The pull out method, also called withdrawal, involves removing the penis from the vagina before ejaculation to prevent sperm from reaching an egg. With perfect use every single time, it has a 4% failure rate in the first year. In real life, where timing isn’t always perfect, that number jumps to 22%, meaning roughly 1 in 5 couples relying on withdrawal will experience an unintended pregnancy within a year.
How to Do It Correctly
The technique itself is straightforward: when you feel ejaculation approaching, withdraw the penis completely from the vagina and make sure ejaculation happens well away from the vulva and vaginal opening. That’s the entire method. The challenge is doing it reliably every time, especially in the moment.
If you plan to have sex again shortly after, urinate and clean the tip of the penis first. This helps flush out residual sperm from the previous ejaculation that could otherwise be carried into the vagina during a second round. Skipping this step is one of the most common ways the method fails in practice.
Why Pre-Ejaculate Is a Real Risk
One of the biggest misconceptions about pulling out is that pregnancy can only happen if you mistime the withdrawal. Pre-ejaculate, the fluid released before orgasm, can contain live sperm. A study examining 40 samples from 27 men found that 41% of subjects had sperm in their pre-ejaculate, and in 37% of cases, a significant proportion of that sperm was actively motile, meaning capable of swimming toward an egg.
Interestingly, this wasn’t random. Every man who provided multiple samples either always had sperm in his pre-ejaculate or never did. It appears to be a consistent biological trait rather than something that varies from one encounter to the next. So some men carry a higher baseline risk with this method, and there’s no simple way to know which group you fall into. While sperm counts in pre-ejaculate were lower than in a full ejaculation (almost all samples contained fewer than 23 million sperm), even small numbers of motile sperm can lead to pregnancy.
How It Compares to Other Methods
To put the numbers in context, here’s how withdrawal stacks up against other common contraceptive methods during the first year of use:
- Withdrawal: 22% typical use failure rate, 4% with perfect use
- Male condoms: 18% typical use, 2% perfect use
- Female condoms: 21% typical use, 5% perfect use
- Birth control pills: 9% typical use, 0.3% perfect use
With perfect use, withdrawal and condoms aren’t dramatically different (4% vs. 2%). The gap widens with typical use because withdrawal is harder to execute flawlessly every time. There’s no physical barrier to fall back on if timing slips by even a second. Hormonal birth control, by comparison, has a much lower failure rate in both scenarios because it doesn’t depend on split-second decisions during sex.
Many couples who use withdrawal also use it alongside another method, such as condoms during fertile windows or fertility awareness tracking. Combining methods significantly reduces the overall risk compared to relying on withdrawal alone.
No Protection Against STIs
Pulling out does nothing to reduce the risk of sexually transmitted infections. Skin-to-skin contact, pre-ejaculate, and vaginal fluids can all transmit infections like herpes, HPV, chlamydia, gonorrhea, and HIV. If STI protection matters (and it should with any new or non-monogamous partner), condoms are necessary regardless of whether you also use withdrawal.
What to Do If Withdrawal Fails
If you didn’t pull out in time, or you’re unsure whether ejaculation occurred inside the vagina, emergency contraception is most effective the sooner you take it. Both main types of morning-after pills work best within 24 hours, though they remain effective longer than that.
One type can be taken up to 72 hours (3 days) after unprotected sex and is available over the counter at most pharmacies. A second type works for up to 120 hours (5 days) and requires a prescription but is more effective in that later window, particularly for people with higher body weight. The sooner either is taken, the better it works.
Why the Gap Between Perfect and Typical Use Is So Large
The jump from 4% to 22% failure reflects how difficult consistent, correct withdrawal is in practice. It requires a high degree of self-control and body awareness every single time. Alcohol, distraction, intense arousal, and simply being in the moment can all lead to delayed withdrawal. Unlike a condom, which provides a passive barrier whether or not you’re paying close attention, pulling out demands active decision-making at the least convenient possible moment.
Research also suggests that some people rely on withdrawal partly because they feel ambivalent about pregnancy, not because they’ve carefully chosen it as their preferred method. In one study, women using withdrawal were significantly less likely to say avoiding pregnancy was very important to them compared to women using more effective methods. That ambivalence can translate to less consistent use. On the other hand, couples who deliberately choose withdrawal, communicate openly about it, and have a clear plan for what happens if it fails tend to use it more reliably.
If you’re going to use this method, being honest with yourself about how important pregnancy prevention is to you, and having a backup plan ready, makes a meaningful difference in outcomes.