Natural Cycles Review: How I Used The App To Get Pregnant After Infertility

Going through infertility was one of the biggest struggles of my life. In 2021, I experienced a miscarriage, followed by six rounds of fertility treatments. When our doctor suggested taking a break from the treatments, we used the Natural Cycles app to track my cycle through the fertility awareness method (FAM).

This life-changing app helped me get pregnant naturally. I delivered a healthy baby girl in April 2023 and am endlessly grateful for this accurate, easy-to-use app. Here’s my review of Natural Cycles, including what you need to know about using it for both pregnancy and birth control.

My Natural Cycles Review

After my miscarriage, we wanted to get pregnant again as soon as possible. I underwent three rounds of IUI, all of which failed. Then we tried two and a half rounds of IVF. Why two and a half? The night before my third round, my doctor informed me that my husband had COVID. So, while we went through with an egg retrieval, my doctor couldn’t make embryos using his sperm at the time.

We were advised to wait at least six weeks before fertilizing my frozen eggs. Feeling sad and frustrated (to say the very least), I made it my mission to try everything I could to conceive naturally during this time. Natural Cycles had recently launched a partnership with Oura. Since I was already wearing an Oura Ring, I took it as a sign to try Natural Cycles.

If you’re unfamiliar, the Oura Ring is a fitness tracker that resembles a piece of jewelry—I even stacked mine with a cute gemstone ring. It’s not only the most stylish tracker on the market, it's also one of the most accurate. It's loaded with useful features including sleep tracking, step counting, calories burned and much more. The Oura Ring also measures basal body temperature—this is essential for tracking fertility since this number increases slightly when you ovulate.

The Natural Cycles app also syncs with the Apple Watch, which provides basal body temperature readings. If fitness trackers and smartwatches aren’t your thing, you can sync the app with the Natural Cycles thermometer. Every morning, I synced my basal body temperature before getting out of bed, which I loved about using the Oura Ring. I’d simply grab my phone, open both apps, hit sync and it's done.

Having a miscarriage and going through what felt like endless fertility treatments made it feel like I had no control over my body—as though my body was working against me. Using the Natural Cycles app, I regained my sense of control and even felt a sense of accomplishment every morning—I was able to check something off my list even before my feet hit the floor.

One important detail to emphasize is that no matter how fertile you are (or aren’t), there is only a short window each month when conception is possible. Having this information makes the process less stressful. After spending hours at doctor appointments, taking pills and injecting hormones with giant needles, using Natural Cycles felt seamless and easy.

How easy is it to download and use the app?

Downloading the app is as easy as any other in the app store. Every morning, you open the app and sync it with the Natural Cycles thermometer, Oura Ring or Apple Watch. You then tap a series of trackers, including if you are sick or hungover, if you’re bleeding, if you’ve had vaginal sex and your LH test results. These stats are necessary for the algorithm to generate accurate predictions.

In addition to these trackers, you can also track your period flow, other types of sex, cervical mucus, sex drive, skin conditions, pain and other problems, as well as your emotional state. There is also a notes feature if you want to go with a more detailed approach.

Keep in mind that you must use LH strips with the Natural Cycles app. LH or luteinizing hormone tells your ovaries to release an egg, meaning ovulation is occurring. These strips are easy to use and not too different from pregnancy tests. However, they need to be purchased separately, although they can cost as little as pennies per test.

Natural Cycles for preventing pregnancy

In addition to helping you conceive, Natural Cycles Birth Control mode can help you prevent pregnancy. One user stated in her App Store review that she couldn’t bring herself to take hormonal birth control because of the side effects. She noted that while it took a few weeks to adjust, she is now thrilled with Natural Cycles.

Another user noted that she began using the app after her body rejected her copper IUD. She ultimately felt it was safer than using pills to control her hormones, finding the app “liberating, easy, and accurate!” There are plenty of other positive reviews highlighting Natural Cycles as safe, natural and effective birth control.

The Natural Cycles app is 93 percent effective at preventing pregnancy, according to this data on contraception failure rates. According to the same data, that's on par with vaginal rings and birth control pills.

How much is Natural Cycles? Cost and subscription options

Monthly and yearly subscriptions to Natural Cycles are available, both of which are reasonable. The yearly plan is $119.99, which works out to $9.99 per month. If you prefer a monthly plan, the subscription costs $16.99 per month. In my opinion, those trying to conceive should opt for the monthly plan.

Remember that you’ll also need to use the Natural Cycles Thermometer, an Apple Watch, or an Oura Ring and Natural Cycles together. You can save $40 on the Oura Ring with annual and monthly plans. The Basal Body Thermometer is free with an annual plan or $39.99 with a monthly plan.

Some insurance providers will even reimburse the app’s cost, making it free. Natural Cycles has more information about this on their website.

Would I recommend Natural Cycles? Absolutely.

Whether you’re trying to have a baby or prevent pregnancy, timing is everything. The Natural Cycles app helps you get the timing down perfectly, taking the guesswork out of the process. It’s also hormone-free, ideal for anyone who can’t tolerate hormonal birth control or simply doesn’t want to put hormones in their body.

While it’s not a substitute for fertility testing, it’s an excellent way to assess whether that might be necessary. If you try for six months during your fertility window without success, there could be an underlying issue. The app also provides valuable information to share with your doctor.

Pros

• Can be effective for conceiving naturally
• Hormone-free alternative to other birth control methods
• Provides a wealth of information and stats about your cycle and body
• FDA-cleared for safety
• Easy to use and sync with other devices
• Subscription is relatively affordable

Cons

• Requires a thermometer, Oura Ring or Apple Watch, which are additional expenses
• You still need to test your LH levels and purchase LH strips