Parents with red hair: what hair colour will the baby have?
In this model, your child will have red hair. In this simple model, black or brown hair and blond hair are not possible.
Most likely hair colour
Red
“Unlikely” means 0% in this simple model. Hair colour depends on many genes, so it can still happen.
Hair often darkens through childhood: a blond toddler can be brown-haired by their teens, and a baby's first hair often falls out and grows back a different shade.
Red can also come out as strawberry blond or auburn, depending on the other genes.
Estimate from a two-gene model: one gene for dark or light pigment, and MC1R for red.
A simplified estimate for fun. Real genetics is more complex.
How we work it out
The model uses two genes: one for dark or light pigment, where dark wins, and MC1R, where red only shows when a child gets the red version from both parents. Here, dark means black or brown: the model treats them alike.
Two red-haired parents each have two red versions of MC1R, so in this model every child gets two, and red hair.
Frequently asked questions
Can parents with red hair have a baby with black or brown hair?
Not in this simple model. Hair colour depends on many genes, so it can still happen, but rarely.
Can parents with red hair have a baby with blond hair?
Not in this simple model. Hair colour depends on many genes, so it can still happen, but rarely.
Can parents with red hair have a baby with red hair?
Yes. In this model the child will have red hair.
- MedlinePlus Genetics (US National Library of Medicine): Is hair color determined by genetics?
- Valverde P et al. Variants of the melanocyte-stimulating hormone receptor gene are associated with red hair and fair skin in humans. Nature Genetics 1995;11:328-330
- The Tech Interactive, Ask a Geneticist: What are the chances my child will have red hair and blue eyes?
- Morgan MD et al. Genome-wide study of hair colour in UK Biobank explains most of the SNP heritability. Nature Communications 2018;9:5271