label, (2) the location and date of manufacture, (3) detailed information on the manufacturing process, such as a batch or run number, and (4) any other information to facilitate ascertaining the specific source of the product.
What are the requirements for full-size cribs?
The standard prohibits traditional drop sides and has stringent requirements for various parts of the crib, such as mattress supports, slats, and hardware. More specifically, the principal requirements for full-size cribs include:
- Dynamic impact testing of the mattress support system - intended to address incidents involving collapse or failure of mattress support systems;
- Impact testing of side rails and slat strength/integrity testing - intended to prevent slats and spindles from breaking and/or detaching during use;
- Mattress support system testing - intended to ensure that the mattress support does not become detached from the frame, potentially resulting in a fall;
- Latching mechanism tests - intended to ensure that latching and locking mechanisms work as intended, preventing unintended folding while in use;
- Crib side configurations - intended, in part, to limit movable (drop) sides; addresses the numerous incidents related to drop-side failures;
- Label requirements - cover numerous hazards, such as falls from the crib, suffocation on soft bedding, and strangulation on strings and cords;
- Openings requirement for mattress support systems - addresses gaps in the mattress support system to reduce the possibility of entrapment;
- Requirements for wood screws and other fasteners - eliminates the use of wood screws that serve as the primary method of attachment on key structural elements; also includes other fastener requirements to address incidents related to loose hardware and poor structural integrity;
- Cyclic testing - addresses incidents involving hardware loosening and poor structural integrity;
- Improper assembly issues - addresses the need to make it impossible to improperly assemble key elements or that those elements have markings that make it obvious when they have been assembled improperly;
- Test requirement for accessories - intended to address any cribs that now, or may in the future, include accessories, such as bassinets or changing tables;
- Component spacing - intended to prevent child entrapment between uniformly and non-uniformly spaced components, such as slats.
What are the requirements for re-selling cribs?
The CPSC strongly encourages resellers to search the online Recall List to ensure cribs for resale were not part of an earlier recall.
For cribs manufactured before June 28, 2011, when new retroactive safety regulations were issued for full-size cribs, unless the seller has written proof that the crib meets the standard above, retailers should destroy any full-size crib (with or without drop sides) and should not resell it. For cribs manufactured after June 28, 2011, assemble and make sure that the cribs have all component parts, including all screws and hardware.
You can find out more information on this and other resale topics by visiting our Resellers Guide.
Which cribs must comply with these requirements?
Full-size cribs manufactured, sold, resold, leased or otherwise placed in the stream of commerce must meet all requirements of the full-size crib standard. Additionally, full-size cribs provided for use at child care centers, family child care homes, and places of public accommodation (such as hotels and motels) must meet the full-size crib standard requirements. Enforcement guidance was issued in 2011 describing obligations of child care providers to meet the 2010 updates to the standard. Cribs that are medical devices, as determined by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, are not subject to the CPSC's full-size crib standard.
What are the additional requirements for full-size cribs required by the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008?
Full-size cribs are subject to surface coating requirements, lead and phthalate content limits, third party testing and certification, registration cards, and tracking label requirements. These requirements are discussed below:
- Surface Coating Limit: Full-size cribs may not be painted with paint that contains more than 0.009 percent lead.
- Lead Content Limit: Full-size cribs cannot contain greater than 100 ppm (0.01 percent) of total lead content in any accessible component part.
- Phthalate Content Limits: Plasticized components of full-size cribs must not contain more than 0.1 percent of the following eight specified phthalates: di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), dibutyl phthalate (DBP), benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP), diisononyl phthalate (DINP), diisobutyl phthalate (DIBP), di-n-pentyl phthalate (DPENP), di-n-hexyl phthalate (DHEXP), and dicyclohexyl phthalate (DCHP).
- Testing and Certification: Full-size cribs, like all products that are designed or intended primarily for children 12 years of age or younger, must be tested by an accredited third party laboratory accepted by the CPSC for compliance with the full-size crib standard and all other applicable children's product safety rules, including the lead paint, lead content, and phthalate content limits. Based on that testing, a domestic manufacturer (or importer) of full-size cribs must issue a Children's Product Certificate specifying each applicable rule and indicating that the product complies with those rules.
- Product and Outer Package Labeling Requirements: Durable infant or toddler products, such as full-size cribs, must be permanently marked with specific labeling information, including tracking labels, on the product and on the packaging.
- Product Registration Card Requirement: In addition, durable infant or toddler products are required to have additional product markings and a product registration card attached to the product. This chart summarizes the specific labeling and registration requirements that durable infant and toddler products must meet.
To the extent that the information required to be marked on the product (by the tracking label requirement and the registration card rule) is duplicative, you may combine the markings on the product to satisfy both requirements. Note that the tracking label requirement must also be included on the product's packaging.
Where can I find additional information?
For more information on the requirements for full-size baby cribs, contact the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission:
- Office of Compliance (for specific enforcement inquires): e-mail: section15@cpsc.gov; telephone: (800) 638-2772.
- Small Business Ombudsman (for general assistance understanding and complying with CPSC regulations): e-mail: Please use our Contact Form, which is the best way to get a fast response; telephone: (888) 531-9070.
For additional information on crib safety, visit the CPSC Crib Information Center. If you are a child care provider, then please visit our Enforcement Guidance for Child Care Providers.
To obtain copies of ASTM F1169-19, contact ASTM International at: www.astm.org or via telephone: (610) 832-9585.