Donor Conception Basics: Where Do You Find a Donor?
Finding the right donor is a crucial step, and there are various avenues available depending on your preferences and needs. Here’s an expanded look at where to find a donor, including traditional methods like sperm banks and egg donation agencies, as well as less conventional options like matchmaking services, egg sharing programs, online platforms, and within your social circle.
Within Your Social Circle
Some individuals or couples may choose to use a known donor from their social circle, such as a friend, family member, or acquaintance. This approach can offer a sense of familiarity and trust. To learn more about using a known donor, click here. Donors may or may not receive monetary compensation for donating.
Sperm Banks
Sperm banks are facilities that screen donors and collect, store, and distribute donated sperm for use in assisted reproductive technologies (ART) such as intrauterine insemination (IUI) and in vitro fertilization (IVF). Sperm donors through a bank typically receive monetary compensation for donating.
Donor Egg Agencies or Banks
Donor egg agencies or banks specialize in recruiting, screening and matching egg donors with recipients. They may also have an egg bank, where frozen donor eggs are stored and available for use. Egg donors through an agency or bank typically receive significant monetary compensation for donating.
Embryo Donation Programs
Embryo donation programs support individuals or couples looking to donate any unused embryos from IVF treatments to another hopeful family. These programs typically support the matching process and help facilitate conversation and provide education around implications. There is typically no monetary compensation for these programs.
Egg Sharing Programs
Egg sharing programs are unique arrangements where a woman either undergoing egg retrieval for egg freezing or in vitro fertilization agrees to donate some of her eggs to another recipient in exchange for reduced or free fertility treatment costs. The goal is that the arrangement is mutually beneficial and helps both the donor and the recipient achieve their reproductive goals. There is typically no other monetary compensation.
Clinics
Some fertility clinics offer both sperm and egg donation services. They provide a range of ART procedures and often have in-house donors or partnerships with donation agencies. Some clinics will also have embryo donation programs where couples who have completed their families can donate any remaining embryos to another hopeful family in the clinic. Egg and sperm donors typically receive monetary compensation while embryo donors do not.
Matchmaking Services
Some companies and platforms offer personalized matchmaking services to help recipients find the right donor based on specific criteria. They typically provide a more tailored approach when considering your preferences and can be particularly helpful if you have specific criteria. These donors are typically directed donors. Egg and sperm donors through matchmaking services typically receive monetary compensation.
Online Platforms & Communities
There are several online platforms and social media groups where recipients can search for and connect with potential donors. Platforms offer extensive databases and search tools to find donors based on specific criteria, while social media groups may be more about posting and seeing who reaches out. These donors are also typically considered directed donors and receive monetary compensation.
A word of caution when using this option. There are, at times, concerns about the limited screening process for these donors. Additionally, please be aware of the possibility of serial donors – typically sperm donors, although some egg donors – who donate dozens, hundreds or even thousands of times without regulation. Additionally, in rare situations, some sperm donors have insisted on “natural insemination” over an IUI – meaning having intercourse with a recipient mother. These are both major ethical and legal issues in the donor conception and can have massive ramifications for all involved.
