Acceptability and social characteristics of a cohort of Norplant®, IUD, pill and depo‐medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA) acceptors who were seen at the University of Ilorin Family Planning Clinic over a 10‐week period of the pre‐introductory clinical trial of Norplant®, are compared. Findings indicate that Norplant® and DMPA are adopted as an alternative to sterilization by women advanced in reproductive age and of high parity. The pill and IUD are adopted mainly as birth‐spacing methods. Women's education, but not previous use of a contraceptive method, influenced the adoption of Norplant®. The continuation rate at 12 months, a measure of acceptability, was highest, 93.7 per 100 women, for Norplant® and 77.9, 46.7 and 27.7 per 100 women for the IUD, DMPA and the pill, respectively. The need to address the high family size norms in the African subregion is discussed.