Most contraceptive rings are a fresh ring every month. Annovera is the exception: one ring, one full year. You keep and reuse the same ring across thirteen cycles instead of throwing one away every four weeks. That single difference is what makes its schedule worth understanding on its own. Nothing here is medical advice; check your ring’s label or the Planned Parenthood ring guide, and talk to your provider about what fits you.
The short version: one ring, one year
Annovera runs on the familiar 21 days in, 7 days out rhythm — the same in-then-out pattern as the NuvaRing. The twist is that you don’t dispose of it at the end of the month. The same ring is reused for 13 cycles, which works out to about a year, before you replace it.
Its hormones are also different from the NuvaRing family: Annovera uses segesterone acetate together with ethinyl estradiol. Same idea — a ring that releases hormones — with a different progestin and a very different lifespan.
How the yearly cycle actually works
Each cycle looks like this:
- Insert the ring and leave it in for 21 days.
- Remove it for 7 days — most people get a withdrawal bleed during this break, just like the other rings.
- Clean and store the same ring in the case it came with, at room temperature, during those 7 days.
- Reinsert the same ring and start the next cycle.
Repeat that 13 times and you’ve used one ring for a year. The exact cleaning steps and storage guidance are on the label — follow those rather than a general description, because they’re specific to the product.
The underlying in-then-out logic is the same one covered in our schedule guide; if the 3-in-1-out pattern and the idea of a withdrawal bleed are new to you, start there.
How Annovera differs from NuvaRing and EluRyng
Beyond the hormones, three practical differences matter:
- It’s reusable, not monthly. NuvaRing and its generic EluRyng are one ring per cycle, discarded after use. Annovera is one ring you keep for the year.
- No refrigeration. Annovera is designed to be kept at room temperature for its whole life — there’s no pharmacy-fridge step the way there is for an unopened NuvaRing.
- The “out too long” rule is its own. The well-known 3-hour rule is a NuvaRing number — don’t assume it transfers. Annovera’s guidance for a ring that’s been out too long is spelled out on its own label, and that’s the source to trust for your ring.
We’re not putting Annovera’s specific timing numbers here on purpose — those belong to the label, not a blog.
The part that’s easy to lose track of
The reusable design trades one problem for another. You’re no longer opening a new box every month — but now you’re tracking two clocks at once: the 21-in / 7-out rhythm within each cycle, and where you are in the 13-cycle year, so a replacement is lined up before the ring is spent. Miss the first and you’re off-schedule; miss the second and you can be caught without a ring when the year runs out.
That’s the exact job RingDay is built for: a free reminder app that runs Annovera’s 21-in/7-out cycle and tells you when to swap. For the second clock — knowing when your year is nearly up so you can reorder in time — its supply projection (a premium feature) does the counting for you. It’s a reminder tool, not medical advice; your label and your provider stay the source of truth on how to use and store the ring.