Drinks for babies: water, milk and cups
Once weaning starts at around 6 months, questions about drinks often follow quickly: when can babies have water? What about juice? When does cow's milk become the main drink, and when should bottles go? This is a plain-English summary of NHS guidance. Your health visitor can advise for your specific baby.
Milk in the first year
Breastmilk or infant formula remains your baby's most important drink throughout the whole of the first year, even after solid foods begin. A lot of parents assume that as soon as weaning starts, milk becomes less important or can be cut back, but this is not how it works. Solid foods during weaning add to your baby's nutrition, they do not replace the nutrition that milk provides. The shift away from milk as the primary source of calories is gradual and generally completes around the 12-month mark.
For formula-fed babies, NHS guidance suggests aiming for around 500 to 600ml of infant formula per day once solid foods are well established. This amount may decrease a little as your baby's appetite for food grows and they begin eating three meals a day, but it should not drop significantly before 12 months. Cutting formula too quickly risks leaving nutritional gaps, as the vitamins, minerals, and protein in formula are specifically formulated to meet a baby's needs at this stage. If you notice your baby refusing milk feeds more often than usual, talk to your health visitor rather than assuming less milk is fine.
Breastfed babies continue to feed on demand. There is no target volume to hit when breastfeeding, and this approach is well suited to how breastmilk supply and a baby's appetite work together. Continuing to offer the breast as usual and following your baby's hunger cues for both milk and solids is the recommended approach. From 12 months, the dynamic shifts meaningfully: food becomes the main source of nutrition and cow's milk or breastmilk is offered alongside meals rather than as the primary source of calories. The first year is the period to keep milk central.
Introducing water
Small amounts of water can be introduced from around 6 months, as soon as solid foods begin. The main reason to offer water at this stage is exposure, not hydration. Your baby's fluid needs are still met by milk, and water at mealtimes is really about getting them used to sipping from a cup and tasting something other than milk. There is no need to encourage large quantities or push water between meals at this age.
A few sips with each meal is a reasonable starting point, and up to around 60ml per meal is perfectly fine. Babies are quite good at regulating their own intake of water and will not over-consume it at this age. Offering water with meals rather than between them helps keep milk feeds intact, which matters because milk still needs to be the main drink. Once the cup appears at the table alongside food, it becomes a natural part of the mealtime routine.
In the UK, plain tap water is appropriate for babies from 6 months. There is no need to boil tap water for a healthy, full-term baby from this age. Bottled mineral water is not recommended for babies because it can be high in sodium or have fluoride levels that are not appropriate for infants. Before 6 months, breastmilk and formula provide everything a baby needs for hydration, including during warm weather. In very hot conditions, a few sips of cooled boiled water can be offered to a formula-fed baby under 6 months, but this is rarely needed and your health visitor or GP can advise if you are unsure.
Drinks to avoid before 12 months
NHS guidance is straightforward on this: before 12 months, babies need only breastmilk, infant formula, and small sips of water from around 6 months. Everything else should wait, and some things should be avoided for much longer. Understanding why these drinks are not suitable helps parents feel confident in holding the line when well-meaning family members suggest alternatives.
Fruit juice and smoothies come up frequently because they seem healthy for adults, but for babies they are not appropriate. In liquid form, fruit loses its fibre while retaining its sugars. Even 100% fruit juice is high in free sugars, which can cause tooth decay from the moment teeth appear, and the liquid easily displaces a milk feed without providing comparable nutrition. NHS guidance recommends avoiding fruit juice entirely before 12 months. After 12 months, if you choose to offer it, the NHS recommends no more than 150ml per day, diluted well (at least 1 part juice to 10 parts water), served with a meal rather than between meals, and always in a cup rather than a bottle.
The following drinks are not suitable before 12 months and should generally be avoided well into toddlerhood: fizzy drinks (including sparkling water and flavoured fizzy drinks); squash and cordial; tea and coffee, which contain caffeine and tannins that can interfere with iron absorption; flavoured or sweetened milks; and herbal teas, which are not safe for babies. Rice milk should also be avoided before age 5 because of natural arsenic levels. Soya drinks and other plant-based milks are generally not recommended as a main drink before 12 months unless advised by a healthcare professional for a specific reason such as cow's milk protein allergy.
Cow's milk as a main drink: from 12 months
Whole cow's milk can be introduced as a main drink once your baby turns 12 months. Before this age, cow's milk does not have the right ratio of nutrients for a baby's primary drink. It is too high in certain proteins and minerals and too low in iron and vitamins C and D to meet a young baby's specific needs. This does not mean dairy is off limits before 12 months: cow's milk used in cooking, full-fat yoghurt, and soft pasteurised cheeses are all suitable from 6 months and are a good way to introduce dairy to your baby's palate during weaning.
From 12 months, use full-fat cow's milk rather than lower-fat versions. The fat in whole milk supports brain development and carries fat-soluble vitamins including vitamins A and D. It also provides more calories per volume, which matters when a young child's stomach is small and they are eating relatively little at each meal. Semi-skimmed milk becomes appropriate from 2 years, provided your child is growing well and eating a varied diet. Skimmed milk is not recommended before 5 years because it is too low in calories and fat-soluble vitamins to meet a young child's needs.
There is no single prescribed daily volume, but 300 to 400ml of cow's milk per day is a commonly cited guide for toddlers alongside a varied diet. This can include milk in cereal, in cooking, and in dairy products such as yoghurt and cheese, not only as a drink. If your baby has been diagnosed with a cow's milk protein allergy, follow the guidance from your GP or allergy specialist regarding suitable alternatives. They will advise on appropriate substitute milks and whether additional nutrients need to be supplemented.
Moving from bottle to open cup
Introducing a free-flow cup alongside solid foods from around 6 months gives your baby early practice with this skill. A free-flow cup is one without a valve: the liquid flows when the cup is tipped, which means your baby learns a genuine drinking action rather than a modified sucking action. At first, your baby will probably get more on themselves than in their mouth, and this is entirely normal. The objective at 6 months is familiarity with the cup and practice holding and tipping it, not efficient fluid intake.
The NHS advises moving away from bottles with a teat by around 12 months. This recommendation is based on dental health evidence. Valved cups (sometimes called sippy cups) are better than bottles with teats but still encourage a sucking action that can pool liquid around the teeth. An open cup or a free-flow cup without a valve is the best choice for dental health because it encourages a more mature drinking technique. If your baby is comfortable with a free-flow cup by 12 months, the bottle transition is much smoother.
Night-time bottle feeds are particularly associated with tooth decay, because milk or formula that sits around developing teeth during sleep creates ideal conditions for decay. Once teeth begin to appear, stopping night bottle feeds is worth prioritising. If your baby wakes at night and is genuinely hungry, offering water in a cup rather than milk in a bottle is better for teeth.
If your toddler is resistant to giving up the bottle, a gradual approach tends to work better than sudden removal. Replace one bottle feed at a time with a cup, starting with the feed your child seems least attached to, usually the mid-morning or mid-afternoon one. The last bottle to go is often the bedtime one, which has a comfort element as well as a nutritional one. Moving the bedtime routine slightly earlier, adding a book or a song in place of the bottle, and offering warm milk in a cup can all help. Most children adapt within a few weeks of consistent change, even if they initially resist.
Frequently asked questions
When can I give my baby water?
From around 6 months, alongside solid food. Small sips with meals are fine. Before 6 months, breastmilk or formula provides all the hydration your baby needs. In the UK, tap water is suitable from 6 months without boiling for a healthy, full-term baby.
Can babies have fruit juice?
NHS guidance advises against fruit juice before 12 months. After 12 months, if you offer it, keep it to a maximum of 150ml per day, well diluted with water (at least 1 part juice to 10 parts water), and offer it with a meal rather than between meals, in a cup.
When can my baby have cow's milk as their main drink?
From 12 months. Before then, cow's milk does not have the right nutritional balance to be a main drink, though dairy foods like yoghurt and cheese are fine from 6 months. From 12 months, use full-fat cow's milk. Semi-skimmed is appropriate from 2 years if your child is growing and eating well.
When should I move my baby from a bottle to a cup?
NHS guidance suggests introducing a free-flow cup from 6 months and moving away from bottles with a teat by around 12 months. Continuing with a bottle after 12 months, especially at night or for milk, is associated with tooth decay and can make the transition harder the longer it continues.
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