According to FertilityIQ data, the cost of a single cycle of IVF runs around $23,474, depending on where you have it performed, and what services you include. Total prices typically increase 10 – 15% each year, with 5% of that coming from the greater number of patients using PGS genetic testing.

The majority of IVF patients will fail on their first cycle and will continue treatment for a second, third, or fourth cycle. FertilityIQ shows the average patient will undergo 2.3 - 2.7x IVF cycles in total, so the average patient will spend close to $50,000 in treatment.

Medical Treatment Costs: $8,000 - $14,000

The cost of the medical treatment itself includes monitoring, egg retrieval, anesthesia, laboratory fees, and transfer. These prices are generally flat and often represent the costs patients are typically quoted when they call a clinic to ask what IVF will cost. We’ve seen patients negotiate discounts for up to 10% and, according to our data, 27% of all U.S. patients have this fee covered entirely by insurance.

Stimulation Medications: $3,000 - $7,000

This covers the cost of a course of treatment for injectable stimulating hormones. Costs will vary depending on the dosage (how aggressive your doctor wants to be), the pharmacy you buy medication from, and whether you are self-pay or insured. Specialty pharmacies are notorious for overcharging on patients with insurance, thereby wiping out their lifetime maximum benefit. Patients can typically procure drugs from abroad and have them imported for exactly half of the cost as in the US. To this point, we've heard of no issues over safety.

ICSI: $1,000 - $3,000

The use of intracytoplasmic sperm injection has skyrocketed as the preferred way to fertilize eggs in the IVF laboratory. Definitely read up on ICSI and understand if it’s truly necessary for you. ICSI is a meaningful money-maker for the clinic, and is often deployed at twice the rate in the Gulf Coast and Southern California as it is in New England or the Midwest.

Pre-implantation Genetic Screening: $4,800 - $6,000

PGS rivals medication costs in magnitude, and it’s now used in 35% of all IVF procedures in the US (versus 5% in Europe). PGS is used to assist your doctor in selecting the best embryo to transfer. Few patients know they have the power to select which outside laboratory reads the sample, and that pricing between laboratories is dramatically different. While PGS adds significantly to the costs early on, many argue that it saves costs in the long run by preventing miscarriages, needless transfers and lost time resulting from either.

A Word About Refund And Package Programs

Nearly half of U.S. clinics offer patients the chance to purchase treatments in-bulk as part of a package or with a refund feature (also known as "shared risk"). While it's hard to generalize these varied offerings, we typically believe these programs (especially the refund programs) are not a good deal for patients. As you can see in our research, these patients typically have success early and thus dramatically overpay for results they would have gotten anyways.

What's more, the list of exclusions is extensive and so patients ultimately pay 25 - 50% more than the sticker price. That said, patient satisfaction levels are often high, though we believe to an irrational degree.