Fertility tests: ovarian reserve, cycle hormones and ovulation
Ovarian reserve, the hormones that drive each cycle, and whether ovulation is actually happening, checked properly and explained by a doctor who works only in women's health.
About this stage
This stage is for anyone thinking about children now, in a few years, or not at all but wanting to know where they stand. It covers ovarian reserve, indicated by AMH, the pituitary hormones FSH and LH that run your cycle, oestradiol, prolactin and TSH, and a progesterone check about seven days after ovulation to confirm ovulation happened that cycle. Partner testing sits beside it, because male factor is involved in a large share of fertility difficulty and it is the quickest thing to rule in or out.
The questions women bring to this stage are remarkably consistent. How many eggs do I have left. Is my AMH normal for my age. Do I have time to wait another two years. Am I ovulating. Why has nothing happened after eight months of trying. Should my partner be tested too. Do I need a GP referral, and will Medicare pay for any of it. Every one of those is a fair question, and most of them are answerable with one well-timed blood collection and twenty minutes with a doctor who can put the numbers in context.
Here is the honest part. Testing can tell you how much ovarian reserve you appear to have, whether your cycle hormones look typical for the day you collected, whether thyroid or prolactin is interfering, and whether you ovulated this cycle. It cannot tell you egg quality, which tracks mostly with age, and it cannot predict whether or when you will conceive. A low AMH does not mean you cannot get pregnant, and a reassuring AMH is not a reason to wait. What a good panel does is replace guessing with a baseline, flag the treatable things early, and give you and your doctor something concrete to plan around.
KnowLuna panels are self-pay and not Medicare-rebated, which is what lets you order when the question comes up rather than when an appointment is free. If a result needs following up, a doctor contacts you directly and refers you on, including back to your own GP or to a specialist. You can share the report with your regular doctor in one click, and it is written to be useful to them.
What is AMH, and what can it actually tell you?
Ovarian reserve explained, including what the number does not mean.
AMH levels by age
What is typical at 30, 35 and 40, what counts as low, and how to read it.
What do FSH and LH levels mean?
Reference ranges by cycle day, and why the day changes the answer.
Progesterone and the day 21 test
How one well-timed blood test confirms that ovulation happened.
Fertility tests for women in Australia
What a fertility blood test includes, and what it costs here.
How much does an AMH test cost in Australia?
Why there is no rebate, and what a price should include.
Choose your test
Pick the panel that matches your question. Each test page lists every marker, the preparation, the cycle timing and the price before you order.
A doctor requests it
Upload a request your own GP or specialist has signed, or answer a short questionnaire and have a KnowLuna women's health doctor review it and request the panel.
Collect and understand
Give your sample at an accredited collection centre near you, or choose a home kit or a nurse visit where the test allows it. Plain-English results land in your account, with a doctor to talk them through.
Common questions
Is an AMH test covered by Medicare in Australia?
No. AMH has no item number on the Medicare Benefits Schedule, so it is not rebated whoever orders it, including a fertility specialist. You pay for it whether you go through a GP or through KnowLuna. That is why we show one self-pay price that covers the accredited lab test and the plain-English report, with a doctor consult if you want the result talked through.
What day of my cycle should I collect?
AMH is stable, so it can be collected any day. FSH, LH and oestradiol are best on day two to five, counting the first day of full flow as day one. Progesterone needs to be about seven days after ovulation, often day 21 of a 28 day cycle. If your cycles are irregular we help you time it.
Can a blood test tell me whether I can get pregnant?
No, and anyone who says otherwise is selling something. A fertility panel indicates ovarian reserve and shows whether your cycle hormones, thyroid and prolactin look typical. It cannot measure egg quality or predict conception. It is one input to a doctor's assessment, alongside your age, history and your partner's results.
Do I need a GP referral?
No. You can order with a request your own doctor has already signed, or a KnowLuna doctor reviews a short questionnaire and requests the panel for you. Either way an AHPRA-registered Australian doctor is behind the request, and abnormal results are always followed up.
Sources and further reading
- Pathology Tests Explained (RCPA): anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH)
- Pregnancy, Birth and Baby: fertility tests and treatments
- Better Health Channel: infertility in women
- Healthdirect: about infertility
General information only, not medical advice. A blood test is one input to a doctor's assessment, not a diagnosis on its own. If your symptoms are severe or sudden, see a doctor promptly. Read our medical disclaimer.
Know yours, and know what it means.