A new YouGov survey explores Americans’ experience with birth control and their opinions about it. Most American women have used hormonal birth control at some point in their lives, and majorities of Americans believe that the birth control pill is safe and an effective way to prevent pregnancy. A majority also believe that intrauterine devices are effective, though only about half feel they are very or somewhat safe while nearly one-quarter believe they are unsafe.
The most commonly used form of birth control among sexually active adults is condoms (28% say they or a sexual partner has used one in the past year). Smaller shares have relied on the pull-out method (13%), the birth control pill (11%), male sterilization/vascectomy (5%), or female sterilization/tubal ligation (5%). 43% of sexually active Americans say they have not used any birth control in the last year.
About two-thirds (69%) of women have used hormonal birth control such as birth control pills or a hormonal IUD at some point in their lives; 29% have not. Women under 30 are less likely than older women to have ever used hormonal birth control (53% vs. 72%).
The most common reasons women say they have taken hormonal birth control are to prevent pregnancy (81%), to regulate menstrual cycles (31%), and to reduce menstrual pain or cramps (23%). 21% say they have taken hormonal birth control because a doctor recommended it, and 16% have taken it because it is more reliable than other methods of preventing pregnancy.
Among women who have never taken hormonal birth control, 51% say it’s because they do not need birth control. 25% say one reason they have avoided it is concern about side effects; less say it’s because they have concerns about long-term health risks (18%) or because of a preference for non-hormonal methods of birth control (10%).
The most common side effect experienced by women who have ever taken hormonal birth control is lighter periods or no periods (34%). Other common side effects among women who have ever taken hormonal birth control include weight gain (30%), reduced menstrual cramps (22%), irregular bleeding (21%), mood changes (20%), and headaches (14%). 27% of women who have ever taken hormonal birth control have not experienced any side effects.
Among women who have ever taken hormonal birth control, 55% have never switched from one type of hormonal birth control to another. 37% say they have switched. Among women who have switched from one hormonal birth control to another, 57% say they decided to do so because of the side effects. 28% switched because of long-term health risks and 17% were dissatisfied with the effectiveness of their birth control.
About three-quarters (78%) of women who have ever been on hormonal birth control say they have stopped or taken a break from it at some point. The most common reason for stopping or taking a break is because they no longer needed birth control (44%). 25% cited side effects and 23% stopped because of a desire to get pregnant.
While hormonal birth control is only available for women, 22% of sexually active men with female partners say that they would consider using hormonal contraception if it were readily available for men. This marks a decrease from May 2022, when 33% of sexually active men with female partners said they would consider it.
Among all sexually active men, 20% would consider using hormonal contraception. Democratic men are more likely than Republican men to say they would consider taking birth control (30% vs. 16%).
Where do Americans get their information about birth control? 54% have gotten information about it from a doctor or healthcare provider. Fewer have gotten information about it from online searches (21%), friends (21%), sex education classes (21%), parents (17%), or social media (12%).
Adults under 30 are more likely than older Americans to say they have gotten information about birth control from online searches (37% vs. 17%), social media (33% vs. 6%), and their parents (32% vs. 13%).
In 2022, smaller shares of adults under 30 got information about birth control from social media (21%) or from their parents (24%).
Women are more likely than men to say they’ve gotten information about birth control from their doctor or health care provider (71% vs. 36%). Men are more likely to have gotten information about birth control from sex education classes (29% vs. 13%), online searches (26% vs. 17%), and a partner or spouse (16% vs. 4%).
The majority (61%) of Americans would feel comfortable talking to their doctor or health care provider about birth control. Fewer say the same about their partner or spouse (45%), friends (41%), other family members (22%), or their parents (21%).
Women are more likely than men to say they’d be comfortable talking about birth control with a doctor or health care provider (73% vs. 49%), friends (49% vs. 32%), or their parents (25% vs. 17%).
What do Americans think is true or false about birth control? 72% of Americans say it’s true that making birth control more accessible reduces the number of abortions. 76% of women, 68% of men, 85% of Democrats, and 64% of Republicans believe this.
Around half (51%) of Americans — including 64% of women and 37% of men — say in order for the birth control pill to be effective, you need to take it around the same time each day. 39% of Americans say birth control pills cause weight gain; fewer say it’s true that taking the birth control pill can make it difficult to get pregnant later in life (18%) or that you can’t get pregnant on your period (17%).
The birth control method that Americans are most likely to see as very effective among five methods asked about is abstinence from penetrative sex (64%). Smaller shares say birth control pills (48%), IUDs (37%), condoms (34%), or the pull-out method (4%) are very effective.
Men are more likely than women to say condoms are very effective (45% vs. 25%). Women are more likely than men to say the birth control pill is very effective (53% vs. 42%).
One-quarter (25%) of Americans say birth control pills are very safe and 42% say they are somewhat safe. Smaller shares believe the pill is somewhat unsafe (14%) or very unsafe (7%).
Intrauterine devices (IUDs) are considered very (16%) or somewhat (36%) safe by a smaller share of Americans than say the same about birth control pills.
Democrats are more likely than Republicans to say birth control pills are safe (79% vs. 60%). Democrats also are more likely to see IUDs as safe (60% vs. 47%).
About one-quarter (24%) of Americans say that they or someone close to them has stopped taking the birth control pill because they thought the pill could be harmful to their health. Women are more likely than men to say this (30% vs. 18%).
Three-quarters (76%) of Americans — including 86% of Democrats and 71% of Republicans — think birth control is morally acceptable. The vast majority (88%) of Americans think birth control should be legal, including nearly all (96%) Democrats and 84% of Republicans.
79% of Americans say that it should be legal for teenagers under the age of 18 to be prescribed birth control with parental approval. 87% of Democrats and 73% of Republicans say this should be legal. Support for prescribing teenagers birth control without parental approval is not bipartisan, however: 63% of Democrats think this should be legal, but only 33% of Republicans do.
Around half (47%) of Americans think a doctor’s prescription should be required for someone to get birth control pills; 40% think the pill should be sold over the counter. Republicans are more likely than Democrats to say a prescription should be required (59% vs. 41%).
The majority (63%) of Americans think birth control prescriptions should be allowed to be sent by mail. 75% of Democrats and 55% of Republicans think this should be allowed.
Two-thirds (66%) of Americans think private health insurance plans should be required to cover the cost of birth control, including 82% of Democrats and 56% of Republicans. A slightly larger share (71%) think government health insurance programs for low-income people should cover the cost of birth control. 86% of Democrats and 60% of Republicans agree.
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See the results for this YouGov survey
— Carl Bialik and Taylor Orth contributed to this article
Methodology: This article includes results from an online survey conducted on August 28 - 31, 2025 among 1,136 U.S. adult citizens. Respondents were selected from YouGov’s opt-in panel to be representative of adult U.S. citizens. The sample was weighted according to gender, age, race, education, 2024 presidential vote, 2020 election turnout and presidential vote, baseline party identification, and current voter registration status. 2024 presidential vote, at time of weighting, was estimated to be 48% Harris and 50% Trump. Demographic weighting targets come from the 2019 American Community Survey. Baseline party identification is the respondent’s most recent answer given around November 8, 2024, and is weighted to the estimated distribution at that time (31% Democratic, 32% Republican). The margin of error for the overall sample is approximately 4%.
Image: Unsplash (Reproductive Health Supplies Coalition)
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