Bristol Stool Chart: What Type Is Your Poop and What Does It Say?
The Bristol stool chart sorts poop into seven types, and the ideal is type 3 or 4: smooth, soft and easy to pass. “What’s your type?” sounds like a dating question, but your gut has a very clear answer. Find out which type you are and how to get to type 4.
What is the Bristol stool chart?
It’s a medical reference that sorts stool into seven types by shape and consistency. Doctors use it to judge how quickly food is moving through your gut.
What type is your poop?
| Type | Looks like | What it suggests |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Separate hard lumps, like nuts | Constipation |
| 2 | Sausage-shaped but lumpy | Mild constipation |
| 3 | Sausage with cracks on the surface | Normal |
| 4 | Smooth and soft, like a sausage or snake | Ideal |
| 5 | Soft blobs with clear edges | Food moving quickly |
| 6 | Fluffy and mushy, with ragged edges | Loose |
| 7 | Watery, with no solid pieces | Diarrhea |
What does healthy poop look like?
Type 3 or 4, passing without straining and leaving you feeling empty. Anywhere from three times a day to three times a week is normal. Your own pattern matters more than anyone else’s.
Why is my poop hard and lumpy (types 1 and 2)?
Usually too little fluid, fiber or movement, and stress or holding it in make it worse. Drink more water, eat more fiber (vegetables, oats, legumes), move every day and don’t ignore the urge.
Why is my poop loose (types 5 to 7)?
Causes include infections, food, stress and medication. For a short bout, drink plenty of fluids. See a doctor if it lasts more than a couple of days or comes with blood, fever or strong pain.
What do poop colors mean?
Green usually comes from leafy greens or food moving through quickly. Brown is typical. Black and tarry can signal bleeding high in the digestive tract, though iron, Pepto-Bismol and blueberries can also cause it. Red may come from beets or hemorrhoids. Pale, clay-colored stool can point to a liver or bile duct problem. See a doctor if black or pale stool persists, if there is a lot of blood, or if pain and fever come with it.
How do you get to type 4?
Drink regularly, eat fiber, move every day and don’t ignore the urge. Sit all the way down with your feet slightly raised, for example on a small stool. To spot patterns in your gut health, try our gut health quiz.
And afterwards: how do you get clean?
Type 4 is the easiest, but even then paper leaves traces. Rinsing with water is gentler and cleaner. Squeeze Moley is manual and portable; Electric Moley is rechargeable. Read bidet vs toilet paper for the details.
So, what’s your type? If it’s a 4, congratulations: your gut is happy. The rest is practice. And if you want that clean feeling everywhere you go, meet Squeeze Moley or Electric Moley.
This article is general information, not medical advice. If changes persist, or you have blood in your stool or pain, see a doctor.