What is spotting and is it normal?

Bottom lineSpotting is light bleeding outside your period, often just a pink or brown tinge, and is commonly normal from ovulation, starting hormonal birth control, early-pregnancy implantation, the start or end of a period, or friction after sex; see a doctor if spotting is new, repeated, or unexplained, follows sex, comes with pain or odor, occurs after menopause, or appears in pregnancy with cramping.

Spotting is light bleeding outside your normal period - usually just a few drops or a pink or brown tinge on underwear or when you wipe. It's common and often normal.

Common, normal causes

• Ovulation spotting - around the middle of your cycle
• Starting hormonal birth control - breakthrough bleeding for the first few months
• Implantation - light spotting in early pregnancy, around 10 to 14 days after conception
• Start or end of your period
• After sex - minor friction, especially if dry

When spotting is worth checking

• New, repeated, or unexplained spotting between periods
• Bleeding after sex that keeps happening
• Spotting with pain, odor, or unusual discharge
• Any spotting after menopause
• Spotting in pregnancy with cramping

What to do

Note the timing and color. Mid-cycle spotting that lines up with ovulation, or breakthrough bleeding when you start birth control, is usually normal. Anything new, repeated, or post-menopausal should be checked.

See why am I bleeding between periods and use the Ovulation Calculator to check timing.

Femora makes it easy to log spotting and see whether it matches ovulation or something else.