Choosing to become a parent on your own is a decision, not a diagnosis. Many of the people we see in this situation have no fertility problem at all — what they need is access to treatment, clear information, and a physician who treats the plan as entirely legitimate from the first conversation.
Chelsea Fertility NYC provides family-building care for single women and single men whether or not a fertility issue is present.
Start with where you actually are
The most useful first step is testing, not treatment. An evaluation tells you what your own numbers look like now, which is what turns an open-ended decision into a dated one.
That means AMH, antral follicle count and day-3 bloodwork, a baseline ultrasound, and a review of your cycle and medical history. Dr. Paul Gindoff's point about these tests is worth holding onto: AMH predicts the number of eggs likely to be retrieved in a cycle, not egg quality, and age is what carries the quality question. See fertility testing and diagnosis for what the workup involves.
You can have that conversation before you have decided anything. Consultation is free for new patients.
Routes to a pregnancy with donor sperm
For single women, there are two main paths, and which one is appropriate depends on your evaluation rather than on your preference alone.
- IUI with donor sperm. Donor sperm is placed directly into the uterus around the time you ovulate. It is non-surgical, done in the office, and is usually where treatment starts when your tubes are open, you ovulate predictably and your ovarian reserve is reassuring.
- IVF with donor sperm. Eggs are retrieved and fertilized in the laboratory, and an embryo is transferred to the uterus. IVF is the route when IUI has not worked, or from the start where the evaluation points to it — for example reduced ovarian reserve, blocked or damaged tubes, endometriosis or age-related factors. It also allows genetic testing of embryos and freezing of any additional embryos for a later frozen embryo transfer.
How many IUI cycles to attempt before moving to IVF, and whether to start with IVF, is a decision to make with your physician based on your full evaluation.
Choosing and obtaining donor sperm
Donor sperm comes either from a licensed sperm bank or from someone you know. Sperm from a licensed bank is screened and quarantined under FDA requirements before release, and banks differ in how much donor information they make available — some offer identity-release programs where a child can obtain the donor's identity at adulthood, others do not.
Using a known donor is possible and involves additional screening, quarantine and legal steps before treatment. Tell us early if that is your intention, because it changes the timeline.
Sperm bank fees, shipping and storage are billed by the bank rather than by us, and sit outside our published fee schedule. Our cost and pricing page lists what we charge, and our financial coordinator will give you a written itemized estimate of our portion before you begin.
If you are not ready yet
Egg freezing is the option for people who know they want a biological child but are not ready to try for a pregnancy now. It preserves today's egg quality for later use, which is the whole point of doing it sooner rather than later.
It is an insurance policy rather than a guarantee, and the egg freezing page sets out the realistic numbers — how many eggs it generally takes to expect one delivery, and why that figure shifts with age.
Single men
For a single man, the route to a biological child combines egg donation with gestational surrogacy. Embryos are created in the laboratory using donor eggs and your sperm, and a gestational carrier carries the pregnancy.
It is the most involved of the routes on this page, medically, legally and financially, and the sequencing matters. Those two pages explain each half, and a consultation is the place to map out the order and the timeline for your situation.
The legal side
Parentage, donor agreements and surrogacy arrangements are legal questions, not medical ones, and the requirements vary by state and by the kind of donor you use. We are not able to give you legal advice, and you should not rely on a clinic for it.
What we will do is tell you clearly which steps need to be completed before treatment can begin, so you can instruct an attorney experienced in reproductive law early rather than discovering a requirement late. Build that into your timeline from the start.
You will not be talked out of it here
It is worth saying plainly, because people arrive expecting otherwise. Chelsea Fertility NYC does not accept or deny patients for treatment based only on likelihood of success, and does not treat being single as a reason to raise the bar. You can read more about the practice's position on why we do not turn patients away based on their odds, and about the practical side of single parent IVF.
If you are part of a same-sex couple rather than building a family on your own, see LGBTQ+ family building, or reciprocal IVF if you plan to share the biological roles between you.
Common questions
Can I do IVF or IUI as a single woman?
Yes. Chelsea Fertility NYC provides family-building care for single women and single men whether or not a fertility issue is present. Which treatment is appropriate depends on your evaluation rather than your relationship status.
Should I start with IUI or go straight to IVF?
IUI with donor sperm is usually where treatment starts when your tubes are open, you ovulate predictably and your ovarian reserve is reassuring. IVF is the route when IUI has not worked, or from the start where the evaluation points to it. How many IUI cycles to attempt first is a decision to make with your physician based on your full evaluation.
Do I need to choose a sperm donor before my first appointment?
No. Come in first. The evaluation tells you which treatment route fits, and that affects how much donor sperm you need and how it should be prepared. Tell us early if you intend to use a known donor, because that adds screening, quarantine and legal steps to the timeline.
Does insurance cover treatment for a single person?
Coverage depends on your plan rather than on your relationship status, and plans differ in how they define infertility for someone without a partner. Our billing team verifies your benefits before you begin and tells you what your plan covers and what your out-of-pocket cost will be.
How much does this cost?
Our published fee schedule covers what we charge for testing and treatment. Sperm bank fees, shipping and storage are billed by the bank rather than by us. Our financial coordinator gives you a written itemized estimate of our portion before you begin.
Consultation is free for new patients; we bill health insurance where you have coverage that applies. Call 212-685-2229 or contact our team to talk through your options.
Book an appointment
Consultation is free for new patients; we bill health insurance where you have coverage that applies.