I hope you love the products I've recommended below, just a heads up that as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This means I may earn commissions on products bought via links on this page.
Its easy to spot a tall adult, they’re hard to miss, all you got to do is look up. But gauging the height of a baby or toddler can be much more difficult when its just a matter of inches that separate the tall from the short. So what is tall for a baby anyways?.
How To Know If Your Baby Is Tall
So what makes a baby tall. Technically speaking, its when your baby is taller than average. Just like us adults, babies have a average height as well.
But as babies are still growing and developing, there’s no set height to determine a baby tall. So you need to compare your bubs age and their length. Once you know both of these digits, you can enter them into a calculator which will spit out a number.
This number will be known as the percentile. For example, the average length of a 4 month old girl is 24.25 inches. This number is represented as the 50th percentile. Meaning 50% of other babies at 4 months old are either longer than 24.25″ or shorter than 24.25″.
Is My Baby Girl Tall Or Not – Whats The Average
So the average height of a 4 month of girl is 24.25″ as I just explained. But this is how drastic a small amount of height can change the numbers.
A 4 month old female that is only .75″ taller (25 inches) will now sit in the 64.8 percentile. So while its not much of a height difference, its still quite a leap in regards to how many other babies this 4 month old girl is.
Is My 4 Month Old Boy Tall For His Age
Now switching it around, its the boys turn. The average length of a 4 month old baby boy is 25 inches. Which as we just discovered is in the 64th percentile for females. So already, from a young age you can see that males have a longer torso.
Just like for us adults, women are shorter than men on average. So the trend begins from a very young age.
Back to the topic at hand. If a 4 month old boy was 26 inches in length, this would put them into the 75th percentile. Meaning only 25% of babies of the same age are taller than this particular baby.
Its quite interesting how such a small measurement can have such a drastic affect on the height percentile chart. This also rings true for adults, where a 6 foot male comes in the 90th percentile, a male that’s just 3 inches taller is considered to be in the 99th percentile.
What Height Is Considered A Very Tall Baby
You often hear people say ‘wow, you’re very tall’, well us tall adults do anyways. But what makes a baby very tall?. What length or height constitutes calling your baby very tall.
Its natural to wonder how tall your child is going to be as they grow older, especially if they have tall parents. As genes have been proven to play a vital role in a child’s height as they grow and enter puberty.
You may also be just curious to know whether your baby really is tall or whether the people that constantly inform you that your child is tall are simply wrong.
The 90th Percentile Baby Heights
For me to consider a baby very tall, they would have to fall between the 90th and 99th percentile range. If your baby remains in the category for a long time, chances are you are going to have a tall child growing up. This can help you now by preparing for such things as you will see below.
Below you can see the key ages to measure your baby and compare them up against the 90th percentile ratings. This will give you a good idea as to how tall your baby is.
Female Babies Ages 0-12 Months In & Around The 90th Percentile
- Newborn – 22″ (94.7th Percentile)
- 3 Months – 25-26″ (89th to 98th)
- 6 Months – 28″ (97.4th Percentile)
- 9 Months – 29″-30″ (86th-98th)
- 12 Months – 31″ (93rd Percentile)
Male Babies In The 90 Percentiles
- Newborn – 22-23″ (88th-98th Percentile)
- 3 Months – 26″ (92.9 Percentile)
- 6 Months – 28-29″ (87-87th Percentile)
- 9 Months – 30″ (90th Percentile)
- 12 Months – 32″ (95th Percentile)
Does A Babies Height Really Matter
It can be quite fun watching your newborn grow every month and track their progress. Keeping a record of which percentile they fall into every month. One never knows when they may be able to use this information to their benefit, think about their 21st Birthday for example.
But does knowing your babies height really matter in the grand scheme of things. For health reasons its best to consult your doctor. But when planning out the nursery as your baby develops and moves through the stages, knowing you have a taller toddler to deal with can come in handy.
Buy A Tall Baby Crib
For example, knowing that you are going to be constantly battling with your bubs to stay in the crib and not climb out when your backs turned can save you money. A crib suitable for a taller baby can grow with your child and can be used for many years to comes.
But do know, that no matter how tall your crib is, the little one will always try to escape. So ensure you have your safety measures in place as well. Hearing the loud thump come from the nursery always caused a mini heart attack for me.
Tall Babies Will Walk
As much as you want them to stay small, cute and controllable, the time will come for them to get on their feet and start exploring the house.
If you know you have a tall baby early on by using the percentile height calculator, investing in an extra tall baby walker can save you wasting money on a shorter walker your bubs will outgrow in no time.
Longer Baby Clothing
Another way to prepare for your baby reaching taller heights is to let the friends and relatives know how tall your little on is. When you’re showered with baby clothing s gifts, you want them to at least for for a month or 2. So informing them to buy a size larger, or longer than regular will help you get a longer lifespan out of the baby clothing.
Why Is My Baby So Tall
While we all know genes play a vital role in how our baby will look, but what does it mean when you have a baby that measures quite long for their age, yet the parents themselves are not considered tall.
Before you start looking at your partner with disgruntled eyes, stop and take a look at some of the reasons your baby may be tall for their age.
According to the Ncbi, for your child to be deemed as bearing the tall statue, the child needs to be greater than the 97th percentile. Which means only 3% of children of the same age as them are taller.
Family genes are the main contributor to your childs height, but it also important to remember that during puberty you can expect a lot of growth suddenly. So don’t panic just yet if you’re tall and your child doesn’t appear to be at the age of 6 months.
- Nutrition and what you feed your baby can have an impact on their height as they develop.
- Hormonal: Puberty and Hyperthyroidism can have an impact on your childs height.
- Excessive GH hormone can cause gigantism during childhood. This doesn’t just affect one height tho, almost every part of the body is larger than normal including feet, hands and even a broader nose.
Health Risks Of Having A Tall Baby Or Toddler
If you’re concerned in any way as to how fast your little one is growing, speak with you doctor immediately. Your pediatrician will be able to help with your questions better than any search result, plus they can arrange further testing if relevant.
At the end of the day, if you’re baby is tall, there is nothing wrong with that. There are many benefits to be being tall in life as they enter adulthood, its said that tall people earn a higher salary. Not a bad compromise for always being asked to reach things from the top shelf every time you enter the grocery store.
