Pizza
Homemade, soft and lightly topped, pizza night can include your baby too.
Checked against official guidance on October 18, 2026 · How we review
Quick answer
Babies can eat pizza from around 6 months, once they show signs of being ready for solids. Prepare it as shown below.
How to serve pizza by age
6 months+
Soft homemade pizza strips
Make it at home on a soft base, such as a pita warmed until pliable, with a thin layer of no-salt-added tomato sauce and a thin layer of finely grated, pasteurized mozzarella. Bake just until the cheese melts, trim off any crisp crust, and cut it into narrow strips. Offer it once your baby has had dairy and wheat each on their own.
- Size
- Narrow strips about the size of an adult finger, roughly 6–8 cm long and 2 cm wide (2½–3 × ¾ in).
- Check before serving
- Squash a strip between your thumb and finger. It should be soft and bendy, not crisp, and shouldn't squash into a sticky, doughy ball. Check for long strings of cheese and cut them short.
US and UK advice differ here. The AAP suggests mashed food or soft pieces no larger than ½ inch; the NHS suggests soft finger-sized pieces your baby can hold in their fist. Both agree the food must squash easily.
9 months+
Small soft pieces
Cut homemade pizza into small pieces for pincer-grasp practice, or keep offering narrow strips. Soft-cooked toppings like peppers or mushrooms should be chopped small.
- Size
- Pieces no bigger than about 1 cm (just under ½ inch).
- Check before serving
- Each piece should squash easily, with no crisp crust or stretchy cheese strings.
12 months+
Strips or bite-sized pieces
Serve homemade pizza with soft vegetable toppings. Shop-bought and takeaway pizza is very salty, so keep it occasional and cut it the same way. Trim hard crust edges, and skip processed meat toppings such as pepperoni, or serve them only now and then.
- Size
- Narrow strips, or bite-sized pieces about 1 cm (just under ½ inch).
- Check before serving
- Still check for hard crust and long strings of cheese before serving.
18 months+
Family pizza, cut up
Offer pizza the way your family eats it, cut into strips or small pieces. Soft crust is fine once your child chews well; keep cutting off hard or charred edges. Quarter olives lengthwise. See the guidance note below on pepperoni, ham and sausage.
- Size
- Narrow strips, or bite-sized pieces about 1 cm (just under ½ inch).
- Check before serving
- Check for hard crust, round toppings and long cheese strings.
Always have your child sit upright in a high chair or at the table, and stay with them the whole time they eat. Keep to the size and texture for their stage. Every baby develops on their own timeline.
How to prepare pizza
- 1
Choose a soft base: a pita warmed in a dry pan until pliable, or homemade dough baked until cooked through but not crisp. Check bread labels for honey (not before 12 months) and whole seeds.
- 2
Spread a thin layer of no-salt-added tomato sauce, then a thin, even layer of finely grated, pasteurized mozzarella or mild cheddar. Don't add salt.
- 3
Bake just until the cheese melts, then let it cool: melted cheese holds heat. Trim crisp edges, cut any stringy cheese short, and cut to size for your baby's stage. Our mini pizzas recipe has the full method.
- 4
Offer pizza only once your baby has had dairy and wheat each on their own. First time? Pick a day your baby is well, at home, when you can watch them for a couple of hours afterward.
How much to offer
Start with one or two strips. Your baby decides how much to eat: stop when they turn away or close their mouth. Bread and cheese both contain salt, so keep pizza an occasional meal rather than an everyday one, and serve soft vegetables alongside.
Common mistakes
Sharing shop-bought or takeaway pizza with a baby
A chain cheese pizza has about 598 mg of sodium per 100 g, about 1.5 g of salt. The NHS says babies under 1 should have less than 1 g of salt a day and lists takeaways among salty foods to avoid. Make your baby's pizza at home.
Pepperoni, ham or sausage toppings
Processed meats are high in salt, and the NHS says babies shouldn't eat salty foods like bacon and sausages. For toddlers, skip them or serve them only now and then.
Long strings of melted cheese
Stretchy melted cheese can pull into long strings. Grate it finely, keep the layer thin, and cut or pull any strings into short pieces before serving.
Leaving the crust on for young babies
Crisp crust edges are hard to chew. Trim them off for babies, and offer soft crust only once your child chews well.
Where US and UK guidance differ on pizza
United States(AAP and CDC)Your setting
The CDC names processed meats such as sausages, hot dogs and ham among foods high in salt, and says to avoid foods high in salt for young children. If you follow US advice, skip pepperoni, ham and sausage toppings or serve them only now and then.
United Kingdom(NHS)Your setting
The NHS says babies shouldn't eat salty foods such as bacon, sausages and takeaways. For young children, it suggests limiting how often you give processed meat such as ham or sausages, though small amounts are OK.
We cover US and UK guidance in detail. Elsewhere, check your national health service's advice too.
Questions parents ask
Can pizza be a choking hazard for babies?
Pizza is a medium choking risk. Melted cheese can stretch into long strings, crisp crust is hard, and toppings like olives are small and round. The CDC advises avoiding small, sticky or hard foods that are difficult to chew and swallow. Use a thin layer of finely grated cheese and cut strings short, trim hard crust for babies, quarter olives lengthwise, and cut pizza into strips or small pieces. Stay with your child during meals.
Can babies be allergic to pizza?
Pizza usually contains two common allergens: wheat (with gluten) in the base and milk in the cheese. Introduce each on its own first, one at a time and in small amounts, so you can spot any reaction. Allergic reactions usually start within a few minutes to 2 hours, but with cow's milk allergy symptoms can take up to 3 days to appear. Some bases, sauces and toppings contain other allergens, such as egg, soy or sesame, so check labels on shop-bought pizza and bases.
Is pizza healthy for babies?
A chain cheese pizza has about 11 g of protein, 188 mg of calcium and 598 mg of sodium (about 1.5 g of salt) per 100 g. Making it at home lets you use no-salt-added sauce and a thin layer of lower-salt cheese.
Can babies eat pizza?
Yes, homemade pizza from around 6 months, once your baby has had dairy and wheat on their own. Use a soft base, no-salt-added tomato sauce and a thin layer of pasteurized cheese, and cut it into narrow strips.
Is takeaway or frozen pizza OK for toddlers?
Now and then, in small pieces. A chain cheese pizza has about 1.5 g of salt per 100 g, and the NHS says children aged 1 to 3 should have no more than 2 g of salt a day. Pick plain cheese or vegetable toppings, and skip pepperoni and other processed meats.
Can babies eat pizza crust?
Trim crisp crust off for babies: hard foods are harder to chew and swallow. Once your toddler chews well, soft crust is fine, but keep cutting off hard or charred edges.
If your baby refuses pizza
- Many babies need 10 or more tries before they accept a new food. Keep offering it alongside foods they already like.
- Try a different topping, such as soft-cooked vegetables your baby already likes.
- Eat some yourself at the same meal. Babies copy what they see.
- Funny faces don't mean they dislike it. They're getting used to a new taste and texture.
Never force or pressure your baby to eat. Some days they'll eat more, some days less, and that's normal.
Buying and storing pizza
- Homemade pizza is best eaten fresh, while the base is soft.
- Leftover pizza keeps for 3 to 4 days in a covered container in the fridge, or 1 to 2 months in the freezer.
- Reheat only once, to 165°F (74°C), until steaming hot, then let it cool and check it's still soft before serving.
- Throw away any food left out at room temperature for more than 2 hours (1 hour if it's hotter than 90°F / 32°C).
When to talk to your doctor
Contact your pediatrician, GP or health visitor if:
- Your baby has had any reaction to milk or wheat, even a mild one. Stop offering pizza until you've talked to your pediatrician.
- Your baby vomits a few hours after eating a food made with milk, such as pizza with cheese. This can be FPIES, a delayed type of food allergy that milk can trigger. If they vomited once or twice and seem alert and like themselves, call your pediatrician or GP. If they vomit again and again, or are pale, floppy, very sleepy or hard to wake, call your emergency number.
- You notice mild signs of an allergic reaction after eating, such as a few hives or a little vomiting. See signs of a reaction.
- You're worried about how much your baby eats, their growth, or they refuse most solid food for weeks.
Call 911999your local emergency number (such as 112 in Europe or 000 in Australia) now if your baby has trouble breathing, wheezing, can't cough or cry, has lips, mouth, tongue or throat that suddenly swell, or becomes pale, bluish, floppy or unresponsive. Also call if hives come with repeated vomiting.
Last offered today. Once pizza is in your baby's diet, keep offering it regularly.
Add a note (likes, dislikes, any reaction)
Saved in this browser only. Think it was a reaction? See signs of an allergic reaction and when to get help.
Recipes with pizza
Helpful guides
Sources
- CDC: Choking hazards
- CDC: Foods and drinks to avoid or limit
- NHS: Foods to avoid giving babies and young children
- NHS Best Start in Life: Preparing food safely
- NHS: Salt in your diet
- NHS: Food labels
- NHS: Food allergies in babies and young children
- USDA FoodData Central: Fast Food, Pizza Chain, 14" pizza, cheese topping, regular crust
- ACAAI: Food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome (FPIES)
- FoodSafety.gov: Cold food storage chart
- USDA FSIS: Leftovers and food safety
- NHS Best Start in Life: Storing and reheating food
- NHS: Help your baby enjoy new foods
More first foods
Free printable: The First 100 Foods checklist
Tick off foods as your baby tries them. Print it or save it as a PDF, no sign-up needed.