Do Babies Move Less Before Labour?
If your baby is moving less than usual at any stage, including just before labour, contact your maternity unit now. Babies do not normally move less before labour: the RCOG's 2026 guideline says movements do not normally reduce in the third trimester, the NHS says you should feel your baby move right up to and during labour, and Kicks Count calls the idea that babies slow down before birth a myth.
Written by the Bumpi Kicks team at Speed AI Labs LLP. Last updated . General information, not reviewed by a clinician, and not medical advice. How we write and check these pages.
If your baby is moving less, contact your maternity unit now
Call your midwife or maternity unit immediately if your baby is moving less than usual, you cannot feel movement, or the usual pattern changes, however close you are to your due date. Do not wait until the next day.
If you cannot reach them, or you are worried about your own health, call your local emergency number.
What the sources say about the end of pregnancy
Movements should not slow down
The RCOG's 2026 guideline says that after 32 weeks 90% of women feel an increase or no change in how often and how strongly their baby moves until labour begins, and that the frequency of movements does not decrease at term.
The kind of movement can change
Kicks tend to give way to rolling, stretching and pushing, the RCOG says, and ACOG's Committee Opinion 828 describes longer quiet periods near term. The Australian guideline says movements are still felt every day and are strong for most women.
The HSE and Kicks Count: babies do not run out of room
The HSE's summary of Ireland's guideline says babies do not run out of room and keep moving during labour. Kicks Count calls running out of room a myth, because the womb grows with the baby.
Stronger movements are common
In a 2019 study of 274 women with healthy outcomes, 59.3% said their baby's movements had grown stronger in the two weeks before they were interviewed, at 28 weeks or later.
When the head engages or the baby drops
None of the guidelines or health services we read says that a baby moves less once its head engages or it drops into the pelvis. Movements may feel different, but the RCOG says their frequency does not decrease at term, so a drop in movement still needs a call.
Why the belief is risky
In a study of 244 women whose babies were stillborn, cited by the RCOG, some had read warning signs as normal because they had heard movements decrease late in pregnancy. The Australian guideline notes that women with reduced movements at term are sometimes told by others that this is normal near birth.
What people say, and what the sources say
| What people say | What the sources say |
|---|---|
| Babies move less before labour | The RCOG: frequency does not decrease at term. The NHS: you should feel your baby move right up to and during labour. The HSE and Kicks Count: babies do not slow down towards the end. |
| Babies run out of room | The HSE: babies do not run out of room. Kicks Count: a myth, because the womb grows with the baby. |
| Fewer kicks means less movement | The RCOG: kicks tend to give way to rolling, stretching and pushing, while the frequency of movement does not fall. A change from your baby's usual pattern still needs a call. |
| A baby moves less once the head engages | No guideline or health service we read says so. The RCOG says frequency does not decrease at term. |
| A quiet baby at 39 or 40 weeks is getting ready for birth | No source we read says so. The RCOG reports stillbirths where women read warning signs as normal because they had heard movements decrease late in pregnancy, and the HSE, NHS inform and Tommy's say it is not true that babies move less towards the end. |
Common questions
Do babies move less when the head is engaged?
No guideline or health service we read says so. Movements may feel different, in a different place or with more rolling than kicking, but the RCOG's 2026 guideline says the frequency of movement does not decrease at term. If your baby is moving less than usual, call your maternity unit.
Do babies run out of room in the womb?
The HSE's summary of Ireland's guideline says they do not, and Kicks Count calls it a myth because the womb grows with the baby. The Australian guideline says babies near term have longer rest periods, partly put down to less space, but are still felt moving every day. Less space is not a reason to accept fewer movements than usual: if your baby moves less, call your maternity unit now.
Is less movement at 39 or 40 weeks normal?
No. The RCOG's 2026 guideline says movements do not normally reduce in the third trimester, and the NHS says you should feel your baby move right up to and during labour. Contact your maternity unit immediately if movements reduce, however close you are to your due date.
Do babies move more before labour?
If your baby suddenly moves a lot and then stops, or moves less than usual, call your maternity unit now. No source we read says a burst of movement is a sign that labour is coming. After 32 weeks, the RCOG's 2026 guideline says 90% of women feel an increase or no change in how often and how strongly their baby moves until labour begins. It also says a single spell of excessive movement after 28 weeks has been linked with stillbirth in case-control studies, though prospective studies found no link with poor outcomes.
Should I keep counting near or after my due date?
Follow your midwife's or doctor's method. The SOGC's page on overdue pregnancy says your provider will likely recommend daily kick counts, and NICE says women who choose to await labour beyond 41 weeks should contact their midwife or maternity unit as soon as possible about reduced or altered movements.
Sources
These are the sources behind the statements on this page. We opened each one and checked it on the date shown.
- Whitworth M, Fisher M, Heazell A, Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. Reduced Fetal Movements, Green-top Guideline No. 57, second edition. BJOG 2026;133(8):e70-e92, first published 27 April 2026 (sections 4 and 10)
The RCOG's 2026 guideline says that after 32 weeks 90% of women feel an increase or no change in how often and how strongly their baby moves, until labour begins.
Limits: Evidence level 2++. The same section says kicks tend to be replaced by rolling, stretching and pushing, and that the frequency of movements does not decrease at term. Section 10 says clear information is needed that movements do not decrease towards the end of pregnancy.
Checked . Read directly from the source.
- Whitworth M, Fisher M, Heazell A, Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. Reduced Fetal Movements, Green-top Guideline No. 57, second edition. BJOG 2026;133(8):e70-e92, first published 27 April 2026 (section 4)
The RCOG's 2026 guideline says women are likely to feel movements from 20 weeks, and that movements are likely to plateau after 32 weeks but do not normally reduce in the third trimester.
Limits: Graded C and B. It says the nature of movement changes late in pregnancy, with kicks tending to give way to rolling, stretching and pushing, while the frequency does not fall at term.
Checked . Read directly from the source.
- Whitworth M, Fisher M, Heazell A, Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. Reduced Fetal Movements, Green-top Guideline No. 57, second edition. BJOG 2026;133(8):e70-e92, first published 27 April 2026 (section 5)
In a study of 244 women whose babies were stillborn, cited by the RCOG's 2026 guideline, some read warning signs as normal because they had heard movements decrease late in pregnancy.
Limits: Evidence level 2-. The guideline reports that most of these women felt decreased, weaker or no movements in the 2 days before the death was diagnosed. Other studies it cites give reasons for delay, including false reassurance from family members or friends, fear of intervention and fear of not being taken seriously by healthcare staff. We read the guideline's account, not the studies.
Checked . Reported by a named secondary source.
- Whitworth M, Fisher M, Heazell A, Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. Reduced Fetal Movements, Green-top Guideline No. 57, second edition. BJOG 2026;133(8):e70-e92, first published 27 April 2026 (section 15)
The RCOG's 2026 guideline says a single spell of excessive fetal movement after 28 weeks was linked with stillbirth in case-control studies, and a concerned woman should be checked with a CTG.
Limits: Graded B and C. The link comes from case-control studies; three prospective studies found no link between increased movements and poor outcomes. It says there is no indication for intervention unless the CTG shows compromise.
Checked . Read directly from the source.
- NHS, Your baby's movements, page last reviewed 8 July 2024
The NHS says you should feel your baby move right up to and during labour.
Limits: NHS advice is written for the UK. Advice elsewhere differs, and your own midwife or doctor comes first.
Checked . Read directly from the source.
- NHS, Your baby's movements, page last reviewed 8 July 2024
The NHS says to call your midwife or maternity unit immediately if your baby moves less than usual, you cannot feel movement, or the usual pattern changes, and not to wait until the next day.
Limits: NHS advice is written for the UK. Advice elsewhere differs, and your own midwife or doctor comes first.
Checked . Read directly from the source.
- Health Service Executive, National Women and Infants Health Programme, Plain language summary: Reduced fetal movements (file in the RCPI website's 2024 folder, no date printed)
The HSE's summary of Ireland's guideline says babies do not run out of room, their movements do not slow down towards the end of pregnancy, and they keep moving during labour.
Limits: A summary for patients, not the full guideline.
Checked . Read directly from the source.
- Kicks Count (UK charity), Common Myths, published 22 January 2025, updated 23 February 2025
Kicks Count lists as myths that babies slow down when getting ready to be born and that babies run out of room, and says babies should keep moving in their normal pattern up to and during labour.
Limits: A charity page. It says the womb is not a fixed structure and grows with the baby, and that you should not try to prompt a baby to move but seek medical attention if movements are not normal.
Checked . Read directly from the source.
- Tommy's, Baby movements in pregnancy, last reviewed 30 January 2026
Tommy's says it is not true that babies move less towards the end of pregnancy, and that you should feel your baby move right up to the time you go into labour and during labour.
Limits: UK advice. The page also says your baby may change position, so you feel kicks in a different place, or change the time of day when they are most active, but should move the same amount and with the same strength as is usual for you.
Checked . Read directly from the source.
- NHS inform (Public Health Scotland), Ready Steady Baby!, Getting to know your baby's movements, last updated 14 August 2025
NHS inform in Scotland says to phone your midwife or maternity unit immediately if your baby has not moved as much as usual or the pattern has changed, that there is no set number of normal movements, and that babies do not move less towards the end of pregnancy.
Limits: The page says it is adapted with permission from Tommy's, so it is not independent of the Tommy's page. It has no counting method. It says not to check your baby's heartbeat with hand-held monitors, dopplers or phone apps.
Checked . Read directly from the source.
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Committee Opinion No. 828, Indications for Outpatient Antenatal Fetal Surveillance, June 2021
ACOG's Committee Opinion 828 says movement patterns change over pregnancy, with longer quiet periods near term, and that one-time surveillance may be considered after viability when a person reports decreased movement.
Limits: A clinician document. It also says one-time surveillance may be considered for a person reporting decreased fetal movement after viability, and it does not use the term kick counts.
Checked . Read directly from the source.
- Perinatal Society of Australia and New Zealand and Centre of Research Excellence in Stillbirth, Clinical practice guideline for the care of women with decreased fetal movements with a singleton pregnancy from 28 weeks' gestation, version 2.4, March 2023 (section 5)
The Australian and New Zealand guideline says that near term movements continue to be felt every day and are reported as strong by most women, although some feel fewer kicks and more rolling or stretching.
Limits: It says near-term babies have longer rest periods, which it attributes to both decreasing space in the uterus and the baby's neurological maturation. The guideline also notes that some women with decreased movements at term are told by others that this is normal near birth. Its recommendation 2 says women who report a concern about movements should be assessed without delay.
Checked . Read directly from the source.
- Bradford BF, Cronin RS, McKinlay CJD, et al. A diurnal fetal movement pattern: findings from a cross-sectional study of maternally perceived fetal movements in the third trimester of pregnancy. PLoS One, 2019;14:e0217583
In a 2019 study of 274 women with healthy outcomes, 59.3% said their baby's movements had grown stronger in the two weeks before they were interviewed, at 28 weeks or later.
Limits: The authors say women in the third trimester can be told it is normal to feel increasingly strong movements and episodes of more vigorous movement than usual. We read the abstract.
Checked . Abstract read at the source.
- Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada, Pregnancy Info, Overdue pregnancy, no date shown on the page
The SOGC's Pregnancy Info says that if a pregnancy goes overdue your health care provider will likely recommend daily kick counts, and may suggest non-stress tests twice weekly or an ultrasound check of amniotic fluid.
Limits: Canadian patient information. It gives no number of movements or time window for the count.
Checked . Read directly from the source.
- NICE, Inducing labour (NG207), recommendation 1.2.9, published 4 November 2021
NICE guideline NG207 says women who choose to await the spontaneous onset of labour should be advised to contact their midwife or maternity unit as soon as possible if they have concerns, for example reduced or altered fetal movements.
Limits: The recommendation is for services in England, and it is about women who decline induction of labour after 41 weeks. It does not mention counting.
Checked . Read directly from the source.