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Egg Freezing Can Carry a Heavy Financial Cost
DUBLIN — August 14, 2026
Egg freezing is becoming more common among women who want to preserve their future fertility, but the procedure can involve significant upfront and ongoing costs. For some women, the expense can be a major barrier, even when medical circumstances make fertility preservation an important consideration.
For Isabelle Hodder, a 28-year-old living in Dublin, the decision was linked to a medical diagnosis. She learned last year that she had a large ovarian cyst that might require removal, potentially affecting her ability to have children later.
Because Hodder wanted children in the future, she decided to freeze her eggs before undergoing any treatment that could affect her fertility. But paying for the procedure proved difficult.
Hodder said the process cost almost €6,000 ($6,940), followed by an annual storage charge of about €300 ($346). Her private insurance covered €1,000, but she said she still needed financial support from her family to afford the treatment.
The process began with medical consultations, blood tests and ultrasound scans. She then took hormone medication and daily injections designed to stimulate her ovaries so that multiple eggs could develop during the same cycle.
Once the eggs had matured, Hodder underwent a short retrieval procedure under sedation. She said the largest single cost was the clinic's egg-freezing charge, which was about €3,490 ($4,035). The remaining amount covered medical appointments, testing, scans, medication and follow-up care.
Hodder said the financial commitment was difficult because much of the cost had to be paid upfront. Unlike some longer-term financial decisions, she said, the treatment could not easily be postponed while she saved more money.
She ultimately had 14 viable eggs frozen. Hodder said she was relieved to have the option available for the future, but she does not view the procedure as a guarantee that she will eventually have a child.
Her experience comes as more women consider egg freezing for medical, personal and family-planning reasons. A 2025 UCLA Health study found that planned egg-freezing cycles in the United States nearly quadrupled between 2014 and 2021.
The study also found that the average age of women choosing to freeze their eggs fell from 36 in 2014 to 34.9 in 2021. The figures indicate that fertility preservation is increasingly being considered at younger ages.
For people considering the procedure, however, the medical decision is only part of the calculation. The total financial commitment can include consultations, laboratory tests, medication, the egg-retrieval procedure and continuing storage fees.
Insurance coverage can reduce some of these expenses, but the amount covered varies. Employer benefits and other forms of financial assistance may also be available in some cases, making it important for patients to understand their options before beginning treatment.
Financial planner and therapist Joy Slabaugh says the decision can also be viewed through the wider priorities a person has for their money. Someone who places a high value on flexibility and independence may see fertility preservation as worthwhile, while another person may prioritise building savings or reducing financial risk.
Those competing priorities can include an emergency fund, saving for a home, paying down debt or investing for retirement. Spending thousands of euros or dollars on fertility preservation can affect how quickly someone reaches those other financial goals.
Hodder's experience highlights the gap between the growing availability of egg freezing and the ability to pay for it. For her, family assistance made a procedure she considered important medically and personally possible, while the ongoing storage fees remain part of the financial commitment.
As egg freezing becomes more common, understanding the full cost — rather than focusing only on the initial procedure — remains an important part of deciding whether it fits both a person's fertility plans and financial circumstances.
