Need more Dwellers? The fastest free way to grow your vault population is to make babies – literally. In Fallout Shelter, breeding is a core mechanic that lets you increase your numbers without waiting for radio studio or lunchboxes.
This guide walks you through exactly how to make babies, how long it takes, what stats matter, and how to do it efficiently without overwhelming your resources. Visit our other guide to discover all of the methods to getting more dwellers in Fallout Shelter.
Fallout Shelter is available on multiple platforms, but this guide is written with mobile players in mind – whether you’re on Android or iOS.
How to Make Babies in Fallout Shelter
To make a baby, all you need is:
1 male Dweller
1 female Dweller
An available Living Quarters
Note: The male and female dweller CANNOT be related.
Step-by-Step Guide
1: Drag a male and female dweller into the same Living Quarters.
2: Wait for them to interact. If they have decent Charisma, they’ll start chatting, laughing, and eventually run off together.
3: The female dweller becomes pregnant shortly after.
4: She’ll give birth after 3 real-time hours. You will need to give the new addition a name.
5: The baby will become an adult Dweller after another 3 hours.
Tip: You don’t need to stay in the game; the timer runs even when you’re offline. You will however, need to confirm the birth after the initial 3 hours for the dweller to grow into adult.
Does Charisma Affect Breeding?
Yes, Charisma plays a big part in how fast two Dwellers couple up and make a baby.
Higher Charisma = faster interactions and pregnancy
Dwellers with low Charisma may take longer or reject each other
Outfit bonus: Equip Dwellers with Charisma-boosting outfits (such as Lounge Wear or Formal Wear) to speed up the process.
Related: What Each SPECIAL Stat Does in Fallout Shelter
How Long Does Pregnancy Take?
Pregnancy duration: 3 hours real time
Baby-to-adult growth time: 3 hours real time
Total time from start to adult Dweller: 6 hours
This is the slowest method for gaining new Dwellers, but it’s reliable and free, perfect for early game vault expansion.
Things to Know About Pregnancy
Pregnant Dwellers cannot fight – they will run from any incidents (raiders, fires, etc.)
You can continue to assign them to rooms, but they’re not combat-ready
You can have multiple pregnant Dwellers at once, but don’t overdo it – they still consume food and water
Can Babies Be Legendary Dwellers?
No, babies inherit the average of their parents’ stats, but they cannot be Legendary or Rare like lunchbox dwellers. That said, if you breed two high-SPECIAL parents, their child will have better stats than average.
Tip: Train the parents’ SPECIAL stats before breeding to pass on better traits.
Related: How to Raise SPECIAL Stats Over 10 in Fallout Shelter
Summary
Making babies in Fallout Shelter is one of the most reliable ways to grow your vault, just be smart about when and how many you bring into the world.
Time your pregnancies to avoid resource strain, train your parents for better stats, and manage your population growth to keep your vault stable and efficient.
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