31 weeks pregnant

What happens at 31 weeks pregnant?
At 31 weeks a baby is around 41.1 cm long, from head to heel, about the size of a pinata, pre-whack. That is roughly 7 months, in the third trimester, with about 9 weeks to go until 40.
Published length
41.1 cm long, from head to heel
In months
Roughly 7 months
Trimester
third · 9 weeks to go
What is developing at 31 weeks
The baby is putting on weight quickly, and all five senses are now working. The brain can process information arriving from all of them at once. Much of the day and night is spent asleep, a good deal of it in REM sleep.
The size comparison above is a pinata, pre-whack, which measures 41 cm top to bottom. Every comparison on this site is a real object with a real measurement, checked against the published length. The same week is drawn in seven other sets below, from Australian animals to fast food, if this one means nothing to you.
31 weeks, in eight rulers
Every other pregnancy tool measures a baby in fruit. This one offers eight sets to choose from, and each object below carries its real measurement, checked against the 41.1 cm the NHS publishes for week 31. Pick whichever ruler you actually have a feel for. Why not fruit.

Sweet treats
a pinata, pre-whack
41 cm top to bottom

Australian animals
a brushtail possum
42 cm head and body

The 90s
a Slinky, stretched between two hands
45 cm end to end

Sport
a swimming kickboard
40 cm top to bottom

Things you already own
an oven tray
41 cm along the long side

Gaming
a full-size mechanical keyboard
44 cm side to side

Fast food
a family meal box
42 cm side to side

Toys
a scooter's deck
45 cm nose to tail
Your dates, from 31 weeks
Set to someone who is exactly 31 weeks today, so the due date below is the one that implies. Change the date to your own and everything follows from it — nothing is saved unless you do.
How far along am I?
Do not know your due date yet? The due date calculator estimates one from your last period. A dating ultrasound is more accurate than any calendar method — if your pregnancy care team has given you a date, use theirs.
Questions about 31 weeks
- How many months is 31 weeks pregnant?
- 31 weeks is roughly 7 months. Months are an awkward unit in pregnancy because they do not divide evenly into weeks — a calendar month averages about 4.3 weeks, which is why 40 weeks works out a little over nine months rather than ten. Appointments and scans are always booked in weeks, so weeks are the figure worth carrying.
- How big is a baby at 31 weeks?
- The NHS publishes around 41.1 cm long, from head to heel for week 31. Rather than one fruit, that length is offered here against eight rulers, each object carrying its own measurement: a pinata, pre-whack (41 cm top to bottom), a brushtail possum (42 cm head and body), a Slinky, stretched between two hands (45 cm end to end), a swimming kickboard (40 cm top to bottom), and four more. Published lengths are averages across many babies, not a measurement of any particular one, and a scan estimate that differs is a normal thing rather than a finding.
- What trimester is 31 weeks?
- Week 31 is in the third trimester, on the commonly published split of weeks 1–12, 13–26 and 27 onward. The boundaries are conventions for talking about pregnancy rather than biological switches — nothing changes overnight at week 13 or week 27.
Where these numbers come from
- NHS — Week-by-week guide to pregnancy — The published length of a baby at each week of pregnancy — measured head to bottom until week 20 and head to heel from week 20 — and what is developing at that stage.
- Pregnancy, Birth and Baby — Pregnancy week by week — The Australian Government health service’s week-by-week account of how a pregnancy is counted and what develops at each stage.
Stop doing this maths in your head
Once the counting turns into feeds, sleeps and nappies, BubSync keeps that record shared across everyone caring for your baby.
