An adult human skeleton typically has 206 bones.
This standard count includes the bones of the axial skeleton, such as the skull, vertebral column and rib cage, and the appendicular skeleton, which includes the limbs and the bones that attach them to the trunk. The exact count can vary slightly because some people have additional small bones or bones that fuse differently.
Newborns have more separate bones than adults, often cited as about 270. As growth proceeds, several bones fuse. The three parts of each hip bone, for example, fuse during development, and parts of the skull also join together.
The 206 figure is therefore a conventional adult anatomical count, not an unchanging number for every person. It also excludes teeth, which are not counted as bones. Bone is living connective tissue containing cells, blood vessels and minerals, and the skeleton continually remodels throughout life.