Fresh vs. Frozen Donor Eggs:
What Recipient Parents Should Know
Fresh vs. Frozen Donor Eggs: What Recipient Parents Should Know
Choosing What Is Right for Your Journey
If you are considering donor egg IVF, one of the first questions you may ask is: Should I choose fresh or frozen eggs? You are not alone—this is a significant decision for many intended parents.
At Everie, we recognize that this choice goes beyond success rates or logistics. It's deeply personal, shaped by your hopes, timeline, budget, and what feels right for growing your family.
Both fresh and frozen donor eggs offer unique benefits, and both are used to pave paths to parenthood. Whether you're leaning toward the fresh eggs or the frozen option, the right choice aligns with your needs. We’re here to help you make it with confidence and care.
Explore the key differences between fresh vs frozen donor eggs.
Fresh and Frozen Eggs: How They Are Used in IVF
Before we get into the differences between fresh and frozen donor eggs, it helps to first understand how the eggs used in each process. The IVF journey follows a similar path in both cases, with a few key differences that can make a big impact. Here is the process step by step:
The egg donor begins by taking fertility medications to stimulate the production of multiple eggs. When the time is right, she undergoes a short, ultrasound-guided procedure to retrieve mature eggs from her ovaries.
Egg Retrieval
The retrieved eggs—whether fresh or thawed from frozen—are then fertilized in a laboratory. Over the course of about five days, they develop into blastocysts (earlystage embryos). Fresh eggs can be fertilized using either conventional insemination or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). On the other hand, frozen eggs, due to the vitrification (freezing) process, require ICSI. Vitrification can harden the outer shell of the egg, making fertilization more difficult. ICSI overcomes this potential challenge by injecting a single sperm directly into each egg using a microscopic needle.
In Vitro Fertilization (IVF)
Once a viable blastocyst is selected, it's transferred into the uterus of the recipient parent or a gestational carrier who continues a prescribed medication regimen. Approximately nine days after transfer, the recipient will take a blood test to determine whether implantation was successful. Any remaining viable embryos can be vitrified (frozen) and stored for future family-building plans.
Embryo Transfer
Embryo Transfer With Fresh Donor Eggs
Fresh donor eggs are retrieved and fertilized in real time, which means you and your donor follow a coordinated process from preparation through retrieval. Key points:
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The recipient's IVF cycle is synchronized with the donor's.
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Eggs are retrieved and fertilized right away.
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Recipient parents get all eggs produced in a fresh donation cycle, which may be more than the six provided with a frozen cycle.
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This option involves more planning and scheduling than with frozen donor eggs.
Embryo Transfer With Frozen Donor Eggs
Frozen donor eggs have already gone through the egg retrieval and freezing process and are stored safely by an egg bank. These eggs are available on demand, allowing you to start your journey on your terms. Key points:
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Eggs are retrieved, frozen, and stored in advance.
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Frozen eggs usually come in cohorts of six.
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This option provides faster timelines, greater flexibility, and is ideal for those planning a smaller family.
Success Rates: Fresh vs. Frozen Eggs
Success Rates: Fresh vs. Frozen Eggs
Success rates are a key factor in determining whether to choose fresh or frozen donor eggs. The good news is that both options are widely used in IVF and can lead to successful outcomes.
According to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM), pregnancy rates per embryo transfer are:
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51.9% with fresh donor eggs
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45.6% with frozen donor eggs
(Source: ASRM Practice Committee, 2021)
A separate study analyzing more than 11,000 donor egg cycles found the following live birth rates:
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51.1% for fresh eggs
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39.7% for frozen eggs
(Source: JAMA, 2021)
Differences in success rates can reflect several factors:
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The total number of eggs received in a fresh vs frozen cycle
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The impact of clinic and laboratory experience and training
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Individual health and/or medical considerations
Advances in vitrification technology have made both fresh and frozen eggs equally viable approaches to your family building journey.
If you're navigating fresh vs. frozen IVF over age 40, your doctor may recommend the best approach based on your personal health history, timeline, or embryo development goals. What matters most is what fits your life and leads you to the family you are building.
Why Choose Fresh Eggs
Many intended parents consider fresh donor eggs since these cycles often yield more eggs—and in turn, more embryos. This benefit is weighed against the higher cost that comes with a fresh donor cycle.
In a fresh cycle, you obtain all the eggs from the procedure, potentially incurring the following benefits:
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More total fertilized eggs
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More embryos to work with
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More total transfers
Fresh eggs provide the benefits above, with the consideration of a fresh cycle being a longer process.
Why Choose Frozen Eggs
For many intended parents, the frozen donor egg IVF process offers a more flexible, streamlined path to parenthood. This option is often chosen by those who are ready to move forward quickly, want a simpler process, want to lower cost, or want a small family.
The logistics of frozen cycles are often easier to manage. With fewer required appointments and less coordination, the frozen donor egg cost is typically lower than that of a fresh cycle, making the process more accessible while still maintaining high standards of care. Note that, frozen eggs usually come in cohorts of six.
Important Considerations for Choosing Your Best Path
Choosing between a fresh donor cycle or frozen eggs is an important decision. Both paths come with advantages depending on your specific family building goals. Here are a few details to consider when choosing your path.
Timing and Coordination
With fresh cycles, your IVF must align with the donor’s timeline, requiring simultaneous preparation. This real-time coordination allows immediate fertilization but may extend the process and require flexible scheduling.
With frozen eggs, timing is more flexible to create embryos as the eggs are already ready for fertilization. Typically, this process takes about half the time that a fresh donation requires.
Cost Factors
The cost of using fresh donor eggs may be higher than that of frozen egg options. Clinic visits, medical monitoring, and potential travel or accommodation for the donor add to the cost. In addition, fresh cycles require compensation to the donor. A fresh donor egg agency can help manage these logistics while keeping you informed.
Frozen egg matches are often less expensive as the eggs are already retrieved, and the donor has already been compensated. You eliminate the variable costs associated with a fresh donation cycle. There may also be opportunities for insurance and/or employer benefits that can be applied to frozen cohort purchases.
Family Size
Fresh cycles can provide enough embryos for intended parents hoping to grow a larger family or for those working with multiple sperm contributors. Frozen cycles, on the other hand, usually create fewer embryos—unless multiple cohorts are chosen—making them a great option for those wishing
for one or two children without the likelihood of having many embryos leftover.
Choosing an Egg Donor
Egg banks offer a wide selection of donor profiles. You can explore profiles, choose an egg donor, and begin preparing for your cycle without added wait times. At Everie, we use an egg donor matching platform called The Exchange, designed to foster genuine connections by helping intended parents find egg donors through detailed filters like ethnicity, donation type, and identity preferences. It supports both fresh and frozen donations and offers disclosure options for open ID, semi-open ID, and ID release arrangements.
Choosing the Best Path Forward
There is no one-size-fits-all option when it comes to choosing between fresh or frozen donor eggs, and that’s okay. Choosing between options in donor egg IVF is a deeply personal step in your journey.
Frozen eggs, typically offered in cohorts of six, provide flexibility and convenience for many intended parents. On the other hand, with a fresh donation cycle, intended parents receive all the eggs in the cycle, potentially resulting in a greater number of eggs. Both are proven, trusted paths.
Understanding the fresh versus frozen egg donor experience helps you make an informed choice that aligns with your goals, timeline, and vision for your family. At Everie, we are here to offer insight, guidance, and support every step of the way.
FAQs About Fresh vs. Frozen Donor Eggs
It depends on your personal egg donation journey. Fresh donor eggs may offer more embryos, which can be beneficial for multiple sperm contributors, those who desire a larger family, or medical scenarios such as lower sperm quality. Frozen donor eggs offer a faster timeline, more flexibility, and lower cost. Learn more about the differences.
Frozen embryos have already been fertilized, giving clinics more information about development. Frozen eggs, however, remain a safe and trusted choice as well. Our expert and compassionate client services coordinators are here to guide you every step of the way toward the solution that best fits your family goals.
Yes. Everie supports intended parents in finding the right donor match. We offer both fresh donors and frozen donor options through our curated matching platform, The Exchange. When intended parents begin their journey, they start by exploring the database to find an egg donor who feels like the right fit. Explore how egg donor matching works.