Wouldn’t it be nice if you could know exactly when your teen's period is coming next? It’s not as far-fetched as it sounds. People have been tracking their periods for centuries, primarily to figure which time of the month they’re the most fertile so they either avoid or try to get pregnant. But there are all sorts of reasons to track future periods that have nothing to do with pregnancy, including not wanting to bleed on your favorite pair of white pants or to understand your body’s patterns better.
There are a number of ways your teen can track their period – from a printable period tracker to a variety of apps. The only problem? There’s about 500 million different menstrual tracking apps out there, which makes it very hard to know what’s right for them.
With some help from my coworker Hannah, I checked out six different period calculator apps to discover which is the best at tracking monthly cycles.
Disclaimer: period tracker apps should not be used as a form of birth control unless the app specifically positions itself as a birth control option.
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Eve
Hannah described Eve as the “Cosmopolitan of period tracking apps,” which is accurate. The design is similar to the magazine, with a pink ‘90s girl power vibe that I was super into. This period tracker app also has a community aspect, and you can choose to join (or not!) a group based on specific interests.
Eve allows you to customize the length of your cycle and your period, something I think every app should do because duh, every person’s cycle is different. On top of tracking your period, Eve can track sexual activity, mood and symptoms. By doing this, the app can accurately pinpoint trends or patterns that are specific to your teen and their body, like sleep patterns and exercise. I thought this was a great feature because it’s teaching you things about your body outside of tracking your period.
Be prepared: Shop period kits now to prevent leaks.
Period Tracker Lite
Hannah described this period tracker app using the words “cutesy” and “kindergarten classroom,” which once again I found spot on. The design reminds me of those interactive learning games kids use.
This app automatically sets a cycle to 28 days (ugh), but your teen can log flow-specific factors like spotting or irregularities, and can choose from over 30 moods, so that kind of makes up for the whole automatic cycle thing. Another little add-on in this period app is that it can track steps, which is pretty random, but I can’t say I hate it.
Flo
I found this app to be way more straightforward than some of the others I tried. I appreciated this because let’s be serious – my period is already annoying enough, I don’t need to deal with navigating a confusing app on top of that. This app has a pink, dreamy design which I really enjoy.
You can customize period and cycle length (yay!) and Flo helps your teen keep track of an irregular period by tracking the symptoms that generally indicate a period is on its way, like sleep patterns, temperature and mood. This period estimator also rewards you for using it – the more info you log, the more Flo will send your teen health insights, tips and articles based on the information they've logged. It's a pretty comprehensive period tracking app.
Further reading: How to put in a tampon
Prefer to track your teen's period analog? Download our printable period tracker here.
Clue
I love Clue. It’s aesthetically pleasing, and I appreciated that this app wasn’t 50 shades of pink. I like pink but not everyone does, and making a period predictor app completely pink reinforces its association with femininity, which I think should have died out a long time ago. Pink is for everyone, not just girls.
With Clue, your teen can track their exercise frequency, moods, menstrual flow heaviness, and menstrual products. My favorite part of the app is the fact that you can look at past periods, PMS and fertility data and receive accurate predictions for up to three future cycles. Basically, it’s going to predict what my mood will be in three months' time, which I just think is magical. Definitely one of the best period tracking experiences for sure.
MagicGirl
MagicGirl, in my opinion, is the holy grail a.k.a one of the best period tracking apps. MagicGirl has almost all the same features as Clue, keeping an archive of past periods and helps to predict future periods based on previous months.
MagicGirl allows to customize period length, check past menstrual cycles, and has a community of users your teen can chat with about various period-related topics. What I like about this app is because it’s aimed specifically at teens, they're able to chat with other teens who may be experiencing their period for the first time. It opens up an extra level of comfort because talking about periods can be awkward, especially as a teenager. This gives them the opportunity to talk to like-minded people around the same age. Total win.
Further reading: What is the average age for getting your period?
TLDR:
So overall, what's the best period tracking app? I don’t have anything against any of the apps I’ve discussed. They’re all great normal period trackers in different ways. While I don’t use a period calendar tracker myself, if I did, I would use Clue – that’s a personal preference.
Based on my own needs, it's the best period tracker app I tested out. But that’s just a personal preference. Since all of these free period tracking apps cost nothing on iPhone and Android, I would suggest downloading them all and giving each one a try to see what you and your teen like best. Or, if you want to go analog to protect your data, download Kt's free printable period tracker.
