How much should your baby eat? Here's a visual guide to baby food portions




Babies are typically developmentally ready to try solid food around 4 to 6 months, but what and how much should they eat? Here's our guide.
- Signs your baby is full
- How much a 4- to 6-month-old should eat
- How much a 6- to 8-month-old should eat
- Breakfast for a 6- to 8-month-old
- Dinner for a 6- to 8-month-old
- How much an 8- to 12-month-old should eat
- Breakfast for an 8- to 12-month-old
- Morning snack for an 8- to 12-month-old
- Lunch for an 8- to 12-month-old
- Afternoon snack for an 8- to 12-month-old
- Dinner for an 8- to 12-month-old
- How much should my baby drink after they start solids?
- Your baby has the final say
How much should my baby eat?
Wondering how much to feed your baby? This can be hard to figure out, especially when you're starting solids and most of your baby's food ends up on their lap or the floor.
It's tough to know how much older babies need to eat, too – after a few months trying out new solid foods, they're more interested in eating, but they do still get most of their nutrition from breast milk or formula.
Your baby will self-regulate their food intake based on what their body needs, so let their appetite be your guide. It's helpful to have a reference point, though.
"You might also want to consider baby-led weaning as you introduce solids," says Erin Hinga, M.S., a registered dietitian and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board. "This approach encourages babies to self-feed with soft, manageable pieces, helping them explore a variety of textures. It promotes motor skill development and fosters a positive, independent relationship with food from the start."
Here are photos of how much solid food a baby typically eats in a day. If you're stumped on what to feed your baby or worried about how much they're eating, talk to your baby's healthcare provider.
This visual guide shows:
- Portions for infants who are new to solids (typically 4 to 6 months)
- Two sample meals for a younger baby (6 to 8 months)
- Three sample meals and two snacks for a baby 8 to 12 months old from a menu developed by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)Opens a new window
Your little one may eat less or more than what's shown here. That's okay! Your job is to provide a variety of healthy foods at regular intervals without pressure, and their job is to decide what and how much to eat.
Key Takeaways
- Babies are typically ready to try a few teaspoons of pureed foods around 4 to 6 months. Between 6 and 8 months, introduce a wider mix of proteins, vegetables, fruits, and grains.
- By 8 to 12 months, babies may be ready to eat three meals a day, with snacks in between.
- Babies will still need breast milk or formula until they're 12 months old.
- Every baby develops at a different rate; talk to your baby's healthcare provider for an eating plan that works for you and your family.
Signs your baby is full
Lots of factors – including activity level, growth spurts or plateaus, illness, and teething – will affect your baby's appetite, which can vary daily.
End mealtime when your baby shows signs that they're full, including:
- Turning their head away
- Refusing to open their mouth for another bite after they've swallowed (resist the urge to encourage your baby to have one last spoonful)
- Leaning back in their chair
- Playing with their utensils or food instead of eating
How much a 4- to 6-month-old should eat
When your baby is developmentally ready for solids, typically around 4 to 6 months, talk to their healthcare provider about introducing solid foods. The first bites are mostly about getting your baby used to the idea of having something different in their mouth. Here are some basic tips for getting started:
- Start with a very small amount, 1 to 2 teaspoons, of a single-ingredient puree.
- Gradually increase to 1 to 2 tablespoons of food once a day.
- Follow your baby's fullness cues.
- Popular first foods include pureed mango, banana, chicken, turkey, beef, peas, sweet potatoes, and baby cereal.
- Only introduce one food at a time, and wait three to five days between giving each new food. If your baby has an allergic reaction or food intolerance, spacing out new foods will make it easier to figure out what's going on.
How much a 6- to 8-month-old should eat
As your little one gets more comfortable with solids, you can increase how many meals they eat in a day and give them more variety. Here are some tips:
- Usually by 8 months, babies are eating two solid food meals a day.
- Over time, add a second food to each meal. The photo above is an example of a meal with two foods.
- Once you've worked up to two meals with two foods each, aim for a balance of proteins, vegetables, fruits, and grains in your baby's daily diet.
- Whenever you introduce a new food, start with a very small amount – a teaspoon or two – so your baby can get used to its flavor and texture.
- Start with a soupy consistency. Gradually add more texture as your baby gets better at eating.
- It's normal for babies to drink less formula or breast milk as they start eating more solids.
- Provide healthy options at mealtimes, and let them choose how much to eat.
"We started [solids] a month ago. So far we've done white sweet potatoes, avocado, apple, blueberries, and peas. He absolutely LOVES food," says BabyCenter Community member Ro711. "He grabs for everyone's food constantly and gobbles everything down really quickly. Right now to keep him occupied during dinner, I have to pretend to feed him – otherwise he's just angry eyeballing us all for eating without him."
Note: The jars in all photos are standard 4-ounce baby food jars.
Breakfast for a 6- to 8-month-old
Cereal and fruit make an easy combination for a morning meal.
Grain: Iron-fortified, whole-grain infant cereal is a popular first grain. At 6 months, a typical daily portion of infant cereal mixed with breast milk or formula might be 2 to 3 tablespoons, increasing to 4 to 8 tablespoons (1/4 to 1/2 cup) by 8 months. (It's best to avoid rice cereal, which may contain higher levels of arsenic than other baby cereal and can make your baby constipated.)
Fruit: Babies love the natural sweetness of fruits like pears, apples, berries, prunes, and stone fruits. Between 6 and 8 months, a baby will typically transition from about 2 to 3 tablespoons of fruit puree a day to 4 to 8 tablespoons (1/4 to 1/2 cup) of mashed or minced fruit.
Dinner for a 6- to 8-month-old
If you serve a grain and a fruit in the morning, consider giving your baby a protein-rich food and vegetable later in the day.
Protein: Other than the usual beef, pork, chicken, and fish, good protein sources include cheese, unsweetened plain whole-milk yogurt, tofu, beans, and lentils. A baby might transition from eating 1 to 2 tablespoons of meat puree at 6 months to 2 to 4 tablespoons at 8 months.
Vegetable: Try classic favorites like carrots, spinach, or butternut squash, as well as less traditional first foods such as parsnips, beets, or asparagus. Between 6 and 8 months, a baby will typically transition from about 2 to 3 tablespoons of vegetable puree a day to 4 to 8 tablespoons (1/4 to 1/2 cup).
How much an 8- to 12-month-old should eat
By 8 months or so, your baby is likely getting the hang of eating and needs more calories to support their growing body. But since their little belly can't hold a lot of food, they'll need to eat more often.
Every baby is different, but this may be a good time to try offering a third solid food meal.
During this period:
- Continue to give your baby breast milk or formula.
- Add morning and afternoon snacks. (Some babies this age are happy with breast milk or formula as their snack, while others gravitate toward solid foods.) Once you've added a third meal and snacks, your baby will be eating or drinking something about every two to three hours.
- Continue to aim for a mix of proteins, vegetables, fruits, and grains.
- Introduce coarser and chunkier textures, for example, by dicing or mincing food instead of pureeing it, and graduate to soft finger foods as your baby's eating skills improve.
- Avoid foods with added sugars. Check the Nutrition Facts label on packaged foods, and try to steer clear of foods that list 1 gram or more of "Added Sugars."
- Keep providing healthy options, but let your baby choose how much to eat.
"My girl will be 1 tomorrow and she has been eating real food since she was about 6 months old," says BabyCenter Community member CallieB11. "Started with scrambled eggs and small, cut-up fruits! Now she eats anything I eat."
Your child may eat more or less than these amounts. If you're concerned about how much your baby is eating, talk to their healthcare provider.
Breakfast for an 8- to 12-month-old
The AAP sample menu for a baby 8 to 12 months features a breakfast consisting of:
- 4 to 8 tablespoons (1/4 to 1/2 cup) whole-grain infant cereal mixed with formula or breast milk
- 4 to 8 tablespoons (1/4 to 1/2 cup) diced fruit
Morning snack for an 8- to 12-month-old
The AAP sample menu for a baby 8 to 12 months features a morning snack consisting of:
- 4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) grated cheese or cooked vegetables
Lunch for an 8- to 12-month-old
The AAP sample menu for a baby 8 to 12 months features a lunch consisting of:
- 4 to 8 tablespoons (1/4 to 1/2 cup) unsweetened plain whole-milk yogurt or cottage cheese, or minced meat
- 4 to 8 tablespoons (1/4 to 1/2 cup) diced or mashed yellow or orange vegetable
Afternoon snack for an 8- to 12-month-old
The AAP sample menu for a baby 8 to 12 months features an afternoon snack consisting of:
- 4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) diced fruit or unsweetened plain whole-milk yogurt
- 1 whole-grain teething biscuit or cracker
Dinner for an 8- to 12-month-old
The AAP sample menu for a baby 8 to 12 months features a dinner consisting of:
- 4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) minced or ground poultry or meat, or diced tofu
- 4 to 8 tablespoons (1/4 to 1/2) cup diced, cooked green vegetable
- 4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) noodles, pasta, rice, or potato
- 4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) diced fruit
How much should my baby drink after they start solids?
Breast milk or formula will fully meet your child's hydration needs until they're about 6 months old. They may start drinking less as solid foods become a bigger part of their diet. Here are typical daily amounts by age – there's a wide range of normal, though, so your baby may drink more or less:
- 6 to 8 months: 18 to 40 ounces of formula or breast milk
- 8 to 12 months: 18 to 32 ounces of formula or breast milk
You might be wondering about introducing other drinks at this age, too. Here's what to know.
Water: You can offer your baby water once they start eating solids, but let them self-regulate how much they drink. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends giving babies who are 6 to 12 months old 4 to 6 ounces of water a day, but what your baby decides to drink may vary. They may drink more on a hot day, for example.
Avoid juice: Juice isn't recommended for babies younger than 12 months.
Your baby has the final say
Keep in mind that these portions are an estimate. The truth is, every baby is different, and there's no set amount of food that's appropriate for every baby at every stage.
If you're worried about whether your baby is eating enough – or too much – the best advice is to look for and respond to signs that your baby is full.
Your baby's healthcare provider will chart their weight gain at regular intervals. If the provider sees a consistent growth curve and doesn't have other concerns, your baby is most likely eating the right amount of food.
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