Pregnancy Test Kit: How Accurate Is It?

HealthXchange will NEVER ask you to transfer money over a call. If in doubt, call the 24/7 ScamShield helpline at 1799, or visit the ScamShield website at www.scamshield.gov.sg.

• Arabic
• Chinese (Traditional)
• Hindi
• Chinese (Simplified)
• English
• Indonesian

Non-English translations are machine-generated; verify independently for potential inaccuracies. Visit www.singhealth.com.sg How to Prevent & Manage Food, Diet & Fitness Life Stages Back to All Menu Options How to Prevent

• Stroke
• Heart Attack
• Fatty Liver
• Back Pain
• Gastroenteritis (Food Poisoning)

View All How to Manage

• Gout
• Osteoarthritis
• Cancer
• Dementia
• Glaucoma

View All Cancer Cholesterol High Blood Pressure Food & Diet

• Food Tips
• Recipes
• Weight Loss
• Vitamins

View All Fitness & Exercise

• Exercise Tips
• Workouts
• Exercise Heroes

View All Pregnancy

• Pre-Pregnancy
• During Pregnancy
• Postnatal
• Special Needs

View All Teen Health

• Mental Health
• Weight Loss
• Skin Health

View All Baby Health

• Baby Development Milestones
• Common Baby Conditions
• Baby Raising Tips

View All Adult Health

• Gynaecological Conditions
• Sexual Health
• Wellness

View All Children Health

• Childhood Conditions
• Parenting Tips
• Special Needs

View All Aging Well

• Ageing Concerns
• Caregiver Tips
• Healthy Ageing

View All Let us help you find what you're looking for. Popular Searches Stroke High Blood Pressure Colorectal Cancer Breast Cancer

• How to Prevent & Manage
• Food, Diet & Fitness
• Life Stages

Visit www.singhealth.com.sg HealthXchange How to Prevent & Manage Pregnancy Test Kit: How Accurate Is It? ​Pregnancy Test Kit: How Accurate Is It? How accurate are pregnancy test kits?

• How accurate are pregnancy test kits?
• Pregnancy test kits: Frequently asked questions

How accurate are pregnancy test kits? Pregnancy test kits: Frequently asked questions

Pregnancy test kit ​For accuracy, you should take your pregnancy test using your first morning urine.

A pregnancy test kit works by detecting the amount of human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG) in urine. The Department of General Obstetrics and Gynaecology (O&G), KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH), a member of the SingHealth​ group, explains more.

How accurate are pregnancy test kits?

A pregnancy test kit is rarely wrong. It is more than 99 per cent accurate. Thus, if your test is negative, it means that you are not pregnant; However, if you are very early in your pregnancy and the test is done far too early, there could be an insufficient amount of urine hCG for the test to detect.

“So, if a test comes back negative but you strongly suspect that you are pregnant, repeat the test in a few days’ time,” advises the Department of O&G.

There are rare examples when the hCG level is raised transiently and then drops to zero. This is known as a “biochemical pregnancy” and could be the cause of a false positive result of the test kit. However, this initial rise of the hCG level will soon drop in a “biochemical pregnancy” and result in a negative urine pregnancy test.

“In a ‘biochemical pregnancy’, vaginal bleeding will occur soon after, which will coincide with ‘delayed menses’. Rarely, there could be ovarian tumours which secrete hCG and the false positive result could be wrongly interpreted as a pregnancy.”

Pregnancy test kits: Frequently asked questions

1. Do I have to test with first morning urine? Although you can test any time of the day, your first morning urine specimen is usually the most concentrated of the day and would have the most pregnancy hormone in it.
2. When should I take the test if I suspect that I am pregnant? You can test your urine as early as six days past ovulation, but the first day of your missed period is recommended for greatest accuracy.
3. Do I need a blood test for hCG to confirm my pregnancy? Blood tests for hCG are more accurate and they can also measure the actual levels of the hormone. These tests may be useful to differentiate a miscarriage when the blood hCG will drop with time, or a healthy pregnancy when the blood hCG level will double every two days. “Occasionally, we need to follow-up the hCG levels to help us diagnose early ectopic pregnancy (pregnancy outside the womb), which could be potentially life-threatening,” says A/Prof Tan.

"The New Art and Science of Pregnancy and Childbirth", a pregnancy book by KK Women's and Children's Hospital (KKH), a member of the SingHealth group.

Find out how pregnancy test kits work on the previous page.

Ref: S13​

Related Articles

Pregnancy Life Stages ​10 Tips for Good Sleep During Pregnancy Pregnancy Life Stages How to Exercise Safely During Pregnancy Pregnancy Life Stages ​The Six 'P's for a Healthy Pregnancy Pregnancy Life Stages ​Pregnancy Symptoms: First Trimester, Second Trimester and Third Trimester

Conditions & Treatments

Pregnancy Care During Pregnancy

Learn More

Public Events

06 Jan 2026 Talks Health Talk: Healthy Beverages @ SHP-Outram ​Free, no registration required. Please walk in to clinic at specified date and time. Learn More 06 Jan 2026 Lectures Unconventional Secretion: Extracellular Vesicles, RNA and Alpha-synuclein On-site • Free Learn More 07 Jan 2026 Seminars The Journey of Medical Device Development From Idea to Commercial Impact On-site • Free Learn More 07 Jan - 26 Feb 2026 Programmes KKH Antenatal Programme 1-Day Intensive Course KKH Patient: $306 Non-KKH Patient: $326; 4-Week Course KKH Patient: $240 Non-KKH Patient: $296 Learn More Tags Uterus Pregnancy Care During Pregnancy Pregnancy Life Stages Pre-Pregnancy

Stay Healthy the Easy Way

Get trusted health advice, offers and more.

Sign up today!

Please provide a valid email address.

About Us

FAQs

Contact Us

Events

Sitemap

Privacy Policy

Get the Health Buddy App

Get it on Google Play Download on the App Store Explore it on App Gallery

Follow HealthXchange

© 2025 SingHealth Group. All Rights Reserved.

Terms and Conditions

PDPA

Disclaimer

Report Vulnerability

Back to top