Baby Poo Colour Chart: What's Normal, What's Not

If you''ve ever opened a nappy and stared at it wondering "is that… normal?", you''re in good company. Baby poo changes colour, texture, smell and frequency as your baby grows, switches between breast and formula, starts solids, and fights off the occasional bug. Most of what shows up in the nappy is completely normal — but there are three colours that always need a same-day GP review.

This is the chart I share with parents in clinic as a Maternal Health Nurse. Print it, screenshot it, stick it in the nappy bag — and stop second-guessing every nappy change.

The full baby poo colour chart

Read from top to bottom roughly in the order you''ll encounter them.

🟢 Greenish-black, sticky and tar-like — meconium (days 1–3)

Your baby''s very first poos are made of everything they swallowed in utero. It''s sticky, almost odourless, and notoriously hard to wipe. Completely normal. Should transition to lighter colours by day 3–4. If meconium is still showing on day 5, mention it to your midwife.

🟡 Mustard yellow, seedy, runny — breastfed baby (3+ days old)

This is the textbook healthy breastfed baby poo: bright mustard yellow, soft, often with little curd-like seeds, mildly sweet-smelling. Frequency varies from after every feed to once every 7–10 days after about 6 weeks — both are normal as long as the poo, when it comes, is still soft.

🟫 Tan, pasty, stronger smell — formula-fed baby

Formula poos are thicker (peanut butter consistency), tan to light brown, and smell more like adult poo. Frequency is usually 1–4 times a day, sometimes daily, sometimes every second day.

🟢 Bright or dark green — usually normal, occasionally not

Green poo gets parents worried, but it''s almost always harmless. Common causes:

• Fast transit through the gut (often after a big feed or oversupply).
• An imbalance of foremilk and hindmilk — baby getting lots of watery foremilk if feeds are too short.
• Iron-fortified formula can naturally tint stool greenish.
• A mild tummy bug or a cold causing extra mucus.
• Maternal diet (leafy greens, food colourings).

When green matters: if it''s frothy, watery, smells foul, or comes with blood, fever, vomiting, or a baby who isn''t feeding well — see a GP.

🟤 Brown, formed — older baby on solids

Once solids are well established (usually 7–9 months), poo darkens to brown and starts to look and smell more grown-up. Texture firms up. Some chunks of food (corn, blueberries, peas) coming through whole is completely normal — toddlers chew poorly.

🟠 Orange — usually a food colour

Carrot, sweet potato, pumpkin, apricot, and beta-carotene-rich foods can tint poo orange for a day or two. No action needed if baby is otherwise well.

🔴 Red streaks or bright red — usually harmless, sometimes not

Almost always one of these three:

• Beetroot, tomato or red food colouring recently eaten.
• A small anal fissure from a hard stool — you''ll usually see a streak on the outside of the poo.
• Swallowed blood from a cracked nipple in breastfed babies — harmless to baby but check your latch.

See a GP today if: blood is mixed through the stool, the poo is jelly-like with red streaks (currant-jelly stool), or there''s blood with diarrhoea, fever or a very unsettled baby.

🚨 The three colours that need a same-day GP review

These are the colours we want every parent to recognise on sight.

⚪ White, pale grey, or chalky/clay-coloured

Always abnormal at any age. Pale stool can indicate the liver isn''t draining bile properly (biliary atresia or other liver conditions). It''s rare, but early diagnosis matters enormously. Don''t wait for your next appointment — call your GP or, after hours, healthdirect on 1800 022 222. The Australian "Poo Chart" used in early childhood checks specifically screens for this.

⚫ Black (after the first week)

Meconium in the first few days is meant to be black. After that, true black poo can mean digested blood from the upper gut. Iron supplements and iron-fortified formula can also blacken stool — mention any supplements when you ring the GP, but get it checked the same day.

🩸 Red blood mixed through the poo, or "currant jelly" stool

A streak on the outside is usually a fissure. Blood mixed through the stool, or a jelly-like dark red stool, can indicate cow''s milk protein allergy, infection, or — very rarely — intussusception (a bowel emergency, especially if paired with screaming episodes and vomiting). Same-day review, or ED if your baby is in obvious pain.

How often should my baby poo?

Frequency varies wildly and is rarely a problem on its own. As a rough guide:

• Newborns (0–6 weeks): often after every feed — a wet and dirty nappy is reassuring milk-intake feedback. Use our Breastfeeding Supply Checker if you''re unsure feeds are going in.
• Breastfed 6 weeks–6 months: can go anywhere from 6+ times a day to once every 7–10 days. As long as the poo, when it comes, is soft and the baby is comfortable, it''s normal.
• Formula-fed: usually at least every 1–2 days. Less frequent than that with hard pellet-like stools may be constipation.
• On solids: usually daily or every other day, formed and brown.

What counts as constipation vs diarrhoea

Constipation isn''t about frequency — it''s about texture and effort. Hard, dry, pellet-like poos that the baby strains to pass (red face, drawn-up legs, crying) is constipation, even if it happens daily. Soft poo every 7 days in a breastfed baby is not.

True diarrhoea is watery, more frequent than usual for your baby, and often a different colour or smell. It''s rarely just "teething" — see our Teething vs Illness guide for why. Watch for dehydration: fewer wet nappies, sunken fontanelle, dry mouth, lethargy — all signs to see a doctor.

What changes nappies look like at each milestone

• Starting solids (~6 months): stools darken, smell stronger, and may temporarily get harder. Offer water in a cup with meals. Read our Starting Solids guide.
• Switching from breast to formula (or vice versa): colour, texture and frequency all shift over 1–2 weeks.
• Starting cow''s milk (12+ months): some toddlers get constipated if intake is high — cap dairy at around 500ml/day.
• Antibiotics or illness: looser, sometimes greener stools for up to 2 weeks afterwards. Usually self-resolving.

When to call a doctor

Book a same-day GP review (or call your maternal child health line or healthdirect on 1800 022 222) if you see:

• Pale, white, grey or chalky stool — any age, any time.
• Black stool after the first week (with or without iron supplements).
• Blood mixed through the poo, or currant-jelly stool — especially with pain or vomiting.
• Watery diarrhoea lasting more than 24 hours in a baby under 6 months.
• Signs of dehydration: fewer wet nappies, sunken eyes or fontanelle, lethargy.
• Hard pellet stools causing obvious pain or visible bleeding from a fissure that isn''t healing.
• Poor weight gain alongside any unusual stool pattern.

This article was reviewed by a Maternal Health Nurse and reflects Australian paediatric guidance, including the national "Poo Chart" used in early childhood health checks to screen for liver conditions. It is general information and is not a substitute for individual medical advice — if you''re ever worried, your GP or 13 HEALTH (QLD) / Maternal & Child Health Line (VIC 13 22 29) / healthdirect (1800 022 222) is one call away.

Related reading: baby choking first aid guide

Related reading: interactive baby poo chart