Contraception can help you avoid an unwanted pregnancy. There are a number of contraceptive methods which differ in the length of contraceptive protection they will give you and how well they will work. You can find out more about the different methods in this section, we have divided them according to the length of protection they give – short term, long term and permanent.
All short term methods of contraception last for a period of 3 months or less. Some are for use during or just after sex.
Long term methods of contraception: can all last for several years, with fertility returning soon after you stop using them.
If you are sure you don’t want any more children there are permanent methods available for both men and women.
A comparison of each method looking at how well they work at preventing a pregnancy and how long the contraceptive protection lasts.