When Should We Have Sex to Get Pregnant?

I remember asking myself this so much when we were trying to get pregnant with our first baby.

I genuinely did not know when the best time was.

It was only once I started researching fertility and learning about ovulation that I understood that timing sex before ovulation matters just as much as ovulation day itself.

Knowing that made me feel much more informed about what we were actually trying to do.

When is the best time to have sex to get pregnant?

Your highest chance of pregnancy is usually during the few days before ovulation and around ovulation itself.

That is because sperm can survive in the reproductive tract for several days, while the egg only survives for around 12 to 24 hours after ovulation.

So ideally, sperm are already there before the egg is released.

Do we need to have sex on ovulation day?

No.

You do not have to get the exact day perfectly right.

Having sex in the days leading up to ovulation can be just as important, and often more useful than waiting until you think ovulation has already happened.

If you have fertile cervical mucus or a positive ovulation test, those can both be good signs that your fertile window is open.

How often should we have sex during the fertile window?

For most couples, having sex every day or every other day during the fertile window gives you good coverage.

You do not need to follow a perfect schedule.

If every day feels like too much, every other day can still give sperm a good chance of being present when ovulation happens.

The goal is not to make sex feel like another job.

It is simply to give yourselves a few chances across the fertile window.

What if we only have sex once?

Pregnancy can still happen from sex on one well timed day.

But because you cannot usually know the exact moment ovulation will happen, having sex on more than one fertile day can give you more chances.

Think of the fertile window as a range of days, not one single appointment you have to get right.

What if we miss ovulation day?

You may not have missed your chance at all.

If you had sex in the few days before ovulation, sperm may already have been waiting when the egg was released.

That is why knowing your fertile window is often more useful than focusing on one exact ovulation date.

Try this in The Mama Years

Use your cycle history as a starting point, then add the signs your body is giving you.

Look for:

Changes in cervical mucus.

A positive OPK, ovulation predictor kit.

Your predicted fertile window.

If you can, aim for sex every day or every other day across the fertile part of your cycle.

You do not need to hit one perfect day.

You are trying to give sperm a few chances to be there before the egg arrives.

Read next

• Your Fertile Window: The Days You Can Actually Get Pregnant

• When Do You Ovulate After a Positive Ovulation Test?

• How Do I Actually Know When I Ovulate?

• The Two Week Wait: What Is Actually Happening in Your Body?