Fresh vs. Frozen Donor Eggs

Frozen donor eggs offer advantages with regard to scheduling, speed in completing a cycle, and cost.

With technology that’s available today, frozen donor egg success rates are comparable to those achieved with fresh donor eggs.

Advantages of frozen donor egg cycles. In addition to comparable success rates, frozen donor eggs offer advantages with regard to scheduling, speed in completing a cycle, and cost.

Extra benefits for you? Less waiting, more control. With frozen donor eggs, you can start a cycle right away. That’s because when you use frozen donor eggs, you don’t need to synchronize your cycle with the donor. You can complete treatment within 6 to 8 weeks, compared with 3 to 5 months for a fresh cycle.

Candidates for fresh donor egg cycles. PFC also offers the option to select a donor through the PFC Egg Donor Agency for a synchronous fresh egg cycle.

Candidates for a fresh egg cycle are those who:

  • Do not meet medical entry qualifications for a frozen egg cycle
  • Strongly desire a genetic sibling(s)
  • Are interested in sex selection for family balancing.
  • Need PGT for monogenic/single gene disorders (PGT-M/PGD).
  • Live out of town and only plan to come to PFC for embryo transfer (and will not be doing any initial testing or ultrasounds in person at PFC prior to the beginning of the cycle)

Here’s a quick comparison between fresh and frozen egg cycles.

Fresh Eggs Frozen Eggs
Speed of cycle start and completion Minimum 3 months; average 4-5 months Immediate
Scheduling flexibility Must coincide with donor’s availability and menstrual cycle Complete flexibility / Recipient chooses schedule
Estimated cost $43,000 – $49,000+ Options starting at $21,615, roughly half the cost of a fresh cycle.
Donor risk Risk that donor’s schedule may interfere with cycle timing, small risk for poor stimulation Frozen eggs currently available. No scheduling or stimulation risk for recipients
Delivery rates Current data indicate rates to be comparable Current data indicate rates to be comparable