In plain words
Fecundability is the chance of becoming pregnant in one menstrual cycle. It is a measure of how easily conception happens. Among healthy young couples who are trying, the chance is often described as about 20 to 25 percent per cycle. It drops through the thirties. Most couples who conceive do so within the first year of trying. Fecundability is not the same as fertility, which describes whether a person can have a child at all. Timing, age, weight, health, and sperm quality all play a part. If you have been trying for a while and are worried, talk with your provider. Clinical guidance commonly uses one year of trying, or six months after age 35, as the point to ask for help.
The deeper version
Fecundability is the per-cycle probability of conception among couples attempting pregnancy without contraception, estimated from time-to-pregnancy data. Dunson, Baird, and Colombo (Human Reproduction, 2002) found that the per-cycle chance declines with age, starting in the late twenties and more steeply after 35. Time-to-pregnancy studies rely on self-report and are subject to selection bias. The ASRM Practice Committee (2020) defines as failure to conceive after 12 months of unprotected intercourse, or 6 months for women 35 and older, and recommends evaluation at those points.
Where it comes up
- Trying to conceive: how long is normal, when to ask for helpBefore Pregnancy
- Trimester Zero: preparing your body before pregnancyBefore Pregnancy
- Tracking your cycle and ovulationBefore Pregnancy
- Infertility and the long roadLoss and Complications
What mothers here say about fecundability
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Sources
- Dunson DB, Baird DD, Colombo B — Changes with age in the level and duration of fertility in the menstrual cycle. Human Reproduction, 2002
- American Society for Reproductive Medicine — Definitions of infertility and recurrent pregnancy loss, Practice Committee report, 2020