Safe period tracker: Best menstrual cycle apps for privacy

When you track your menstrual cycle, you’re sharing some of your most personal health information. Your data can reveal details about your fertility, pregnancy status, and overall reproductive health. Unfortunately, some period-tracking apps don’t handle this sensitive information responsibly and may share it with third parties.

The good news is that you can still enjoy the benefits of tracking your cycle through an app without giving up your privacy. The safest apps keep your data stored locally on your device, avoid sharing it with third parties, and don’t require you to create an account with personal details.

This guide will help you find menstrual tracking apps that prioritize your privacy and give you control over your data.

Please note: This article is for general informational purposes only and is not intended as medical, legal, or professional advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider for questions about your health or menstrual cycle.

What is a safe period tracker?

A safe period tracker is a menstrual cycle app that prioritizes your privacy and data security. Its main goal is to help you log and understand your cycle without exposing sensitive information about your body or reproductive health.

Unlike apps that share or monetize user data, a safe tracker keeps your information private and under your control.

Best menstrual cycle and period tracking apps for privacy

Below are some of the most privacy-focused period and menstrual cycle tracking apps, selected for features like local data storage, no account requirement, no data sharing, and no tracking, to the best of our knowledge based on available documentation. These apps are not endorsements, but examples of tools designed with user privacy in mind.

Please note: Reproductive-health data can be particularly sensitive in some jurisdictions. Companies may receive lawful requests for user data, and even “anonymous” cloud accounts can sometimes be correlated with individuals. The recommendations below are based on each app’s public documentation and app store privacy labels as of October 2025. Privacy practices can change, so always review each app’s current privacy policy and data handling practices before use.

Euki

Developed by a nonprofit organization, Euki is a strong privacy choice. It doesn’t require an email address or any personal identifiers to use. All data you enter into the app is stored only on your device. The app has no back-end data collection, cloud servers, or tracking cookies, which means you are the only one with access to your information. If you delete the app, all your data is permanently erased with it.

Its open-source code is available on GitHub for public review. A unique feature of Euki is the ability to enter a "duress" PIN, which will display a fake screen if you are ever forced to open the app. Beyond cycle tracking, it also offers customizable information on topics like contraception and sexual health.

Drip

Drip is a non-commercial, open-source project that stores all your data locally, on your device. Because it’s fully open source, its code can be audited by security experts to verify its privacy claims. It’s transparent about how it analyses your data to give you predictions, allows you to set up a password for opening the app, and its gender-inclusive design will appeal to anyone who prefers a period-tracking app that avoids the typical pink palette and gimmicky visuals.

Periodical

Periodical offers a straightforward, open-source, and minimalist approach to period tracking. Available for Android, this free app stores all data locally and contains no third-party analytics or advertising trackers. Its features are limited to calculating fertile days using the Knaus–Ogino method and allowing users to track menstrual symptoms. Note that this method is not a reliable form of contraception, and users should consult a qualified clinician for personalized medical advice.

Other noteworthy private apps

The apps below are also strong privacy choices, though they involve some trade-offs. Most often, this involves using cloud-based storage to enable features like multi-device syncing, regulated contraceptive algorithms, or more advanced analytics.

While these companies have strong privacy policies, this model requires you to place a degree of trust in their security practices and legal frameworks to protect your data on their servers.

Read Your Body

This app is a highly customizable tool that stores your data on your device by default. For those who wish to transfer data to other devices, it offers an optional encrypted backup service. The company operates as a nonprofit and is user-funded.

Natural Cycles

As an FDA-cleared contraceptive app developed in Sweden, Natural Cycles follows strict health data protection regulations of the GDPR. While it stores data on its servers to provide its service, it offers a Go Anonymous mode that separates your personal identifiers from your cycle data.

Clue

Based in Germany, Clue is another GDPR-compliant app. While the data shared with Clue is stored in the cloud, the company has publicly committed not to sell user data. It also gives you granular control over the type of data you wish to share with Clue (for example, you can opt to share your anonymized data for scientific research purposes but decline to allow recommendations from Clue).

Here’s a handy side-by-side comparison as of October 2025:

Why safety and privacy of period tracker apps matter

Period tracker apps collect some of your most intimate health information: your cycle data can indicate whether you’re pregnant or trying to conceive, have experienced a pregnancy loss, or might be seeking reproductive care. They may log sexual activity, ovulation, medication use, contraception methods, and other health indicators, along with metadata about how and when you use the app.

If mishandled, this highly sensitive information can be used to profile you, target you with ads, and expose you to other risks.

According to the University of Cambridge’s Minderoo Centre for Technology and Democracy 2025 report, advertisers place a high value on reproductive health data. For instance, insights about pregnancy status are often considered more valuable than basic details like age, gender, or location.

Research published in 2025 in BMC Women's Health on menstrual health apps shows that around 71% of period tracker apps share personal and sensitive health data with third parties.

Many apps include embedded tools from analytics or marketing firms. These can collect and transmit user data directly to those companies. And privacy policies often contain general language that allows sharing data with partners or affiliates for various business purposes.

Sharing of reproductive or other health data has raised concerns about risks that go far beyond marketing and analytics misuse, including workplace discrimination and potential profiling by insurers seeking to adjust premiums or coverage.

The risks outlined above underscore the importance of choosing a privacy-focused app. The next section highlights some of the key features to look for in a period tracking app.

Key privacy features to look for in a safe period tracker

When choosing a privacy-oriented period tracking app, your comfort level with data sharing can vary depending on your needs. Some users may be fine allowing anonymized data to be used for scientific research or to help improve the app’s services. Others might be willing to trade certain privacy features for a smoother, more seamless experience. If this is your case, it’s still important to select an app that is completely transparent about how it manages your data and complies with regulations like GDPR.

For those for whom period tracking is a high-stakes matter, choosing an app with maximum security and privacy features is crucial. These features include:

1. No data sales or sharing

Choose an app whose privacy policy clearly prohibits selling personal data, using it for ad targeting, or sharing it with third parties under “legitimate interest” claims. Your health data requires the same level of protection expected in telehealth and other digital medical services. Look for plain language that clearly rules out ads, brokers, and any secondary use.

2. Local-only storage

While cloud syncing can be convenient, it introduces additional points of vulnerability where your data could be accessed, leaked, or shared without your knowledge. The safest period trackers are those that store all data locally on your device and never transmit it to company servers. When your cycle data stays on your phone or tablet, the app developer has no access to it.

Local storage also protects you from company data breaches. If you delete the app, your information is deleted with it. Keep in mind, though, that copies may remain in your device backups until you remove them.

3. No account required

A truly anonymous period tracker should let you use all core features without creating an account or sharing personal details like your email or phone number. This keeps your cycle data private and ensures fewer identifiers are linked to your profile. If the app prompts you to sign up, it should still offer a clearly visible “skip” option so you can continue using it anonymously.

4. Clear, immediate deletion

A privacy-first app enables instant deletion of all your data from within the app, with no customer support requests or waiting periods. If the app offers optional cloud sync, ensure that deleting your account or data also removes any server copies at the same time, so your information is completely erased in one step.

5. No location collection

One strong privacy signal is that the app does not collect location data, since in most cases it isn’t required for tracking your cycle. Location tracking poses privacy risks, as this information can be shared with third parties or linked to data from other devices such as smartwatches and fitness bands.

Learn more: Check out 5 tips to keep your fitness apps secure.

6. On-device encryption

Choose an app that encrypts your data while it’s stored on your device (a process known as encryption at rest). This ensures your information remains unreadable without your device passcode or a dedicated app password. If available, setting an additional PIN adds another layer of protection for your data.

7. No analytics or third-party SDKs

Most private apps avoid embedding third-party software development kits (SDKs) for analytics or advertising. These tools can collect data about how you use the app and send it to outside companies. A privacy-first app shouldn’t contain advertising IDs, marketing pixels, or other trackers. You can often confirm this by reviewing the app’s privacy label in your device’s app store.

8. Open source or independent audit

Transparency provides a way to verify an app’s privacy claims. The best apps are often open source, which means their programming code is publicly available for security experts to review. If an app isn’t open source, look for a recent and independent security audit. This should be a full report you can review, not simply a marketing claim of security on the company's website.

How to protect your privacy while tracking periods

Choosing a privacy-focused app is an important first step, but it’s wise to take additional measures to secure your data and maintain control over your information.

1. Read and compare privacy policies

Privacy policies reveal crucial information about data practices, but they require careful reading. Use your browser's search function to look for key terms like "sharing," “third parties,” “partners,” “analytics,” and “location.”

Pay attention to vague language or broad permissions that might allow data sharing you didn't expect. If a privacy policy is difficult to understand or find, consider that a red flag.

2. Limit app permissions

Review and restrict app permissions on your device regularly. Period tracking apps don’t need access to:

• Your location (unless you specifically want location-based reminders)
• Your contacts
• Your camera or microphone
• Other apps’ data

On both Android and iOS, you can granularly control apps through your device settings. We have detailed guides on how to manage app permissions on Android and adjust your iPhone’s privacy settings to help you lock down your data.

3. Delete or export your data regularly

For maximum privacy, consider regularly purging old period data that you no longer need. Many privacy-focused apps allow you to export your data before deletion, so you can maintain records without keeping them in the app indefinitely.

If you’re using a cloud-based app, you have limited control over your data once it’s stored. You can request deletion and ask for confirmation, but even then, some copies, like backups or shared data, may remain. Trying to log into a deleted account can give a clue: if you succeed, data still exists; but if you don’t, it doesn’t guarantee complete removal.

4. Protect your connection with a VPN

A VPN helps protect your privacy by masking your IP address: a digital identifier that apps and websites may log automatically. This prevents your period-tracking activity from being directly linked to your internet connection or household.

Using a trusted, no-logs VPN like ExpressVPN encrypts your internet traffic and replaces your IP address with that of the VPN server. This adds a layer of privacy in case app providers, advertisers, or other third parties retain network logs.

Always using a VPN with your app is important. Even if you never sign in or share personal details, the app’s logs might still contain your real IP address, which your ISP can tie to your identity. A VPN hides that IP from the app provider by routing traffic through another server, so the provider only sees the VPN’s IP, not yours. Keep in mind that if you forget to connect to the VPN even once, your real IP could still appear in older logs.

Learn more: An IP address is not the only way your device can be tracked. See how to change your location on Android and iPhone.

Safe alternatives without apps (offline tracking)

While the apps we’ve discussed offer strong protections, the most privacy-preserving option is to use an offline method, which minimizes the chances of your data being accessible online.

1. Using a spreadsheet

A spreadsheet can be a powerful, customizable alternative to period apps. Using offline tools like Microsoft Excel or LibreOffice Calc, you can create a tracker with columns for cycle start and end dates, flow intensity, symptoms, and mood.

You can even include automatic formulas to calculate your average cycle length or highlight fertile windows.

Tip: Use offline spreadsheet software instead of cloud-based services if you want maximum privacy.

2. Calendar method

This classic approach involves marking your period days directly on a physical or digital calendar. Track for several months to establish your cycle patterns. Identify your shortest and longest cycles, then use that information to estimate fertile windows.

While less precise and generally less convenient than app-based tracking, the calendar method provides basic cycle awareness without any digital privacy concerns.

3. Pen and paper method

Using a notebook remains one of the most secure ways to record your cycles. You can jot down start and end dates, note flow intensity with symbols or colors, and record symptoms or lifestyle factors like stress or sleep.

Over time, your notes will reveal clear patterns without leaving any digital trail. Some people find this method more mindful, helping them stay in tune with their bodies.