WebMD Home A to Z Guides Email a Friend Print Article Birth ControlFont SizeA A A Choosing a Birth Control Method
With so many methods available and so many factors to consider, choosing birth control can be difficult. You may be able to decide on a method by asking yourself the following questions.

Might I want to have a biological child in the future?
One of your first considerations might be to determine whether you want permanent or temporary birth control. In other words, you should consider whether you want to conceive any (or more) children. This is a decision that will affect the rest of your life and can be made only after thinking it through carefully.


If you are not sure about the future even though you know how you feel now, a temporary method is a better choice. If you are young, have few or no children, are choosing sterilization because your partner wants it, or think it will solve money or relationship problems, you may regret your decision later.


How effective are different types of birth control?
See a table showing the birth control failure rates of each method.

Hormonal injections (Depo-Provera) and the hormonal and copper IUDs are highly effective methods of birth control (97% and 99.9% effective). That means fewer than 1 to 3 out of 100 women using these methods will become pregnant in a year.11

Birth control pills (both combination and progestin-only) have a high success rate of 92%. That means that 8 out of every 100 women taking pills become pregnant in a year. If taken carefully every day or at the same time every day, birth control pills are over 99% effective.11 The hormonal skin patch and vaginal ring are thought to be about as effective as birth control pills.


The male condom is 85% effective.11 This means that out of 100 couples who use only male condoms for birth control each time they have sex, 15 will become pregnant in a year.



Consider how comfortable you feel about using a particular method of birth control. If you are not comfortable with or might not consistently use a birth control method for any reason, that method is not likely to be reliable for you in the long run. A reality check for birth control methods can help you determine which method is right for you.

How can I prevent sexually transmitted diseases?
Unless you know that your partner has no other sex partners and is free of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), you are at risk for STD infection. If you are at risk, protect yourself from infection every time you have sex. Use a condom in addition to any other birth control method you choose.

You can choose between a male or female condom to reduce your risk for HIV (the virus that causes AIDS), gonorrhea, syphilis, chlamydia, genital warts, herpes, pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), and other infections.

What health factors could limit my choice of birth control?
If you have health problems or other risk factors, some birth control methods may not be right for you.

Smoking. If you smoke more than 15 cigarettes a day and are 35 or older or have high blood pressure, a history of stroke, a history of blood clots, liver disease, or heart disease, you may not be able to use combined hormonal methods.
Migraines. If you have migraine headaches, talk to your health professional about whether you can try combined hormonal contraception.
Diabetes. If you have advanced or long-standing diabetes, discuss the risks of taking hormonal birth control methods with your health professional.
Other health problems that might keep you from using a particular birth control method are relatively rare, especially in young women. However, before using any method, you should talk with your health professional to see if it is safe for you.

If you are at risk of sexually transmitted disease (STD) infection,
Depo-Provera. Use of Depo-Provera may increase the risk of chlamydia or gonorrhea infection among women who are exposed to these diseases.13 If you have any risk of getting an STD, use condoms.
Using Depo-Provera for 2 or more years can also cause bone loss, which may not be fully reversible after stopping the medication.14 Bone loss can lead to osteoporosis later in life, a condition that causes bones to become thin and brittle, making them more likely to break.

A small study among teens showed that bone loss from Depo-Provera was reversed after they stopped getting the shots.15 Talk to your doctor about your risks if you have used Depo-Provera longer than 2 years.

What other factors might influence my decision?
Each method has benefits.

Combination pills, which contain both estrogen and progestin, may reduce acne, pain during ovulation, premenstrual symptoms, and heavy menstrual bleeding and cramping.
Seaso One combination pill called Yasmin may help reduce severe mood and physical symptoms that some women get before they start their monthly periods.4 These symptoms are called premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD).

Seasonale is a combination pill you take for 84 days rather than the normal 21 days; then you take no pills for 7 days in order to have a period (menstruate). This decreases your menstrual periods to only 4 a year.

The progestin IUD (Mirena) and the progestin-only injection (Depo-Provera) can relieve cramping and menstrual bleeding, make periods less frequent, or even stop periods altogether. Unlike the combination pill, most women can take the progestin-only pill, including those who are breast-feeding (because estrogen lowers milk supply). However, you must take the progestin-only pill at the same time each day to prevent pregnancy.