Starting a Family Ovulation Your Odds of Getting Pregnant If You Have Sex After Ovulation By Rachel Gurevich, RN Updated on September 16, 2024 Medically reviewed by Andrea Chisholm, MD FACOG In This Article View All In This Article How Long After Ovulation Can You Conceive? Chances of Pregnancy After Ovulation How to Calculate Your Fertile Window Close Yes, you can get pregnant after ovulation, as long as you have sex within about 12 to 24 hours of the egg's release from the ovary. But the chances aren't very high. One older study found that the odds of conception one day past ovulation are between 0% and 11%. But don’t let this stop you from trying! There are a few reasons to have baby-making sex even if you think you already ovulated. First, you may be mistaken about your exact day of ovulation. And second, having more sex increases the likelihood of conception. Here's what you need to know about the odds of getting pregnant after ovulation. Photo Illustration by Julie Bang / Getty Images How Long After Ovulation Can You Conceive? Ideally, if you want to conceive, you need to have sex before you ovulate. Sperm can live for up to five days in the reproductive tract, but an egg only survives for 12-24 hours after it's released. So your odds of conception increase if sperm is ready and waiting for an egg, rather than the other way around. If your egg is no longer viable—which happens 12 to 24 hours after ovulation—then you likely can't pregnant anymore. You'll need to wait until the next cycle to try again. If sperm successfully meets the egg, an embryo will implant in the uterine lining about 6 to 12 days after ovulation. It usually takes another several days before you will get a positive result on a home pregnancy test. For the most accurate results, experts recommend waiting until you miss your period to take a pregnancy test. Chances of Pregnancy After Ovulation Can you get pregnant the day after ovulation? What about two days afterward? Several studies researched the odds of conception at various stages of the menstrual cycle. They agree that having sex before and on the day of ovulation increases your pregnancy chances. But it's not 100% clear how likely you are to conceive once ovulation has passed. Based on older research, your odds of getting pregnant from having intercourse once might be in these ranges: One day before ovulation: 21% to 35%On ovulation day: 10% to 33%One day past ovulation (1 DPO): 0% to 11%Two days past ovulation (2 DPO): 0% to 9% A more recent study that looked at the probability of pregnancy from sex throughout the menstrual cycle found the highest probability on day 13 (one day before ovulation) in people with average 28-day cycles. Note, however, that there's a wide range of normal when it comes to menstrual cycle length; anything from 21 to 35 days is considered normal. Most people ovulate 14 days before the start of their next period, regardless of cycle length, so keep this in mind when tracking your fertile days. How to Calculate Your Fertile Window Having sex during your "fertile window" (the day of ovulation and the five days beforehand) raises your likelihood of conception. You can try the following methods to pinpoint ovulation: Using an online ovulation calculator Charting your basal body temperature (it increases 0.5 to 1 degree after ovulation) Using an ovulation predictor test Using a wearable fertility monitor Tracking cervical mucus changes (fertile mucus becomes stretchy, clear, and slippery, with a consistency similar to raw egg whites) Watching for physical signs of ovulation Keep in mind that ovulation generally occurs about 14 days before your next period begins, though there's a wide range of normal. Chances of Conception During Each Cycle Just because you have sex during ovulation doesn't mean pregnancy is inevitable. In any given menstrual cycle, the chance of conception for healthy couples in their 20s and early 30s is about 25%. The odds decrease with age, and after turning 40, they drop to about 10% per cycle. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit Sources Parents uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. Daily fecundability: First results from a new data base. Demogr Res. 2000. Trying to Get Pregnant? Here’s When to Have Sex. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Updated 2023. Stirnemann JJ, Samson A, Bernard JP, Thalabard JC. Day-specific probabilities of conception in fertile cycles resulting in spontaneous pregnancies. 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