Baby feeding schedule: weaning chart by month
Enter your country and the date of birth: when to start solids, meals and textures by age, and until when to avoid certain foods — with dates.
Country and date of birth
The starting window depends on your country's official advice. The date stays on this screen.
This schedule is the general advice of official bodies; it is not a meal plan or a prescription. Every baby goes at their own pace.
Signs your baby is ready
- Can stay in a sitting position and hold their head steady
- Can co-ordinate eyes, hands and mouth: look at food, pick it up and put it in their mouth
- Can swallow food rather than spit it back out
If your baby was born prematurely, ask your health visitor or doctor when to start solid foods.
Weaning schedule by month
First tastes
Meals: Small amounts, before the usual milk feed. At 6–8 months, 2–3 meals a day. Most energy still comes from breast milk or formula.
Texture: Puréed or mashed; move on soon to mashed, lumpy and finger foods.
7–9 months
Meals: Gradually move towards 3 meals a day (breakfast, lunch and tea).
Texture: More mashed, lumpy and finger foods.
10–12 months
Meals: 3 meals a day. For 9–23 months, 3–4 meals a day with 1–2 snacks if needed are recommended.
Texture: A wider range of finger foods.
12 months and over
Meals: 3 meals a day with a variety of foods, plus 2 healthy snacks. Breastfeeding can continue up to 2 years or beyond.
Texture: A variety of foods; avoid hard foods like whole nuts.
Meal frequency from the World Health Organization, texture and meal progression from the NHS: ·
Foods that contain allergens
Foods containing allergens, such as peanuts, hens' eggs, gluten and fish, can be introduced from around 6 months: one at a time and in small amounts, so you can spot any reaction.
This advice is from the NHS; some countries' advice differs (for example, the month to start some allergens). Check your selected country's source too.
What to avoid, and until when
- Honey · not before 1 year
- Cows' milk as a main drink · not as a main drink before 12 months
- Whole nuts (choking risk) · not before 5 years
- Rice drinks instead of milk · not before 5 years
- Don't add salt or sugar to food (including stock cubes and gravy).
- Raw eggs and foods that contain raw egg.
- Mould-ripened soft cheeses (like brie or camembert) and cheeses made from unpasteurised milk.
- Hard foods: whole nuts, raw carrot or raw apple.
Foods tried
Try new foods one at a time and note them with the date: if there's a reaction, you'll know what was tried and when.
Starting window from the selected country's official source; meal frequency from the World Health Organization; textures, allergens and foods to avoid from the NHS.
This tool is for information only; it is not a meal plan or prescription and does not replace advice from a doctor or dietitian.
About this tool
What is this tool for?
It shows when to start solid foods according to your chosen country's official advice, and the next stages according to the World Health Organization and the NHS, as dates based on the birth date. It also shows until when foods like honey, cows' milk and whole nuts should be avoided.
How do I use it?
Enter your country and your baby's date of birth, or choose a saved child. The schedule appears with dates; you can print it. When you try a new food, add it to the log and save.
How do I read the result?
The start is given as a window or as “around” a date: you start in that period when you see the readiness signs, not on that exact day. Stage dates follow age; your baby's pace may differ.
Limits of this tool
The tool gives no amounts (grams, spoons) and is not a meal plan. Countries whose official advice we have not read are not listed; the World Health Organization advice is shown instead. For prematurity, allergies or growth concerns, talk to your child's doctor.
