When can babies eat salmon?

From around 6 months, once your baby is ready for solids, served in a safe shape and texture for their age.

Salmon

Soft, flaky, and packed with omega-3s. A low-mercury fish to start early.

Checked against official guidance on October 18, 2026 · How we review

Quick answer

Babies can eat salmon from around 6 months, once they show signs of being ready for solids. Prepare it as shown below.

From 6 monthsLow choking risk as servedAllergen: Fish

How to serve salmon by age

6 months+

Soft flakes or salmon cakes

Bake or poach salmon until it is opaque and flakes easily (145°F / 63°C), remove every bone and the skin, and offer large soft flakes, or shape into finger-sized salmon cakes.

Size: Large soft flakes, or salmon cakes shaped like a finger, about 6–8 cm long and 2 cm wide (2½–3 × ¾ in).
Check before serving: Run your fingers through every flake to feel for bones. Cooked salmon is opaque all the way through and flakes easily with a fork.

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.

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 salmon

1
Bake a skinless fillet at 200°C (390°F) for about 12 to 15 minutes, or poach it, until it's opaque and reaches 145°F (63°C) in the thickest part.
2
Let it cool, then pull it apart with your fingers, feeling every flake for bones. Remove any skin.
3
Offer large flakes, or mix with mashed potato and shape into finger-sized cakes.
4
First time? Pick a day your baby is well and at home, so you can stay nearby for several hours afterward. Fish can cause a delayed reaction: see when to call the doctor.

How much to offer

For the first taste, offer a small amount: a few flakes or one small salmon cake. For ages 1 to 3, the FDA suggests a fish serving of about 1 oz (28 g), twice a week. The UK's weekly limit for oily fish is in the guidance note below.

Common mistakes

Missing bones

Pin bones are thin and hard to see. Feel every flake with your fingers, even in fillets sold as boneless.

Serving smoked salmon or lox

Cold-smoked salmon and lox aren't cooked, and all smoked salmon is high in salt. Use fresh, frozen or canned salmon, fully cooked. See our smoked salmon page.

Undercooking it

Cook it to 145°F (63°C), until it's opaque and flakes easily. Never offer raw fish such as sushi, poke or ceviche.

Choosing high-mercury fish instead

Don't give children shark, swordfish or marlin: both FDA and NHS guidance say to avoid them. The FDA also lists king mackerel, orange roughy, tilefish from the Gulf of Mexico and bigeye tuna as choices to avoid.

Where US and UK guidance differ on salmon

United States(AAP and CDC)Your setting

Salmon is on the FDA/EPA 'Best choices' list for low mercury. For ages 1–3, a serving is about 1 oz, twice a week. Skip smoked salmon and lox: they're salty, and cold-smoked salmon and lox aren't cooked.

United Kingdom(NHS)Your setting

The NHS suggests oily fish like salmon, up to 2 portions a week for girls and 4 for boys, because oily fish can contain low levels of pollutants that build up in the body. Skip smoked salmon: it's high in salt. See our smoked salmon page.

We cover US and UK guidance in detail. Elsewhere, check your national health service's advice too.

Questions parents ask

Can salmon be a choking hazard for babies?

Cooked, flaked salmon is a low choking risk, but bones are a hazard. Check every flake with your fingers before serving. Always cook salmon fully, and never offer raw or undercooked fish such as sushi, poke or ceviche.

Can babies be allergic to salmon?

Fish is a common allergen. Introduce it on its own first, in a small amount, and watch for signs of a reaction. If your baby reacts to salmon, talk to your pediatrician before offering other fish. Foods rich in histamine, including salmon, can cause a red rash around the mouth or on the hands where the food touches the skin (NHS Healthier Together). This is a contact reaction, not an allergy, and it fades once the skin is wiped clean. A rash that spreads or turns into hives is different: talk to your pediatrician.

Is salmon healthy for babies?

Rich in omega-3 fats (DHA and EPA), protein, vitamin D and vitamin B12. It is not a major source of iron.

Can babies eat canned salmon?

Yes. Canned salmon is already cooked, and salmon is on the FDA's low-mercury 'Best choices' list. Pick a no-salt-added can and drain it. Boneless, skinless canned salmon is easiest, but still check every flake with your fingers. Otherwise, remove the skin. The CDC says to remove bones from fish for young children, so lift out the backbone and any larger bones. Mash only the small soft bones completely flat with a fork, and remove any bone that is still hard.

Can babies eat salmon skin?

Take it off for babies. It's chewy and hard for them to break down.

How often can babies eat salmon?

The FDA's twice-a-week advice is for children aged 1 to 3; it doesn't give a serving size for babies under 12 months. In the UK, up to 2 portions of oily fish a week for girls and 4 for boys. See the guidance note below for details.

If your baby refuses salmon

Many babies need 10 or more tries before they accept a new food. Keep offering it alongside foods they already like.
Mix flakes into foods your baby already likes, such as mashed potato, rice or pasta.
Try salmon cakes: they're easier to hold than loose flakes.
Eat some yourself at the same meal. Babies copy what they see.

Never force or pressure your baby to eat. Some days they'll eat more, some days less, and that's normal.

Buying and storing salmon

Keep raw salmon in the fridge and cook it by its use-by date, or freeze it.
Cooked salmon keeps for 3 to 4 days in a covered container in the fridge. Rice dishes are the exception: cool them within 1 hour, keep them in the fridge for no more than 1 day, and reheat them only once.
Salmon cakes can be frozen for 3 to 4 months. Reheat only once, to 165°F (74°C), until steaming hot, then let them cool 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 vomits a few hours after eating fish. This can be FPIES, a delayed type of food allergy that fish 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.

Offered salmon?

Add it to your first 100 foods.