When you start budgeting for surrogacy in the U.S., ask whether an estimate covers the agency’s services or the expenses through delivery. Carrot, a fertility benefits provider, estimates an average starting cost of about $134,000 when the first attempt at a U.S. surrogacy pregnancy succeeds. Ask the providers you’d work with to price that first attempt and an additional transfer separately.
If you’re looking up “cost of surrogate mother in USA,” Loom Surrogacy’s national program outlines the services an agency may coordinate, including matching and communication with the clinic. Use it to prepare for a written quote. Ask which services are included in the agency fee and which bills would come from the clinic, attorney or insurer.
What goes into the total?
Start with the carrier’s compensation and expenses. Ask which payments the estimate assumes and which depend on how the pregnancy unfolds. Travel to appointments, childcare and time away from work can affect that part of the budget. Ask your attorney what payments are permitted in the state relevant to your arrangement and how the agreement would cover the carrier’s expenses.
Give the clinic the same starting point you gave the agency. If you already have frozen embryos, ask for an estimate that starts there and confirm whether storage or transport would cost extra. If you still need to create embryos, ask which IVF and donor expenses to include. Request a separate price for an additional transfer and check whether it includes medication and monitoring. A line that says “transfer included” may leave those items open.
Check what insurance would cover
Ask for a written explanation of any exclusions, the deductible and which providers are in network. If the plan excludes care for a surrogacy pregnancy, ask what another policy would cost. Check how the baby’s hospital care would be covered after birth so you can account for that separately.
If the clinic, carrier and hospital could be in different states, list where each part would happen before requesting legal and travel estimates. Loom’s U.S. surrogacy resources for intended parents are organized by state and city. Use them to prepare questions for your attorney about agreements and parentage and to work out which visits could involve flights or overnight stays.
Compare when you’d have to pay
Ask for a payment schedule next to the itemized estimate. Find out what’s due when you sign, what you’d need to fund before a transfer and which expenses could arrive after delivery. If money will go into escrow, ask how much you need to deposit, who can approve withdrawals and when unused funds would be returned.
Then ask what happens if a match doesn’t move forward after screening. Would the agency charge a new matching fee? Would the clinic bill for another screening? Ask which payments would carry over and which you’d have to make again. The answers can change the amount you need available even when the original estimates are similar.
Once you have the quotes, check that each expense appears only once. If the agency includes legal coordination, for example, confirm whether the attorneys’ fees are included or whether they bill you directly. Keep a short list of any expenses that still need a price and ask the provider responsible for each one before you commit.
