Here’s a quick breakdown of what you can expect surrogacy to cost and what a reliable, trustworthy agency includes as part of their surrogacy compensation packages.
It’s never a simple choice when it comes to finding a surrogate to start a family.
The cost of surrogacy is often the deciding factor for couples or individuals who want to take a leap of faith and contact a surrogacy agency for a consultation.
In the end, there’s nothing you need to be nervous about because the good news is that surrogacy costs are transparent, and going through the process is worth the wait.
Since there’s a lot of conflicting information online about the cost of surrogacy, this article outlines what to expect for intended parents and surrogates alike.
Alternatively, you can use our Surrogacy Cost Calculator to estimate the cost of your surrogacy journey.
But the bottom line is this: surrogate costs vary based on the experience of the gestational carrier, the quality of the agency’s services, and any additional charges depend on particular medical circumstances.
What’s included in the price of surrogacy?
At the time of this writing, you can earn $35,000 as a surrogate mother. But this price is only the base compensation for first-time gestational carriers who qualify.
If you’re looking for a surrogate, find the perfect candidate through our agency, and she’s already completed one surrogacy agreement, the price can range as high as $50,000 for her base compensation alone, aside from the total cost.
The confusion stems from the fact that not every agency compensates gestational carriers in the same way.
If you’re thinking about becoming a surrogate yourself, you may receive perks like health and wellness rehabilitation after the pregnancy. But no law forces agencies to promise you that level of care post-pregnancy.
At SurrogateFirst, we actually offer wellness plans, and that’s what sets us apart from ordinary surrogate agencies. We care about the mothers health and well-being as much as we care about helping couples start families.
Here’s a rundown of the most crucial cost categories we think you need to know before making a final choice:
Surrogacy base compensation
If you think being a gestational carrier is for you, take a moment to think of reasons why you want to be a surrogate in the first place. Often, it doesn’t come down to money. It comes down to the joys of helping others start a family of their own.
Base compensation for first-time surrogate mothers varies state-by-state and agency to agency. It’s the flat-rate price intended parents pay before transferring an embryo and initiating the pregnancy.
Certain surrogacy agencies like ours also offer additional supplemental compensation that can improve the likelihood of a safe and successful birth!
Medical expenses
Ideally, you should have all expenses explained to you in detail before signing a surrogacy contract. Most often, medical expenses are what piques the most curiosity.
Health insurance is the most important topic we talk about with intended parents and potential surrogates.
Health insurance typically doesn’t recover the entire cost of surrogacy, but it may cover standard maternity care. Sometimes, a surrogate’s spouse’s health insurance can cover some charges (but not always).
Benefits and services
Surrogacy agencies play a vital role in the screening and locating of potential surrogates. Matching and screening services may include different perks and benefits for the surrogate and advertising and marketing expenses.
At our agency, we may compensate surrogates for starting medication or for purchasing maternity clothing. Another example is delivery via C-section
Our base package includes fees for independent legal counsel, psychological screening, criminal background checks, and other perks, averaging to about $9,2000 on top of base compensation.
Reimbursable expenses
You may not know that some costs are reimbursable and some only cover a certain amount. For example, lost wages are an everyday reimbursable expense that we cap at $10,000. We can also cover lost spouse wages up to $5,000 in rare instances.
But the most usual reimbursable costs include housekeeping, travel and transportation expenses, and child care costs.
Circumstantial medical compensation
In some cases, medical incidences can raise the cost of surrogacy. Overall, these cases are rare, but you need to know what could happen down the line to increase the price.
The most common types of circumstantial medical compensation cover the cost of things like invasive procedures, loss of reproduction capabilities, or rare cases of amniocentesis.
No one can predict how a pregnancy will be once you start, but circumstantial expenses from medical complications happen from time to time.
How do payouts to surrogates work?
Generally, agencies have a few options at their disposal when it comes to paying out a surrogate. They can do it in one lump sum, or they can pay in monthly installments.
For agencies that like to offer wellness and care plans post-pregnancy, spreading the payments out seems to work best for everyone. A quality surrogacy agency will explain all payouts and compensation packages in detail before starting a pregnancy.
Are there payment planning options?
The good news for expectant parents is that there are payment plan options available.
Some agencies may require full payment up front, but paying for surrogacy on a fee schedule is also common in the industry.
If you’re looking for a surrogacy agency and don’t know where to begin, we hope this information makes it more comfortable to find a surrogate you can trust with your future bundle of joy.
About SurrogateFirst
At SurrogateFirst, we’re a boutique surrogate agency specializing in quickly matching intended parents around the world with our fully-vetted, exceptional surrogates.
We help individuals and couples, regardless of race or sexual orientation, build their families through the miracle of surrogacy.
Every team member at SurrogateFirst is either a former intended parent or an experienced surrogate herself. We also have first-hand knowledge of what it takes to have an incredible, successful surrogate journey.
Ready to get started? Fill out the surrogacy application here.
