The cost of IVF or In Vitro Fertilization treatment in the US is usually estimated to be around $12,000 on average. In fact, that is the amount stated by the American Society of Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) and what most fertility clinics charge for a basic IVF cycle.
However, it is crucial to note that this cost does not cover important “add-on” services, such as fertility medications (billed by pharmacies) or ICSI and PGS (billed by the IVF clinics and labs themselves), which is often needed during the process.
While this average cost may be the minimum amount required to complete an IVF cycle (traditional IVF), it would be wrong to put this estimate as final, as almost all Intended Parents require some add-on services aside from the usual procedure.
What is the Real Cost of IVF Treatment?
The cost of a complete IVF cycle in the US is around $4,900 to $30,000.
That’s a big difference! – But also a fact.
This is because the overall IVF cost is dependent on several factors, and it usually takes more than one cycle to achieve success. Also, the price will depend on the fertility clinic you chose to work with and the services you want during the treatment.
Before we delve into the details, let’s first talk about the three most common price categories you may come across while researching online:
1. The Cost of a Basic IVF Package
The cost of a basic, no-frills IVF varies significantly and can be as small as $4,900 to around $20,000. This includes almost everything that is “needed” to complete an IVF procedure itself. However, it does not cover some other key components of an IVF procedure, such as, stimulation medication which most patients will require.
2. The Total Cost of One IVF Cycle
The total cost of an IVF cycle is around at some fertility clinics, although it can go up to $30,000 with others. This cost covers important “add-on” services, including medication, ICSI, etc., which may come up during an IVF cycle. However, the exact amount at each IVF clinic depends on the medication protocol and add-on services required.
3. The Total Cost to Bring Home a Baby With IVF
The cost to successfully bring home a baby may be the same as the total cost of a single IVF cycle if it is accomplished with one cycle. However, it is better to plan a budget that covers the costs of two egg retrievals and a couple of frozen embryo transfers (FET). This is because generally, couples undergoing IVF require average two IVF cycles before achieving pregnancy.
So, the price to bring home a baby ranges between $16,000 and $20,000 but some people even spent more than $100,000 on IVF treatment if the situation is more complicated.
Breakdown of the IVF treatment Cost
According to data from FertilityIQ, the cost of one complete IVF cycle is roughly $23,474, based on where it is done and what services are included. Total costs of IVF usually rise by 10% to 15% every year, with 5% of that coming from patients performing PGS testing.
Most patients won’t get pregnant on their first IVF cycle and will undergo a second or even a third cycle. In fact, it has been shown that the average patient will require around 2.3 to 2.7x cycles to achieve pregnancy. Hence, the average patient can expect to spend up to $50,000 on IVF.
1. Medical Treatment Costs: $8,000 to $14,000
The medical treatment cost covers monitoring, anesthesia, egg retrieval, lab fees, and embryo transfer. These prices are fixed and represent the quote usually given to patients when they ask to know the cost of IVF. Some patients are able to get up to a 10% discount on their treatment cost, and 27% of IVF patients in the United States have this cost wholly covered by insurance.
2. Stimulation Medications: $3,000 – $7,000
This is the cost of injectable stimulation hormones administered during IVF. The prices will vary based on the dosage used, the pharmacy you purchase medication from, and whether you are an insured or self-paying patient.
Specialty pharmacies are known to overcharge insured patients, wiping out their lifetime limits. However, IVF patients can also buy medication at a lower price from abroad, say the UK, and have them shipped to the US.
3. Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI): $1,000 – $3,000
ICSI is a popular method of fertilizing eggs in the IVF lab. Fertility clinics make a lot of money from ICSI, and it is done at twice the price in Southern California as it is in the Midwest or New England.
However, remember that ICSI still remains one of the most useful treatment options to overcome male factor infertility. For cases where male factor infertility is involved, ICSI cycles increased from 76.3% in 1996 to 93.3% in 2012, and for cases where the male partner did not have issues, ICSI use increased from 15.4% in 1996 to 66.9% in 2012.
We recommend doing a thorough research and consulting an experienced fertility specialist before deciding whether ICSI is required or not. If ICSI is necessary for your circumstance, try different financing methods to ease the costs.
4. Pre-implantation genetic screening (PGS): $4,800 – $6,000
The cost of PGS is similar to that of stimulation medication used during IVF. 35% of all IVF procedures in the United States now involve preimplantation genetic screening compared to 5% in Europe.
PGS helps doctors to select the best embryo for transfer. However, only a few patients know that they can choose outside laboratories for analyzing the sample and that could make a huge difference in the laboratory fees. On the other hand, working with a reputed fertility clinic ensures that their IVF lab employs cutting-edge equipment and technology, giving the Intended Parents peace of mind.
Although PGS increases the overall cost in the beginning, it may eventually help save overall costs by lowering the risk of miscarriages and needless embryo transfers.
Few words about refund and package programs
Approximately 50% of IVF clinics in the US allow patients to buy fertility treatments in-bulk or with a refund feature (otherwise known as “shared risk”). But despite the appeals of these offerings, these programs (the refund programs in particular) may not come in handy for patients who get pregnant early and therefore overpay for the result they would have achieved anyways.
However, for patients who require multiple IVF cycles and have a history of recurrent pregnancy loss, such packages prove to be a great deal.
Bottom line
All in all, there’s no way to pin point IVF cost as multiple cycles might be needed, prices may vary from clinic to clinic, medication cost would be unpredictable.
Coastal Fertility Medical Center creates custom IVF treatments for individual cases and presents a cost estimate after your initial consultation. To help you with the cost, we offer advanced IVF treatment options and transparent budget quotes.
For more details, you can always get in touch through our chat option.
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