You can typically find out the gender of a baby during an ultrasound anatomy scan, which is usually performed around the 18th to 22nd weeks of pregnancy, with the optimal time being about 20 weeks. This scan assesses the baby's development and can often reveal gender if the baby is positioned well. However, accuracy depends on factors like the baby's position and the technician's experience. There are also earlier methods:
- Non-Invasive Prenatal Testing (NIPT) is a blood test that can determine the baby's gender as early as around 10 weeks of pregnancy, based on detecting fetal DNA in the mother's blood.
- The "nub theory" ultrasound method can attempt gender prediction from around 11 to 13 weeks but with varying accuracy (around 70-90+% by 13 weeks).
- More invasive tests like amniocentesis or Chorionic Villus Sampling (CVS) done between 10 and 20 weeks can also determine gender with near certainty but are primarily for genetic diagnosis and carry some risk.
In summary, the most common and reliable time to find out is during the 18-22 week ultrasound scan, but earlier blood tests and ultrasound methods can provide earlier indications of gender from around 10 to 13 weeks.
