Baby Poo Colour Chart: What's Normal and When to Worry
A practical guide to newborn and infant nappy colours — what each colour means, what's normal at each stage, and the one colour you should never ignore.
Nobody warns you about the sheer variety of colours you'll see in a baby's nappy. Within the first week alone, your baby's poo goes through more colour changes than a mood ring.
Most of these colours are completely normal. One isn't. Here's what you need to know.
The first few days: meconium
Your baby's first nappies contain meconium — a dark, sticky, tar-like substance that's been building up in their intestines since before birth. It's greenish-black and has the consistency of vegemite (sorry for the comparison, but it's accurate).
Meconium is completely normal and usually clears within 2–3 days. If it hasn't passed by day 3–4, mention it to your midwife.
The colour guide
After meconium clears, your baby's poo colour depends mainly on what they're eating.
Breastfed babies
| Colour | What it means |
|---|---|
| Mustard yellow | The classic breastfed poo. Seedy, runny texture. Completely normal. |
| Gold / bright yellow | Normal variation. Can look almost orange. |
| Green | Common when baby gets more foremilk, or during a growth spurt. Usually normal. |
| Light brown | Normal as baby gets older and feeds change. |
Breastfed poo is usually soft, runny, and can look like grainy mustard. It often doesn't smell strongly. Frequency varies wildly — some breastfed babies poo after every feed, others go several days between nappies (both are normal after the first 6 weeks).
Formula-fed babies
| Colour | What it means |
|---|---|
| Tan / light brown | Normal formula poo. Firmer than breastfed poo. |
| Dark brown | Normal. Formula poo is darker than breastfed poo. |
| Greenish-brown | Normal variation, especially with iron-fortified formula. |
| Dark green | Iron in formula. Normal. |
Formula poo tends to be firmer, darker, and smellier than breastfed poo. It's usually more consistent in colour — fewer surprises.
Once solids start (around 6 months)
Everything changes when food enters the picture. You'll see:
- Orange after sweet potato or carrots
- Green after peas, beans, or spinach
- Dark brown becomes the new normal
- Bits of undigested food — completely normal. Their digestive system is learning.
Colours that need attention
Most colours are normal. These aren't:
Red
Red streaks could be:
- Swallowed blood from cracked nipples (breastfeeding) — not harmful to baby
- A small anal fissure (tiny tear from straining) — common, usually heals on its own
- An allergy or intolerance — especially if combined with mucus
If you see red, note when it happened and contact your child health nurse or GP. It's usually something minor, but it's worth checking.
Black (after the meconium stage)
Black poo after the first few days can indicate digested blood higher in the digestive tract. Contact your GP.
White, grey, or very pale
This one matters. Consistently pale, chalky, or white poo can indicate a problem with the liver or bile ducts. According to Pregnancy Birth Baby (an Australian Government resource), pale poo should always be checked by a doctor.
If your baby's poo is consistently the colour of chalk or clay — even once — see your GP. It may be nothing, but it needs to be ruled out.
What about consistency?
Colour gets all the attention, but consistency matters too:
| Consistency | What it means |
|---|---|
| Runny / watery (breastfed) | Normal for breastfed babies |
| Soft / pasty | Normal for both breast and formula |
| Formed / firm | Normal for formula-fed and older babies on solids |
| Very watery / explosive | Could be diarrhoea — watch for dehydration signs |
| Hard pellets | Constipation — talk to your child health nurse |
| Mucusy | Small amounts are normal. Large amounts or combined with blood — mention to GP |
How often should they poo?
This varies more than any other topic:
- Newborn (0–6 weeks): Multiple times a day — sometimes every feed
- Breastfed (after 6 weeks): Anywhere from multiple times a day to once every 7–10 days (both normal, according to the Australian Breastfeeding Association)
- Formula-fed: Usually 1–3 times per day
- On solids: 1–2 times per day
If your baby seems comfortable, is feeding well, and gaining weight, their poo frequency is probably fine — even if it seems irregular.
Why parents track nappies
In the first few weeks, your midwife or child health nurse will ask about nappy output — it's one of the simplest ways to check that your baby is feeding enough and staying hydrated.
Tracking nappies helps you:
- Answer your nurse's questions with data — "4 wet, 2 dirty today" beats "I think it was normal?"
- Spot changes early — a sudden shift in frequency or colour is easier to notice when you can look back at the last week
- Coordinate with your partner — whoever changes the nappy logs it, everyone sees the count
You don't need to photograph every nappy (though some parents do). A quick log of type, colour, and any notes is enough to spot patterns and share with your health professional.
Track nappy changes with BabyLog — one tap to log, with colour and consistency options designed by a childcare educator. It's free and syncs across every caregiver's device.
Ready to start tracking?
BabyLog works on any device — iPhone, Android, tablet, or desktop. Set up takes two minutes.