Tips on expressing when you don’t have or need a pump.
Hand expressing is a useful skill and can be done without any special equipment, planning and cost. You can use it for short-term or occasional expressing, or even longer-term.
Why express by hand?
Colostrum is often easier to hand express in the first couple of days after your baby’s birth. Some women also express colostrum antenatally.
You can express to soften overfull breasts to help your baby attach and make your breasts more comfortable.
If you have damaged nipples, hand expressing is the gentlest way to express as it doesn’t put pressure on your nipples.
If you have a fast let-down reflex, expressing a little milk can help your baby feed more easily.
You may want to express and freeze your milk for occasional times away from your baby.
Hand expressing is useful for times when a pump is not convenient or available.
Even if you are using a breast pump, you may find you can get more milk at the end of an expressing session by hand expressing for a few minutes.
For mums who need to increase their milk supply, combining hand expressing with electric pumping has been found to improve milk production.1
How to hand express
- Thoroughly wash your hands and any containers you are using. There’s no need to sterilise them if your baby is well. Hot soapy water and air drying is fine. You can use any container to catch your milk in, but something with a wide opening is often easier as milk can squirt in all directions when you are expressing.
- Place your thumb and fingers on either side of your areola, well back from the nipple. A mirror may help if you can’t see the lower part of your breast.
- Gently press the thumb and fingers back into the breast tissue. Your breast may feel lumpy or tender at first.
- Press your thumb and fingers towards each other, using a slight rolling action to gently squeeze the breast and help move the milk out of the nipple. As the milk flows, the breast tissue softens and expressing becomes easier.
- Continue pressing in a rhythmical way until the let-down reflex happens and the milk flows more easily. (It may even spray from the nipple). This may take several minutes at first.
- When the flow slows, move your thumb and fingers around to another section of the breast. Then do the same on the other breast. Change hands and breasts frequently to avoid fingers becoming too tired.
Hand expressing can take practice
When you first try, you might feel quite discouraged if you only manage to get a small amount. With practice, you will become more familiar with the feel of your breasts and how to express.
Some mums become get very good at hand expressing with practice and can remove large volumes in a short amount of time. In fact, some prefer to express by hand than by a pump.
Below are some links to external sites containing video clips showing expressing (including hand expressing) and storing breastmilk. Please note that the opinions expressed at the sites listed below do not necessarily reflect those of the Australian Breastfeeding Association.
Hand expressing colostrum
Colostrum is thick and small in volume, so most mums collect it in a small syringe. You may be able to get these from the hospital or from your midwife or obstetrician.
- Wash your hands first and place a warm washer on your breast or have a warm shower before starting.
- As you massage and squeeze your breast, drops of colostrum should start to appear. At first you might only see a shiny spot on the end of your nipple and it may take a bit of practice before drops appear.
- Collect each drop of colostrum with the syringe as you work your way around the breast. Put the cap on the syringe and store it.
If you collect colostrum more than once a day, you can use the same syringe and store it in the fridge between sessions. At the end of the day, seal the syringe in a container like a ziplock bag and mark it with the date. Keep it in the freezer if you don't need it straight away.
If you need to transport your colostrum, check with your hospital for their procedures.
Read more about expressing colostrum.
© Australian Breastfeeding Association November 2025
Morton, J., Hall, J. Y., Wong, R. J., Thairu, I., Benitz, W. E., & Rhine, W. D. (2009). Combining hand techniques with electric pumping increases milk production in mothers of preterm infants. Journal of Perinatology, 29, 757–764.
Read more about expressing and storing
Evidence-led info and practical tips from our Breastfeeding Information Series
Breastfeeding: expressing and storing breastmilk
