In the 1990s, a series of national surveys revealed new information about the level of contraceptive use and the most popular methods in various countries. The surveys also show that European women still have surprise pregnancies, despite the easy availability and high contraceptive use rate. In most European countries, more than four out of five women of childbearing age who were married or in a marriage-like relationship were using a contraceptive method at the time of the survey. The ages of respondents varied by country. The nearly universal use of contraception in Europe today is a phenomenon that appeared in the past three decades.
Most European women rely on highly effective contraceptive methods.
Female sterilization, which rivals the pill as the top method in the United States, is not as popular in Europe. Sterilization was important only in Belgium, Spain, and Finland, where it accounted for 10 percent to 18 percent of use. Percentages are based on women in union who reported current use of a contraceptive method. Author's calculations of data from the Fertility and Family Surveys. Surprisingly, traditional methods that have a relatively high failure rate are still widely used, especially in Spain and Eastern Europe.