We include products we think are useful for our readers. If you buy through links on this page, we may earn a small commission or other tangible benefit. Optum Store, Optum Perks, and Healthline Media are owned by RVO Health. Here’s our process.
Healthline only shows you brands and products that we stand behind.
Our team thoroughly researches and evaluates the recommendations we make on our site. To establish that the product manufacturers addressed safety and efficacy standards, we:- Evaluate ingredients and composition: Do they have the potential to cause harm?
- Fact-check all health claims: Do they align with the current body of scientific evidence?
- Assess the brand: Does it operate with integrity and adhere to industry best practices?
We found that ordering birth control online lived up to the hype. It’s easy and discreet whether you have insurance or not. Here’s how the different services stack up.
If you want to manage your reproductive health without needing to go to an in-person doctor or clinic, you might consider ordering birth control online using an online birth control service.
If you don’t have insurance and pay for medication out of pocket, some online services offer low cost options and subscriptions to help make getting birth control significantly easier. We’ve reviewed and rated online birth control services for their affordability, ease of use, medication variety, and care access.
The services we recommend offer a broad range of birth control options, including pills, rings, patches, and more. Depending on where you live, you should be able to get your medication mailed directly to your home. In some cases, you have the option for local pharmacy pickup — which, depending on the service, can make it more or less affordable.
Read on to learn more about how it works and our recommended options after trying them out.
When shopping online, you want to make sure that the online birth control delivery is legitimate and features medical professionals who specialize in birth control. All of the services in this article are highly regarded, vetted by Healthline, and offer legitimate birth control medication.
- research which options are available
- evaluate medication safety, price, customer service, insurance coverage, and variety of birth control offered
- talk with medical professionals
- try the services ourselves
Our Medical Standards and Insights team has carefully researched and vetted over 11,000 products and services. We evaluate services for consistency with standards of care and best practices, and we look into each brand’s reputation before sharing products and services on Healthline.
To choose the services on this page, we considered all the birth control services that passed our vetting process. Then, we scored each service to narrow down our list even further.
• $0 for medication with insurance
• $15+ without insurance
• ring
• patch
• shot
• emergency contraception
• condoms
• $0 for medication with insurance
• $15+ without insurance
• ring
• patch
• $12+ for medication without insurance
• pill
• ring
• patch
• $0 for meds if delivered by mail
• $20 to $30 if delivered to pharmacy
• patch
• ring
• emergency contraception
• abortion pill
• $0 for medication with insurance
• $18+ without insurance
• patch
• ring
• shot
• internal condom
• emergency contraception
• $0 for medication with insurance
• $7+ without insurance
• patch
• ring
• emergency contraception
• $10+ for medication without insurance
• ring
i = Accepts insurance
Each service varies slightly, but in general:
- You answer some health questions and create an account.
- A healthcare professional reviews your information. You might also schedule a virtual consultation with them to review your information, ask questions, and determine the best birth control method for you.
- Once your prescription is approved, it gets shipped to your door or a local pharmacy.
“Readers should be prepared that they will need to provide up-to-date medical information (for example, a blood pressure reading),” said Brooke Murad, Healthline team member and tester, when she started using Nurx for online birth control.
“It is easy to obtain this info or get a reading done at a drugstore, so while you will be able to register for the service/product, you will not be able to receive the prescriptions until all info is in and assessed by their medical staff,” she said.
Pros of ordering birth control online
- usually does not require meeting with a doctor beyond filling out a questionnaire and messaging with a doctor online
- discreet shipping options
- just as much variety online as going through a doctor
- more affordable for people without insurance
Cons of ordering birth control online
- may not feel as personal if you have several questions or concerns
- does not replace the need for regular visits to an OB-GYN
Yes, it’s safe to get birth control online. However, it’s important to use a vetted platform that works with credentialed medical professionals to avoid counterfeit pills and poor medical advice.
Fake birth control pills are designed to deceive consumers. They’re rampant, sold online every day, and could even be contaminated. Also, they may not:
- have the right ingredients
- have the right active ingredients
- contain the wrong dose of the right ingredients
Fake pills could seriously harm you or result in an unplanned pregnancy.
For these reasons, it’s very important to practice due diligence. Do your research and be careful where you buy birth control online. The packaging of many fake pills looks almost identical to the real thing, but you can see the difference when you compare the actual pills.
If you have contraindications to taking estrogen-containing birth control pills, consider getting a prescription in person instead of ordering birth control online.
- high blood pressure
- a history of blood clots
- a history of lupus with clotting antibodies
- breast cancer
- liver cancer
- being older than 35 years and a smoker
- having diabetes with complications
- a history of migraine with aura
Meanwhile, using progestin-only birth control, including pills, patches, injectables, and IUDs, may increase the risk of breast cancer.
Visiting a healthcare professional in person for birth control prescriptions can be beneficial for discussing your medical history and assessing any health risks. The healthcare professional can take and monitor your blood pressure and administer any needed exams.
In-person visits can provide an opportunity for a more thorough health evaluation, which can be particularly important if you’re starting birth control for the first time or the first time in a long time.
Yes, you can easily and safely order birth control online. Most birth control requires a prescription, but you don’t need to visit a doctor’s office to get it. You may be able to keep your current prescription by uploading it to a service, or get a new prescription altogether.
Opill is the only birth control available without a prescription. This new progestin-only pill is available online and at brick-and-mortar retail outlets, including Walgreens, CVS, and Target.
You may be eligible for free birth control online with Medicaid, depending on where you live and your birth control needs. Some health clinics, including sexual health clinics, may also offer free birth control.
Many of the online services on our list provide birth control pills for less than $15 a month if you pay out of pocket. Pandia Health has options beginning at $7 a month.
If you have insurance, you may not pay anything for birth control.
When taken as prescribed and directed by a physician, birth control delivered by Nurx should be safe.
Its website states: “Drugs prescribed and sent through Nurx are prescribed using the same rules and medical standards as your family physician. A Nurx medical professional will only prescribe a medication if it is safe to do so based on the information provided by the patient.”
It depends on where you live. For example, in the United States, there are different laws across states about whether doctors can prescribe birth control to teenagers without parental consent.
Currently, 25 states and the District of Columbia allow all minors to get birth control without permission from their parents or guardians.
Obtaining birth control online can be a convenient and effective way to prevent unwanted pregnancy. The services and options on our list are widely respected, offer a range of birth control options, and may offer things like health consultations, prescription delivery, and more.
Mainly, online birth control services help remove barriers to access by offering a convenient and affordable way to obtain birth control — with or without insurance coverage.
When shopping online, it’s best to apply caution and research companies before ordering.
While not suited for people with certain health conditions, online birth control services are an easy and time-saving way to get birth control.