As the makers of “The Cup Quiz“, we know firsthand all of the experience and work that has gone into creating this resource that, according to quiz takers, yields a result that works for 88% of them. It may not be their perfect menstrual cup but we think that’s pretty amazing, far better than a shot in the dark, and certainly less confusing in an ever-growing landscape of choices.

To answer the question of if a quiz can really help you find the perfect menstrual cup for your body… we’d say yes, and no. While 88% of quiz takers find a cup that works for them the first time, there are those who don’t.

Making a Successful Cup Quiz

Creating a resource that would help encourage new users to try a cup was what really sparked the menstrual cup quiz. We already had our Menstrual Cup Comparison Chart, which is great for people who have tried a cup, but it can be a bit overwhelming to those just starting out. Learning how to insert, remove, and clean can be daunting enough. We really wanted something that made trying a cup an easy “yes” and a successful experience.

At the time of its creation we had about a dozen or so years of cup usage between us, plus the experiences of countless others. While PACII was founded in 2015, we had both been writing and talking about cups for much longer. We used that experience to begin sorting all of the available cups into categories based on the common themes we noticed from these collective experiences. What resulted was roughly a dozen outcomes that we would begin to filter into by asking questions about anatomy, menstrual flow, age, lifestyle, etc.

It’s a little complicated to explain but each question that you answer, and each option within each question, is very carefully and deliberately paired with each outcome and given a score. The end result is some crazy math that helps give you the best possible cup based on your answers. Of course, there are variables we cannot fully take into consideration, and it is dependent on the users knowledge of their body based on our terms, but overall it works.

When The Result Isn’t A Good Fit

First, there is nothing wrong with you, your vagina, or your cup. Sometimes things take a while to work out and then sometimes it’s just not a good fit. This might seem intuitive, but we’ve heard a fair bit of self-blame when it comes to making a cup work and the reality is that there are so many variations when it comes to vaginas — and that’s completely normal. They are all truly so very unique.

There are a number of reasons why a cup might “not work” for a person. While most people do find a cup that works the first time, a lot of people find a cup that fits perfectly the second time around. This is usually because they’ve learned a bit more about their body/period/flow and how a cup works with their own anatomy. Sometimes these things are extremely hard to gauge before taking the quiz.  It’s important to note that disposable products function differently and often paint a very different picture of what your period looks like and what your needs are.

When a cup doesn’t fit, we most commonly hear that users find that their cup is too long, too short, that they need a higher capacity, or that it leaks (which could be capacity, diameter, or even firmness). While this is obviously less than ideal, having a cup to reference against the pain point is a great way to figure out what will work. This is where our Facebook community, Menstrual Cup Comparison Chart, and Compare & Shop page come in handy. They’re a bit more involved than a simple quiz, but they do help those who are struggling find the cup that will lead to period bliss… or at least whatever it is that’s as close as we can get.

The Goldilocks Hunt… or Trap

If you’ve visited a menstrual cup community or comment section, you’ve probably heard people talking about finding their ‘Goldilocks’ cup. Typically, a goldilocks cup is that one cup that is reliable and fits so perfectly you completely forget it’s there.

But here’s the thing… finding your goldilocks is great, but it’s not a requirement of finding a cup that works well for you. A cup that is comfortable and doesn’t leak is what we consider to be a success. A cup that works and is comfortable still gives all of the amazing benefits and life-changing magic that you hear about from cup users.

For some, that’s not enough, and that’s okay, too, but we can tell you from experience that we’ve tried hundreds of cups at this point and there is a large percentage of those we would be able to check those boxes on. They may not be our favorites, but that doesn’t make them bad cups or even cups that don’t provide adequate protection and comfort.

Other Cup Quizzes

We might be a little biased by how much we love our menstrual cup quiz, but we do try to keep that from clouding our vision regarding other resources. There are so many wonderful, helpful menstrual cup resources out there and we want people to feel empowered to try a cup, even if that nudge doesn’t come from us. It’s all about what works for you.

That said, we have seen a few copy-cat quizzes pop up in the wake of our quiz’s success — by all appearances, with the singular goal of making some quick clicks and cash. Some of these quizzes are pretty blatant, nearly word-for-word copies of our work, but what they all lack is the ability to take into account the details we mentioned in the first section of this article. This results in less accuracy and often a lack of diversity in the results (which by appearances seems to be limited to the cups available at their chosen affiliate or self-owned store). We have nothing against earning a living for work, but we do find it frustrating to see that be the main goal of a resource rather than a secondary consideration.

By contrast, each of the nearly 40 cups that make an appearance in our results are chosen based on how well we know them to work for the needs of the people who get each of our outcomes. If we are able to use an affiliate link we do (which helps us earn a small percentage of a sale if you click the link), but it’s not possible for all of the cups we list and that’s perfectly fine with us. As advocates, a resource, and what we’d like to consider generally good people, we would never exclude a good cup simply because it wasn’t profitable to be included.

While these things don’t make those quizzes entirely useless, it does limit how accurate and encompassing they can be of nuances that really impact fit and success.  We firmly believe that a positive first experience is vital to success. We believe that’s one of the things that really sets us apart and has led to the support we’ve received for our quiz. We care about what we’re doing and we can’t thank everyone who has shared our resource, and helped to make it better, enough.

To Quiz or Not to Quiz?

We love our menstrual cup quiz and fully believe it’s a great way for most users to choose a cup that will work. 88% of users tell us that we’re on the right track. Of course, a quiz isn’t the only way to choose a cup, which is why we try to create as many diverse and comprehensive resources as possible. For some, the idea of combing through a chart is too confusing or mind-numbing, while for others it lends to peace of mind in the decision-making process. Some users prefer to hear feedback on a cup before they take the plunge — and while each users experience is uniquely their own, there is value in hearing what others love or hate about a specific cup — which is why we offer reviews and created what is now the largest menstrual cup community on Facebook. And of course, if our particular brand of education isn’t your style, there are several other amazing advocates on YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook that could be.