When can babies eat yogurt?

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

Yogurt

Cool, creamy and easy to scoop. A gentle first way to meet dairy.

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

Quick answer

Babies can eat yogurt 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: Milk

How to serve yogurt by age

6 months+

Pre-loaded spoon or a dip

Load a baby spoon with plain, full-fat yogurt and hand it to your baby, or let them dip soft-cooked vegetable sticks or soft fruit into it. Thick yogurt stays on the spoon more easily.

Size: A teaspoon or so on a pre-loaded spoon, or a dip for soft finger foods about the size of an adult finger, roughly 6–8 cm long and 2 cm wide (2½–3 × ¾ in).
Check before serving: Read the label: plain and full-fat, with no added sugar, honey or sweeteners, and made from pasteurized milk (shop-bought yogurt normally is). Avoid raw-milk yogurt from farms or markets.

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 yogurt

1
Choose plain, unsweetened, full-fat yogurt made from pasteurized milk.
2
Spoon a small amount into a bowl. Serve it cold from the fridge or let it sit for a few minutes.
3
To add flavor, stir in mashed ripe fruit, not sugar or honey. Rinse fresh fruit under running water first.
4
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

For the first taste, offer a small amount: a spoonful or two. If there's no reaction, offer more next time. Your baby decides how much to eat: stop when they turn away or close their mouth. From 12 months, the CDC suggests about 2 servings of dairy a day, and yogurt can be one of them.

Common mistakes

Choosing flavored or sweetened yogurt

Many yogurts made for children have added sugar. Babies don't need sugar, so pick plain yogurt and add fruit for flavor.

Choosing low-fat yogurt

The NHS advises full-fat dairy for children under 2, who need the extra energy and vitamins.

Stirring in honey

No honey before 12 months, in any form. It can cause infant botulism. Mashed fruit sweetens yogurt instead.

Introducing yogurt and egg at the same time

Offer dairy on its own first, so you know what caused any reaction.

Where US and UK guidance differ on yogurt

United States(AAP and CDC)Your setting

The CDC says yogurt without added sugars can be given before 12 months; it's only cow's milk as a drink that waits. The AAP says to talk to your pediatrician first if your baby has severe, persistent eczema or has had an immediate allergic reaction to any food.

United Kingdom(NHS)Your setting

The NHS says full-fat plain yogurt can be given from around 6 months. Talk to your GP or health visitor first if your baby has eczema or a food allergy, or there's a family history of food allergies, eczema, asthma or hay fever.

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

Questions parents ask

Can yogurt be a choking hazard for babies?

Yogurt is a low choking risk. Any fruit you stir in should be soft and cut to a safe size: quarter small round fruit like blueberries or grapes lengthwise, or flatten them. Stay with your baby while they eat.

Can babies be allergic to yogurt?

Milk is one of the most common food allergens in young children, though many children outgrow it. Guidance is to introduce common allergens, including dairy, from around 6 months, one at a time, and keep offering them regularly once your baby has had them without a reaction. Most reactions happen within minutes to 2 hours, but with cow's milk allergy symptoms can take up to 3 days to appear. Milk allergy is not the same as lactose intolerance, which is a problem digesting milk sugar.

Is yogurt healthy for babies?

A source of protein and calcium: 100 g of plain whole-milk yogurt has about 3.5 g of protein and 121 mg of calcium. It is not a source of iron.

Can babies have yogurt before cow's milk?

Yes. Pasteurized, full-fat yogurt can be offered from around 6 months. It's only cow's milk as a main drink that waits until 12 months.

Can babies eat Greek yogurt?

Yes, if it's plain, unsweetened, full-fat and made from pasteurized milk. It's thicker than regular yogurt, so it stays on a spoon more easily.

Can babies eat yogurt every day?

Yes, as part of a varied diet. Keep it plain and unsweetened, and offer other foods alongside it, including iron-rich foods.

Are yogurts made for babies or toddlers OK?

Check the label. Some are plain, but many have added sugar or fruit purée. The NHS advises choosing dairy products with no added sugar.

If your baby refuses yogurt

Many babies need 10 or more tries before they accept a new food. Keep offering it alongside foods they already like.
Plain yogurt is sour. Try stirring in a little mashed ripe fruit, then use less over time.
Try another form: as a dip, on a pre-loaded spoon, or mixed into oatmeal.
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 yogurt

Keep yogurt in the fridge, at 40°F (4°C) or below.
Yogurt keeps for 1 to 2 weeks in the fridge, or 1 to 2 months in the freezer. Check the use-by date on the pot.
Spoon your baby's portion into a bowl rather than feeding from the pot, and throw away what they leave.
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 severe, persistent eczema, a food allergy, or has had an immediate allergic reaction to any food. Ask how to introduce allergens like dairy, rather than putting them off.
Your baby has had any reaction to dairy, even a mild one. Stop offering it until you've talked to your pediatrician.
Your baby vomits a few hours after eating dairy. 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.

Offered yogurt?

Add it to your first 100 foods.