Track your baby's growth

on our free #1 Pregnancy Download

App!

Sign Up

Pregnancy > Week by Week

How Many Weeks,

Months and
Trimesters in a
Pregnancy?
by Colleen de Bellefonds
Medically Reviewed by
James Greenberg, M.D. on
May 17, 2022

Stocksy

You can hardly wait until

your due date — but when is
it again? Find out exactly
how many weeks and
months into pregnancy you
are.

IN THIS ARTICLE

How many weeks are in a pregnancy?

How many weeks are in a trimester?

How many trimesters are in a

pregnancy?

Is pregnancy nine or 10 months long?

How many weeks is a full-term

pregnancy?

Pregnancy months to weeks chart

How do I know what week I am

currently in my pregnancy?

Your pregnancy countdown can get

jumbled pretty quickly. Are you 13
weeks pregnant or in week 14? First
trimester or your second? Three
months pregnant or four?

Advertisement

Fortunately, the answers are

(relatively) simple once you know
what to count. Here’s what you need
to know about how many weeks,
months and trimesters there are in a
pregnancy — and where you fit in.

How many weeks are

in a pregnancy?
There are 40 weeks (or 280 days) in a
pregnancy. Your due date is
calculated starting from the first day
of your last menstrual period (even
though most pregnancies are not
conceived until two weeks later).
Keep in mind that only about 30
percent of pregnancies will reach
precisely week 40.

How many weeks are

in a trimester?
There are 13 or 14 weeks per
trimester. (Just divide 40 by three and
you’ll see why the breakdown isn’t
exact.)

How many trimesters

are in a pregnancy?
There are three trimesters in a
pregnancy: the first trimester, which
lasts from weeks 1 to 13, the second
trimester, which lasts from week 14
to week 27, and the third trimester,
which lasts from week 28 to week 40
(and up).

Is pregnancy nine or
10 months long?
Your 40 weeks of pregnancy are
counted as nine months. But wait …
there are four weeks in a month,
which would make 40 weeks 10
months. Right? Not exactly.

Advertisement

Four weeks is 28 days, but months

(with the exception of February, of
course) have 30 or 31 days, making
each month about 4.3 weeks long.

How many weeks is a

full-term pregnancy?
If you're carrying a single baby, a full-
term pregnancy is between the start
of 39 weeks up to the end of 40
weeks. If you're carrying twins, a full-
term pregnancy is considered at least
38 weeks.

Continue Reading Below

More About
Pregnancy
Trimesters

Your Guide to the

First Trimester of
Pregnancy

Your Guide to the

Second Trimester
of Pregnancy

Your Guide to the

Third Trimester of
Pregnancy

The American College of

Obstetricians and Gynecologists
(ACOG) uses the following terms for
pregnancy, depending on when your
baby is born:

Preterm: 20 weeks to 37 weeks

Early term: 37 weeks to 38 weeks

6 days

Full term: 39 weeks to 40 weeks 6

days

Late term: 41 weeks to 41 weeks

6 days

Post term: after 42 weeks

Pregnancy months
to weeks chart

PregnancyWeeks,
MonthsandTrimesters

E STER MONTH WEEK

TRIM 1 1-4

2 5-8

3 9-13

E STER MONTH WEEK

TRIM
•..

4 14-17

5 18-22

6 23-27

E STER MONTH WEEK

TRIM 28-31

8 32-35
9 36-40

whattoexpect.

Here’s a simple breakdown of

approximately how the weeks,
months and trimesters are counted
in pregnancy:

Trimester 1

Month 1: Weeks 1 to 4

Month 2: Weeks 5 to 8

Month 3: Weeks 9 to 13

Trimester 2

Month 4: Weeks 14 to 17

Month 5: Weeks 18 to 22

Month 6: Weeks 23 to 27

Trimester 3

Month 7: Weeks 28 to 31

Month 8: Weeks 32 to 35

Month 9: Weeks 36 to 40

How do I know what

week I am currently
in my pregnancy?
Your doctor says you're 15 weeks
pregnant, but you’re also hearing that
you’re in week 16. Which is right? The
short answer: both.

It turns out how many weeks into

pregnancy you are is a little different
than how many weeks pregnant you
are. If you’re in week 16, you’re
actually 15 weeks and some days
pregnant. Fifteen full weeks have
gone by, but not 16 weeks, so people
say that you're both 15 weeks
pregnant and in week 16 of
pregnancy.

To clear things up, think about

birthdays. When you turned 1 year
old, you had lived through your first
year and were starting on your
second. In other words, on your first
birthday, you were in day one of your
second year. But no one said you
were 2 years old until you'd finished
that second year and had begun your
third.

The same rules apply when talking

about your weeks of pregnancy: You
are x weeks pregnant, but in your x+1
week of pregnancy.

How do I calculate
my due date?
Wondering how your practitioner
estimated your due date? It’s
calculated counting from the first day
of your last menstrual period (LMP),
not the day you conceived. So try to
remember the first day of your last
period and add 40 weeks to that.

You can also calculate your due date

with the following formula:

Subtract three months from the

first day of your last menstrual
period

Add seven days

Add one year

For example, if the first day of your

last menstrual period was June 2,
2022, subtract three months to get
March 2, 2022. Add seven days and
you'll get March 9, 2022. Finally, add
one year to find your estimated due
date of March 9, 2023.

How to Calculate Your Due

Date

Why is pregnancy
calculated from your
last period?
Why start the clock on pregnancy
before sperm even meets egg (and,
actually, before your ovary even
dropped the fated egg that made
your baby)? Using your last period is
simply a more reliable benchmark to
date a pregnancy from. Even if you’re
a master of cervical mucus and are
sure about the day you ovulated as
well as the day(s) you had sex, you
probably can’t pinpoint the exact
moment of conception.

That’s because there’s a bigger

window than you might think: Sperm
can hang out and wait for an egg to
fertilize for three to five days after
they’ve arrived, and an egg can be
fertilized for up to 24 hours after it’s
been released. That's also good news,
since it means you’ll already have
clocked four weeks of pregnancy by
the time you miss your period.

Frequently Asked
Questions

Is a pregnancy 9 or 10
months?
Your 40 weeks of pregnancy are
counted as nine months. That's
because each month (except
February) is about 4.3 weeks long.

Is pregnancy 40 or 42
weeks?
There are 40 weeks (or 280 days) in a
pregnancy.

Is 37 weeks full term for a

baby?
According to The American College of
Obstetricians and Gynecologists
(ACOG), 37 weeks is early term. A
baby is full term at 39 weeks.

How many weeks is a

healthy pregnancy?
If you're carrying a single baby, a full-
term pregnancy is between the start
of 39 weeks and the end of 40 weeks.
If you're carrying twins, a full-term
pregnancy is at least 38 weeks.

Advertisement

From the What to Expect editorial team

and Heidi Murkoff, author of What to
Expect When You're Expecting. What to
Expect follows strict reporting guidelines
and uses only credible sources, such as
peer-reviewed studies, academic research
institutions and highly respected health
organizations. Learn how we keep our
content accurate and up-to-date by reading
our medical review and editorial policy.

View Sources +

Was this article helpful?

Yes No

Related Topics

Week by Week Pregnancy

Pregnancy Groups First Trimester

Jump to Your Week of

Pregnancy

Pregnancy Pregnancy Pregnancy

Week 1 Week 2 Week 3

Advertisement

Search for

Cure for Itching

Birth Date
Calculator

Pregnancy Week Calculator

5 Foods You Should Never

Eat

Pregnancy Food Chart

How to Lower Blood Sugar

Quickly

Pregnancy Due Date

Calculate My Pregnancy

Foods to Avoid

Foods That Trigger Eczema

Am I Pregnant Test Quiz

Trending On What to
Expect

Signs Of Labor

Pregnancy
Calculator

Advertisement
Moms Get
FREE Gifts

Top 1,000 Baby

Girl Names In
The U.S.

Top 1,000 Baby

Boy Names In
The U.S.

Braxton Hicks
Contractions
And False Labor

Start Tracking Your

Baby's Growth Today!
Get access to weekly baby videos
& personalized articles for your
pregnancy in our #1 rated app.

Get the App

Follow us on

Find advice, support and good

company (and some stuff just
for fun).

What to Expect What to Expect

Apps Project

Popular Topics Medical Review

Policy
About Us
What to Expect
Contact Us Bookstore
Press Center Advertising
Policy
Advertise With
Us Do Not Sell My
Personal
About Heidi
Information
Murkoff
Help
Accessibility
AdChoices

Feedback

The educational health content on What To Expect is

reviewed by our medical review board and team of
experts to be up-to-date and in line with the latest
evidence-based medical information and accepted
health guidelines, including the medically reviewed
What to Expect books by Heidi Murko". This
educational content is not medical or diagnostic
advice. Use of this site is subject to our terms of use
and privacy policy. © 2005-2023 Everyday Health, Inc.,
a Zi" Davis company.

A PROPERTY OF

Advertisement

cool-black-logo What to Expect supports Group

Black and its mission to increase
greater diversity in media voices