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When you're trying to conceive, every cycle can start to feel like a test you might fail. Did you get the timing right? Did you even ovulate? A good fertility tracker can't make that wait shorter, but it can replace a lot of the guessing with something you can actually read.
The trouble is that "fertility tracker" covers everything from a free calendar app to a monitor that measures four hormones. They don't all do the same job, and the most expensive one isn't automatically the right one for you.
The short answer
The best fertility tracker for most people is the cheapest one: LH ovulation strips, which have the strongest evidence for helping you time sex and conceive. If your cycles are irregular or you want proof that you actually ovulated, step up to a hormone monitor that also measures PdG, like Inito or Mira. Temperature wearables such as the Oura Ring are the easiest to stick with, but they confirm ovulation after it happens rather than warning you ahead of time. Calendar-only apps are the least reliable way to find your fertile window.
Our top picks
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Best overall: predicts and confirms ovulation
Inito Fertility Monitor at Amazon
Jump to review -
Best budget pick and the best place to start
Easy@Home Ovulation Strips at Amazon
Jump to review -
Best monitor that works without a phone
Clearblue Fertility Monitor at Amazon
Jump to review -
Runner-up hormone monitor
Mira Fertility Max Kit at Amazon
Jump to review -
Best wearable: no daily testing
Oura Ring 5 at Amazon
Jump to review -
Best basal thermometer with no subscription
Daysy Fertility Tracker at Amazon
Jump to review
How fertility trackers actually work
You can only get pregnant on about six days of each cycle: the five days before ovulation and the day of it. That's the finding of a classic study in the New England Journal of Medicine that followed couples day by day, and it's why timing matters so much. Every tracker on this page is trying to find those six days using one of three signals.
Estrogen rises first, a few days before ovulation, as an egg matures. Monitors that read it (Inito, Mira, Clearblue) can open your fertile window earlier than an LH test alone.
LH (luteinizing hormone) surges just before the egg is released. A positive LH test usually means you'll ovulate within the next 24 to 36 hours, according to the National Library of Medicine. That surge is what ovulation strips detect.
Progesterone and temperature rise after ovulation. Progesterone shows up in urine as PdG, and it also nudges your resting body temperature up slightly. Both tell you ovulation already happened. That's useful information, especially if you're not sure you ovulate every month, but it comes too late to time sex in that cycle.
If you'd like to learn the body's own signs too, like changes in cervical mucus, our guide to the signs of ovulation pairs well with any tracker.
What the evidence says
A 2023 Cochrane review pooled seven randomized trials with 2,464 women. Timing sex with urine ovulation tests raised the chance of a pregnancy from about 18% to somewhere between 20% and 28% for women under 40 who had been trying for less than a year. The authors rated the evidence low-certainty, and most of the trials were funded by test manufacturers. There wasn't enough evidence to say whether temperature or other fertility-awareness methods help.
Fertility monitors compared at a glance
The quickest way to choose is to decide which job you need done. Do you want a warning before ovulation, proof after it, or both?
| Tracker | What it reads | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| Inito | Estrogen, LH, PdG, FSH | Ovulation coming, and confirmed after |
| Easy@Home strips | LH | Ovulation coming |
| Clearblue monitor | Estrogen, LH | Ovulation coming |
| Mira Max | Estrogen, LH, PdG | Ovulation coming, and confirmed after |
| Oura Ring 5 | Skin temperature | Mainly confirmed after |
| Daysy | Oral temperature | Mainly confirmed after |
The best fertility trackers and monitors
We chose these six for what each one measures and what the published evidence shows, and we've been plain about where each one falls short. Some are also in our fertility essentials collection.
Best overall: predicts and confirms ovulation
1. Inito Fertility Monitor (wireless, 15 test strips)
If you want one device that both warns you ovulation is coming and tells you afterwards whether it happened, this is the one we'd pick. You dip a strip in morning urine and slot it into the reader, and the app shows actual levels of four hormones: estrogen (E3G), LH, PdG and FSH. Estrogen and LH open your fertile window. The rise in PdG, a urine breakdown product of progesterone, is what confirms you ovulated, which an ovulation strip can't tell you.
In a 2023 study in Scientific Reports, Inito's readings tracked lab measurements of the same urine samples very closely (r² of 0.96 to 0.99). Inito says most people get through a cycle on one 15-strip pack. We go through the cost per cycle, and who doesn't need it, in our full Inito review.
Good to know: The validation study was written by people who work for Inito, which is common in this category but worth knowing. It needs your phone and an ongoing supply of strips. And if your cycles are regular, it mostly confirms what your calendar already shows, so start with the cheap strips below.
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Best budget pick and the best place to start
2. Easy@Home Ovulation Test Strips (50 LH + 20 pregnancy tests)
Plain LH strips are the tracker with the best evidence behind it, and they cost a fraction of everything else here. The Cochrane evidence above comes from urine ovulation tests like these, and we found no trial showing a pricier monitor beats them at actually getting you pregnant.
Each strip detects your LH surge, and a positive result usually means ovulation in the next 24 to 36 hours. Snap a photo in the free Premom app and it reads the line for you and charts your cycle, which takes the squinting out of it. Fifty strips will last most people several cycles. See the kit in our shop.
Good to know: LH strips predict ovulation but can't confirm it happened. Expect to test once or twice a day for several days. And if you have PCOS, LH can run high for much of your cycle, so the strips may read positive day after day.
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Best monitor that works without a phone
3. Clearblue Fertility Monitor with Touch Screen
The long-standing, no-app option: it reads estrogen and LH and simply tells you Low, High or Peak. Because it picks up the estrogen rise as well as the LH surge, it flags up to six fertile days a cycle, more than LH strips alone. It tells you which mornings to test (10 sticks in most cycles) and stores six cycles you can show your provider.
Clearblue reports 97% agreement with ultrasound-confirmed ovulation, from a 2000 study it cites, and 99% accuracy at detecting the LH surge in lab testing. It's rated 4.4 out of 5 from more than 4,500 Amazon reviews. See it in our shop.
Good to know: Clearblue itself says it isn't suitable if you have PCOS, are on fertility treatment or hormonal contraception, or have cycles outside 21 to 42 days. It doesn't confirm ovulation, and the test sticks are a separate, ongoing purchase.
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Runner-up hormone monitor
4. Mira Fertility Max Kit (analyzer + 20 Max wands)
Mira does the same core job as Inito, with numbers for LH, estrogen and PdG, so you can see your surge coming and confirm ovulation afterwards. The Max wands cover those three hormones. You test, put the wand in the analyzer, and results go to the app over Bluetooth.
Mira has the newest validation study we found: a 2026 trial in Reproductive BioMedicine Online that compared its readings with 890 ultrasound scans across 121 cycles and reported 96% agreement with ultrasound-confirmed ovulation, to within a day. If you're weighing Mira against Inito, the hormone coverage is similar. Which one suits you comes down to cost per cycle and which app you prefer.
Good to know: Buyer ratings are lukewarm: 3.8 out of 5 on Amazon from about 250 reviews, well below Clearblue and Easy@Home. The 2026 results were announced by Mira, and the wands are an ongoing cost.
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Best wearable: no daily testing
5. Oura Ring 5
If peeing on sticks every morning is what makes you quit tracking, a ring you sleep in is the easiest way to stay with it. Oura reads your skin temperature overnight, along with heart rate and breathing, and its Fertile Window feature uses that to estimate your fertile days. In a 2025 analysis of 1,155 cycles, Oura's algorithm found 96.4% of ovulations, with an average error of about 1.3 days against ovulation-test results, compared with about 3.4 days for a calendar estimate.
You can also connect it to the Natural Cycles app, which the FDA cleared in 2021 to use Oura temperature data. The Amazon listing opens on a gold size 8. Pick your own size there, and if you're not sure of it, start with Oura's sizing kit.
Good to know: Temperature rises after you ovulate, so a ring is better at confirming ovulation than at warning you ahead of time, and the study above was run by Oura's own researchers. The fertility features need an Oura Membership, and Natural Cycles is a second paid subscription. If fertility is the only reason you'd buy it, Oura Ring 4 works with both too and costs less.
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Best basal thermometer with no subscription
6. Daysy Fertility Tracker
A smart basal thermometer for people who would rather take their temperature than test urine or wear a ring. You take your temperature under your tongue each morning before you get up, and Daysy shows a red, yellow or green light for the day. Its free app charts the trend.
It suits someone who wants a one-time purchase with no strips, no membership and no phone required day to day. It's rated 4.5 out of 5 on Amazon.
Good to know: A study Daysy's makers published in 2018 was retracted in 2019 over flaws in its methods, and that study was about avoiding pregnancy, not achieving one. Like any temperature method, it confirms ovulation after the fact, and a bad night's sleep, illness or a drink the night before can throw a reading off.
Shop on AmazonWhat about period and fertility tracking apps?
Apps like Flo and Ovia are great for logging periods and symptoms, and you can feed them your test results. On their own, though, their fertile-window predictions are mostly based on the dates of your past periods, and that's the weak spot. When researchers checked 20 websites and 33 apps against the actual fertile window in 2016, only four got it exactly right.
Natural Cycles is the exception worth knowing about. It's an FDA-cleared app that works from your temperature, either from a thermometer or a connected wearable like the Oura Ring, rather than the calendar. It's a paid subscription, and like any temperature method it's better at confirming ovulation than predicting it.
Our take: use whichever app you like as a diary, and pair it with something that measures your body.
Which fertility tracker is right for you?
Your cycles are fairly regular and you've just started trying. Start with LH strips. They have the best evidence and cost the least. A pricier monitor would mostly confirm what your calendar already suggests.
Your cycles are irregular, or you're not sure you ovulate. A monitor that measures PdG (Inito or Mira) can show whether ovulation is happening at all, which is useful information to bring to your provider. Irregular cycles are also a reason to book that appointment now rather than tracking for a year first.
You'd rather not test every morning. A temperature wearable like the Oura Ring tracks you while you sleep. Accept that it tells you more about this cycle in hindsight than in advance.
You don't want another app in your life. The Clearblue monitor gives you a plain answer on its own screen, as long as your cycles fall between 21 and 42 days and you don't have PCOS.
If you have PCOS
PCOS can keep LH high through much of the cycle, so ovulation strips may read positive day after day and Clearblue advises against its monitor altogether. Monitors that show actual hormone numbers and measure PdG give you more to go on, but the published studies behind them were done mostly in ovulatory cycles. Use them alongside your provider, not instead of them. Our guide to how PCOS affects fertility covers what else helps.
When to stop tracking and see a provider
Trackers help with timing. They can't diagnose why pregnancy isn't happening, and they're no reason to put off getting help. The American Society for Reproductive Medicine recommends a fertility evaluation after 12 months of trying if you're under 35, after six months if you're 35 or older, and sooner than that if you're over 40.
Don't wait at all if your periods are irregular or absent, your cycles are shorter than 25 days, you have known endometriosis or tubal problems, or there's a known concern on your partner's side. If you're heading in, our guide to what to expect at a fertility workup walks you through it, and six months of tracker data is worth bringing along. For a realistic sense of timelines first, see how long it really takes to get pregnant.
The honest bottom line
The best fertility tracker is the one you'll use every cycle, measuring the thing you actually need to know. For most people that's a box of LH strips and a free app. Spend more when you need more: proof of ovulation, help reading irregular cycles, or a way to track that doesn't depend on mornings you're too tired to remember.
And whatever the chart says this month, it's information, not a grade.
Fertility tracker FAQ
What is the best fertility tracker?
For most people, LH ovulation strips such as Easy@Home are the best place to start. They have the strongest evidence for helping you conceive and cost the least. If your cycles are irregular or you want to confirm ovulation, a hormone monitor that measures PdG, like Inito or Mira, gives you more information.
What is the most accurate fertility monitor?
Hormone monitors that read urine are the most precise way to time ovulation at home. Clearblue reports 97% agreement with ultrasound-confirmed ovulation, and a 2026 Mira study reported 96% agreement within a day. Inito and Mira also measure PdG, so they can confirm ovulation happened, which Clearblue can't. Most of these accuracy figures come from the manufacturers' own studies.
Is the Mira fertility tracker worth it?
It can be, if you want actual hormone numbers and confirmation of ovulation, especially with irregular cycles. Mira's 2026 validation study is the most thorough we found. But Amazon buyers rate it a lukewarm 3.8 out of 5, and Inito offers similar hormone coverage. If your cycles are regular, cheaper LH strips will usually do the job.
Does the Oura Ring track fertility?
Yes. Oura's Fertile Window feature uses overnight temperature and other signals to estimate your fertile days, and you can connect the ring to Natural Cycles, an FDA-cleared app. In Oura's own 2025 study it detected 96.4% of ovulations within about 1.3 days. Because temperature rises after ovulation, it's better at confirming ovulation than predicting it, and it needs a paid Oura Membership.
Are fertility tracking apps accurate?
Apps that predict your fertile window from period dates alone are often wrong. A 2016 study of 53 websites and apps found only four predicted the fertile window exactly. Apps become much more useful when you feed them real data, such as ovulation test results or temperature readings.
Do fertility trackers work if you have PCOS?
Standard ovulation strips are less reliable with PCOS, because LH can stay high for much of the cycle and give repeated positives. Clearblue advises against using its monitor if you have PCOS. Monitors that show hormone numbers and measure PdG give you more to go on, but use them with your provider's guidance.
How long should I track before seeing a doctor?
The American Society for Reproductive Medicine recommends an evaluation after 12 months of trying if you're under 35, after six months if you're 35 or older, and sooner if you're over 40. If your periods are irregular or absent, don't wait. A tracker can't tell you why you aren't conceiving.
References
- Wilcox AJ, Weinberg CR, Baird DD. Timing of sexual intercourse in relation to ovulation. New England Journal of Medicine. 1995;333:1517-1521. nejm.org
- Gibbons T, et al. Timed intercourse for couples trying to conceive. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 2023. cochranelibrary.com
- MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine. Ovulation home test. medlineplus.gov
- Setton R, Tierney C, Tsai T. The accuracy of web sites and cellular phone applications in predicting the fertile window. Obstetrics & Gynecology. 2016;128(1):58-63. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Practice Committee of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. Fertility evaluation of infertile women: a committee opinion. 2021. asrm.org
- Pattnaik S, Das D, Venkatesan VA. Validation of urinary reproductive hormone measurements using a novel smartphone connected reader. Scientific Reports. 2023;13:9227. nature.com
- Bouchard T, et al. Validating ovulation prediction and confirmation with the Mira monitor: blinded ultrasound and serum hormone comparison. Reproductive BioMedicine Online. 2026. doi.org
- Clearblue. Clearblue Fertility Monitor with Touch Screen: information for healthcare professionals. clearblue.com
- Thigpen N, Patel S, Zhang X. Oura Ring as a tool for ovulation detection: validation analysis. Journal of Medical Internet Research. 2025. jmir.org
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration. 510(k) premarket notification K202897, Natural Cycles. Decision date June 24, 2021. fda.gov
- Retraction note: Improving usability and pregnancy rates of a fertility monitor by an additional mobile application: results of a retrospective efficacy study of Daysy and DaysyView app. Reproductive Health. 2019. link.springer.com
The content on Awaiting the Stork™ is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult with a qualified physician or healthcare professional to address your unique health needs and circumstances.
