Walking holding on
Most babies start walking while holding on to furniture or hands at around 9 to 10 months. Nearly all healthy children do so somewhere between about 6 and 14 months.
How sure are we?
Fairly sure. Two large studies in nine countries agree, but only two have been read so far. How we know this
What it’s a sign of
Your baby is practising stepping and balance with support, getting ready to walk alone.
Countries differed more for this than for walking alone, probably because of different ways of caring for babies.
We don't yet know how long babies usually walk holding on before walking alone.
A main source for the ages
WHO Motor Development Study: Windows of achievement for six gross motor development milestones
WHO Multicentre Growth Reference Study Group · 2006 · Acta Paediatrica
- Children
- About 800 children
- Where
- Ghana, India, Norway, Oman and the United States
- Ages
- 4 months to 2 years
- How
- Trained researchers tested the same children every month or two, and parents noted the dates too
- What it found
- The World Health Organization followed about 800 healthy children in five countries and measured when they first sat, crawled, stood and walked. Nearly all children walked on their own between about 8 and 18 months, and about half by their first birthday.
- Limits
- All the children were healthy and growing well, so the windows describe healthy children. The study stopped at 2 years.
A main source for the ages
Similarities and differences in child development from birth to age 3 years by sex and across four countries: a cross-sectional, observational study
Ilgi Ozturk Ertem, Vibha Krishnamurthy, Mphelekedzeni C. Mulaudzi, Yanina Sguassero, Hakan Balta, Ozlem Gulumser · 2018 · Lancet Global Health
- Children
- About 4,900 healthy children
- Where
- Argentina, India, South Africa and Turkey
- Ages
- Birth to 3½ years
- How
- Trained staff asked parents open questions about what their child could do, at health clinics
- What it found
- Found the age by which half of children reached more than 100 milestones. Most came at similar ages in all four countries, and for boys and girls. For example, half of children waved bye-bye by about 11 months and said a first word by about 9 months.
- Limits
- Only four countries and no rural areas, children from city clinics, and only healthy children (about half of those who came were left out for health reasons). It gives the age for half of children, not the full spread.
If you’re worried about your child, talk to your child and family health nurse or GP.
Last checked 2 November 2026