Most babies crawl at some point between six and eleven months, and walk without support between nine and eighteen months. Some skip crawling altogether and bottom-shuffle instead. It says nothing about intelligence or future sporting ability. If your child is not on the move by eighteen months, talk to BVC (the child health clinic every family is enrolled in).
A Sunday in Hagaparken: two eleven-month-old babies on a blanket. One is wobbling between her mother's knees and the picnic basket. The other sits solidly and has no wish to move, because she can pull everything towards her with her hands anyway. In six months they will both be walking, and nobody will remember who was first.
The first-year milestones, with wide ranges
| Skill | Typical range | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Lifts head when on tummy | 1 to 3 months | Briefly at first, then for longer |
| Rolls from tummy to back | 3 to 7 months | Back to tummy often a little later |
| Sits with support | 4 to 7 months | Own hands out in front as support |
| Sits without support | 5 to 9 months | Often cannot get into sitting alone until later |
| Shuffles, commando-crawls or crawls | 6 to 11 months | Some skip it altogether |
| Pulls up on furniture | 7 to 12 months | Sits down with a bump |
| Walks along furniture | 8 to 13 months | Sometimes called cruising |
| Walks without support | 9 to 18 months | Wide-legged, arms up, falls often |
| Runs | 15 to 24 months | Stiff-legged at first |
It is easy to read a table like this as a schedule. Read it as a map instead: this is roughly where things tend to happen, and children take different routes. A child who sits late but crawls early, or never rolls but walks at eleven months, is just as normal as one who follows every row.
Crawling: many ways forward
The classic crawl on hands and knees is only one of several ways. Many babies commando-crawl on their tummies first, some bottom-shuffle with one leg tucked under them, some do a bear walk on hands and feet, and some pull straight up on the sofa and cruise along it without ever having crawled. All of these are fine. What matters is that your child moves forward and uses both sides of the body. The claim that children who don't crawl will have problems with reading or coordination later has no scientific support.
What you can do, and what you can skip
What actually helps:
- Floor time from the first weeks, on the tummy while your baby is awake and you are there. Short spells, many times a day.
- Toys just out of reach, so there is a reason to move.
- Bare feet indoors. Feet need to feel the floor.
- Letting your child fail. Falling on their bottom, toppling over, getting back up. That is the training.
- Furniture to pull up on and cruise along: a sofa, a low table, a sturdy box.
- Time outdoors. Grass, sand and uneven ground are better balance training than any floor.
What doesn't help, or does harm:
- Baby walkers. Advised against by 1177 and Konsumentverket (the Swedish Consumer Agency). Many accidents, no benefit for development.
- Long spells in a bouncer, car seat or jumper. Your child doesn't get to use their body.
- Propping your child in a sitting position before they can get there themselves, especially with cushions all around.
- Walking around for hours holding your child's hands. A little is fun, but that is not how children learn to walk; they learn that on the floor.
- Shoes indoors.
- Comparing with the neighbours' child. You will do it anyway, but now you know it means nothing.
Walking: from first steps to stairs
The first steps are wide-legged with arms up for balance, and your child falls often, and onto their bottom, which is made for it. After three to six months most walk steadily and soon start to run, which at first looks like fast walking with stiff legs. Flat feet and toes pointing inwards are normal at this age; the arch of the foot develops during the preschool years. Shoes are only needed outdoors, and then soft and light ones with room for the toes. Children climb up stairs at around one year; going down works best backwards on their knees, and you should teach that early, with a gate at both ends until then.
Childproofing once your baby is on the move
- Stair gate at the top and the bottom
- Window locks and no furniture to climb on under windows
- Bookcases and chests of drawers anchored to the wall
- Chemicals, medicines and detergents up high and locked away
- Cables and plugs out of the way, socket covers in the outlets
- A hob guard, and pan handles turned inwards
- Bathroom door closed. A bucket of water is enough for a small child to drown in
- Small objects, coins, batteries and nuts out of reach
We have a full checklist in Childproofing your home. Go through your home on your knees, at your child's eye level, and you will see what tempts them.
When to talk to BVC
- Your child is not sitting unaided at around nine to ten months
- Uses almost only one side of the body, or drags one leg behind
- Is not standing with support at twelve months
- Is not walking at eighteen months
- Is very stiff or very floppy in the body
- Loses skills they already had
BVC makes that assessment at the regular check-ups, and they see the whole picture: muscle tone, symmetry, how your child uses their hands. Raise it there, not in a parents' group online. The vast majority of children who are late are perfectly healthy and simply have their own pace. The few who need support get it sooner if you ask.
How we do it with our families
Nike looks after a fourteen-month-old boy in Vällingby who started walking three weeks ago. The visits are different now: every drawer in the kitchen is interesting, and the shelf with the glasses has been moved up. She walks to the playground instead of taking the pram, and lets him walk the whole way home himself even though a hundred metres takes twenty minutes. On the note: walked all the way up the hill himself, fell four times, laughed. She knows which day he took his first steps, because she was there, and his parents heard about it that same evening.
This text is general information and does not replace advice from BVC, your vårdcentral (local health centre) or 1177. If you are worried about your child, call 1177. In an emergency, call 112.
Would you like a nanny who knows your child, knows what is usual for them and notices when something is different? Book a free first meeting with the nanny at your home.
Read more: Your one-year-old · 4 month old baby · Childproofing your home · FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Do babies have to crawl before they walk?
No. Some babies bottom-shuffle, commando-crawl or go straight from sitting to pulling up. The idea that babies must crawl for the brain to develop properly has no support. What matters is that your child moves, uses both sides of the body and gets plenty of floor time.
Is it bad if my child walks on tiptoe?
Most children walk on tiptoe sometimes while learning to walk, and it usually goes away by itself. If your child almost always walks on tiptoe, is still doing it after the age of two to three, or cannot put their heels down at all, raise it with BVC. It is usually a habit, but it should be assessed.
Does a baby walker help my child learn to walk?
No, and they are advised against by both 1177 and Konsumentverket. Baby walkers are involved in many accidents, above all falls down stairs, and your child doesn't train the muscles and balance needed for walking. The floor, furniture to pull up on and your hands are all that is needed.
When should my child have shoes?
Only once they walk steadily outdoors. Indoors, children do best barefoot or in non-slip socks; the foot needs to feel the surface to find its balance. The first shoes should be soft and light, with room for the toes. Expensive supportive shoes are not needed for a healthy foot.
My child bottom-shuffles instead of crawling. Is that a problem?
No. Bottom-shufflers are a group of their own who often walk a little later than average, sometimes closer to 18 months, and they catch up. As long as your child moves forward, uses both sides and pulls up on furniture in due course, there is nothing to worry about. Do mention it to BVC at the next visit.