The Cost of Infertility: Egg Donation

In this blog series, we’re looking where your money goes when it comes to alternative family building methods. In our first post, we looked at sperm donation and how the $250-$1,000 price tag adds up. Now we’ll look at another popular family building option: using donor eggs.

Egg donation has a huge cost variance that depends on many factors, including what fertility clinic you use, where you live, and whether you use frozen or never-frozen eggs. Eggs that have never been frozen, also known as “fresh” eggs, can cost you between $20,000 and $45,000, while frozen eggs range from $16,000 to $20,000. Here is where your money goes when you pay for donor eggs:

• Donor compensation. Donors are compensated for their egg donation based in part on their background, education level, and the desirability of their eggs. The more desirable their traits, IQ, and background are, the more you can expect to pay for the eggs.
• Administrative fees. These fees go to the clinic.
• Donor evaluations. You’ll need to spend money to ensure your donor is everything she says that she is. These evaluations will give you a better idea about your donor, her background and medical history.
• Legal fees. These fees pay for the legal transfer of the eggs.
• Storage. Eggs need to be carefully stored to ensure they can be used in future procedures. Your fees will pay for the storage, either fresh or frozen, until they are ready to be used.
• Shipping. If you find the right eggs, you’ll need to get them to your fertility clinic. Part of the price tag goes towards your shipping costs.

Those costs add up! Donor eggs can quickly become too expensive for the average couple to use as an alternative family building method. You can learn more about options for infertility – and discover other affordable methods – at EmbryoAdoption.org.

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