For about half a century, men have had two dependable ways to prevent pregnancy: condoms and vasectomy. A third, withdrawal, is widely regarded as unreliable. That may be about to change, though not as quickly as headlines suggest. In the last two weeks, a large European survey and the World Health Organization have both put male contraception back on the agenda, and the numbers behind them are worth a close look.
The Europe numbers: demand is real, and fairly urgent
A survey of more than 14,000 men in Germany, France, Italy, Poland, Sweden, Türkiye and the United Kingdom, run by the consultancy DesireLine, found strong interest in new methods. Reports name the Male Contraceptive Initiative and the advocacy group DSW as the backers. Euronews reports that in every country, more than half of men said they would start using a new male contraceptive within 12 months of approval, with the share ranging from 55 per cent to 69 per cent depending on the country. Only 9 per cent said they would never use one. Another report put overall interest at about 62 per cent, and DesireLine’s executive director said about a third would do so within three months of availability, which he described as a lot of urgency.
The survey also says something about what men want:
- Preferred method: a non-hormonal pill taken about 30 minutes before sex was the most popular product in every country, followed by a daily pill.
- Why men want it: more autonomy, protection from unplanned pregnancy, dissatisfaction with condoms, and a wish to relieve women of the burden, according to the researchers. Before being shown any products, 41 per cent said they wanted to be more involved in contraception.
- STI protection: half of respondents said it would be a “must-have” feature, according to Brussels Times. That is a point to remember: pills, gels and implants being developed are meant to prevent pregnancy, and the condom remains the only method that protects against both pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections, as the WHO notes.
- Current behaviour: condoms are the main method among the men surveyed, but only about half reported using them consistently.
Vasectomy is also rising. A French endocrinology congress reported that vasectomies in France grew by 491 per cent between 2010 and 2018, to nearly 20,000 a year, according to Medscape. Il Sole 24 Ore reports increases in Spain and Austria too, while Italy remains a minority choice. Vasectomy is permanent, and French law requires a four-month reflection period.
The WHO weighs in
On September 22, the WHO published its first Target Product Profiles for male contraceptives. These work like a checklist for developers, setting out the minimum and ideal standards a product must meet. The agency’s stated aims are to widen choice and to reduce the disproportionate burden on women. It notes that about 48 per cent of pregnancies worldwide are unplanned, and that 60 per cent of those end in termination.
The timelines quoted differ. The WHO said new reversible methods may reach the market within five to 10 years. Dr James Kiarie, who heads its contraception and fertility care unit, told the Telegraph that products could be on shelves as soon as 2029. Neither is a promise, and no drug-based male contraceptive has yet been approved.
What is actually in the pipeline
Euronews counts eight novel products at different clinical stages. These are the best-known ones, with status as reported.
| Candidate | Type | How it works | Stage as reported |
|---|---|---|---|
| NES/T | Hormonal gel | Applied daily to shoulders and upper arms; lowers sperm production without lowering testosterone | Phase 2 completed; Phase 3 planning |
| YCT-529 | Non-hormonal daily pill | Blocks a vitamin A receptor (RAR-alpha) to reduce sperm production | Phase Ib/IIa; Phase I safety study in 16 men found no effect on heart rate, hormones or mood at single doses up to 180 mg |
| ADAM | Vas-occlusive hydrogel | A gel placed in the vas deferens blocks sperm; designed to be non-permanent | Early human trials (reports differ on whether Phase 1 or 2); sperm absent up to at least 24 months in earlier work |
| Plan A | Vas-occlusive | A similar approach to ADAM | Trials planned |
| Andro-Switch | Implanted micro-switch | A micro-switch beside the vas deferens, activated or deactivated under the skin to block or allow sperm | Validated in animal models |
| Thermal silicone ring | Device | A heat-based device; the coverage reviewed gives no further detail | Listed among the products in development |
Sources: Telegraph via AOL, STAT, Contraceptive Technology Innovation Exchange, Medscape.
None of these is a quick fix. YCT-529 data from its current trial were expected around mid-2026, and I found no published results. The non-hormonal “on-demand” pill that men said they preferred is not among the best-documented candidates.
Why has it taken so long?
Researchers have studied male hormonal and non-hormonal methods for more than 50 years, and progress has repeatedly stalled. Three reasons come up again and again:
- Money. Heather Vahdat of the Male Contraceptive Initiative told Euronews that contraceptive research has been funded almost entirely by philanthropy and the public sector for about 30 years, with little pharmaceutical involvement. DSW says less than 2 per cent of global contraceptive R&D funding goes to male methods, and the consultancy behind the survey puts the funding gap at “several billion dollars.”
- Doubt about the market. Industry long asked whether men would take it. The European data is a response to that question.
- Perception. Another hurdle is how the wider public, including women, would accept male methods. Questions such as whether partners would trust each other to use them correctly, and who bears the consequences of an error, are still open.
There is a policy angle as well. A European Parliament report on gender inequalities in health concluded that more must be done. German MEP Peter Liese, a physician, has argued that male contraception works before fertilisation, so it sidesteps the debate about when life begins and could be acceptable to people who oppose abortion on religious grounds.
The India angle: who carries contraception here?
India shows why this matters. According to NFHS-5 (2019–21), 66.7 per cent of currently married women aged 15 to 49 were using some contraceptive method. Female sterilisation accounted for 37.9 per cent, condoms for 9.5 per cent and male sterilisation for 0.3 per cent.
Male sterilisation has fallen from 3.5 per cent in the first survey round in 1992–93 to 0.3 per cent. Researchers writing in a peer-reviewed analysis point to the coercive, state-run male sterilisation drives of the 1970s as one reason for the long decline, with female sterilisation rising afterwards. A separate review of India’s method mix describes a clear male reluctance to share the responsibility.
India has also produced one of the world’s best-known male contraceptive candidates. RISUG, a one-time injection into the vas deferens developed by Dr Sujoy Guha at IIT Kharagpur, was tested in an ICMR Phase III trial of 303 men aged 25 to 40. The results, published in the journal Andrology, reported that 97.3 per cent became azoospermic and that the method’s pregnancy-prevention efficacy was 99.02 per cent, with no serious side effects. Earlier reporting noted temporary scrotal swelling and mild pain that resolved within a month. Reports around the trial’s completion said the product was awaiting approval from the Drugs Controller General of India. I found no report that it has been approved, and a published review has flagged demonstration of reversal in human volunteers as a key requirement. A US group, the Parsemus Foundation, developed a similar product, Vasalgel, inspired by RISUG.
Questions and risks worth naming
- Women’s trust and men’s compliance. Pills and gels need daily or planned use. Couples will need to agree on who is relying on whom.
- Safety standards. These are healthy men, and the bar for side effects is high. The WHO’s profiles are meant to set that standard.
- Reversibility. Methods aimed at temporary use must restore fertility, and that has to be proven in people.
- STIs. Most candidates do not protect against infections.
- Equity. Cost and access will determine whether new methods reach the people who most need them, in India and elsewhere.
What to do today
If you want reliable protection now, the available choices are condoms, which also protect against STIs, and vasectomy, which is intended to be permanent. Anyone considering vasectomy should speak to a doctor and treat it as irreversible. There is no approved male pill, gel or reversible injection anywhere yet, so it is wise to be cautious of any product claiming to be one.
The bottom line
The demand case is now documented, the WHO has set out what a good male contraceptive should look like, and several products are in human trials. What is still missing is funding, long-term safety and effectiveness data, and approval. The first products could arrive anywhere between 2029 and the mid-2030s, depending on whose estimate you use, and “could” is the operative word. In India, where male methods account for a fraction of one per cent of contraceptive use, the real test will be whether men, partners and health systems are ready when they do.
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