can i be pregnant from pre-cum

Can I Be Pregnant From Pre-Cum?

Here’s a question from a reader who is worried she is pregnant from pre-cum, but I have other worries. This post contains references to sexual assault and non-consent, so be careful before you read any further. 

.

.

.

.

I’m 16 years old but I left school already…. My situation is that I was messing around with my boyfriend and he tried to push his penis inside me. It didn’t go in and it hurt a lot and he was only there for a few seconds and I told him to stop. And I asked him what if I get pregnant he said I won’t so I asked him if he precumed he said if he did he would know. I told him that guys can drop semen without knowing, he said yes he knows but he would’ve known if he dropped so much. And my period is supposed to come next week Friday. And I don’t know what to do.

Hi

Thanks for your question. I’ll answer your question first but there’s something else I’m much more worried about.

Pregnant From Pre-Cum?

So it’s incredibly unlikely that you will be pregnant from what you describe. The average chance of pregnancy for one time sex is 3.1%. This is between 0% and 9% depending on whether you were about to ovulate or not. However this is with someone’s penis fully ejaculating inside someone’s vagina, which is not what happened with you. You can read more about how pregnancy starts and where I got those figures from about pregnancy chances here.

fertility explained

There is a possibility that there may have been enough sperm in your boyfriend’s pre-cum but it would be rare for there to be enough mobile sperm for pregnancy to occur. And even then the pre-cum would have to have happened with his penis being fully inside the vagina. I wrote about pre-cum here and have just updated it.

So I’d be amazed if you are pregnant from this. You could go and chat to someone at a sexual health service if you think you are at risk. You could also chat to them about contraception. I think there’s some other stuff that you could be chatting to them about too though.

What Worries Me

Your description of your boyfriend trying to push his penis inside you made me feel sad and worried. You told me about it but you didn’t say you were concerned about it (at least not directly). He really should not have done that because it sounds to me like you didn’t want that to happen. This is serious business and, if the police got involved, he could be questioned about, or charged with, a sexual offence (like rape, attempted rape or sexual assault).

What he did was wrong and that you shouldn’t have to put up with him treating like that. When it was happening, you told him to stop and he did. He should have been aware that you were not into this before it got to the point of you saying stop. It’s not cool to put someone in the position of having to say stop, or no. This is on him, so maybe he should be reading this website about how to do consent better.

However I also don’t want to tell you how to feel about it, that’s not my job. Your body is your body and your feelings are your feelings. I’m not here to tell you what it is that you should be feeling, thinking and doing.

Here’s another article about a partner putting you at risk.

If you are okay about it and are confident it won’t happen again, then good for you. If you wanted to dump him because of this, that would be totally understandable Also if you wanted to tell someone else about this and ask for their help that would also be good. You could report this to a Sexual Assault Referral Centre if you wanted to, they could give you some help and support. You didn’t leave an email address but if you want to get back in touch with me I could try and help you find a service near you where you could get help, if you wanted it.

It’s your call how you deal with it, I just want to get you to think about it.

Hope that helps

Justin

Comment below if you like. I moderate all comments before they appear, just so you know!

See what else you can find out about today!

A-Z of Porn About You Abuse Arousal Ask Bish Body Image Clitoris Communication Condoms Consent Contraception Coronavirus Dry Humping Ejaculation Erection Feelings Friendships Gender Kissing Law Love Masturbation Oral Sex Orgasm Parents Penis Pleasure Porn Positions Pregnancy Pressure Relationships Safer Sex Saying No Self Care Self Esteem Services Sex Education Sexting STIs Teach yourself Team Bish The Right Time Trust Vagina

© Justin Hancock, 2024 Find out more about me and BISH here.

Did you find my advice helpful? Please let me know in this quick survey.

If you have a question that I’ve not already answered you can contact me here

I’ve kind of given up on social media as they keep deplatforming sex education! Most of my readers like to stay updated via email. So sign up here and get an automatic email every time I post a new resource on here.

You can buy my book wherever you buy books. If you buy it via my Bookshop then I earn more money and that helps me keep this website running.

This website is free and free of adverts. To keep it that way it relies on your support. Here are all of the ways you can support BISH and keep us going.

If you’re over 18 and would like an advanced version of BISH check out my podcast Culture Sex Relationships. Also I’ve written a sex advice book for adults with Meg-John Barker called A Practical Guide to Sex available wherever you get books. We also did some zines to help you to figure out what you want from sex and relationships. They are at our website.

If you are an educator please don’t just show this website in class, they aren’t designed to be used as teaching resources. Instead, facilitate your own really great RSE with my resources at bishtraining.com.

I’ve been a sex and relationships educator since 1999 (with a background in youth and community work). In that time I’ve taught and given advice about sex and relationships with thousands of young people in person and millions online. I’ve worked with many charities, local governments, schools and youth organisations facilitating training and workshops. My two books, Enjoy Sex (How, When, and If You Want To) and Can We Talk About Consent? are widely available around the world. I’m also a member of the World Association for Sexual Health. Justin Hancock

56 thoughts on “Can I Be Pregnant From Pre-Cum?

  1. I had sex with a girl I met and in the heat of the moment we wanted to see what it would feel like to go raw before using a condom. I put it in her deep for awhile (not stroking) and only ejaculated into a condom. There might have been precum and she’s not on any birth control. What kind of chances are we talking about?

  2. Hi Bish! So my boyfriend was rubbing his hand on my vagina opening and he might had precum on his fingers because he was touching himself before that. This happened around the time of my ovulation. My period is four days late, can this lead to pregnancy?

    1. It’s very very very very very very very unlikely that can lead to pregnancy. Remember periods can be late for many reasons and are often random with young people (I’m assuming you are a young person). There’s more on how to deal with this here Am I Pregnant?

  3. Hi sir I’m here to ask just to ease my mind I hope that you can answer my question me and my girlfriend had some sexual interactions and I was rubbing my thing on her butt but suddenly I inserted my tip on her vagina just for a few seconds is there a chance for her to get pregnant from precum if ever there is precum?

  4. We had sex two times 2 days after her ovulation day and the first we used condom and i did cum and second i also used condom but after a few minutes she wanted to try raw for only a few strokes. Is there a possibility that she will be pregnant, her last day of period is April 6 and probably her next period would be April 30 or first week of march.

  5. I masturbate and cum first then a few minutes i put inside my penis in her vagina for about 20 seconds and i do have pre-cum that time. Is it possible that she will be pregnant?

  6. me and my friend decided we wanted to have sex it was my first time i realized it was 4-3 day before ovulation (fertile window) he never came inside of me but he did put it fully inside me for a few seconds cause it hurt to much bc he ripped my hymen he said he never had pre cum but i am very scared he was struggling to get hard as well it took a few tries to get it fully in am i pregnant ?.

    1. It’s very very unlikely that this will have started a pregnancy. The chances of pregnancy from one time penis in vagina sex, with the penis fully ejaculating deep inside the vagina, is 3.1%. So if he didn’t ejaculate inside you, then it’s very unlikely you are pregnant. There’s more information on this here Am I Pregnant? If you wanted to try having sex he could use a condom How To Use Condoms but also you could both read this article on how to have sex without pain (sex shouldn’t hurt, even if it’s your first time) Painful sex – how to have penis in vagina sex without pain

  7. Hello Sir!, December 20, 2022, Me and My Girlfriend having our first time sex but my penis is not inside the glans are in there but the whole are not, and my excite are failed so i didn’t cum in her vagina even in her outside of the vagina, is it possible that she will gonna be pregnant? we’re not ready for this. Thank You!

  8. Hey Justin, so my boyfriend and I had intercourse 2 days after my ovulation according to an app i follow. We use the pull out method and its been successfull everytime. This time we did the deed and he pulled out, he got up and wiped the cum and we waited about 5 minutes and did it again and this time we just stopped so he didn’t finish the second time. I was wondering what the chances are if pregnancy in this scenario. Currently im on day 41 of my cycle, but my cycle is normally 35 days. I do have cramps here and there and my breasts feel a bit weird but they don’t hurt bad at all.

  9. Hello Sir,
    Me and my partner had unprotected sex on her ovulating day. i inserted my P inside V for 2 times and had only 3-4 strokes inside V every time (2 times only). we did sex by applying oil on penis. i hadnt masturbated for 10 days before and even during sex. but i urinated 1.30 hrs before sex. i had persistent suspicion that may be some pre-ejaculation fluid may have entered inside her V (considering possibility). although i didnt cum inside her. i only did penetrated for 2 times (3-4 strokes each time). Can she become pregnant? its been 4 days i am quite worried. we are to marry after 2 months .

  10. Hey so my boyfriend and I had protected sex with a condom but then the condom broke a little closer to the tip but not directly on it. He did not cum, and he says there was so precum. even if there was, the rip was on the opposite side of what gravity would’ve “brought down” of the precum. I keep finding things saying precum has a low chance of getting people pregnant so I should be fine right? but him and i both have that lingering thought at the back of our minds. I urinated and took a shower right after so…I think we are okay? just wanted to hear from someone else.

    1. Yeah you should be okay. If I was able to answer this question sooner* I might have said that you could get Emergency Contraception just to make sure. If you keep having penis in vagina sex, you could also consider using another form of contraception too. But really, condoms are very very effective at preventing pregnancy if you use them correctly. They are more likely to tear if they get dry or if they come into contact with something sharp (like nails or the edge of the packet). I’ve got lots of tips about using condoms here How To Use Condoms

      *It’s just me here and I can only work on the website for a day or two a month because there’s very little funding atm

  11. Me and my girlfriend rubbed our genitals together without ejaculation. Now she has got her periods but it’s not similar to the previous months. Her bleeding is low and she experience no pain at all. She says her back hurts. Is this a sign of implantation bleeding or is it regular periods itself? I’m so worried. Please reply.

  12. Hello, I had unprotected sex with my boyfriend last week. On Feb 5 before using a condom we tried inserting his penis for about 5 seconds, but from then on we used a condom so I think it is safe, but then on Feb 6 we had sex without protection for about 15-30 seconds and he pulled out,because he thinks there was a precum. Now, the unfortunate thing is I had my last period 10 days before that incident, reading your article about ovulation I realised that it was about time for my ovulation. It concerns me so much, that the next thing that I am about to say is crazy.

    We don’t have emergency pills here in my country, with that we are left with no choice, but to look for alternative and we thought we could still use the birth control pills. After research we found a method that was saying I should take 4 pills on the first day, then another 4 days after. I didn’t do it because of my concerns, but what I did was I took the first 2 pills on feb 6 and my body didn’t take it well.

    Now after a week since the time we had sex, I had a spotting or bleeding when I went to take a pee. I am now worrying if this was caused by the pills I took which I regret doing, or is it a sign that I am pregnant, because I read somewhere about implantation bleeding?

    I know that from your articles the chance is quite low, but considering my ovulation (which I wish I have read before doing such acts) and not using protection twice. I am now stressing over it and won’t let me sleep as we are not prepared for this.

    1. Hi. I’m sorry you’re going through this, it sounds really stressful. First of all, as you say there is a very very low risk of pregnancy from pre-cum. More about that here Am I Pregnant? Pre-cum is not the same as cum. In some pre-cum there might be some sperm but is mostly not enough to start a pregnancy.

      You’re right that ovulation is the most fertile time of the menstrual cycle. If your period finished 10 days before the sex then you would be at about day 13 – 15 of your cycle (depending on how long your period was).

      What you did in place of emergency contraception can actually work, so it’s not crazy! I knew about this but my website is aimed at people in the UK where we do have free access to emergency contraception pills, so I guide people to do that. There’s more information about the method you describe here https://health.clevelandclinic.org/does-taking-multiple-birth-control-pills-at-once-work-the-same-as-the-morning-after-pill/

      There are lots and lots of causes of spotting in between periods and actually you taking so many hormonal contraceptive pills might have been one of them https://www.nhs.uk/common-health-questions/womens-health/what-causes-bleeding-between-periods/ So I would say try not to worry too much. Perhaps your partner might understand how stressful this is and might consider getting some condoms or not having entry sex, there are lots of other kinds of sex that have no risk of pregnancy at all Amazing Sex Without Having ‘Sex’

  13. Hi, just want to ask, means my gf never had sex but we touch each other’s body. Im worried that when I touch her I have pre-cum in my hand and place into her. I haven’t ejaculate as well also I peed before she touch me. We eere very worried that my hand has pre cum and get ger pregnant please answer huhuhu

  14. can pregnancy occur if my girlfriend has sex on the first day of her period and i did not ejaculate and only precum was there ? she has an irregular cycle (39 -50) days cycle . I read online that if someone has irregular or unpredictable cycles they can ovulate as early as day 6 of their cycle.
    we had sex on day 1 of her cycle ,her period lasted for 4 days . even if there was sperm in my precum it would not be viable until day 6 ( if she ovulated early ) . so what are the chances of pregnancy happening from this event ?

  15. My bf and I were fooling around and we dry humped , he wore 2 layer of underwears but I didn’t wear any, but he did kinda pre-cum , and had a wet spot on his shorts. And I had my last periods exactly a month ago, I’m a day late.. Is there any chance that I am pregnant?

  16. Hi, me and my boyfriend decided that we wanted to try having sex but it was difficult to fit, and he didn’t ever fully go inside me, only barely the tip. He 100% did not cum. There was pre cum but it seems like there is a very low chance of getting pregnant from that. My problem is that I had my period around 5 hours after we had “messed around.” It was my normal 4 day cycle, I have a very irregular period and im unsure if im currently pregnant. Thank you so much!

  17. Chances I can be pregnant from precum? Had unprotected sex on Dec 30. He didn’t cum at all. It is now Jan 25 with a missed period that was supposed to start Jan 20. I’m a 16 year old. Could it be the stress of thinking I’m pregnant making me miss it? I have also recently started exercising after years so maybe from exercising? Could it be it being my first time & he was little rough? When I say he was being rough I mean my stomach hurt 3 days after the sex. Do you think being on antibiotics it could mess with my period? Sorry I got so many questions. Very worried.

  18. I just touched my penis with my girlfriend vagina and I dont know that I got pre cum after that she had her normal periods after two days. Will she will be pregnant and we did not had any intercourse it’s just touched two times.

    1. As I say in the article, there’s no chance of pregnancy from this. The pre-cum would have to be deep inside the vagina and even then there would be an incredibly low risk of pregnancy.

  19. Is there a chance that I will be pregnant if we had unprotected sex on my first day of period? He didn’t cum inside me because he just tried to get inside for a few seconds just to feel what’s inside if i had my period, but I’m worried because he masturbated before. Is there a chance that there’s a sperm in his pre cum? Thank you and I hope you reply asap.

  20. My girlfriend has her menstruation, but we had sex, but i as the male, did not ejaculate, and we only did it for almost 50 seconds, more like a minute for a minute or two. Also she’s an irregular, a super irregular one. her periods usually comes after 3 – 4 months. Her previous period was on Feb 18 2019, We had sex on June 13 2019 and the start of her period was on June 10 2019, can she get pregnant,? If shes super irregular, and we had sex on her period, ? What are the chances? Please answer thanks

    1. I think if you re-read the article, and all the links I’ve provided, you’ll find the answer. Can I also recommend using condoms next time you have sex, and perhaps discuss the risks of sex between you before hand.

  21. I honestly wouldn’t post on this website if I wasn’t scared. Me and my girlfriend decided to have sex and a condom was absent from the equation. I want to know if I could’ve gotten her pregnant with precum. (I pulled out earlier as to not increase the chances). I didn’t masturbate earlier and went to the bathroom before in the day but I’m not sure if it’s still a high possibility. Thank you for your time.

    1. Can you please just read the article and the links in the article again? I’ve already answered your question. The average chance of pregnancy from one time sex with full ejaculation in the vagina is 3.1%. The average chance of pregnancy from one time sex with no ejaculation in the vagina is much much lower than that. Somewhere between 0 and 1%. If you’re worried about unplanned pregnancy then your girlfriend could take some emergency contraception which you can get from a sexual health service.

    2. me and my girlfriend had sex 5days ago and it was unprotected sex. can it get pregnant from precum pls answer im really worried

  22. Please do answer my question! My girlfriend is super irregular, she goes for 4-6 weeks without menstruating, her last period was in the month of January, and me and my girlfriend never really did engage in penetrative sex “fully”, we usually dryhumped and there were two-three instances wherein we tried pnetrative sex but never really did do it fully, it’s like just the tip of the penis inside her entrance for a few seconds, no ejaculation. My question is, could she be pregnant? her last period was January, until now her period is still missing. The last time we had our little session was around May 4. Please help, we’re both scared, and she should’ve practiced proper birth control

    1. As this article you are reading says, there is a very low chance of pregnancy from sex that does not involve sperm being fully ejaculated in the vagina. So it’s very very unlikely that the sex you are describing has started a pregnancy. As you know, periods can be super irregular and there are lots of reasons why that might be (stress is one of them). Finally, I don’t really see why you are putting the blame on her for not using birth control. You put your penis inside her, you could have put a condom on.

  23. Hi…so me and my boyfriend and sex….and the condom broke…but he didn’t cum…he said he did pre- cumed…I am stressing, I’m only 17…and is there any way I can fall pregnant or is there any way I can prevent it….I am on birth control been on it for 2 weeks…

    sincerely
    sarah

    1. Hi Sarah. So, as I say in the article, there is a less than 1% chance of pregnancy starting from pre-cum being in the vagina. Also the condom may well have prevented much of the pre-cum getting in your vagina (depending on how badly the condom broke).

      Also you’ve already started using additional birth control, which means that you are at a much much much much much lower risk of pregnancy (think about it, most birth control methods are over 99% effective https://www.bishuk.com/safer-sex/whats-the-best-contraception-for-you/ ). If you’re still worried then I would go back to where you got your birth control from and ask them to re-assure you.

      For the future, if you are going to keep using condoms and birth control (like the pill, IUD, IUS, implant, etc) then it might be a good idea to make sure you’re using condoms properly. They are more likely to break if they aren’t put on properly, if they get too dry, if they come into contact with something oil based like lipstick or moisturiser, or if handled by sharp nails. https://www.bishuk.com/safer-sex/how-to-use-condoms/

      Hope that helps!

      Justin

  24. I was inside my girlfriend unprotected for a few seconds before going back out.. I wiped off any precum on me before entering then was in for about 5 seconds . I’m worried she is pregnant as her period is 3 days late.. could she be? Isn’t there like a 2% chance of that ? I’m so worried..

  25. I’ve had my periods after dry humping but periods laster for 4 days and now there is spotting for almost 5 days. Total almost 10 days of periods. Could it be related to pregnancy?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.