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Intended Parents

Comparing Surrogacy Embryo Transfer Success Rates to IVF

Both gestational surrogacy and traditional in vitro fertilization (IVF) can help you become a parent. When choosing between them, you should consider your personal circumstances, health factors and the success rates you can expect with each.

While the success rate of surrogacy is higher, IVF allows you to carry your child yourself. Understanding how these two methods compare can help you make a decision that best fits your family goals.

In this article, we’ll look at the embryo transfer process in both surrogacy and IVF, analyze surrogacy vs. IVF success rates and explore key factors that influence your chances of achieving a successful pregnancy.

Do you have questions about gestational surrogacy? Check out our guide or fill out our online form for more information.

What Is the Embryo Transfer Process for Surrogacy vs. IVF?

Embryo transfer is a critical step in both surrogacy and IVF, involving the placement of one or more embryos into the uterus to achieve pregnancy. The main difference between these two methods is who will carry the pregnancy — either you or a gestational surrogate.

Here’s what the process looks like:

To prepare for egg retrieval, there’s a scheduled medication protocol designed to stimulate your ovaries. These medications help your body develop several eggs at once. Once the eggs are ready, your doctor will retrieve them during a short medical procedure performed under sedation. If you opt for donor eggs, you’ll skip this step.

An embryologist will fertilize the eggs in a lab using either your sperm or donor sperm. The resulting embryos are then allowed to develop for several days, either to the cleavage stage or the blastocyst stage. If you’re waiting for a surrogate match or need time before the transfer, the embryos will be frozen for future use.

If you’re pursuing surrogacy, freezing your embryos allows time to find the right surrogate match. In IVF, freezing can also be useful if you want to wait before transferring your embryos. For both surrogacy and IVF, you’ll need to freeze your embryos if you choose to do PGT-A testing, which checks for chromosomal abnormalities before transfer.

When you are ready, your clinic will thaw the embryos and transfer them to your surrogate’s uterus or your uterus. If successful, the embryo will implant and begin developing into a pregnancy.

Learn more about creating embryos for surrogacy, or fill out our form to take the first steps in your journey. Once you have embryos created, we can match you with a surrogate in one to six months.

What Is the Success Rate of Surrogacy vs. IVF?

The success rate of your chosen family-building method is an important factor to consider. Here’s how surrogacy and IVF differ in their likelihood of resulting in a live birth:

Surrogacy Success Rate

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, gestational surrogacy has higher rates of implantation, pregnancy and live births compared to IVF.

Many fertility clinics report surrogacy implantation rates of around 75%, and once a surrogate is pregnant, the likelihood of a live birth reaches 95%. This high success rate makes surrogacy an appealing option, especially for intended parents who face health issues affecting their fertility.

IVF Success Rate

IVF success rates depend heavily on factors like age and the number of embryo transfers attempted. Generally, younger women experience higher success rates, with live birth rates declining as age increases.

Here’s a breakdown of the average live birth rate by age for the first embryo transfer:

Age RangeAverage Live Birth Rate
Under age 3535.8%
Age 35-3726.6%
Age 38-4017.1%
Age 41-428.8%
Over age 423%

Compared to surrogacy, the live birth rates for IVF can be significantly lower. The difference underscores the potential of surrogacy for couples facing challenges with traditional IVF.

What Factors Might Influence IVF vs. Surrogacy Success Rates?

Several factors impact IVF success rates:

Surrogacy can help overcome these obstacles since a gestational carrier is screened for optimal health and fertility. This increases your chance of a successful pregnancy.

How Many Tries Does It Take for a Surrogate to Get Pregnant?

Many surrogates achieve pregnancy within one to two embryo transfer cycles. The screening process ensures that only candidates with strong uterine health and prior pregnancy experience are selected. However, fertility specialists usually recommend having several embryos ready for transfer if needed.

Surrogacy: A Path to Parenthood

Surrogacy offers you a path to parenthood when IVF may not be an option or has proven unsuccessful. Once your embryos are ready, you could match with a surrogate in as little as one to six months. Contact us to find your surrogate match and move toward building your family.

“I had been waiting for so long that… when I saw Julian, I was just completely overwhelmed,” intended parent Nicholas said. “It was such a wonderful experience to see Julian coming into our world.” If you don’t have embryos yet, that’s okay. You can explore available surrogacy options or begin your journey while your embryos are being created. We’re here to help you on your path to parenthood.

Male and Female couple smiling with surrogate mother
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