You can take a pregnancy test as early as 6 to 8 days after ovulation, when trace levels of the hormone hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin) may first be detectable in urine. Some highly sensitive home pregnancy tests claim to detect pregnancy up to 6 days before your missed period, which corresponds to about 8-10 days after ovulation
. However, for the most accurate results, it is generally recommended to wait until the day your period is expected or after you have missed your period. At this point, hCG levels are more reliably high enough to be detected by most tests, giving over 99% accuracy
. Testing with the first morning urine is advised when testing early, as hCG concentration is highest then
. If you test early and get a negative result but still suspect pregnancy, you should retest a few days later since hCG levels double approximately every 48-72 hours in early pregnancy and may not yet be detectable
. In summary:
- Earliest detection: about 6-8 days post-ovulation (some tests detect as early as 6 days before missed period)
- Best accuracy: on or after the day of missed period
- Use first morning urine for early testing
- If negative early, retest after a few days if pregnancy is still suspected
This approach balances early detection with reliable accuracy to avoid false negatives
