14 Old Wives' Tales for Predicting a Baby's Sex (and Why None of Them Work)

Old wives' tales about predicting a baby's sex are great party material and useless as a forecast. None of them do better than a coin flip. Here are 14 classics, what each claims, and a simple way to turn them into a quiz your guests can score before the real reveal.

A quick note before the list: versions differ by family and region, and some people swear by the exact opposite of what's written here. That's a good sign you're dealing with folklore. If Aunt Carol insists you've got one backwards, let her have it. She'll enjoy that.

The body tales

1. Carrying high or low

The claim: carrying high means a girl, carrying low means a boy.

The reality: bumps come in every shape, and the shape is not a sex test. Ask three relatives if you're carrying high and you'll get three answers.

2. Out front or all around

The claim: a bump that sticks straight out like a basketball means a boy. Weight spread around the hips and waist means a girl.

The reality: same as above. People carrying boys and girls both end up with every kind of bump.

3. The line on the belly

The claim: the dark line some people get down the middle of the belly (the linea nigra) predicts a boy if it runs above the belly button, and a girl if it stops below.

The reality: plenty of people get this line and plenty don't. Its length doesn't track the baby's sex.

4. Skin breakouts

The claim: "a girl steals her mother's beauty," so acne means a girl and glowing skin means a boy.

The reality: skin changes happen in lots of pregnancies, whatever the baby's sex. Also, nobody should be told a baby is stealing their looks.

5. Hair that's thicker or duller

The claim: thick, shiny hair means a boy. Thin or dull hair means a girl.

The reality: whatever your hair is doing, it has nothing to do with the baby's sex.

6. Cold feet

The claim: cold feet mean a boy.

The reality: cold feet mean cold feet. Buy socks.

The appetite and feelings tales

7. Cravings

The claim: salty or sour cravings mean a boy. Sweet cravings mean a girl.

The reality: cravings are real and very personal. Pickles at midnight say a lot about your fridge and nothing about the baby.

8. Morning sickness

The claim: bad morning sickness means a girl.

The reality: people carrying boys and people carrying girls both get morning sickness, mild and rough. If it's severe, call your provider, not a fortune teller.

9. Mood swings

The claim: big mood swings mean a girl.

The reality: pregnancy is a lot. Moods swing either way.

10. Sleeping side

The claim: sleeping on your left side means a boy, on your right means a girl.

The reality: the side you sleep on tells you about your mattress and your pillow situation, and nothing else.

The test tales

11. The ring test

The claim: hang a ring (or a needle) on a thread over the belly or the inside of the wrist. If it swings in a circle, it's a girl. If it swings back and forth in a line, it's a boy. Many families tell it the other way around.

The reality: the ring moves because the hand holding it moves, even slightly. It's still the most fun one to do with a group.

12. The heart rate

The claim: a fetal heart rate above 140 beats per minute means a girl, below means a boy.

The reality: probably the most repeated tale on this list, and it predicts no better than chance. If you hear the number at an appointment, enjoy it as trivia.

13. The Chinese gender calendar

The claim: a chart that crosses the mother's lunar age at conception with the lunar month of conception, and tells you boy or girl.

The reality: it does no better than guessing. It's fun anyway, because you have to work out the lunar dates, which turns into a small group puzzle.

14. The Mayan method

The claim: add the mother's age at conception to the year of conception. If both numbers are even or both are odd, it's a girl. If one is even and one is odd, it's a boy.

The reality: arithmetic, but not biology. Coin flip odds.

How to know for real

If you actually want to find out, two things work, and neither is folklore. The mid-pregnancy anatomy ultrasound, usually around 18 to 22 weeks, can show the baby's sex. Cell-free DNA blood screening (NIPT), from about 10 weeks, may include sex chromosome results. Neither is 100% certain, so ask your provider what's available to you.

That gives you the real answer in a sealed envelope. The tales are just for the party.

Turn the tales into a party quiz

The tales are perfect for a reveal party because everyone has an opinion and nobody can be proven right until the end. Here are three ways to play. You can also pair them with other gender reveal games for a full afternoon.

The Tale Tally

The host reads each tale. The parent-to-be answers out loud ("Sweet or salty?" "Definitely salty."). Everyone marks which way that tale points on the scorecard below. At the end, count the column with more marks. That's the official verdict of the tales.

Then reveal the real answer and see whether folklore won.

Which way does it point?

The host reads only the first half of a tale: "If the ring swings in a circle, it means…" Guests write boy or girl. One point for each one they get right according to the version you're using. Highest score wins a small prize.

This one works especially well on a video call, since guests can type their answers in the chat.

Beat the coin

For each tale, someone flips a real coin: heads for boy, tails for girl. Keep two columns, Tales and Coin. After the reveal, see which one got closer. The coin usually holds its own, which is exactly the point.

Printable scorecard

Print one per guest, or put it on a shared screen.

Tale	What it says	Our answer	Points to
Carrying high or low	High = girl, low = boy
Out front or all around	Out front = boy
Belly line	Above belly button = boy
Skin	Breakouts = girl
Hair	Thick and shiny = boy
Cold feet	Cold = boy
Cravings	Salty or sour = boy, sweet = girl
Morning sickness	Bad = girl
Mood swings	Big swings = girl
Sleeping side	Left = boy, right = girl
Ring test	Circle = girl, line = boy
Heart rate	Above 140 = girl
Chinese calendar	Check the chart
Mayan method	Both even or both odd = girl
Total		Boy: ___ Girl: ___

Before the party

• Pick 8 to 10 tales, not all 14. The quiz should take about 15 minutes, not an hour.
• Agree on which version of each tale you're using, and write it down, so nobody argues mid-game.
• Work out the Chinese calendar and Mayan numbers in advance. Lunar dates take longer than you'd think.
• Find a ring and a piece of thread. A sewing needle works too.
• Ask the parent-to-be which questions they're happy to answer in front of everyone. Skin and mood questions are optional.
• Print the scorecards, or make one shared slide.
• Plan to read out the tales' verdict right before the reveal. If you're doing the reveal online with a game like Nobody Peeks, announce the verdict just before the first cup is lifted, so the whole group knows what folklore is betting on.