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From Period Tracking to Fertility: What Makes Women Use Health Apps
In the last decade, women’s health technology has come a long way. It began as rudimentary period and ovulation trackers, evolving into a highly developed fertility-focused platform with all sorts of services — cycle predictions to conception assistance.
Then what is causing this growth, and more importantly, what is it that makes women actually use these apps? In this article, I will analyze the key factors that influence the adoption and sustained engagement with women’s health platforms, drawing on experience from healthcare software development services to highlight best practices. Features to include in the application are drawn from usage statistics, user interviews, industry reports, app feature analysis, and so on. Core focus areas include:
- Evolution of femtech from period trackers to fertility tools
- Key drivers and needs spurring femtech adoption
- Factors influencing continued and increased usage
- Role of accuracy, privacy, access to experts, etc., in user retention
- How consumer needs are shifting from tracking to planning, prediction and intervention
- Market outlook, opportunities and challenges ahead
The Femtech Growth Trajectory
Femtech grew at a phenomenal rate from $250M in 2015 to around $39.29 billion in 2024. Women’s health technology has been going mainstream since the launch of the popular fertility app Glow in 2013, unicorn startups like Modern Fertility raising more than $160 million in funding, and everything in between.
But how did we get here? Let’s do a quick retrospective first.
The Beginnings – Period Tracking
For most female health apps on the market today, the journey began with period tracking. When Glow first debuted nearly a decade ago, it tapped into an unmet need for women to easily record and analyze their menstrual cycles using their smartphones.
Soon, similar apps such as Clue, Flo, Eve and so on started catching on, allowing women to log not only periods but also moods, symptoms, sexual activity and so on. However, the aggregation of this rich longitudinal data provided groundbreaking views of individual cycles and patterns, underscoring the importance of thoughtful healthtech UX in making that data both accessible and actionable.
It was obvious why – Flo had over 15 million downloads by 2016, and Clue had gotten almost 5 million users. The success of tracking-based apps was the beginning of the shape of women’s health tech that was yet to come.
Pregnancy Planning and Ovulation Tracking
Period trackers showed women their cycles, but the next steps were still left to be determined. The obvious next step was to develop these apps into forward-thinking planning tools designed to achieve things like preventing pregnancy or maximizing the chances of conception.
Since Ovia is a modern fertility app that not just gives a forecast of when you will be ovulating, period, but also provides personalized advice and analysis for effective family planning or getting pregnant faster. This allows users to log basal body temperature, cervical fluid consistency, intercourse details and more for more accuracy.
Many trackers now integrate with wearables and connected devices for passive data collection rather than relying solely on manual logging. They leverage predictive analytics and machine learning on the aggregate data to refine predictions and insights further.
The Market Expands – Fertility, Menopause and More
From ovulation and conception tools, femtech startups have diversified into adjacent women’s health segments:
- Fertility testing: Modern Fertility, EverlyWell, Natalist
- Menopause support: Genneve, Elektra Health
- Pelvic and sexual health: Minna Life, Elvie
- Pregnancy care: Peanut, Expectful
- General women’s wellness: Tia, Willow
Instead of just tracking cycles, these companies provide proactive health screenings, community support, telehealth access, and personalized care plans around issues like family planning, sexual wellness, pregnancy, menopause, and so on.
While some apps have retained an informational focus, newer entrants promise a combination of community support, telehealth access and even prescription delivery at home. The scope spans reproductive health, pregnancy, menopause and overall wellness.
So what exactly is propelling this femtech boom and persuading women to use these health apps? Let’s analyze some key drivers and consumer needs.
What’s Driving Femtech Adoption Among Women
The runaway success of femtech apps points to some clear unmet needs among women that this technology is serving. What core user requirements are these platforms addressing?
Need for Personalized Insights
Every woman’s cycle and reproductive health needs are unique. While medical guidelines exist, they provide blanket recommendations instead of tailored insights. Femtech apps fill this gap.
Personalized predictions and analysis come about through sophisticated algorithms that crunch individual tracking data against crowdsourced benchmarks. It allows women to decode their own patterns and preferences rather than depend on made-up assumptions.
The Desire to Be Proactive
Traditionally, women had to be reactive on reproductive health issues, whether by means of social taboos or medical norms. Using fertility apps enables them to take charge.
Instead of passively waiting for periods, pregnancies or menopause to happen unexpectedly, femtech apps allow women to foresee them and prepare mentally as well as physically.
Modern Fertility found that most of their users joined to understand their fertility proactively instead of waiting until they started trying or faced issues. The ability to drive their own health trajectories draws women to these platforms.
Need for Community Support
Reproductive experiences like pregnancy and menopause can feel emotionally isolating. Women often have nowhere to openly discuss concerns and challenges.
For instance, femtech apps that have community forums, such as Peanut and Gennev, offer solidarity and support from other women who are going through the same experience. A report by L.E.K. Consulting highlights that unmet needs in women’s health often include emotional support, particularly during pregnancy, postpartum, and reproductive health journeys. The apps turn out to serve a dual purpose — tracking health data and also serving as mental health assistance when required.
Convenience and Accessibility
Perhaps the most straightforward driver is that femtech apps offer low effort and high convenience. Instead of scheduling doctors’ visits, waiting for tests or taking time off work, essential health data, advice and interventions are available 24/7 on women’s phones.
Easy connectivity with wearables for automated data collection also minimizes the logging needed. Their usage often increases in tandem with the level of effortless tracking enabled.
The convenience quotient goes a notch higher with the ability to order testing kits, get prescriptions, and access experts online from home, apart from just monitoring cycles. Managing health is really lower than ever.
What keeps people engaged with these apps long term, once the appeal to women is made?
Factors Driving Sustained Usage of Femtech Apps
Though downloads are easy to attain, not all users are actively using health apps. Building trust is a key to retaining users. What exactly is it that makes women users keep coming back to femtech platforms from week to week?
Accuracy of Tracking and Predictions
“Garbage in, garbage out” applies strongly to data-driven femtech apps. Erroneous period or fertility forecasts will frustrate women instead of helping them. Builders have to continually refine accuracy by sourcing more data points and improving algorithms.
Apps explicitly show prediction precision to retain user trust. Flo displays monthly accuracy scores for period tracking. Proven test results and doctor reviews also reinforce reliability for fertility testing apps.
User feedback is open on the best platforms, which then use it to amend cycle analysis anomalies. To sustain usage, you have to show progress in precision through transparency.
Relevance of Recommendations
True generic wellness advice doesn’t pull you towards engaging. Femtech apps have to give specific suggestions for each woman’s reproductive profile and health objectives.
Period trackers can push appropriately timed exercise regimens, nutrition plans, self-care prompts, etc., based on where users are in their cycle. Apps also educate women on high fertility days, early pregnancy precautions, menopause management, and more based on phase-specific needs.
Personalization requires synthesizing their tracked data, stated goals and contextual information like age, weight, health conditions, etc. Actionable and relevant recommendations specific to the user keep women checking back in.
Holistic Support Across Needs
Across life stages, women’s needs change from contraception to conception aid to menopause support. This aligns with this changing requirement, which encourages prolonged usage instead of single-purpose apps.
For instance, Tia started as a period/ovulation tracker but now also offers gynecological care, sexual health, pregnancy support, postpartum care and menopause services. Ovia’s suite of apps covers different stages like pregnancy, parenting and fertility.
Femtech apps positioned as long-term partners in women’s health win more loyalty compared to point solutions.
Access to Health Experts
While period and ovulation trackers are a great foundation for data, women usually need professional help to understand the implications.
Direct access to gynecologists, reproductive endocrinologists, pelvic floor therapists, mental health professionals, etc., through chat/call features builds credibility for femtech apps. It also fosters emotional reassurance when dealing with sensitive concerns.
Modern Fertility provides free 30-minute consults with fertility nurses to users. Others, like Minna Life and Genneve, enable in-app physician appointments. The convenience of expert medical advice, without appointments or clinic visits, keeps women returning.
Sense of Security and Privacy
In particular, privacy and data security are key to user comfort when dealing with intimate information such as cycles, sexual activity, contraception, pregnancy, etc.
Even the most useful apps risk being abandoned if they are hacked, data is leaked, or shared with concerns. Reassuring users proactively and explaining safety precautions in place results in more peace of mind.
Femtech apps include encryption methods, access controls and transparency on how data is used, and even include the ability to delete past entries irretrievably. Maintaining people’s sensitive medical history securely earns their ongoing reliance.
The Path Ahead for Femtech
Although women’s health technology has achieved widespread success, its use cases and market potential remain largely unexplored. However, some pertinent opportunities and challenges exist ahead.
Evolution from Tracking to Treatment
The end goal for femtech cannot be just monitoring and predicting reproductive health. True value addition will require helping women intervene in and improve their outcomes proactively.
This is the path forward: Modern Fertility’s entrance into personalized fertility treatment plans based on assessments. Apps will go beyond tracking to include prescription drugs, hormonal therapies delivered at home, at-home insemination tools, remote menopause counseling, and many more.
Preventive and corrective health will be the next frontier.
Overcoming Drop-Offs
The biggest threat to femtech’s future is abandonment after initial interest. Period-tracking app users stop engaging after three months at a rate of 72 percent. Principal drop-off drivers include privacy concerns, burden overhead, poor predictions, no actionability, and no support when vulnerable.
For the extended life, this will drive continued usage and therefore require ongoing value through better data integrations, personalized engagement features, and access to care. Alignment of early attrition risks and correcting them will be vital.
Operationalizing Robust Research
Femtech apps have access to very rich fertility health data at scale from millions of women around the world. The data capital contained in this has the potential to accelerate new reproductive research and insights faster than ever.
However, we must systematically operationalize the research potential, utilizing in-house experts and forming partnerships with university labs, hospitals, and biopharma companies. Here, data security and commercialization opportunities are both needed.
Responsible forging of robust medical research partnerships will open the doors to biomarkers of disease and early interventions, and much more.
Aligning with Evolving Market Needs
Women’s health needs are diverse and ever-evolving. The femtech market has expanded across subcategories like pregnancy tech, menopause tech and more. Continued fragmentation is imminent as startups spot newer micro opportunities.
But if they confuse users, this also runs the risk of confusing users. Consequently, apps must be specialized and simultaneously integrated across categories in accordance with what the user wants. Even while expanding the scope, the fundamental promise to women must be fulfilled.
Conclusion
Overall, femtech has been adopted because it addresses women’s need for personalized and proactive health insights. Retention is proving critical as convenience, community and access to care during vulnerable times.
However, data no longer needs to be overly passively tracked. We need a future, and enabling interventions by intelligent predictions, prescriptions, and expert guidance is necessary. Another bucket of potential will be unlocked by data security and partnerships.
As femtech builders expand their scope, they must remain in alignment with the core requirements of accuracy, convenience, and access to care for women. The promise of data-driven women’s health is only going to be delivered against these pillars.
The beginning of transforming medical outcomes by putting control directly in women’s hands. It is an exciting time for the consumers and creators of femtech solutions.
The government and NHS England should work with pharmacies to show how the sector can help women experiencing menopause symptoms, according to a joint statement released by several pharmacy bodies.
A consensus statement endorsed by the Royal College of Pharmacy warned there remains significant unmet need for clear, evidence-based guidance and advice on the condition.
The statement, ‘Menopause, unmissed’, published on 24 April 2026, was endorsed by bodies including the Royal College of Pharmacy, the Company Chemists’ Association and the National Pharmacy Association.
Amandeep Doll, director for England at the Royal College of Pharmacy, said: “Pharmacy teams are highly accessible and already support people experiencing menopause with advice, self-care and signposting to other services.
“We endorsed this statement because improving access to clear information and joined-up care is essential, particularly for those facing inequalities.”
According to the NHS, around 75 per cent of women experience some symptoms during perimenopause and menopause, while 25 per cent report that their symptoms are severe.
In the joint statement, the pharmacy bodies welcomed increased awareness of menopause in recent years but warned this had also led to a sea of misinformation and that there remains significant unmet need, particularly for clear, evidence-based and accessible information and guidance.
The document set out eight recommendations to improve menopause care, including a public awareness campaign on menopause symptoms and opportunities for self-care, alongside guidance on how pharmacies can support women with menopause.
It also recommended that integrated care boards and women’s health hubs should report progress on implementing the upcoming equity framework in menopause care.
In its renewed women’s health strategy for England, published on 15 April 2026, the Department of Health and Social Care set out plans to publish an equity good practice guide to help integrated care boards better understand and reduce inequalities in heavy periods and menopause.
The joint statement asked that the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England work with champions in minority communities to ensure menopause materials reflect a diverse range of experiences.
It added that women living in areas of high deprivation and those from Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities can experience menopause differently and are more likely to face health inequalities in their care.
Doll said: “With the right support, training and commissioning, community pharmacy can play a greater role in delivering timely, convenient menopause care closer to home, working as part of neighbourhood health teams and in partnership with women’s health hubs.”
Article produced in association with Spital Clinic
The UK’s fertility rate has fallen for a third consecutive year to the lowest level ever recorded. That headline gets written every year, and it is easy to read it as a purely demographic story.
For anyone currently trying for a baby, the figure is something more practical: the conditions that produced the statistic are the same conditions shaping your own chances.
The decline has a clear pattern, and it is mostly not about couples being unable to conceive.
The change sits in when people start trying, and in what happens to fertility during the years by which most are now ready to have children.
What the numbers actually show
Figures from the ONS put the total fertility rate in England and Wales at 1.41 children per woman in 2024, down from 1.42 in 2023. The rate has been in overall decline since 2010 and has now recorded its lowest value three years running.
The figure sounds abstract until you compare it with the replacement level of 2.1 – the rate required for a population to sustain itself without net migration.
The UK has been below that line since the early 1970s, but the gap is now wider than at any point on record.
The data also shows where the decline is happening. Age-specific fertility rates for women in their twenties are the lowest of any generation since 1920. Rates for women in their thirties are holding up, and in some parts of the country rising.
Mothers are having babies later, not necessarily in smaller numbers. The average age of a first-time mother in England and Wales is now 31.0, up from 30.9 the year before. Regional variation matters too: London sits at 1.35, the West Midlands at 1.59.
Why the rate is falling
None of this is new. Every decade since the 1970s has seen the same trend, and it has accelerated in recent years. What has changed is the pace.
The shift is primarily social: delayed partnership formation, high housing costs, expensive childcare, and careers structured around full-time work through the exact years fertility is easiest.
The same pattern shows up across the EU, where the total fertility rate sat at 1.5 in 2022.
These forces compound. People meet later, partner later, feel financially ready later, and start trying later.
For many couples, first attempts happen in the early thirties, by which point fertility has begun its slow and uneven decline. A low national TFR is the population-level consequence of millions of individual timing decisions made under real-world constraints.
What this means for individuals trying now
Around one in seven couples in the UK will struggle to conceive naturally.
That figure has been stable for decades; the population of people seeking help, however, has grown – not because fertility itself has worsened, but because more people are trying during the window where it becomes harder.
UK fertility treatment data from the HFEA shows around 52,400 patients had over 77,500 IVF cycles in 2023, making 1 in every 32 UK births IVF-conceived.
The average age of a first-time IVF patient in the UK is now just over 35 – nearly six years older than the average first-time mother in the population overall.
NHS-funded IVF cycles have fallen from 40 per cent of the total in 2012 to 27 per cent in 2022, and to 24 per cent in England in 2023. The private sector has absorbed the rest.
When to get checked – and what it involves
Current NHS advice is to see a GP after a year of regular unprotected sex without a pregnancy, or sooner if you are 36 or older.
That threshold reflects the fact that every additional six months of trying is more clinically informative in the years when fertility is starting to shift.
The first set of investigations is usually straightforward.
For women, this typically covers hormone testing (AMH, FSH, LH, TSH and prolactin), rubella immunity, chlamydia screening, a mid-luteal progesterone and a transvaginal ultrasound.
For men, a semen analysis is the first step.
A private trying-to-conceive screening covers the same ground without the NHS waiting list, with the advantage that results can be reviewed in a single consultation.
The purpose of early screening is not to diagnose infertility – most couples conceive naturally within a year or two – but to identify specific, treatable issues before more time passes.
The fertility window is narrower than most people think
The uncomfortable truth behind the falling TFR is that the biological fertility window has not changed. The subtle decline begins around age 32, and accelerates from the late thirties.
The chance of natural conception in any given month is substantially lower at 40 than at 30, and falls sharply through the early forties.
IVF success rates track the same curve.
For patients aged 18 to 34, the average birth rate per embryo transferred was around 35 per cent in 2022; for those aged 40 to 42, around 10 per cent using their own eggs.
This is why the growth areas in UK fertility care are now pre-conception screening and elective egg freezing – HFEA data shows egg storage cycles rose from 4,700 in 2022 to 6,900 in 2023, one of the fastest-growing treatments in the sector.
A focused fertility consultation earlier in the timeline – in the late twenties or very early thirties, before there is a known problem – tends to produce better decisions than a consultation triggered by a year of trying without success.
The wider picture
The UK’s falling fertility rate is the product of a society that has reorganised when people have children, not one in which couples have become less capable of conceiving.
There is no need for alarm in that finding. The practical takeaway is that the old default of ‘wait and see’ assumes a timeline no longer matching the one most people now live.
For anyone currently trying, or planning to try soon, the single most useful move is to understand your own numbers earlier than previous generations did.
The national trend is not going to reverse quickly.
A clear picture of your own fertility window – and the information to use it well – is within reach in a way the headline statistics are not.
If you are trying to conceive or thinking about starting, a structured pre-conception review is a reasonable first step.
Disclaimer: This article is produced for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Clinical guidance referenced reflects published NHS, ONS and HFEA data as at April 2026. Individual circumstances vary; readers are advised to consult a qualified healthcare professional before acting on any information in this article. This piece was produced in association with Spital Clinic, which provided background clinical information for editorial purposes. Hyperlinks to external sources are included for reference only and do not represent an endorsement of any product, service or organisation.
The women’s digital health market is set to reach US$5.28bn in 2026, up from US$4.36bn in 2025, according to a new report.
That would represent annual growth of 20.9 per cent, driven by factors including greater smartphone use among women, wider uptake of telehealth and a stronger focus on preventive care.
The report said the market could reach US$11.47bn by 2030, with projected annual growth of 21.4 per cent over the forecast period.
It also pointed to rising awareness of gender-specific health needs, expansion among digital health start-ups, growing demand for personalised healthcare, investment in femtech innovation and the spread of AI-enabled diagnostics.
Wearables linked to health apps and wider use of remote monitoring tools are also expected to play a larger role, as companies focus on more preventive and joined-up care.
Smartphone use was highlighted as a major driver because mobile apps are increasingly being used for women’s health services, from menstrual cycle tracking to pregnancy support.
The report cited Eurostat data showing that in 2023, 89 per cent of EU residents aged 16 to 74 in urban areas accessed the internet via smartphones.
The report also said companies in the sector are developing new technology aimed at improving access to more personalised healthcare.
One example it gave was a 2024 collaboration between Algorand and the Self-Employed Women’s Association to launch a digital health passport for women in India’s informal economy using blockchain technology.
Recent mergers and acquisitions were also noted. In March 2023, Maven Clinic acquired Naytal to expand its services in the UK and Europe.
North America was identified as the largest market in 2025, while Asia-Pacific is expected to be the fastest-growing region.
Companies named as key players included Flo Health Inc, Natural Cycles, Elvie, Bellabeat, Clue by Biowink, MobileODT Ltd., Glow, Veera Health, Biowink GmbH, Ava AG, Hims & Hers Health, Inc., The Women’s Wellness Centre, Elara Health, myGynaeDoc, Maven Clinic, Kindbody, Allara Health, Tia and Hera Med Ltd.
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