9 weeks pregnant: hormones and when the baby’s sex is known
9 weeks pregnant is a stage at which, the NHS says, the baby is around 22 mm long, about the size of a strawberry, with a recognisable face and the major internal organs developing (NHS, 2026). This page sets out what the NHS and ACOG say about week 9.
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Seek help now if you have any of these symptoms
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 9 weeks
- Size and shape, NHS
- The NHS week 9 page in its week-by-week guide (NHS, 2026) gives the baby as around 22 mm long from head to bottom and compares it to a strawberry. It says the face looks more recognisable, with eyes protected by eyelids, a little mouth and a tongue with tiny taste buds, and that the hands and feet are developing but have grooves rather than fingers and toes.
- Organs, NHS
- The NHS says the heart, brain, lungs, kidneys and gut are all developing, bones are starting to form and the genitals are starting to take shape. It says you probably will not find out if the baby is a boy or a girl until your anomaly scan, at around 18 to 21 weeks (NHS, 2026).
- Development, ACOG
- ACOG groups weeks 9 to 12 together. Its list includes cartilage for the limbs, hands and feet starting to form but not hardening into bone for a few weeks, eyelids forming but remaining closed, and the genitals beginning to form (ACOG, How Your Fetus Grows During Pregnancy, 2024). The list is not broken down week by 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 9 weeks 0 days to 9 weeks 6 days.
A normal pregnancy lasts about 40 weeks from the first day of the last menstrual period, so at 9 weeks about 31 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.
Hormones at 9 weeks, as the NHS describes them
The NHS says that when you are 9 weeks pregnant the pregnancy hormone human chorionic gonadotropin is at its peak, and that you also have higher levels of oestrogen and progesterone, which together help to increase the blood supply to the womb. It says some women describe this time as an emotional rollercoaster and asks people to get lots of rest and accept offers of help (NHS, 2026).
The NHS adds that, week by week, you should start feeling better, and that in a month you will be entering the second trimester, when many people start to feel much better. It lists the same range of early signs as earlier weeks, including extreme tiredness, feeling sick, mood swings and light spotting, and repeats that you should see your doctor if you get bleeding in pregnancy (NHS, 2026). When does morning sickness start sets out when sickness usually peaks and eases, and hyperemesis gravidarum covers sickness that is severe.
Your baby’s eyes
The NHS says the baby’s eyes are getting bigger and will have a bit of colour in them now. It calls it a myth that all babies are born with blue eyes and says they could be anything from slate grey to inky black depending on the parents’ genetics, and that eye colour often changes after birth (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 9 of pregnancy (week-by-week guide to pregnancy). nhs.uk, 2026.
- 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
Can the baby’s sex be seen at 9 weeks?
The NHS says the genitals are starting to take shape at 9 weeks, but that you probably will not find out the sex until the anomaly scan at around 18 to 21 weeks (NHS, 2026). The Office on Women’s Health says the external sex organs show if the baby is a boy or a girl at 12 weeks, and that an ultrasound in the second trimester or later might show the sex (Office on Women’s Health, Stages of pregnancy, 2025).
How big is the baby at 9 weeks pregnant?
The NHS says around 22 mm long from head to bottom, about the size of a strawberry (NHS, 2026).