Often it can be hard to wait to find out whether you are pregnant or not and you may want to find out as soon as possible. There are a variety of pregnancy tests available that will help you find out the answer you are waiting for. Pregnancy tests work by detecting the presence of the pregnancy hormone that is called human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG). This hormone appears after fertilization of the egg and is the best way to find out if you are pregnant. Every day that you are pregnant the amount of this hormone increases, so the longer you are pregnant the easier it will be to detect this hormone in your body.

There are two different pregnancy tests that can measure the amount of hCG in your body to determine if you are pregnant. You can have a blood test done or a urine test. Blood pregnancy tests measure the amount of the hormone in your blood while the urine test measures it in your urine. Usually a blood test will be more accurate in the beginning of pregnancy, but by the time you have missed your first period a urine test can usually detect the hormone too.

Since a blood test requires going to the doctor, many women rely on home pregnancy tests to determine whether they are pregnant first. You can purchase a home pregnancy test at a local drugstore and many grocery stores as well. Usually these tests are relatively inexpensive and range between $5 and $15 per test. You may want to read the directions on the box before you purchase it to find the one that will be easiest for you. Some tests may have you urinate into a cup and then dip a stick, while others have you hold the stick directly in the urine stream. Other tests may have you urinate into a cup and then put drops into another container for testing. Various tests have various ways to tell if you are pregnant. Some have a plus sign that appears while others just have a line that appears in the results window. Find the test that you feel you will be able to read the best and if you feel that the results were inconclusive, try again in a few days.

There are a variety of pregnancy tests to choose from and you may wonder which one is right for you. Usually all of these tests will be quite accurate but some studies have seemed to point to the brand First Response to have the most accurate results early on. The longer you wait to do a pregnancy test the more likely it will be accurate. Usually just waiting a week after your first missed period will increase the likelihood that your test will be accurate, rather than taking it the first day of your missed period. Make sure that whatever test you decide to use, you follow all the directions so you ensure a correct result. Failing to follow the directions correctly could cause the test to be inaccurate.