Do girls talk earlier than boys?
On average, a little. But the difference is small next to how much children vary, whether they're girls or boys.
What studies found
In our own count of pooled parent reports (the Wordbank collection, mostly American families), half of girls were saying at least one word by 9 months, and half of boys by 10 months. By 16 months, nearly all girls and boys were (97 in 100 or more).
At 2 years, the typical girl in these reports said about 280 of the words on the list her parent filled in, and the typical boy about 190. But children varied far more than that: the middle half of girls said anywhere from about 115 to 450 words, and the middle half of boys from about 75 to 360.
A large study in four countries also found girls reached most milestones slightly earlier. For 102 of its 106 milestones, though, the ages for girls and boys were practically the same.
A large Danish study of children born around 1960 also found girls reached talking milestones a little earlier, on average.
What we don’t know yet
Why girls are a little ahead on average.
The studies
Read more: First words, Saying about 50 words, Two-word phrases
If you’re worried about your child, talk to your GP or child and family health nurse.