How to Start Solids at 6 Months: A Simple Step-by-Step Guide

Starting solids at around 6 months can be surprisingly simple. Once your baby is showing the signs that they are ready, begin with small amounts of appropriately prepared food, choose a relaxed time, continue their usual breast milk or first infant formula, and gradually introduce more tastes and textures.

There is no need to create three perfect meals from day one. According to the NHS, babies only need a small amount of food when they first start solids. At this stage, they are learning what food feels and tastes like, how to move it around their mouth and how to swallow it.

Here is a practical way to get started.

Step 1: Check that your baby is ready

NHS guidance recommends introducing solid foods from around 6 months.

Age is only part of the picture. The NHS identifies three signs of readiness that should appear together. Your baby should be able to:

stay in a sitting position and hold their head steady
coordinate their eyes, hands and mouth so they can look at food, pick it up and bring it to their mouth
swallow food rather than automatically pushing it back out

Behaviours such as chewing fists, waking more often at night or wanting extra milk feeds can be mistaken for signs of readiness, but the NHS says these do not necessarily mean a baby is ready for solid food.

If your baby was born prematurely, ask your health visitor or GP when it would be appropriate to start.

Step 2: Choose a calm time for the first meal

You do not need a special occasion for your baby’s first taste of food.

The NHS suggests choosing a time that suits you both, when you are not rushed and your baby is not too tired. It advises offering food before the usual milk feed, while avoiding waiting until your baby is extremely hungry.

That might mean choosing a quiet morning or lunchtime rather than attempting a first meal at the busiest point of the day.

Allow plenty of time. Your baby may taste the food, touch it, squash it, drop it or decide they are not interested. All of this can be part of becoming familiar with eating.

Step 3: Start with a small amount

At around 6 months, your baby does not need three solid meals immediately.

The NHS recommends starting with small amounts, such as a few pieces or teaspoons of food. How much your baby eats at the beginning matters less than giving them opportunities to experience different tastes and textures.

Try to follow your baby’s cues rather than aiming for a particular empty-bowl target.

If your baby closes their mouth firmly or turns their head away, the NHS advises stopping rather than forcing them to eat. You can simply try again another time.

Some days may involve more eating than others. That variation is normal while your baby is learning.

Step 4: Choose a simple first food

There is no single food that every baby needs to eat first.

The NHS suggests starting with single vegetables and fruits if you wish. Suitable examples include soft-cooked or mashed:

broccoli
cauliflower
parsnip
potato
sweet potato
carrot
apple
pear

It is useful to include vegetables that are not naturally sweet, such as broccoli, cauliflower and spinach, so your baby experiences different flavours rather than only sweeter vegetables and fruits.

As you progress, your baby’s diet can include a much wider variety of suitable foods, including starchy foods, beans and pulses, eggs, fish, meat and pasteurised full-fat dairy products.

Do not add salt or sugar to your baby’s food or cooking water.

Step 5: Decide how you want to offer food

You can use a spoon, offer finger foods, or combine the two.

Some parents prefer puréed or mashed foods at first. Others choose baby-led weaning, where suitable finger foods are offered for the baby to pick up and feed themselves. Many families naturally use a mixture.

The NHS says there is no right or wrong choice between baby-led weaning and spoon feeding. The priority is providing a varied diet and the nutrients your baby needs.

If you are using a spoon, wait for your baby to open their mouth rather than putting food into a closed mouth.

If you are offering finger foods, start with soft foods that break up easily in the mouth and are large enough for your baby to grip. The NHS suggests pieces roughly the size of your own finger as a useful guide for early finger foods.

Step 6: Let your baby explore different textures

Starting solids is not only about flavour. Your baby is also learning how different textures feel and how to manage them in their mouth.

Some babies begin with smooth or blended food. Others are comfortable with mashed, lumpy or soft finger foods.

Once solids have been introduced, NHS guidance recommends moving on from puréed or blended food to mashed, lumpy or finger foods as soon as your baby can manage them.

There is no need to panic if this takes a little time. Babies vary in how quickly they become comfortable with unfamiliar textures.

Touching and holding food is useful too. Mealtimes can be messy because your baby is learning with their hands as well as their mouth.

Step 7: Keep breast milk or formula going

Starting solids does not mean stopping milk feeds.

At the beginning, babies still get most of their energy and nutrients from breast milk or first infant formula. The NHS advises that breast milk or infant formula should remain their main drink during the first year.

Your baby’s milk and solid food intake will change gradually as they become more experienced with eating.

From around 6 months, the NHS also recommends introducing a cup and offering sips of water with meals. An open cup or free-flow cup without a valve can help babies learn to sip.

Cow’s milk can be used in cooking or mixed with food from around 6 months, but NHS guidance says it should not be given as a main drink until 12 months.

Step 8: Introduce variety gradually

Once those first tastes feel more familiar, begin widening the range of foods you offer.

Over time, this can include:

different vegetables and fruits
potatoes, rice, pasta and other starchy foods
beans and lentils
eggs
fish without bones
meat without bones
pasteurised full-fat plain yoghurt
pasteurised cheese

The World Health Organization recommends diverse complementary foods alongside continued breastfeeding as appropriate.

You do not need to introduce everything at once. Building variety gradually can make early feeding feel much more manageable.

If your baby rejects something, it does not necessarily mean they dislike it permanently. The NHS recommends continuing to offer a variety of foods and allowing babies time to become familiar with new tastes and textures.

Step 9: Introduce allergenic foods carefully

Foods that can cause allergic reactions can be introduced from around 6 months, alongside other foods.

The NHS advises introducing these foods one at a time and in small amounts so you can identify a reaction more easily. Examples include eggs, peanuts and nuts in an appropriate form, cow’s milk, gluten-containing foods, soya, fish and sesame.

Whole nuts should not be given to babies because they are a choking hazard. Nuts can be offered in an age-appropriate form such as finely ground nuts or smooth nut butter.

Once an allergenic food has been introduced and tolerated, NHS guidance recommends keeping it as part of your baby’s usual diet.

If your baby already has a diagnosed food allergy or eczema, or there is a family history of food allergies, eczema, asthma or hay fever, speak to your GP or health visitor before introducing foods that could trigger an allergic reaction.

Step 10: Make mealtime safety part of the routine

A few simple habits can make preparing and offering food safer.

The NHS advises:

washing your hands before preparing food
keeping food preparation surfaces clean
cooling hot food and checking its temperature before serving
washing and peeling fruit and raw vegetables
removing hard pips, stones and bones
avoiding hard foods such as whole nuts and raw carrot or apple
cutting small round foods such as grapes and cherry tomatoes into quarters

Your baby should be sitting safely upright for meals. If using a high chair, use a securely fitted safety harness.

Always stay with your baby while they are eating.

Gagging can happen while babies learn to manage solid foods and is different from choking. Before starting solids, familiarise yourself with current NHS advice on gagging, choking and what to do if a child chokes.

What might the first few days look like?

There is no official menu that every 6-month-old needs to follow.

One day might involve a small taste of soft broccoli. Another could involve mashed potato or a piece of suitably prepared soft fruit. As your baby becomes familiar with eating, you can gradually introduce more foods and combinations.

You do not need to rush towards three meals a day. NHS guidance specifically notes that babies do not need three meals a day when they first start solids.

Keep their usual milk feeds going, offer small amounts of food and let your baby’s appetite guide how much they eat.

This can make the first stage feel much less complicated. Your job is to offer suitable food safely and give your baby opportunities to practise. Your baby gets to decide how much of that food they want to eat.

What if your baby does not seem interested?

A baby who eats almost nothing during an early meal has not necessarily had a bad start.

Learning to eat is new. Some babies accept unfamiliar tastes and textures quickly, while others take longer.

Try not to pressure your baby into another spoonful. The NHS recommends going at your baby’s pace and stopping when they show signs that they have had enough.

You can offer the food again another day. Repeated exposure can give babies time to become familiar with foods that initially seem strange.

If your baby consistently struggles with eating or swallowing, or you are worried about their feeding or growth, speak to a health professional rather than trying to solve the problem by forcing larger portions.

When to get professional advice

Speak to your health visitor, GP or another qualified healthcare professional if you are unsure whether your baby is ready to start solids, particularly if you are considering beginning before around 6 months.

Ask for individual guidance if your baby was born prematurely or if you have concerns about their growth, development, swallowing or ability to manage food.

If your baby has eczema, an existing food allergy or a family history of allergic conditions, speak to your GP or health visitor about introducing foods that can trigger allergic reactions.

Seek urgent medical help if your baby has signs of a severe allergic reaction or is choking and cannot breathe normally. Familiarising yourself with NHS first aid guidance before starting solids can help you know what to do in an emergency.