Egg freezing & fertility preservation

Egg freezing (also called elective or social egg freezing, or oocyte cryopreservation) is an increasingly popular family planning option for women who wish to preserve their fertility for future family building. Eggs are retrieved from the ovaries, frozen using a rapid technique called vitrification, and stored until the patient is ready to use them. When ready, the eggs are thawed, fertilized with sperm through IVF, and the resulting embryo is transferred to the uterus.

Medically, the procedure is identical — both involve ovarian stimulation and egg retrieval. The difference is motivation. Elective egg freezing (sometimes called social egg freezing) is chosen for personal reasons — career, education, not yet having found the right partner, or other life goals. Fertility preservation refers to cases where a medical reason is present, such as a cancer diagnosis, early menopause, or upcoming surgery that could affect fertility.

The most common age range for women freezing their eggs is around 32–36, though younger and older candidates are considered as well. From a medical standpoint, egg freezing is a viable option for women with normal hormone levels. Your doctor will discuss your motivation and assess your ovarian reserve to confirm it is the right course of action. Common reasons women choose egg freezing include prioritizing career or education, not yet having found the right partner, or wanting to reach certain financial or life goals before starting a family.

The egg freezing process mirrors the first stages of IVF. You will take injectable hormone medications to stimulate your ovaries to produce multiple eggs, with blood tests and ultrasounds to monitor your response. Once mature, eggs are retrieved in a brief procedure and immediately frozen using vitrification — a rapid flash-freezing technique using cryoprotectants that minimizes cellular damage and preserves egg quality. Approximately 20 frozen eggs is considered a reasonable target to later generate a pregnancy.

Chelsea Fertility NYC offers egg freezing at $8,000 per single cycle (storage fees not included). Elective egg freezing is generally not covered by insurance, though some employers offer coverage. Our financial counselors can review your benefits and discuss options. Full details are on our pricing and insurance page.

Egg freezing stores unfertilized eggs, which can later be fertilized with a partner's or donor's sperm when you are ready. Embryo freezing stores already-fertilized eggs (embryos), typically created during an IVF cycle. Embryo freezing is preferred when a sperm source is already established, as embryos have already cleared the fertilization step. Egg freezing is the better option for women who do not yet have a partner or do not wish to commit to a sperm source. Both are available at Chelsea Fertility NYC.