Eye contact and social smiling
By 3–4 months most babies hold eye contact during feeds and light up in response to your smile. Consistently absent or fleeting social gaze is worth noting.
Under 18 months · 100% free · Instant results
Early Signs of Autism in Babies
An honest, gentle checklist for parents wondering about autism signs in a baby under 18 months. Ten questions about the earliest social building blocks — eye contact, social smiling, babbling, gestures and shared attention — with results that tell you the truth: what can be seen this early, and what cannot.
Straight talk: autism cannot be reliably diagnosed in babies, and no baby autism test — online or clinical — can give you certainty this early. What this checklist can do is help you notice how your baby’s social communication is developing, record it, and know exactly which signs justify raising it with your doctor or health visitor now rather than waiting.
Begin the 10-question screeningWhat to look for
What can be noticed this early
In the first 18 months, the signals are about social connection — the back-and-forth between you and your baby that develops long before words. This baby autism checklist asks about these foundations.
Response to their name
From around 9 months, babies reliably turn when their name is called. Not responding — while reacting to other sounds — is one of the earliest researched markers.
Back-and-forth babbling
Babbling that works like a conversation — baby makes a sound, you answer, baby answers back — usually establishes by 9–12 months.
Gestures: waving, reaching, pointing
Waving bye-bye, arms up to be lifted, and pointing (from 9–14 months) are the bridge to language. Few or no gestures by 12 months is a recognised flag.
Following your point and gaze
When you point across the room, does your baby look where you point? Sharing attention on a third thing is a foundational social skill for later communication.
Joy in social games
Peek-a-boo, pat-a-cake, tickle anticipation — most babies actively seek and delight in these games. Consistent indifference to them is worth recording.
Recognise several of these?
Take the free screeningAutism signs in babies — what the research actually says
Autism is present from birth, but its visible signs unfold gradually — which is why even the best infant-sibling research studies, following babies at high genetic likelihood of autism with expert teams, cannot reliably identify which babies are autistic before roughly 12–18 months. Anyone promising a definitive baby autism test is overpromising. What parents can genuinely do this early is watch the foundations: social attention, gestures, and back-and-forth connection.
That watching matters. Parents of later-diagnosed children very often report that they noticed differences in the first year — less eye contact, less social smiling, a baby who seemed content in their own world — but were told to wait and see. The research supports acting on persistent parental concern: raise it, record it, and ask for developmental monitoring rather than a single reassurance. "Wait and see" costs exactly the months when early support helps most.
This checklist gives you a structured snapshot of your baby’s social communication today. Whatever the result, the most useful next step is the same: keep a simple ongoing record — short notes, dates, videos — and repeat the check as your baby grows. From 18 months, our toddler autism test covers the age where screening becomes genuinely reliable. If your baby loses any skill they once had, at any age, see your doctor promptly.
FAQ
Common questions
Can you test a baby for autism?
Not definitively. There is no medical or behavioural test that can reliably diagnose autism under 18 months. What you can do is monitor the early social-communication milestones this checklist covers, record what you see, and involve your doctor early if several are absent or if your baby loses skills.
What are the earliest signs of autism in babies?
The most researched early markers are: not responding to their name by 12 months, limited eye contact and social smiling, few gestures (no pointing or waving by 12–14 months), limited back-and-forth babbling, not following a point, and low interest in social games like peek-a-boo. Unusual reactions to sounds and textures can also appear early.
My baby avoids eye contact. Should I worry?
One sign on its own, on some days, is normal variation — all babies have off days, growth spurts and distractible phases. The pattern to note is persistence and clustering: several of these signs, present most of the time, over weeks. That is exactly what this checklist helps you structure.
When should I take this again or move to the toddler test?
Re-check every couple of months if you have concerns — development moves fast in the first two years, and the trajectory tells you more than a single snapshot. From 18 months, switch to our toddler autism test, which covers the age range where screening tools have solid evidence behind them.
What should I tell my doctor?
Specifics beat summaries. "She doesn’t turn when we call her name, even when she isn’t absorbed in something — here are three videos from this week" is far more actionable than "I’m worried about autism." Bring your checklist results, your notes, and stand firm on persistent instinct: parents notice first, and the research says they are usually right.
Ready when you are
10 questions, 3–4 minutes, and a result you can actually act on. Free — including your results.
This screening is an informal guide, not a clinical diagnosis. Results are best reviewed with a GP, paediatrician or qualified clinician.