Surrogacy Expenses: Full Breakdown of Costs and What to Expect

The surrogacy process is an exciting and emotional journey. But understanding surrogacy expenses can quickly become one of its most overwhelming parts. 

At Hatch, a leading U.S. surrogacy agency, we’re committed to making that financial picture as clear and transparent as possible so intended parents can plan with confidence.

This guide offers a detailed breakdown of the costs involved in gestational surrogacy. 

From agency fees and surrogate compensation to legal and insurance costs, we’ll walk you through the major line items, what influences pricing, and how different cost structures work.

What Is the Average Cost of Surrogacy?

The average cost of surrogacy in the United States ranges from $120,000 to $200,000, depending on a variety of factors such as the surrogate’s location, whether you're using a fixed fee or pay-as-you-go model, and any unexpected medical or legal complications.

What Are the Different Surrogacy Pricing Models?

Surrogacy pricing can vary dramatically between agencies. Some bundle services like IVF or egg donation with the surrogacy package, while others separate these out, making it difficult to compare one agency’s fees with another’s. 

That’s why this blog focuses specifically on the surrogacy expenses tied to the gestational carrier (also referred to as the surrogate or GC), excluding the medical costs for IVF or egg creation.

There are two main payment models used across the surrogacy industry:

• Pay-as-you-go (PAYGO): Intended parents manage all expenses individually, which includes agency fees, surrogate compensation, insurance, legal costs, and more. This model offers flexibility but also carries more unpredictability.
• Fixed Fee Model: A newer, all-inclusive pricing structure offered by agencies like Hatch, Circle, and ConceiveAbilities. This model bundles most surrogacy costs into a single price and shields intended parents from unexpected financial surprises.

Surrogacy Expenses: Breaking Down the Costs

Below is a table outlining the average surrogacy costs as of May 2025, organized into fixed, variable, and unexpected costs. Each line item will be discussed in detail further down.

Surrogacy Agency Fees

Surrogacy agencies mainly perform three key roles: assessing potential gestational carriers based on medical and social criteria, pairing intended parents with an appropriate surrogate, and overseeing the surrogacy journey until the child's birth and for a few months afterward.

In smaller agencies, a single individual often takes on all three roles, while in larger ones, separate teams handle each function. The level of service offered to intended parents and the gestational carrier differs among agencies, and agencies that charge higher fees typically provide more dedicated customer service. Most agencies require a deposit upon enrollment in their program and then collect the balance of their fee once the intended parents have been matched with a surrogate.

Surrogate Base Compensation

Gestational carriers receive a set base compensation fee, which their agency determines. This amount is specified in the legal contract between the intended parents and the gestational carrier, and other potential fees are described later. The compensation is deposited into an escrow account overseen by an independent legal or accounting firm, and disbursement is based on the terms of the legal contract.

Generally, the gestational carrier is paid one-eighth of the base compensation upon confirmation of a fetal heartbeat (around week 8), with subsequent payments of one-eighth of the compensation made each month for the duration of the pregnancy. The base compensation for gestational carriers can vary geographically, with rates typically higher in California due to its historically favorable surrogacy laws and high cost of living.

Monthly Allowances and Gifts for Surrogates

In addition to the base compensation, gestational carriers receive monthly allowances during the pregnancy to help cover their expenses. These may include a general "pregnancy allowance" for monthly costs and allowances for specific expenses such as childcare, housekeeping, and maternity clothing.

The amounts for these allowances are usually determined by the agency and outlined in the surrogacy contract. Some agencies that provide more personalized service also allow gifts to be given to the gestational carrier and her children.

Surrogate Cycling Allowance (per transfer)

Surrogates are also provided a “cycling” or “transfer” allowance for each medication cycle and transfer they undergo. This compensates them for their time and suffering (transfer medications are not fun!) for going through the process. 

These are due for every medication cycle and transfer the surrogate goes through.

Escrow Account Fees

All surrogacy journeys have an escrow account to manage the payment of funds. IPs (intended parents) must fund the escrow account before the surrogate can begin medications for an embryo transfer cycle.

The escrow pays out not just surrogate compensation and allowances but also health insurance premiums, medical expenses, travel costs, and lost wages.  This account is usually managed by the IP’s legal counsel or an independent accounting firm with surrogacy experience. The escrow charge is a fixed fee per journey.

Surrogate Health and Life Insurance

Surrogate health insurance is complicated.

Some surrogates have health insurance, and some don’t. Some surrogates have health insurance appropriate for pregnancy, and some don’t. Some surrogates with health insurance have surrogate-friendly policies, and others don’t.  Some states apply a lien to surrogate compensation to compensate the insurer for a pregnancy that isn’t their client’s. It’s a confusing mess. Luckily ART Risk, the U.S. leader in surrogacy insurance advisory, can help advise on providing appropriate medical coverage for your surrogate at the lowest possible cost.

A GC with an existing, surrogacy-friendly health insurance plan is the lowest-cost scenario.

Usually, the agency will budget for two years of the IPs paying the premiums (if any), and the plan’s out-of-pocket maximum since 1) Agencies and surrogacy contracts usually require coverage for several months post-birth in case there are any post-birth complications, and 2) Hospital birth expenses tend to hit the annual out-of-pocket maximum.  If the surrogate’s plan isn’t appropriate for surrogacy, or if the GC doesn’t have health insurance, then IPs will need to purchase a plan for the surrogate.  If the match occurs in Nov-Feb, IPs can purchase an Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) exchange plan that will cost, with an out-of-pocket maximum, between $12,000 and $18,000. 

If the surrogacy begins outside of those months, the insurance broker will need to place a different type of surrogacy-specific plan. This is usually with Lloyd’s of London, which can cost upwards of $35,000. Additionally, a state that imposes liens can add $10,000 to $15,000 to insurance costs.  

In short, insurance is complicated and is the most variable expense in a surrogacy journey.  You’ll also need to place a life insurance policy (cost is usually less than $1,000) covering up to $1MM if the surrogate loses her life during the pregnancy. IPs can also buy their own insurance to compensate them if the surrogate loses her life carrying their child.

Legal Fees

Legal fees related to surrogacy can be broken down into three buckets: surrogacy contract, the establishment of parentage, and court fees. The IP’s attorney is usually the drafting attorney, who will work with your agency to insert into the contract draft the agreed economic terms of the surrogacy arrangement and send the draft to the surrogate’s attorney (the “reviewing” attorney).

IPs are responsible for paying both attorneys' costs, usually a fixed fee for each surrogate/IP match.  Around halfway through the pregnancy, the IP’s attorney will begin the legal paperwork to establish the parentage of the IP(s) according to the laws of the state in which the surrogate resides.  Usually, this involves a courtroom process between the surrogate and IPs, and therefore court costs are also incurred.

Generally, the surrogacy contract and establishment of parentage costs are fixed, while court costs are variable by state. Additional services fertility lawyers provide are drafting of wills and guardianship documents, but these are optional add-ons.  Law firms in the industry range from solo practitioners to larger fertility groups with several lawyers and decades of experience. Some agencies employ lawyers directly and include those costs in their packages.

Surrogate Travel Expenses

In most surrogacy arrangements, the surrogate does not live within easy driving distance of the clinic where the embryo transfer will take place.  Surrogates will usually travel for at least two appointments: for the in-person medical screening and testing once matched, and for the embryo transfer.

These trips are generally 1-2 days and involve airfare, hotel, and per diem.  Most agencies also include costs for a partner to travel with the GC for one or both appointments.  In some cases, the doctor will permit the surrogate to have her screening take place locally, which saves on travel costs but will incur additional clinical expenses, minimizing the cost savings.  Cost-conscious IPs can reduce these expenses by matching with a surrogate local to their clinic.

Surrogate Outside Monitoring

As described above, most surrogates will live far from your clinic. Once a surrogate begins her cycle of injectable hormones to prepare for the embryo transfer, the doctor will require regular ultrasounds and bloodwork to ensure her hormone levels are adequate. In the average cycle, a surrogate will visit a monitoring clinic three times, and the typical visit will cost $400-$500, depending on the market.  

Lost Wages

Many GCs have jobs and must take time off for their various obligations to become a surrogate. These obligations range from morning screening appointments, travel for screenings and transfers, doctor-mandated bedrest, and post-partum time. Most surrogacy arrangements provide several weeks of post-partum recovery time and usually double in the case of a c-section.

The surrogate’s partner also gets compensated with lost wages for time off of work to accompany the surrogate to her transfer and to support her during her recovery post-birth.

If the GC is a homemaker, these wages would be $0, but