Women's hormone tests, explained properly.

Female hormones work as a system, not a list. FSH and LH from the pituitary instruct the ovaries; oestradiol and progesterone rise and fall across the cycle; testosterone, SHBG and DHEA-S set the androgen picture; prolactin and thyroid hormones can quietly disrupt all of it. That interconnection is why a single number rarely explains symptoms on its own, and why the pattern across a few markers, drawn on the right day, tells you far more.

It also makes women's hormone testing genuinely different from men's. Timing matters: FSH, LH and oestradiol are usually read on day 2 to 5 of a cycle, progesterone about seven days before an expected period, and hormonal contraception changes what a result can show. The guides below cover each marker in plain English, the UK reference ranges and what shifts them, and the classic work-ups: PCOS (where testosterone, SHBG, the free androgen index and the LH to FSH ratio do the heavy lifting), fertility and ovarian reserve (AMH alongside day-2 to day-5 hormones), and unexplained cycle changes.

When is testing worth it? Common prompts are irregular or missing periods, acne or excess hair growth that suggests high androgens, trying to conceive and wanting a baseline, symptoms that could be hormonal or thyroid (the two overlap heavily), or checking in before and during HRT. If your question is specifically about perimenopause or menopause, the menopause hub collects those guides in one place.

At-home testing works with a finger-prick kit posted to a UKAS-accredited UK laboratory, with results reviewed by a qualified clinician, typically within days. It suits a first look at your levels, a properly timed cycle-day draw without a phlebotomy appointment, or tracking a borderline result. A home test is education, not diagnosis: persistent symptoms or clearly abnormal results belong with your GP, who can examine you, repeat the test and act on it.