Hormonal Birth Control

There are varying types of hormonal birth control. These can be categorized by method (such as pill, implant, patch, etc), or by hormone (what is in the pill).

Here is a quick chart so that you can see the different types of hormonal birth control.

Method	Hormone(s)
The Pill	Combination Pills have both monophasic and triphasic variations. These offer varying levels of estrogen and progestin. Progestin-only Pills, as the name suggests, only include progestin.
The Patch	Combination estrogen and progestin.
The Shot	Depo-Provera and depo subq are both progestin-only.
Vaginal Ring	Combination estrogen and progestin.
IUS	Progestin-only.

For more information on each of these methods, or to clarify information in this chart, visit the pages on each method. For information on the effectiveness of each method, see our [[*birth control comparison chart]].

The advantages of hormonal birth control are that it often gives more regularity to a woman’s menstrual cycle. Certain birth controls protect against certain types of cancer. Hormonal birth control is effective throughout a woman’s cycle.

The disadvantages of hormonal birth control methods are that they do not prevent Sexually Transmitted Diseases or Infections.

Hormonal birth control can sometimes rely on a woman’s responsibility. This affects the effectiveness of the method of contraception.

Be sure to also check out our page on How Hormonal Birth Control Works.