26 weeks pregnant: eyes opening and baby movements
26 weeks pregnant is a stage at which, the NHS says, the baby is around 35.6 cm long from head to heel, about the size of a cucumber, and the eyes will be opening for the first time (NHS, 2026). This page sets out what the NHS, NICE and ACOG say about week 26.
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Bleeding and cramping are common in early pregnancy and often do not mean miscarriage. The symptoms below, however, need to be assessed straight away.
- Soaking two or more sanitary pads per hour, or passing large clots
- Severe lower abdominal pain, especially on one side
- Pain at the tip of the shoulder
- Dizziness, fainting, or collapse
- Signs of shock — pale, clammy, rapid heartbeat, breathlessness
- Pain on opening bowels, or bladder or bowel changes
- Feeling very unwell, or feverish
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How the sources describe development around 26 weeks
- Size and shape, NHS
- The NHS week 26 page in its week-by-week guide (NHS, 2026) gives the baby as around 35.6 cm long from head to heel and compares it to a cucumber. It says the eyes will be opening for the first time around now and that the next trick will be to learn how to blink.
- Eye colour, NHS
- The NHS calls it a myth that all babies are born with blue eyes, says the colour depends on the parents’ genetics and that brown is very common, and says the permanent colour is not known for a while, though it will probably have settled by the age of 3 (NHS, 2026).
- Development, ACOG
- ACOG’s list for weeks 25 to 28 includes lungs that are fully formed but not yet ready to function outside the uterus, eyelids that can open and close, lungs that begin to make surfactant, and a developing nervous system (ACOG, How Your Fetus Grows During Pregnancy, 2024). It does not date these to a single week.
Weeks are counted from the first day of the last menstrual period, so about two weeks of the count come before conception (ACOG, How Your Fetus Grows During Pregnancy, 2024). This page covers 26 weeks 0 days to 26 weeks 6 days.
A normal pregnancy lasts about 40 weeks from the first day of the last menstrual period, so at 26 weeks about 14 weeks remain to the estimated due date (ACOG, How Your Fetus Grows During Pregnancy, 2024). Your own due date depends on your last period or a scan, not on the week alone.
When the eyes open: the sources differ
The NHS week 26 page says the eyes will be opening for the first time around now, but its week 5 page says the baby’s eyes stay closed until around 28 weeks (NHS, 2026). The Office on Women’s Health says the eyelids close at 12 weeks and will not open again until the 28th week (Office on Women’s Health, Stages of pregnancy, 2025), and ACOG lists eyelids that can open and close among the developments of weeks 25 to 28 (ACOG, 2024). The sources put the opening of the eyes between about week 26 and week 28.
Baby movements
The NHS says there is a lot of activity inside your bump at the moment, and that if you are worried that the movements have slowed down or stopped you should contact your midwife or maternity unit straight away (NHS, 2026). NICE guideline NG201 says that after 24 weeks 0 days women should contact maternity services at any time of day or night if they have any concern about the baby’s movements or notice reduced movements (NICE, 2021).
Your body at 26 weeks, as the NHS describes it
The NHS says you may be getting more leg cramps now, particularly at night, and that you might feel more tired, clumsy and uncoordinated as you approach the third trimester because your centre of gravity has changed. It says “baby brain” is not a medical condition and is not scientifically proven, and that it is something some pregnant women report, which could be caused by tiredness and having a lot on your mind (NHS, 2026).
Work out which week you are in
The Pregnancy week calculator takes your last period, conception date, scan or IVF transfer and shows how many weeks and days pregnant you are today.
Sources
- NHS Best Start in Life. Week 26 of pregnancy (week-by-week guide to pregnancy). nhs.uk, 2026.
- National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Antenatal care (NG201). NICE, 2021.
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. How Your Fetus Grows During Pregnancy (FAQ156). ACOG, 2024.
- Office on Women's Health, US Department of Health and Human Services. Stages of pregnancy. womenshealth.gov, 2025.
Frequently asked questions
When do the baby’s eyes open?
The NHS says around week 26 on its week 26 page and around 28 weeks on its week 5 page (NHS, 2026). The Office on Women’s Health says not until the 28th week (Office on Women’s Health, 2025). The sources put it between about weeks 26 and 28.
Who should I contact if the baby’s movements change at 26 weeks?
The NHS says to contact your midwife or maternity unit straight away if you are worried that movements have slowed down or stopped (NHS, 2026). NICE says to contact maternity services at any time of day or night with any concern about movements after 24 weeks 0 days (NICE, 2021).