How accurate are home pregnancy tests?
Last updated September 3, 2026.
Very accurate used right: MedlinePlus puts home tests at 97 to 99 percent accurate a week or two after a missed period - the failure mode is testing too early, not the test. The NHS states the asymmetry: a positive is almost certainly correct; an early negative is less reliable. Accuracy practices: test from day one of the missed period, use first-morning urine, check the expiry, respect the read window. Negative test, absent period: retest in a few days or get a blood test.
What to do
- Trust a positive. False positives are genuinely rare.
- Doubt an early negative. Retest in a few days if the period stays away.
- Use first-morning urine. Highest hCG concentration.
- Read inside the window. A late-evaporated line is not a result.
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