Most babies cut their first tooth around 6 months of age, though some start as early as 4 months or as late as 12. The process brings a predictable set of symptoms: drooling, fussiness, swollen gums, and disrupted sleep. None of it is fun, but nearly all of it is normal and manageable at home.
When Teeth Typically Appear
Babies are born with 20 primary teeth hidden beneath their gums. The lower front two teeth (central incisors) usually show up first, followed by the upper front two. From there, teeth tend to fill in roughly from front to back, with the second molars arriving last, often around age 2 to 3. The full set of 20 baby teeth is usually in place by age 3.
There’s wide variation in timing. If your baby is 9 or 10 months old with no teeth, that’s still within the normal range. The order teeth arrive matters more to dentists than the exact age, and even that can vary from child to child.
What Teething Actually Looks and Feels Like
The earliest signs are heavy drooling and a baby who wants to chew on everything. You may notice your baby gnawing on fingers, toys, or the edge of a bib with real determination. The gums where a tooth is about to break through often look red or swollen, and you might feel a hard bump just under the surface if you run a clean finger along the gum line.
Fussiness and crying are common, especially in the days right before a tooth pokes through. Some babies become clingy or irritable in ways that feel out of character. Others handle it with barely a complaint. Pain tends to be worst with the first few teeth and again when the larger molars come in later.
Sleep disruption is one of the most noticeable effects for parents. Teething babies often have trouble falling asleep and wake more frequently at night. Each tooth takes roughly a week to fully erupt, but you can expect sleep to be off for up to two weeks per tooth. Some babies also pull at their ears on the same side as the emerging tooth, because the pain can radiate along the jaw.
Appetite changes are common too. A baby who normally nurses or takes a bottle eagerly may pull away or refuse to eat, since sucking can put pressure on sore gums. Babies already eating solids sometimes prefer cold or soft foods during a rough teething stretch.
What Teething Does Not Cause
One of the most persistent myths is that teething causes fevers. It doesn’t. Teething may nudge your baby’s body temperature slightly above normal, into the 98 to 100.3°F range, but a true fever starts at 100.4°F. If your baby’s temperature hits that mark or higher, something else is going on, likely an infection, and it shouldn’t be dismissed as “just teething.”
Teething also does not cause diarrhea, vomiting, persistent coughing, or cold-like symptoms. The timing is confusing because babies start teething around the same age they lose the passive immunity they got from their mother, so infections become more frequent right when teeth start arriving. It’s easy to blame the teeth, but those symptoms deserve their own attention.
Safe Ways to Ease the Pain
The simplest relief is also the most effective: gently rub or massage your baby’s gums with a clean finger. The counter-pressure helps, and most babies will lean into it. You can also offer a firm rubber teething ring for your baby to chew on. Choose solid rubber over liquid-filled varieties, which can leak or break. Chilled teething rings are fine, but don’t freeze them. A frozen ring becomes hard enough to bruise tender gums.
A clean, damp washcloth kept in the refrigerator (not the freezer) works well too. The texture gives babies something satisfying to gnaw on, and the cool temperature soothes inflammation. For babies who are eating solids, chilled foods like cold applesauce or refrigerated fruit in a mesh feeder can do double duty as a snack and a pain reliever.
If your baby seems truly uncomfortable, especially at bedtime, infant acetaminophen is an option for babies of any age (dosed by weight). Infant ibuprofen can be used for babies 6 months and older. Always dose by your baby’s weight rather than age, and follow the instructions on the package.
Products to Avoid
Several popular teething products carry real safety risks. The FDA has specifically warned against homeopathic teething tablets containing belladonna, a plant-derived ingredient. Testing of products from major brands found that the levels of active compounds in these tablets were inconsistent from one tablet to the next, with some containing far more belladonna alkaloids than the label stated. The FDA urges parents to throw away any homeopathic teething tablets they have at home.
Topical numbing gels containing benzocaine are another product to skip. Benzocaine can cause a rare but serious condition that reduces the oxygen-carrying capacity of your baby’s blood. The FDA has asked manufacturers to stop selling benzocaine oral products intended for children under 2.
Amber teething necklaces, despite their popularity, pose choking and strangulation risks. There is no credible evidence that amber releases any pain-relieving substance when worn against the skin.
Caring for New Teeth
Oral hygiene starts before the first tooth arrives. From birth, you can wipe your baby’s gums with a soft damp cloth or infant toothbrush after feedings. Once that first tooth breaks through, switch to a soft-bristled baby toothbrush with a tiny smear of fluoride toothpaste, just enough to barely cover the bristles. Brush twice a day. When your child is between 3 and 6 years old, increase the amount to a pea-sized dollop.
Schedule your baby’s first dental visit before their first birthday. The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, the ADA, and the AAP all recommend this timeline. That first appointment is mostly about checking development, discussing fluoride, and getting your child comfortable in a dental office while the stakes are low.
How Long the Whole Process Lasts
Teething is not one event but a rolling process that stretches across roughly two and a half years. Most babies get their first tooth around 6 months and their last baby tooth around age 3. The good news is that not every tooth causes the same level of discomfort. Many parents find that the first few teeth and the molars are the roughest stretches, with the teeth in between arriving with little drama. The pattern of about a week of active eruption and up to two weeks of sleep disruption per tooth holds fairly steady, but you’ll likely get breaks between rounds where everything feels normal again.