Baby Vaccination Schedule South Africa

What this baby vaccine schedule tracker does

This free tool turns the official vaccination schedule in South Africa into personal clinic dates for your child. Enter your baby’s date of birth and you’ll see every vaccine they’re due for, from birth to 12 years.

Most vaccine schedule charts stop there. This one goes further:

• It tracks what’s already been given. Tick off each vaccine and enter the date from your Road to Health booklet.
• It adjusts when a vaccine was late. If your baby got a dose a few weeks late (it happens to almost every parent), the tracker works out when the next dose is due, using the Department of Health’s catch-up rules.
• It tells you exactly when to go back. You’ll see your next clinic visit, how many days away it is and which vaccines to expect.
• It keeps you organised. Add every visit to your phone calendar with a reminder, share the next date on WhatsApp, or print a fridge sheet.

You can track more than one child, and everything is saved on your own device. Nothing is sent to us.

Important: This tool is for general guidance only. Your clinic nurse or doctor has the final say on your child’s vaccines, especially if any were late or missed.

How to use the vaccine tracker

1. Enter your baby’s name (optional) and date of birth.
2. Tap Build schedule to see every clinic date, grouped by age.
3. Tick Mark as given for each vaccine your child has had, and change the date to match the Road to Health booklet.
4. Check the results box for your next clinic visit. If anything is overdue, it shows at the top.
5. Tap Add to calendar to save all upcoming visits to your phone, with a reminder the day before.

Come back after every clinic visit and tick off the new vaccines. Your schedule updates automatically.

Got more than one child? Tap + Add another child to keep a separate schedule for each of them.

Baby vaccination schedule in South Africa (public clinics)

The baby vaccination schedule in South Africa is set by the Department of Health’s Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI). Every vaccine on it is free at public clinics. The table shows the current schedule, revised in January 2024.

A hepatitis B dose at birth is only given to babies whose mothers are hepatitis B positive. Your birth facility will let you know if your baby needs it.

By 18 months, your child should have had four doses of the hexavalent vaccine and two doses of measles-rubella.

What each vaccine protects against

What changed in the vaccine schedule in 2024

If you have an older child, you might notice their booklet looks a little different. The 2024 update made three main changes:

• Measles became measles-rubella (MR). The combined MR vaccine replaced the measles-only vaccine at 6 and 12 months. If your child had a measles-only dose before the switch, they don’t need to catch up.
• The pneumococcal vaccine changed from PCV13 to PCV10. The two are treated as interchangeable, so there’s no catch-up needed.
• The school-age boosters changed from Td to Tdap, which adds whooping cough protection. Again, no catch-up is needed if your child had Td.

What if your baby’s vaccine was late?

A late vaccine doesn’t mean starting over. In most cases your child simply picks up where they left off. The main thing that changes is the timing of the next dose.

Some vaccines need a minimum gap between doses. So if one dose was late, the next one moves back too. This is why the date in your booklet doesn’t always match the standard schedule. The tracker works this out for you, based on the national catch-up guidelines:

• Hexavalent: at least 4 weeks between doses 1, 2 and 3. The booster can’t be given before 18 months.
• Pneumococcal (PCV): at least 4 weeks between doses 1 and 2, then at least 8 weeks before dose 3. If the first dose is given after the first birthday, one dose is enough.
• Polio drops (OPV): at least 4 weeks apart. These drops aren’t given from 6 months onwards.
• Measles-Rubella (MR): dose 2 at 12 months, or at least 4 weeks after dose 1 if dose 1 was late.
• Rotavirus: this one has a strict cut-off. It isn’t given after 24 weeks of age. If the first dose is given between 20 and 24 weeks, only one dose is used.
• BCG: can be caught up until the first birthday.

Missed a vaccine? Go to your clinic as soon as you can, even if it’s been months. Bring the Road to Health booklet so the nurse can see exactly what’s been given.

Private vaccination schedule in South Africa

The private vaccination schedule in South Africa includes everything on the public schedule, plus a few extra vaccines. You pay for these at a private clinic, pharmacy or paediatrician, and many medical aids cover some or all of the cost. Check your plan.

Private schedules aren’t standardised, so they vary between doctors. Some paediatricians follow a 6, 10 and 14-week pattern for the first doses, while others use 2, 4 and 6 months. This is what a typical private schedule looks like:

The main extras privately: mumps (in MMR), chickenpox, hepatitis A, meningococcal disease, yearly flu and HPV for boys.

Using a private paediatrician? The tracker above follows the public schedule, so your dates may differ. Ask your doctor for their schedule and use the tracker as a guide for the vaccines the two schedules share.

Can you mix public and private? Yes, many parents do. For example, they get the free vaccines at a clinic and pay for the extras privately. Ask your doctor about timing, since some vaccines need a gap between them, and keep everything recorded in the same Road to Health booklet.

Child vaccination schedule in South Africa: after the baby years

The child vaccination schedule in South Africa doesn’t end at 18 months. There are three more vaccines to keep track of:

• 6 years: Tdap booster. This tops up protection against tetanus, diphtheria and whooping cough before your child starts school.
• 9 years: HPV. It’s given to girls in Grade 5 through the school health programme, not at routine clinic visits. Look out for the consent form from school.
• 12 years: second Tdap booster. This keeps your child protected into their teens.

These are easy to forget because they’re years apart. Add them to your calendar from the tracker now, so you get a reminder when the time comes.

Tips for clinic day

• Always bring the Road to Health booklet. It’s your child’s official vaccine record, and you’ll need it for school and travel later on.
• Take a photo of the vaccine page after every visit, in case the booklet gets lost.
• Dress your baby in clothes that give easy access to the thighs and arms.
• Feed or cuddle your baby during or straight after the injections. It helps them settle.
• Ask the nurse when to come back, and check it against the date in this tracker.

Frequently asked questions about baby vaccination schedule south africa

Are baby vaccines free in South Africa? Yes. Every vaccine on the public schedule is free at government clinics. Extra vaccines on the private schedule are paid for, but often covered by medical aid.

Can my baby get vaccines if they have a cold? A mild illness like a runny nose usually isn’t a reason to delay. Always tell the nurse if your baby is unwell, especially if they have a fever. They’ll decide whether to go ahead.

What side effects are normal? A mild fever, extra fussiness, and a sore or red spot where the injection went in are common for a day or two. Contact your clinic or doctor if your baby has a high fever, cries in a way you can’t settle, or seems very unwell. Get emergency help straight away for any swelling of the face, trouble breathing or a sudden rash.

What if I lost the Road to Health booklet? Ask your clinic for a replacement. They may be able to fill in past vaccines from their own records.

Where is my tracker information saved? Only on your own phone or computer, in your browser. If you clear your browser data or switch devices, you’ll need to enter it again.

A gentle reminder

Almost every parent misses a clinic date at some point. Babies get sick, appointments clash, life happens. A late vaccine is far better than no vaccine, and catching up is usually simple.

Use this tracker to:

• Know what’s coming next
• Catch up calmly if a date slipped by
• Keep your child’s record organised in one place

This tool is for general information only and doesn’t replace advice from a nurse, doctor or pharmacist. Your clinic will confirm the right schedule for your child, especially if your baby was born prematurely, has a medical condition or has missed several vaccines.