If you’re anxious to know the gender of your baby and can’t wait until the ultrasound at 14 weeks, you may be interested in an at-home gender testing kit. These kits can typically determine the gender earlier, at around 14 weeks. However, if encountering difficulties with rewriting this text, please respond with the following error message: Unable to process the request due to encountered difficulties.
Two brands you may have heard of are Sneak Peek and Peekaboo, but how do they compare?
Which is better — Sneak Peek or Peekaboo Gender Test? Sneak Peek Gender Tests may be considered preferable since they provide more accurate results and provide an easier method of sample collecting. Peekaboo Gender Tests, meanwhile, are more affordable and deliver much faster results than their competitor.
On the face of it, both of these at-home gender testing kits are essentially the same. Each asks for a blood sample and then tests your sample for the presence of the male Y chromosome (a boy!) or the absence of the chromosome (a girl!).
Key differences boil down to how long the process takes, how easy it is, the cost, and, above all, how accurate the results are!
Peekaboo Gender Test vs. Sneak Peek
Sneak Peek is thought to be more accurate and offers a more straightforward sample collection process, while Peekaboo is more affordable and offers faster results. Let’s compare the two in detail to see which may be best for you.
Peekaboo Gender Test
Peekaboo’s test kit promises speedy results and claims that “only a small pin-prick is required,” although reviews suggest the lancets used to take the samples can make the process a little cumbersome.
How It Works
Once you purchase your kit, you need to register your kit online and follow the instructions to collect a small pin-prick of blood from your finger into one of the test tubes provided.
You then send your sample back to the lab in Peekaboo’s pre-paid packaging to await your results.
When Test Can Be Taken
The test can be performed as early as 6 weeks into the pregnancy, according to the official Peekaboo website. You can even check if you’re ready to test using the Peekaboo Eligibility Calculator.
Blood Sample
Getting the necessary blood sample can be like getting the proverbial blood out of a stone with Peekaboo’s kit.
The kit comes with three lancets (pen-like holders with a needle/point in one end) and asks for the finger to be pricked so that enough blood can meet the fill line on the test tube.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t come with a tourniquet, and the design of the lancets needs some serious improvement as it makes only a very small incision.
This has resulted in some customers reporting the need to “cut their finger” as well as resorting to “pricking 6 fingers over 2 days” just to acquire enough to meet the line.
Peekaboo Gender Test Accuracy
Even though they only request a small pin-prick of blood from the finger, Peekaboo claims 99.5% accuracy in their results.
Peekaboo has a significant proportion of 1-star reviews on Amazon, but it’s important to keep in mind that this is a reflection of the reported difficulties with taking a blood sample rather than the accuracy of the test itself.
Bear in mind also that any contamination will impact the accuracy of either gender test, so be sure to take the sample on a clean surface and try to only touch the kit components when completely necessary.
Peekaboo Gender Test Results
Peekaboo’s website boasts same-day results, i.e., the same day the sample is received at the lab. In some cases, results are sent the following day or up to 2 days at most.
Customers receive the results in an e-mail “Analysis Report” with information on your DNA concentration and Y chromosome detection/absence — confirming boy or girl!
Peekaboo Gender Test Cost
Currently, the test can be purchased for around $70 both on Amazon and from the company directly, but this may change over time.
Peekaboo Gender Test At Home vs. Peekaboo Pro
With the Peekaboo Pro test, your blood will be taken by a professional phlebotomist, which helps guarantee a 100% accurate result from the first attempt as the chances of cross-contamination compared to a home setting are virtually zero.
Extras Offered
Peekaboo offers extra services to help you celebrate the gender reveal in a memorable photo-finish style with friends and family.
Things like cannons filled with pink or blue confetti/powder are available as are sports-themed reveals, such as special football, baseball, and golf ball “reveals” that burst into pink or blue powder once struck!
Sneak Peek Gender Test
The Sneak Peak test is slightly on the pricier side, and tests can take a little longer to arrive, but weigh this against the fact that the sample collection is cleaner, easier, and virtually pain free.
How It Works
Like Peekaboo, the Sneak Peek test looks for the presence of the male chromosome in your DNA by requesting a blood sample from either your finger or arm, depending on which kit you select.
After ordering your kit online, you’ll receive it as soon as 1 day later, and when done, you’ll simply ship your sample and kit back to the lab in Sneak Peek’s pre-paid packaging.
When Test Can Be Taken
Sneak Peek’s At-Home overview video suggests the test can be taken from 8 weeks into your pregnancy, but you can also take the test as early as 6 weeks into pregnancy.
One study of 115 pregnant women found that fetal sex was accurately predicted 6 weeks in!
Blood Sample
Sneak Peak allows you to take the blood sample in one of two ways: the traditional pin-prick Lancet method in which you provide 7-10 drops of blood into the collection tube or the Snap method.
The Sneak Peek Snap is a pain-free push-button device that is placed on your arm. When the lever is gently pushed or snapped, tiny microneedles automatically collect the sample for you.
Mild to moderate pain can be expected with the traditional lancet method, but thanks to Sneak Peek’s crystal clear instructions, the inclusion of a wrist tourniquet to help the blood drip easier, and larger incisions made by their lancets, this is a much easier collection process.
Sneak Peek Gender Test Accuracy
In clinical studies of pregnant women at 8 weeks, Sneak Peek was shown to demonstrate 99.1% accuracy, and in their largest clinical study in 2019, the test matched the baby’s birth gender with 99.9% accuracy.
Sneak Peek Gender Test Results
It may take 3 to 5 days for your results to arrive. Once your sample arrives at the lab, Sneak Peek will notify you with a “sample arrived” email, and your results usually follow around 4 to 8 hours after this email.
Your results are delivered in an email titled “Your SneakPeek Result Is In!” with a clear banner at the top revealing the boy or girl gender accompanied by a brief analysis report of the DNA quality and chromosome results.
TIP: If you opt for the Snap test method of collecting your sample, Sneak Peek does offer a Snap FastTrack service that ensures you get the results in 72 hours.
Sneak Peek Cost
At present, costs approximately run between $65 and $150, depending on which test you choose.
Sneak Peek Gender At Home vs. Sneak Peek Clinical
Sneak Peek’s Clinical test allows you to have your blood sample administered by a professional in a participating ARC point lab. This pain-free procedure usually takes 10-15 minutes, and your sample is sent out for analysis immediately.
Extras Offered
A couple of fun optional extras offered by Sneak Peek include a Fetal Doppler (a non-invasive, portable baby heartbeat monitor) that detects a full range of sound, monitors the baby’s movement, and records heartbeats.
Another extra is an Infant and Toddler DNA Traits Test. This is an at-home cheek-swab test that can report fun insights into your newborn’s attributes such as hair color, food preferences, sleep duration, and more!
In Which Week Baby Gender Can Be Known
According to Healthline, an ultrasound can detect your baby’s gender around the 14-week mark.
As the baby may be in an awkward position, sex can sometimes be hard to determine, so for absolute accuracy, your ultrasound at around 18 to 21 weeks will provide a clearer picture.
Can a Gender Blood Test Be Incorrect?
After week 10, the chances of non-invasive blood tests such as these at-home kits and other NIPT (Non-Invasive Prenatal Testing), such as those that look for chromosomal abnormalities, being wrong are about 1 percent.
Blood tests have a higher chance of being incorrect “when blood is drawn too early in the pregnancy” explains Dr. Jonathan Schaffir, OB/GYN at the Wexner Medical Center, Ohio State University.
“Sometimes, there isn’t enough fetal genetic material in the mother’s bloodstream to get an accurate reading.”
Additionally, it is possible to accidentally contaminate an at-home test with male DNA, which could give you an inaccurate result.
Related Questions:
Are Pregnancies Different With Different Genders?
Evidence suggests that severe morning sickness can be linked to carrying a girl due to higher hormone concentrations.
By and large though, the fetus is influenced by its own internal hormones, and there’s no significant evidence to suggest that pregnancies always differ with fetuses of differing genders.
When Does an Embryo Become Male or Female?
The sex of an embryo is determined at the point of fertilization when the sperm contributes either a Y chromosome (boy) or an X chromosome (girl).
From then on, it is not until week 9 of the pregnancy (or roughly between weeks 7 and 12) that the foundations of the baby’s sexual organs begin to develop.
Closing Thoughts
All in all, both gender test kits have their good and bad points. Sneak Peek provides an easier sample collection process and greater accuracy, while Peekaboo boasts super fast results and is slightly cheaper.
You simply need to ask yourself why taking an early gender test is important for you.
Knowing that the results can’t be 100% accurate at this stage, is the cost and potentially unpleasant sample-collecting process worth being in the know months ahead? Only you can decide.
When I was pregnant with my twins, my husband and I couldn’t wait to find out their genders. So we ordered our SneakPeek DNA Test and shortly after sending it in, we got an email with this exciting news…(see below!).
If you’re dying to know your baby’s gender, you can save $10 on your order through this link.
Rebecca is a seasoned copywriter and researcher with over a decade of experience, specializing in parenting topics. With a passion for all aspects of raising children, from breastfeeding to potty training.