How much should a 6-month-old eat?
A 6-month-old just starting solids typically eats 1 to 2 tablespoons of food, once or twice a day. Breast milk or formula is still doing the nutritional heavy lifting for months yet, so a "bad" eating day is almost never a crisis.
Why the amount looks so small at first
Solids at 6 months are practice, not replacement. The stomach of a 6-month-old is roughly the size of an egg. A smear of avocado on a spoon is a full meal in that context, even if it looks like nothing on the plate.
What "enough" looks like by month
- 6 months: 1-2 tablespoons, 1-2 times a day. Milk feeds unchanged.
- 7-9 months: 2-4 tablespoons, 2-3 times a day, moving toward 3 meals.
- 10-12 months: roughly a quarter to half a cup per meal, 3 meals plus 1-2 snacks. Milk starts to share the stage with food.
These are averages, not targets. A baby who eats less on Tuesday and doubles up on Wednesday is doing exactly what regulated eaters do.
When it's worth checking with a pediatrician
Not every feeding worry is medical, but a few signs are worth a call: weight not tracking on their growth curve, refusing all textures past 9-10 months, or visible discomfort (choking, gagging beyond a normal reflex, distress) at every meal.
If you want the full week-by-week plan
Solid Starts With Less Panic walks through the first three months of solids meal by meal, with a printable amount-by-week chart and what to do when your baby eats nothing for three days straight (it happens, and it's usually fine).