Last year, when I was helping my cousin ask about surrogacy, the agency opened with a single line: “380,000 RMB, all inclusive.” I believed it for over two weeks. Then I found out that this $54,000 number was hiding plenty of things nobody bothered to spell out. When people ask “how much does surrogacy cost,” taking one total figure at face value is exactly the wrong move. I went through IVF myself in Chengdu, and I spent most of a year researching IVF in Georgia. Here are both ledgers, side by side.
The Most Skipped Page in That 380,000 RMB Quote: the Refund Clauses
The contract my cousin received had a clear main body — but the refund details were tucked into a one-page appendix. How much is compensated if the surrogate miscarries? How is a mid-pregnancy termination settled? Who pays if her prenatal tests go beyond the package? All of it was written in vague language. I later asked two friends who had been through surrogacy in Georgia: one spent 420,000 RMB in total, the other finished at 330,000. The gap came almost entirely from pregnancy complications and extra testing.
Actionable tip: before signing, get “who bears medical costs outside the package” written into the main contract body, and have the representative circle it on the spot. If they won’t write it in, don’t sign.
Doing IVF in Chengdu: One Cycle Cost Me Under 80,000 RMB
I went through one stimulated cycle in Chengdu myself. Stimulation drugs: 26,000 RMB. Egg retrieval plus lab fees: 18,000. Transfer: 12,000. With monitoring and travel, one cycle landed around 79,000 RMB. If you’re young with good ovarian reserve, two or three cycles give you a real shot, and the total cost stays manageable.
But if you’re over 38, your AMH is below 1.0, or you already know you need surrogacy, what Chengdu IVF can do for you is limited. Honestly, the local route suits people whose main issue is on the female side and who want to spread the budget over stages.
Actionable tip: before you go, ask the doctor for a stimulation protocol with an estimated drug dose. A long protocol versus an antagonist protocol can differ by 8,000–10,000 RMB in medication alone.
A 50% vs 35% Blastocyst Rate Isn’t Just a Number — It’s a Whole Extra Transfer Fee
My friend retrieved 16 eggs in Georgia and got 9 blastocysts — a 56% rate. My cousin’s Chengdu cycle: 12 eggs, only 3 made it. Don’t underestimate that gap. More blastocysts mean you can screen, you can keep spares, and you can do a second transfer without starting over. A fresh round of stimulation means at least 30,000 RMB in drugs and retrieval fees. I’ve seen someone pick a cheap clinic to save roughly 15,000 RMB, only to end up with a blastocyst rate barely over 30% — and pay for another full stimulation round instead.
Actionable tip: when vetting a clinic, ask directly: “For patients retrieving X or more eggs, what’s your average blastocyst rate?” Demand concrete numbers, not the word “high.”
Georgia IVF Plus Surrogacy: My Itemized 420,000 RMB Breakdown
Here’s my friend’s actual ledger: medical portion 110,000 RMB (including stimulation, retrieval, and PGT screening of 3 embryos at about 24,000); surrogate compensation and insurance 150,000; agency service fee 80,000; legal work and birth certificate processing 30,000; flights and accommodation around 50,000. Mid-pregnancy, the surrogate had early bleeding and was hospitalized — he paid over 20,000 RMB out of pocket for the extra care. That’s exactly why I say a 380,000 quote should be budgeted as 420,000.
Actionable tip: build your own seven-line checklist — medical, surrogate, service fees, legal, travel, contingency reserve, currency fluctuation — and fill in a number for each. Keep at least 30,000 RMB as a reserve.
If you’re not sure which route fits you, spend a few thousand RMB first on a complete fertility workup in Chengdu. Get your AMH, a semen analysis, and a uterine assessment, then take that report to Surrogacy Abroad, I Went Through Kyrgyzstan and Georgia IVF’>Georgia IVF agencies and ask them to quote an expected blastocyst rate and an overall surrogacy price based on your actual data. A quote that shows its numbers up front is the only kind worth negotiating.