Are condoms 100% effective at preventing pregnancy?

By Kendall @ Planned Parenthood | Sept. 18, 2013, 9 a.m.

Will using a condom during sex completely stop pregnancy? I want to have sex with my boyfriend but I’m so worried I’m going to get pregnant!

It’s great that you want to do everything you can to protect yourself from pregnancy before you’re ready. So here’s the deal on condoms: when used correctly, they’re really effective (about 98%) at preventing both pregnancy and STDs— but they don’t completely eliminate the risk. That’s because there is no 100% effective method of pregnancy prevention besides abstinence (not having sex at all).

Your best bet to be super safe is to use condoms AND a really effective form of birth control — like the IUD, pill, or shot.

Want to learn more about birth control? This tool can help you figure out what method of birth control might be right for you.

Tags: pregnancy, condoms, safer sex, birth control, abstinence