Patch, ring or pill: choosing a combined method

The combined pill, the patch and the ring all contain the same kind of hormones and are about as effective as each other. The real difference is how often you have to think about them.

Same hormones, different routine

All three use an oestrogen and a progestogen to stop ovulation, and all three have the same safety checks and the same sort of side effects. So the choice is mostly about what fits your life.

How to choose

Choose the pill if you do not mind a daily routine and like the familiarity. Choose the patch if you would rather deal with it once a week and do not mind a small visible patch. Choose the ring if you want to think about it only once a month and are comfortable putting it in yourself.

If you would rather avoid hormones altogether, the diaphragm is the hormone-free option, though it is less reliable, and a coil (coming soon with us) is the most reliable hormone-free choice.

You can switch

None of this is permanent. If the method you pick does not suit you, switching to another is straightforward, and a short conversation with a doctor usually makes the right choice clear.

Start when you are ready

Begin a short online assessment and a doctor will help you find the method that fits.

These methods work by keeping your ovaries switched off. It takes about seven days of hormones to do that, and about seven hormone-free days for them to wake up again. So the hormone-free break is the weak point: never let it run beyond seven days. A missed pill in the middle of a pack is fairly forgiving; a missed pill just before or after the break is the real pregnancy risk. Read the seven-day rule explained, or what to do if you miss a pill.