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Oct 24, 2024

The 5 Best Pregnancy Tests of 2024 | Reviews by Wirecutter

By Amanda B. Keener We’ve updated pricing and availability throughout this guide. A pregnancy test result should be clear and trustworthy. Choosing a reliable test upfront may save you the emotional

By Amanda B. Keener

We’ve updated pricing and availability throughout this guide.

A pregnancy test result should be clear and trustworthy. Choosing a reliable test upfront may save you the emotional turmoil of an uncertain result. Or, at the very least, it will save you some cash.

We’ve assessed 26 different tests, scoured online reviews and manufacturers’ testing data, and talked with a clinical chemist, a fertility specialist, and an expert on the pregnancy hormone hCG. We’re confident that First Response Early Result is the home pregnancy test to take.

The First Response Early Result wand test is the most sensitive home pregnancy test available in the US. We also found it very easy to use and read.

Clearblue Early Detection is another great choice for early testers. It’s slightly less sensitive than First Response Early Result, but it has a wider absorbent tip and a longer handle.

If having an ultra-easy-to-read result is your top priority, this pricey test bests the digital wand competition.

As accurate and nearly as sensitive as First Response Early Result at the time of a missed period, these inexpensive strips (currently about 40¢ per test) are useful for anyone who anticipates testing often.

Another inexpensive test option, these strips are a touch less sensitive than MomMed strips at the time of a missed period.

Home pregnancy tests detect the hormone hCG, which is found in urine after a fertilized egg has implanted in the uterus.

A test’s accuracy changes depending on when you test. The same test will be less accurate before an expected period than after.

A test’s sensitivity is defined as the lowest amount of hCG it can detect 99% of the time. Most tests are comparably sensitive.

If you have any questions after taking a home pregnancy test, consult a medical professional.

Of course, the best test for you depends on your needs and your budget. We have recommendations for other traditional wand tests, digital wand tests (which display a “yes” or “pregnant” or “no” or “not pregnant” result on a screen), bulk packs of test strips, and store-brand tests.

The First Response Early Result wand test is the most sensitive home pregnancy test available in the US. We also found it very easy to use and read.

The First Response Early Result wand test can detect the pregnancy hormone hCG at lower levels than most home pregnancy tests, so it’s a good choice for anyone who wants to test before they’ve missed a period. This test is a good size, easy to handle, and produces sharp pink lines.

Cost per test (at the time of publication): about $4.50

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Clearblue Early Detection is another great choice for early testers. It’s slightly less sensitive than First Response Early Result, but it has a wider absorbent tip and a longer handle.

Clearblue is best known for its blue-dye plus-sign tests, but the pink-dye Clearblue Early Detection test is more sensitive and, in our experience, easier to read. This test’s sensitivity is similar to that of the First Response Early Result. The Clearblue Early Detection test has a nice long handle and a wide absorbent tip (though it needs plenty of urine to work properly).

Cost per test (at the time of publication): about $4.50

If having an ultra-easy-to-read result is your top priority, this pricey test bests the digital wand competition.

With digital tests, you won’t have to squint to determine a test result, but they’re not as sensitive as our other wand picks. On a per-test-basis, this one is expensive, but we think the Clearblue Digital is worth the added cost compared with store-brand digital tests.

Cost per test (at the time of publication): about $5

As accurate and nearly as sensitive as First Response Early Result at the time of a missed period, these inexpensive strips (currently about 40¢ per test) are useful for anyone who anticipates testing often.

If you prioritize paying less per test (above testing early), and you prefer or are okay with the dip method, consider test strips. MomMed Pregnancy Test strips are as accurate—and, at the time of a missed period, nearly as sensitive—as our wand picks (they’re less accurate when used earlier). Plus, these strips come in a pack with disposable cups for urine collection.

Cost per test (at the time of publication): about 40¢

Another inexpensive test option, these strips are a touch less sensitive than MomMed strips at the time of a missed period.

Easy@Home Pregnancy Test Strips are nearly as sensitive as the MomMed strips we recommend, but they cost a bit more and don’t come with cups.

Cost per test (at the time of publication): about 50¢

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For this guide, we interviewed Dr. Brindha Bavan, an obstetrician-gynecologist, reproductive endocrinologist, and fertility specialist at Stanford Medicine; Dina Greene, PhD, an associate laboratory director at LetsGetChecked and a clinical associate professor of chemistry at the University of Washington at the time of our interview, who has co-authored several published studies on hCG testing in clinical settings; and David Grenache, PhD, chief scientific officer at a diagnostic testing company and a clinical professor of pathology at the University of New Mexico who has studied hCG for more than 15 years.

I am a science writer with a PhD in microbiology and immunology. I spent seven years in the lab performing and also designing antibody-based assays that use the same chemical principles as at-home hCG tests. I’ve also experienced two pregnancies—one after a year of trying and one that was a complete surprise. So I’ve squinted at my share of faint lines, and I know what it feels like to wait alone in the bathroom for a result that has the potential to change your life.

Home pregnancy tests should really be called human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) tests, said David Grenache, a clinical chemist who specializes in diagnostic testing. The tests can detect the presence of hCG, a hormone that’s measurable in urine after a fertilized egg burrows into the uterine wall. But they don’t truly tell you that you’re carrying a viable pregnancy. There are also rare medical conditions or medical treatments that make hCG detectable in the urine. So even though it’s a good indicator for pregnancy, a positive result doesn’t always mean you’re pregnant.

This burrowing event typically happens anywhere from six to 12 days after ovulation, when a fertilized egg first leaves the ovary. Ovulation occurs between days 12 and 16 of the menstrual cycle, which begins on the first day of a person’s period. Health-care providers measure pregnancy from day 1 of the cycle, which is the first day of a person’s last period. So by the time hCG is present at measurable levels (around day 18 to 28), from a medical standpoint, a pregnancy may be three or four weeks along, even though the fertilized egg has only just implanted.

Once the body begins producing more hCG, its amount in the blood and urine roughly doubles every two or three days for the first eight to nine weeks of pregnancy. After implantation, someone might have anywhere from 5 to 50 mIU/mL of hCG in their pee (mlU/mL means milli-International Units per milliliter, a standardized unit).

Some researchers have estimated that 25 mIU/mL is the lowest amount of hCG a test must be able to measure in order to identify 99% of true positives on the day of an expected period or later. This measure of how frequently a test correctly identifies a positive or negative is a test’s accuracy.

Accuracy changes depending on what day you use the test. A test that claims to be 99% accurate on the day of an expected period may claim just 50% accuracy a few days earlier. Pretty much every pregnancy test has a chart on the box or in the instructions outlining these numbers. You may notice that many tests display their claimed accuracies relative to the day of a “missed period,” which can be misleading. What this actually means is the day after your expected period.

Of course, this is all assuming you have an average-length cycle and that you always ovulate exactly two weeks after your period. In reality, test accuracies are affected by the lengths of different phases of the menstrual cycle, when an egg may have been fertilized, and how long it took a fertilized egg to reach the uterus, among other things.

A test’s accuracy is different from its sensitivity, which is defined as the lowest amount of hCG a test can detect 99% of the time. For some tests, this value can be as low as 10 mIU/mL, but for most it is around 25 mIU/mL. Manufacturers determine this using standardized samples with known concentrations of purified hCG. Some at-home tests, like the First Response Early Result test we recommend, can detect hCG levels as low as 6 mIU/mL, but only about half the time. The sensitivity of the same test can also vary from person to person because everyone has a different mixture of hCG forms in their urine.

All pregnancy tests detect whole hCG, which has an alpha and a beta region. As hCG degrades, other varieties appear in the urine, including the alpha and beta region on their own and a variant called the beta core fragment. There’s also hyperglycosylated hCG (hCG-H). Some research has suggested that detecting hCG-H could allow a pregnancy test to work earlier. But, Grenache explained, by the time hCG-H appears in urine, regular hCG is already present at measurable levels. Some tests detect several of these variants, but it’s not clear whether that makes them more sensitive.

It’s possible for any pregnancy test to give false positive or false negative results.

False positives are rare. But they may occur if, for example, you test early, when hCG levels are high enough to be picked up by a pregnancy test but there’s no viable pregnancy. This could be due to a chemical pregnancy, when the fertilized egg fails to continue growing after implanting or never finishes implanting. Often, this will end in miscarriage around the time of an expected period.

False negatives—where a test reads negative but a potentially viable pregnancy has begun—are more common. Usually, these are not “false negatives” at all—they’re simply the result of a test taken when the level of urine hCG is lower than what the test can detect. “I do advise patients that you ideally want to check on the day of your missed period onward for the most accurate results,” Dr. Bavan said.

It is also possible to get a false negative result after using a test on a day the box says it should be 99% accurate. This is because of how different the levels of urine hCG are from person to person, and even how much they can change throughout the day in the same person. Your hCG may be on the low end, or your pee may be very dilute.

You can also get a false negative if your urine hCG levels are very high. Sometimes people test for days or weeks after a confirmed pregnancy for reassurance that they are still pregnant. Grenache warns that this may result in false negatives due to something called the hook effect, when an excess amount of hCG makes it difficult for the test to work properly. A similar problem called the variant hook effect can also occur, usually starting by around nine weeks’ gestation, when one variety of the beta fragment of hCG is present at higher levels than whole hCG. “Paradoxically, you end up with a less positive, or sometimes a negative result if you test too late in pregnancy,” he said.

So how do the tests actually detect hCG? Most of the action takes place along a narrow strip of a special absorbent type of paper. Each strip is pre-loaded with molecules needed to detect hCG and create a colored band and a control band. As urine containing hCG gets wicked up the paper, it passes areas where those molecules have been deposited.

Each test’s design is slightly different, but it generally goes like this: In the first area of the paper the urine hits, dyed antibodies cling to the beta region of hCG, and together, the two molecules flow forward to a second area, where antibodies that cling to hCG’s alpha region are stuck to the paper. These capture the hCG and the dyed antibody, and as the dyed antibodies accumulate, they create a visible line. In the meantime, extra dyed antibody that has not stuck onto any hCG flows on to the control zone, where it gets trapped by a third antibody. It accumulates and creates a visible control line, letting the tester know they used enough urine to make the test work.

In wand tests, all of this happens inside a plastic casing with a handle, and the test zone and control zone are usually under a clear layer of plastic. The urine is picked up by an absorbent material at one end of the wand, either by the tester peeing directly on it (the “stream” method) or dipping it into a cup of urine. The absorbent tip carries the urine to the paper strip inside the wand.

Digital tests work the same way, except they have a sensor that detects the presence of the test line and control line and a screen that displays the results.

Some tests come inside a cassette instead of a wand, much like some at-home COVID-19 tests. The cassette has the same kind of strip inside, but there’s no plastic layer covering the test zone. Instead of an absorbent tip, they have a circular area where the strip is exposed. They come with a dropper you use to transfer a few drops of urine onto the exposed area. You usually have to provide your own cup.

Finally, there are just strips, with no plastic casing at all. They must be dipped into a clean cup of urine. Because they’re exposed, they may be more likely to fail after being in very high or very low temperatures or high humidity.

Any home pregnancy test will have limitations, Dr. Bavan said, so be sure to follow up with a doctor if you get a positive result, or if you have any other questions about testing for potential pregnancy at home. Greene said a blood test is the most accurate and sensitive test for hCG. According to Greene, physicians don’t always automatically order blood tests, though, so if you really need to know very early on, ask for one.

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We chose 26 tests to try based on their popularity and availability, as well as their ratings at online retailers. We also walked into pharmacy chains and big-box retailers to see what someone in need of a test ASAP might find on the shelves. We then looked at the following:

Accuracy and sensitivity. In the US, all pregnancy tests must be cleared by the Food and Drug Administration. For this, manufacturers must have shown that the tests can detect the levels of hCG claimed, at least most of the time. “Consumers should have confidence that a test that’s on the market and FDA-cleared is appropriate for use, if they use it as intended,” Grenache said.

Pretty much any test should be close to 100% accurate seven days after your expected period. Of course, not everyone has a predictable or typical cycle, and many people will want or need to test as early as possible. So we considered each test’s claimed accuracy starting at four or five days before an expected period, as well as the sensitivity and accuracy data that each manufacturer reported to the FDA. We also looked at the types of hCG each test detects, whether the company tested for the hook effect and variant hook effect, and at which concentrations of hCG and hCG beta they performed the tests.

Keep in mind that all of that data comes from the manufacturers. Very few tests have been assessed for accuracy and sensitivity in peer-reviewed, independent research studies, and “the publications that have been performed on them are few and far between,” Greene told us.

Pretty much any test should be close to 100% accurate seven days after your expected period.

A few tests available in the US have been studied in independent research, including Clearblue and First Response. Most studies are at least 10 years old, and many haven’t been repeated by other labs, but we took the results into consideration. Accuracy and sensitivity aside, there are a lot of other factors that make one test better than another.

Ease of use. We started by looking at how clear and understandable each test’s packaging and instructions were. We considered the feel of the test in hand, how easy it was to hold onto and get into a urine stream, whether it could be or had to be dipped, the length of time it had to be exposed to urine, and the time it took to develop.

Readability. In online reviews, test users frequently complain that blue-dye test results are harder to read than pink-dye results. They may also be more prone to evaporation lines—deposits of the dyed molecules used to make the test—which could be confused for a positive result. We kept an eye out for this and tried both colors, some from the same brand. One Equate blue-dye test we tried out did give a faint blue line that some might read as a positive, but this did not put us off all blue-dye tests—most worked just fine.

Value. If you are ordering ahead of time, most wand tests, including digital tests, can be purchased for $3 to $5 apiece in packs of two to four. If you’re just running into a local pharmacy to grab a test, though, you might find that the brand-name ones cost twice as much as they do online. We looked at comparable tests that could be bought in person for less money. Swiss Precision Diagnostics (SPD), the company that makes Clearblue, supplies many stores with generic tests. We tried tests from CVS, Target, Walgreens, and Walmart. Whether the package said “compare to Clearblue” or “compare to First Response,” SPD was listed as the manufacturer. We also compared a couple of dollar tests available at Walmart and Dollar Tree, as well as five different types of strip tests available for 25¢ to 50¢ apiece in packs of 20 to 100. For each category of test, we chose the option that offered the best features at the best price.

Once we’d determined which features we’d be able to compare with real-world testing, I tried out at least two of each test, using the dip and midstream methods. I noted how easy it was to follow the instructions, and how easy it was to handle and use the test. I looked out for any features that made errors less likely, such as a color-changing pad, as well as features that could make errors more likely, like extra steps or the need to use your own cup or a dropper.

I compared the time it took for each test to develop with the time claimed on the packaging, and I then examined the readability of the control line and took note of any faulty tests or false positives. Leigh Krietsch Boerner, who was pregnant while assessing tests for an earlier version of this review, compared positive lines and looked out for any false negatives. She also used urine diluted by 1,000 times in water to see what a faintly positive line looked like on several tests.

Wand tests are the traditional home pregnancy tests you’re likely to find in pharmacies and big-box stores. They rely on the same technology as cheaper, simpler strip tests, but they’re packaged in an easy-to-hold wand and loaded with an absorbent tip that’s simple to pee on or dip in a cup.

The First Response Early Result wand test is the most sensitive home pregnancy test available in the US. We also found it very easy to use and read.

First Response Early Result is the test to get if you want to test early. It should be able to detect a pregnancy five days before the day of an expected period (six days before the day of a missed period). In the company’s own studies using urine samples from people trying to conceive, the tests detected the pregnancy hormone hCG in 48% of pregnant individuals six days before their expected periods. So if you’re testing that early, there’s a 50/50 chance the test will be accurate. This value rises to 76% at five days before an expected period, 96% at four days, and 99% at three days.

This test is the most sensitive of our picks. According to the manufacturer, First Response tests can pick up 10 mIU/mL of hCG 100% of the time and 6 mIU/ml about 50% of the time; this has been corroborated by a few independent research studies. The company also reported that the test’s accuracy is not affected by high concentrations of hCG or hCG variants.

In addition, in our own (unscientific) testing, this test gave the clearest positive reading to a very dilute solution of pregnancy pee. As you can see in the photo, the First Response wand (at bottom) showed a very clear positive response with a strong fuchsia line, while the other pregnancy tests barely registered faint blue marks.

First Response’s wand tests are easy to handle—not too small, not too clunky. The absorbent tip wicks pee right up, whether you’re using the stream or dip method. This test takes 1 to 3 minutes to develop, and the bright lines are easy to see. First Response also has an easy-to-use app that scans photos of its tests, if you want a second opinion on a particularly faint line. In our testing of this wand, we haven’t seen anything that could be mistaken for a false positive, so we found that we didn’t need the app. Given the privacy issues surrounding reproductive care and how mobile apps share data, we would not recommend downloading the app unless it’s absolutely necessary.

First Response Early Result is one of the most expensive wand tests available, at around $5 per test when ordered online. If you’re just walking into a pharmacy, you might pay closer to $8 a test.

As far as we’re aware, First Response is the only brand in our analysis that uses biotin (a common vitamin, found in many over-the-counter supplements) in its chemistry. This means it’s theoretically possible that large enough amounts of biotin in urine could interfere with the test and produce a false negative or prevent the control line from appearing, clinical chemist David Grenache said. In fact, there have been published reports of biotin interference happening in clinical labs.

Most pregnancy tests, including First Response, are tested for possible interference by several medications and hormones, but not biotin. Some people who’ve used First Response tests have posted their false negative results online, citing biotin as the culprit. Like the amount of hCG, the amount of biotin in urine will fluctuate for many reasons. If you’re taking a supplement that contains biotin, maybe pick up a different test, or take the test after a couple days of being off the supplement. There is no mention of this possible interaction in the test instructions.

In addition, its ultra-high sensitivity makes the First Response Early Result test more likely to detect chemical pregnancies, which Dr. Bavan said could cause false hope and then letdown for people who are trying to conceive, as well as unnecessary stress for people hoping for a negative result.

Super-high sensitivity doesn’t offer much if you’re looking for reassurance that you are not pregnant. Dr. Bavan said that regardless of the sensitivity of the test, if the results are negative, you’ll still want to test again a week after your expected period to be totally sure. At that point, any test will be sensitive enough for most people. If you have a history of irregular periods, pregnancy symptoms, pain, or abnormal bleeding, she recommended following up with a medical provider right away.

There are other rare situations where a more sensitive test could be more likely to give false positive results. For example, hCG can increase during perimenopause. One study found that 1.3% of home pregnancy tests taken by women ages 41 to 55 would be false positives. The manufacturer reported to the FDA a similar rate of false positives for this age group.

Clearblue Early Detection is another great choice for early testers. It’s slightly less sensitive than First Response Early Result, but it has a wider absorbent tip and a longer handle.

Similar to First Response Early Result, Clearblue Early Detection can detect pregnancy five days before an expected period 71% of the time (that goes up to 94% four days before, 98% three and two days before, and 99% a day before an expected period). Unlike other Clearblue pregnancy tests, this wand test also uses pink lines rather than blue, which some people find easier to read.

Like other Clearblue tests, the Clearblue Early Detection test has a really wide absorbent tip that turns pink when it gets wet, so you can be sure you haven’t missed the target. The handle is thin, long, and easy to grip for midstream testing. (Note that the pad will turn pink even if you don’t have enough urine to reach the testing strip and generate a control band.)

Clearblue tests helpfully list the accuracies relative to the day of an “expected period,” rather than the more confusing “missed period.”

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There’s nothing special about digital tests that makes them more accurate than their manual counterparts. Digital tests also tend to be less sensitive. However, some people may prefer the clarity of reading a “yes” or “no,” “pregnant” or “not pregnant” over interpreting faint lines. Digital tests can also be handy if you happen to get interrupted and wait too long to read a manual test or test strip.

If having an ultra-easy-to-read result is your top priority, this pricey test bests the digital wand competition.

If you want a digital test, Clearblue Digital is the one to get. It’s easy to hold, the absorbent pad is wide (as with other Clearblue tests), and its claimed accuracy is fairly high: 95% three days before an expected period and 75% a day earlier.

The Clearblue Digital’s display is big and readable, and it has a progress bar that appears while you’re waiting, so you don’t have to wonder if the test is working.

Clearblue says a positive result will remain on the digital test screen for up to six months (negative results are cleared from the screen sooner than that). First Response’s digital test is intended to be read within 30 minutes, but my negative result remained on the screen for two weeks.

As with all digital wand tests, this one costs more than traditional (non-digital) wand tests, and it makes for additional electronic waste. The instructions that accompany the Clearblue Digital instruct you to dispose of the test (which, like all digital tests, includes a battery) according to local regulations.

Sometimes hCG test strips get a bad rap, but they are super popular among people trying to conceive. If you get a big pack of individually wrapped strips at 25¢ to 50¢ apiece, you can indulge your impatience and use them daily (or more often), if you like. But for most, this won’t turn out to be much of an advantage: Although some people might get positive results earlier, most—if not all—strips are designed and tested to detect pregnancy-related levels of hCG at the day of an expected period or later.

Strips may also be useful if you are testing to be sure a pregnancy has ended. Dr. Bavan said that although this isn’t necessary—physicians sometimes have their patients take just one test at a recommended time after a loss or termination—it might be nice to have extra tests on hand to use while you’re waiting.

As accurate and nearly as sensitive as First Response Early Result at the time of a missed period, these inexpensive strips (currently about 40¢ per test) are useful for anyone who anticipates testing often.

MomMed Pregnancy Test strips are as well vetted as all the other tests we recommend, and they meet the requirements to detect 25 mIU/mL of hCG in urine. The manufacturer, Co-Innovation, tested for the hook effect and variant hook effect up to the same levels as the manufacturer of First Response tests has. Like all test strips, these can only be used with the dip method, and they are intended to be used the day after a missed period at the earliest.

Unlike many other strip tests you can buy in bulk, the MomMeds come with disposable plastic cups. It’s convenient to be able to toss a test and a cup in a bag and have them available to use anytime, anywhere. In our experience, these tests developed in five minutes and gave clear control lines.

If you don’t need cups or printed instructions, consider Pregmate Pregnancy Test strips, which are also made by Co-Innovation and have the same reported accuracy as the MomMed tests.

Another inexpensive test option, these strips are a touch less sensitive than MomMed strips at the time of a missed period.

Easy@Home Pregnancy Test Strips, made by Wondfo, are equally serviceable test strips that don’t come with cups, so you’ll need to have something on hand to catch urine for dip testing. The data Easy@Home submitted to the FDA was less impressive than MomMed’s, but it was more impressive than what manufacturers filed for other test strips, such as Clinical Guard and Accumed. Easy@Home strips can detect 25 mIU/mL 98.8% of the time (and, like all strips, they’re most accurate after a missed period). They produced the most “streaks” of pink dye as they developed, but in our experience, they did not produce any lines that might be confused for a positive.

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If you’re not concerned with testing early and you want to see that classic “+” sign: Go for Clearblue Rapid Detection. This wand test can detect 25 mIU/mL hCG in urine. It should be 56% accurate four days before an expected period, 88% at three days, 97% at two days, and 99% the day before. Like Clearblue’s Early Detection test, this one has a wide, color-changing tip. It also has a long, curved, ergonomic handle, which makes it easier to collect a midstream urine sample. For some, the blue lines on these tests might not be as visually gratifying and dark as pink ones. There is a horizontal blue control line present before you even take the test, and it darkens as the test develops. (Next to that, there’s a control window that contains a vertical control line.) The appearance of a vertical line in the test window (creating a cross, or a plus sign) indicates a positive. Some might find that the horizontal line provides a nice contrast, so you don’t spend too much time squinting at a possible yet nonexistent vertical line.

If you want a wand test and cost is a top concern: Target’s (Up & Up) Advanced Early Result is made by the same manufacturer that makes Clearblue pregnancy tests (SPD), and it costs less than most brand-name tests when purchased in a store. Its sensitivity falls in between that of Clearblue’s Early Detection and Rapid Detection tests (71% four days before an expected period, 87% at three days, 96% at two days, and 99% at one day). The Up & Up test uses blue dye, and it has a long, narrow handle and a wide, absorbent pad like the Clearblue Early Detection’s. Walgreens and CVS both sell the exact same SPD-made tests under their store brands (and both are also called Advanced Early Result), but they typically cost about twice as much as Target’s test.

If you’re set on a digital test and the Clearblue Digital is unavailable: Consider the digital test that comes in the Walgreens Digital & Analog Pregnancy Test two-pack (currently available only in Walgreens stores). This digital test is made by Clearblue’s manufacturer, SPD. It has the same accuracy claims on the same days before a missed period as Clearblue Digital. This test has fewer frills compared with Clearblue Digital (no countdown bar) and a smaller absorbent pad, but otherwise, it should work just as well. Confusingly, the Walgreens- and CVS-branded digital tests that come in two-packs (of digital tests only) are also made by SPD, but they have lower accuracy numbers listed on their packaging.

If you want test strips and have no need for cups and printed instructions: Pregmate Pregnancy Test strips are from the same makers as MomMed strips, and they have the same reported accuracy. They are thicker and don’t come with cups or paper instructions: Each single-strip packet has a QR code you can use to get the instructions. This might be nice if you’re not at home and need a refresher on using the tests, but it seemed like an unnecessary extra step in an already potentially stressful process.

If you can wait longer to test and want something inexpensive that you can get at a store quickly: We like the Equate First Signal One Step test (currently 97¢) from Walmart. This simple and effective test produces a clear, dark pink control band, and its results are easy to read. Like test strips, this cassette-style test requires you to pee into a cup. (Unlike test strips, this test has you use a supplied dropper to add urine to the test strip.) Walmart gets these from a medical device company that has shown the test can detect 25 mIU/ml hCG. The Equate cassette is not useful for detecting very low amounts of hCG, and some customer reviewers have reported false negative results when using this test.

EPT claims its test to be 99% accurate from the day of an expected period. It has really skinny handles that feel top-heavy. In our experience, the plastic film covering the test window sometimes got stuck to the strip inside, creating a vertical line that could easily be confused for a positive result, as some customer reviewers have reported.

Equate Early Result (with “Compare to First Response” on its box) is a blue-dye test that should work just as well as the CVS and Walgreens One-Step tests, since all three are made by the same company that makes Clearblue tests, and they list the same accuracies. But for some reason this one didn’t seem to; this was the only test that gave a not-pregnant tester a blueish line that could have been mistaken for a positive, and more than 100 customer reviewers have reported the same issue.

Although we’re intrigued by the idea of a biodegradable test, one of the (currently unavailable) EcoResponse from SolCraft tests we tried literally fell apart on us. The wick was not absorbent enough to get the urine to the test strip, so neither of the two tests we tried developed at all.

The Modern Fertility wand test has a high claimed sensitivity and is easy to read. However, the wand is small and dainty compared with our picks and most store-brand tests, including the similarly priced Target (Up & Up) Advanced Early Result (you could fit an individually wrapped wand in your pocket, making it a good, discrete option if you prefer wand tests to strips). Modern Fertility wand tests use the same strips as Easy@Home (Wondfo), but the company says they have a higher sensitivity (10 mIU/mL) and accuracy (68% five days before an expected period, 89% at four days, 97% at three days, 98% at two days, and 99% the day of). We have not tested the accompanying app.

Walgreens- and CVS-branded One-Step tests give a “+” sign for positive results, like Clearblue Rapid Detection tests do, and they have similar reported accuracies (56% four days before an expected period). These are perfectly fine options for testing the day of or after an expected period, but we’ve identified better options for the same price or less.

First Response Digital tests have a “yes” or ”no” display rather than “pregnant“” or “not pregnant” (like on Clearblue Digital), and they have a flashing clock instead of a countdown bar. You might reach for these because you trust the brand, but internet reviews are littered with reports of the First Response Digital test giving false positives or failing altogether. In our hands, one of these tests gave our pregnant-at-the-time reviewer a false negative. And she had technical problems with another test, which took twice as long to develop as the instructions said it should.

AccuMed strips are on the skinnier side, so they’re harder to handle than the MomMed or Easy@Home strips we recommend. The control lines were almost always uneven (darker in some areas along the line, lighter than others). It was also difficult to find accuracy or sensitivity information from the manufacturer.

Of all the strips we considered, ClinicalGuard strips had the least impressive testing data. They detected hCG at 25 mIU/mL in control samples just half of the time. The packet we received had no insert, and it was difficult to find any instructions for use online. And they are skinnier and harder to handle than MomMed and Easy@Home strips.

The VeriQuick cassette test from Dollar Tree ($1.25) is a fine option in a pinch, but we prefer the similar Equate First Signal One Step test. It was hard to make out the “C” and “T,” which indicate where the control and test lines are on the Assured/VeriQuick cassette. In FDA paperwork, this test detected 25 mIU/mL of hCG only half of the time.

Leigh Krietsch Boerner contributed reporting.

This article was edited by Tracy Vence and Kalee Thompson.

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Amanda B. Keener

Amanda Keener is a freelance science journalist living in Littleton, Colorado. She earned a PhD in microbiology and immunology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She writes about all sorts of biomedical topics, including pregnancy. She had no clue how much her scientific training would come up while parenting three children.

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