There are majorly two kinds of tests:
As the name suggest, these are blood tests to check the hormone levels that may impact your fertility. These can be further sub-divided in two main categories.
AMH testing is often used as an indicator of a woman's ovarian reserve, which refers to the number and quality of eggs remaining in the ovaries.
What low results mean?
This blood test usually occurs 7 days before your next expected period. By measuring progesterone levels around day 21, healthcare providers can assess whether ovulation has occurred.
What low results mean?
There are other kind of blood tests that your doctor may refer you depending on your personal situation. These are:
An ultrasound scan will check for:
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Thriva has three main blood tests that are relevant for female fertility, the Fertility Insights, Women’s Hormone, and standalone AMH blood test. The only test targeted at fertility is the Fertility Insights test.
Comprehensive, one-stop all inclusive blood test with convenient results.
Straightforward and worry-free for those who want to screen for all fertility markers.
This is by far the most expensive blood test in our comparison list for a range of hormones that is pretty standard to all fertility testing services.
The only hormone included that wouldn’t usually be seen on a standard fertility blood test panel is testosterone.
Thriva also has a cheaper Women’s Hormone blood test at £99, which doesn’t include prolactin and AMH; or a standalone AMH blood test for £126.
Forth has 7 blood tests on their “Fertility Tests for Women” page, as well as the option to “Build your own” blood test. The Female Fertility blood test was first on the page and appeared to be the most relevant for our needs.
Digital results within 48h once sample is received in lab. Personalised comment on results from a GPForth also employs “Health scores” with their app-based HealthCoach, which gives you scores for a range of health systems linked to the results of your blood test. If your score is low, it also offers you advice on how to improve your habits to improve these scores. There are 3 components to their Hormone Health score: Transport proteins, pituitary proteins, and sex steroid proteins.
You’re able to add extra tests onto any blood test you buy from Forth, including B12 (£15), testosterone (£6), etc. which is a nice touch.
The almost endless array of customisation is helpful if you are also considering checking for other biomarkers.
There are also lots of options for those who struggle with finger-prick blood tests at home.
The Forth interface is very cluttered because of the level of customisation offered.
For those who are not interest in the HealthCoach interface, the addition of “Health Scores” makes understanding offerings more confusing than clear.
We also would like more clarity on what the personalised comments on your results from a GP would mean, especially without understanding the medical history or goals of someone taking a Forth test.
Babystart has 3 main test kits for fertility:
1. Fertilitests: Male and female fertility tests combined in one purchase
2. Fertilcheck: FSH screening test for women
3. Fertilitime: Ovulation LH test for women
We like that there are combined kits for both men and women, and that you have the ability to multi-select test kit options to compare.
It’s also the most competitively priced, which is ideal for anyone who just wants a snapshot of their fertility.
The website was poorly designed, confusing us multiple times when trying to navigate it to get the information we needed.
This test isn’t suitable for people who want an in-depth view of their fertility status, especially relating to their ovarian reserve.
Female and male fertility tests with the following process:
1. Register online
2. Complete a health questionnaire
3. In 24 hours, receive a discrete test kit at home
4. Collect the finger-prick blood sample at home
5. Post the kit using the free packaging provided
6. In 48 hours, receive your results reviewed by Enhanced Fertility’s clinical team
The female starter test gives you a good cover of your fertility basics, but the extra tests you can add on is really where we feel Enhanced Fertility shines.
In addition to extra blood tests like thyroid hormones, liver function, and vitamin D, you’re able to add on pelvic and endometrial thickness scans (£180 respectively) and karyotyping (£350) which we haven’t seen offered in any other company.
Overall, the website is a straightforward, non-nonsense experience, that also has a list of helpful partner fertility clinics that do everything from IVF to embryo donation.
We also love that the male and female kits are equally detailed and priced.
None of Enhanced Fertility’s partner clinics are in the UK, although that is no fault of their own.
There are also no options to send a nurse to your home or attend a local clinic for a blood test if you struggle with collecting blood via finger-prick; however, you can call the EF team for them to guide you via video-call.
Hertility provides a range of at home tests, clinical services, scans, and fertility treatments. The fertility at home test has the following process:
1. Online health assessment: 30 questions
2. A personalised hormone test panel is created for you with up to 10 reproductive and thyroid hormones
3. At-home blood collection kit delivered in 3-5 days
4. Receive a doctor-written report explaining your results within 10 days
The Hertility questionnaire can be done even before you decide to purchase a kit.
The questionnaire is extremely detailed, asking everything from hormonal symptoms to when your most recent period started, with explanations on why they are asking all questions.
They then give you a recommended test kit, which takes the guesswork about which hormones you should test.
It also offers integrated explanations as to what the chosen hormones mean.
We love that there is an option for a hormone and fertility advisor consultation (£39) if you are confused, and the widest range of clinical services we’ve seen, including fertility counselling sessions (£85) and fertility nutrition consultants (£99)
Waiting 10 days for results is significantly longer than other companies, but the tradeoff is that it is written by a doctor.
I wasn’t able to change my options for what my hormone test could include beyond the website’s recommendation, which again could be frustrating if I only wanted one specific result.
