At-home menopause tests: what they measure and what they miss
Search for a menopause test kit and you will find urine strips sold in pharmacies. They are cheap and private. They also answer a narrower question than their boxes can suggest.
This page covers what those kits measure, what the FDA says about them, and the lab blood test you can order instead.
FSH only
The lowest-priced test here for FSH.
$49
See this test at HealthLabsPrice checked October 2026. Not available in ND, RI, NY, NJ, MD and HI. We earn a commission on sales.
What a home menopause kit measures
MedlinePlus says at-home kits that measure FSH in urine may help women find out whether menopause or perimenopause is behind symptoms such as irregular periods, vaginal dryness or hot flashes. It adds that home tests can only find higher than normal FSH levels.
The FDA’s consumer page describes what that means. It is a qualitative test: you find out whether or not you have elevated FSH, not whether you definitely are in menopause or perimenopause. You put a few drops of urine on a device, or dip it, and chemicals in the device produce a color.
That page is marked current as of 2018. Kits sold today vary, so read the instructions on the one you buy.
What the FDA page says about accuracy
- The tests accurately detect FSH about 9 out of 10 times.
- The page states plainly: “This test does not detect menopause or perimenopause.”
- Results can depend on whether you used first-morning urine, drank a lot of water beforehand, or recently used or stopped oral or patch contraceptives, hormone replacement therapy or estrogen supplements.
- A positive test indicates you may be in a stage of menopause. A negative test with symptoms doesn’t mean you haven’t reached perimenopause or menopause.
- Doctors would not use the test by itself. They use your medical history, a physical exam and other laboratory tests.
The FDA also says the kits can’t tell you whether you are fertile. MedlinePlus says the same: home FSH tests can’t accurately tell whether your ovaries are making eggs.
Do you need a test at all?
The Office on Women’s Health says your provider can usually tell if you are in perimenopause from your age, symptoms and changes in your periods, and that blood hormone tests are not usually needed. So a kit is optional at most. It may be more relevant if your periods have become irregular or stopped before 45, which is when the Office on Women’s Health says your provider may order blood tests, but then a clinician is the better first call.
For the full picture, see the perimenopause test page.
Home kit or lab blood test
| Home urine kit | Lab FSH blood test | |
|---|---|---|
| Sample | Urine, at home | Blood draw at a lab |
| Result | Elevated FSH or not (FDA: qualitative) | A number, which you compare with the lab’s reference range |
| Diagnoses perimenopause or menopause | No (FDA) | No. It is one input a clinician uses |
| Cycle timing | Follow the kit instructions | Your lab order or clinician may specify a cycle day |
If you want a number, the FSH-only blood test is the cheapest lab option here. The seller’s page says it measures FSH only, with no LH, estradiol or testosterone, and that results appear in an online account within one to three business days. It says fasting isn’t required. It gives no cycle-day instruction, so follow your clinician’s order if they give one.
Sold by HealthLabs. Prices checked October 2026. Not available in ND, RI, NY, NJ, MD and HI. We earn a commission on sales.
How to read the number is covered on the FSH levels and menopause page. For the wider home-versus-lab question, see at-home vs lab tests.
What a test can’t tell you, and when to see someone
Neither kind of test can tell you why you have symptoms or how long they will last. Take a positive or negative result to a clinician, especially if you are under 45 or your symptoms are getting in the way of daily life. The FDA page also says not to stop contraceptives based on one of these results, because the tests aren’t foolproof and you could become pregnant. If pregnancy is a possibility, see a clinician.
FSH only
$49
See this test at HealthLabsPrice checked October 2026. Not available in ND, RI, NY, NJ, MD and HI. We earn a commission on sales.
Keep reading
- Perimenopause test: what blood tests can and can't show
No single test diagnoses perimenopause. Here is what US health agencies say about blood tests, when a clinician orders one, and what an FSH test can show.
- Menopause blood test: what it checks and when it's needed
Menopause is defined by 12 months without a period, not a blood test. See when FSH, LH and estradiol tests are used, what they show and what they miss.
- FSH levels and menopause: what the numbers mean
FSH rises as the ovaries slow down. See one lab's published postmenopausal FSH range, how it compares with the cycle phases, and what one result can't tell you.
- FSH test: what it measures, why it's ordered and how to prepare
An FSH test measures follicle-stimulating hormone in blood. See why it is ordered, how cycle timing matters, what results can mean and what it can't tell you.