Beginning your journey toward surrogacy is a big step, so it's essential to do your research. Not every surrogacy agency is a good fit; choose one which shares your views about the surrogacy process and where you sense good chemistry. And because surrogacy laws vary from state to state, it’s important to work with an agency whose lawyers are knowledgeable in ART (Assisted Reproductive Technology) and surrogacy law. We’ll help you understand California's surrogacy laws.

Finding a Surrogate and Egg Donor

Your Matching Team helps you find the perfect surrogate match and encourages you to form a strong bond with the woman who will carry your baby or babies. Before matching with a surrogate, intended parents will usually find and match with an egg donor (if needed). You can search our egg donor database, where you'll find bright and ambitious young women who are excited for the opportunity to help you grow your family.

Pregnancy and Parenthood

The final part of the process is one in which you further develop a relationship with your surrogate during pregnancy. If she lives close to California, you may even be able to visit for her appointments. Our agency supports you through each milestone, helping you prepare to travel for the birth and ensuring you have everything you need to return home safely.

Surrogacy in California for Surrogate Mothers & Parents

An Overview of Surrogacy in California

California is a surrogacy-friendly state for both gestational carriers (surrogate mothers) and intended parents. Whether you live in a large city, such as Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco or Sacramento—or less populated areas of California—here's everything you need to know about gestational surrogacy.

Surrogacy enables couples and individuals from a variety of backgrounds, ages and sexual orientations to build their families.

Each surrogacy journey is unique. The types of intended parents from California who may use surrogacy to grow their families are:

• Heterosexual couples who have struggled with infertility
• Intended mothers who are unable to carry a child
• Intended parents who have a genetic defect or health condition they don't want to pass onto the child
• LGBTQ+ intended parents who want to have a genetic link to their baby

On this page you'll learn why California is one of the best states in the U.S. for surrogacy, what the state's surrogacy process involves, how to become parents or a surrogate mother, and what surrogacy costs.

Why California Is a Great State for Surrogacy

California is home to some of the world's best IVF clinics, and many of Circle Surrogacy's intended parents who live on the West Coast or in Asia travel to California to work with top reproductive endocrinologists. Circle Surrogacy has strong partnerships with top California clinics. If you’re already established with an IVF clinic, we’re happy to work with your clinic of choice.

Also, while it's not always the case, California surrogate mothers tend to have less need for traveling to IVF clinic appointments if their intended parents are working with a CA IVF clinic.

Circle Surrogacy is based in both Boston and the San Francisco Bay Area, and we have team members who are parents through surrogacy and always happy to share their experiences. Intended parents looking for surrogacy agencies in San Francisco or other parts of California can connect with local Circle team members. We schedule consultations in our California surrogacy offices in addition to being available for consults via video during the day and evenings.

Becoming a Parent through Surrogacy in California

Circle Surrogacy – with offices in Los Angeles and the Bay Area – has been helping straight and LGBTQ+ singles and couples in California grow their families through surrogacy and egg donation for over 25 years. California is a surrogacy friendly state, and intended parents will find many top-rated IVF clinics on the west coast.

Below you'll find information about surrogacy in California, including what the surrogacy process looks like, how much surrogacy costs in California, how to find a surrogate or egg donor, and so much more. The process can feel overwhelming at first, but the more you read and research, the more familiar it will become to you. Many professionals are involved in a surrogacy journey, and it is a life-changing experience.

We're ready to help intended parents from Northern California – San Francisco, Sacramento and San Jose – down the coast from Los Angeles and Long Beach to Irvine and San Diego.

The Surrogacy Process in California

The surrogacy process can be complex at times, with many milestones that lead to the final outcome: delivery day! It's important to understand and prepare for the steps in the surrogacy process, whether you are an intended parent or a surrogate mother.

You may choose to undergo your surrogacy journey independently, or with the help of a surrogacy agency. Working with an agency such as Circle Surrogacy, which has 25 years of experience, can help you navigate the milestones and events throughout your journey so that you can focus on preparing for the arrival of your baby.

Choosing an Agency: Beginning your journey toward surrogacy is a big step, so it's essential to do your research. Not every surrogacy agency is a good fit; choose one which shares your views about the surrogacy process and where you sense good chemistry. And because surrogacy laws vary from state to state, it’s important to work with an agency whose lawyers are knowledgeable in ART (Assisted Reproductive Technology) and surrogacy law. We’ll help you understand California's surrogacy laws.
Finding a Surrogate and Egg Donor: Your Matching Team helps you find the perfect surrogate match and encourages you to form a strong bond with the woman who will carry your baby or babies. Before matching with a surrogate, intended parents will usually find and match with an egg donor (if needed). You can search our egg donor database, where you'll find bright and ambitious young women who are excited for the opportunity to help you grow your family.
Pregnancy and Parenthood: The final part of the process is one in which you further develop a relationship with your surrogate during pregnancy. If she lives close to California, you may even be able to visit for her appointments. Our agency supports you through each milestone, helping you prepare to travel for the birth and ensuring you have everything you need to return home safely.

Starting the Surrogacy Process

Once you've identified surrogacy as the way you'd like to grow your family, and you've selected an agency you'd like to meet with, the first step is to schedule a consultation. Meeting with the agencies you're considering is an important step because it's a great time to share your story, get questions answered, and see if the agency team is a good fit for your journey.

Private surrogacy consultations educate intended parents on the surrogacy process, surrogacy costs, and how to find and match with a surrogate mother. Our complimentary consultations are for those who are emotionally and financially ready to begin a surrogacy journey within the next 12 months.

If you're not ready for a full consultation but would like more information, you can schedule a pre-consultation with our intake team by contacting [email protected] and someone will reach out to coordinate a time.

Becoming a Parent in California

Bringing a baby into your family is one of the greatest joys you can experience. Becoming a parent in California is safe and simple, as California is a surrogacy-friendly state for intended parents who are interested in growing their families through surrogacy and or egg donation.

Circle Surrogacy works with many parents on the West Coast. We have an office in Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay area, where we meet with parents and partner with local IVF clinics. We know that one of the first questions intended parents ask is how much does surrogacy cost? Our comprehensive cost sheets outline the surrogacy costs you should expect in a typical surrogacy journey.

Apply to Become a Parent

How Much Does a Surrogate Cost in California?

If you're thinking about having a baby through surrogacy, we can help you understand the surrogacy programs available, the cost of a surrogate, and how much you can expect to pay for egg donation in California. Circle Surrogacy is transparent in its surrogacy options, costs and what you can expect along your journey.

At Circle Surrogacy, we offer one all-inclusive cost program: our Journey Protection Guarantee program.

Journey Protection Guarantee Program surrogacy costs in California:

Surrogacy only: $148,750
Surrogacy plus egg donation: $172,750
(both prices exclude IVF)

Our Journey Protection Guarantee offers Intended Parents:

An all-inclusive cost that covers unlimited retrievals and transfers and any complications that may arise during your journey
100% refund of our agency fee if you have no embryos remaining and do not bring home a baby
No surprise costs or invoices

Circle's costs include all agency fees, attorneys’ fees, screening and surrogate fees, and insurance costs. They do not include IVF costs.

The costs outlined above are for our Surrogacy Only and Surrogacy Plus Egg Donation Programs. For more information about the costs of our other programs, please email us or call us at 617.439.9900.

Financing Surrogacy Costs

Some intended parents may have the opportunity to qualify for financing for their journey. Please speak with our Parent Intake Team or Consultation Team or by filling out this form.

Finding a Surrogate Mother in California

Finding your surrogate match is an exciting time in your journey to parenthood. Circle works with many surrogate mothers from California, as well as most of the surrounding states. Additionally, Circle Surrogacy has two offices in California, making it even easier for surrogates and intended parents to connect. If you're looking for a surrogate mother in the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, or southern California (or in neighboring states), we can help you find your surrogate mother match.

Get Started

Thinking about what's important to you in your gestational carrier and journey will make it easier to find a surrogate on your own (if you're undergoing an independent journey) or to determine if your surrogacy agency has presented you with a good match.

The first steps in finding a surrogate mother match is to determine what you're looking for in a surrogate, what you’d like your relationship with your surrogate to be, and the expectations you have for your journey.

We ask intended parents to fill out a profile that help us to get to know them better and find appropriate surrogate matches.

The information we ask for in the profile includes your:

Relationship (if you have a partner)
Family
Hobbies and activities
Plans for parenthood
Reasons for pursuing surrogacy

We'll ask that you also share photos of yourself, your loved ones and any other photos that give a good sense of who you are as people.

Your Matching Team uses your answers—as well as your geographic location and views on termination— so it's important to be honest when thinking about how you answer these questions. That's a key element of finding the best surrogate match for you.

In addition to your profile, there are certain criteria on which you will be matched with your gestational carrier. Intended parent matching criteria include their preferences on:

Level of communication with their surrogate during the journey
Location of the surrogate mother
Number of embryos to transfer
Views on selective reduction and termination

If you are doing an independent surrogacy journey, you can use the above as guidelines as to what you should look for in a suitable match.

3 Criteria for Finding Surrogate Mothers

When you embark on your search for a surrogate mother in California, keep these 3 criteria in mind:

Appropriate legal fit: Our legal department always ensures potential matches meet the requirements of California's surrogacy laws before surrogate profiles are presented to intended parents.

Personality fit and surrogacy expectations: At Circle, your Matching Team (which includes a lawyer) reviews the list of safe matches provided by the legal team to ensure good personality fits because we want both surrogates and intended parents to have a comfortable relationship throughout the journey.

Expectations surrounding termination and selective reduction: It's important that surrogates and intended parents share similar views about the termination of a pregnancy if a situation develops in which a reduction or termination is considered. In our experience, many intended parents prefer the option to make the choice regarding termination.

Finding an Egg Donor in California

Egg donation is the process of a fertile woman donating her eggs to allow another woman to conceive a child, whether she’s the intended parent herself or a surrogate for heterosexual or homosexual couples/individuals. If you or your significant other has infertility concerns, then building your family through egg donation may be the best option for you.

We’re ready to guide you through finding an egg donor in California, the entire egg donation process, and helping you coordinate with an IVF clinic of your choice. The first place most intended parents start their egg donor search is in an egg donor database. Most Egg Donor databases are set up so that you can search for an egg donor by certain criteria. Circle's egg donor database is easy to use, and easy to navigate.

Surrogacy Laws in California

California has long been known as a great location to pursue surrogacy. Its favorable surrogacy laws have allowed Circle Surrogacy to successfully match surrogates with intended parents for over two decades.

California’s favorable statute recognizes contracts for gestational surrogacy arrangements as well as egg, sperm, and embryo donations. The state’s comprehensive law protects the rights of the surrogate, the intended parents, the baby, and the egg donor (if one is needed). Even in cases where the statute is not fully followed, California’s 20-plus years of positive case law tends to fully protect the parties.

Determining Parentage in California

Establishing parentage for surrogacy in California is a seamless process for everyone involved. Generally, surrogates in California won’t ever appear in court. Even in cases where a post-birth action is warranted (i.e., intended parents' citizenship needs), the surrogate won’t need to appear in court. The parties simply need to review and sign legal documentation and return it to the attorneys handling the matter.

How To Become a Surrogate in California

There is so much to learn about becoming a surrogate. We're here to help you navigate surrogacy, from understanding what a surrogate is and how to apply to become a surrogate mother to what to expect and how being a surrogate in California can affect your life.

California is a surrogacy-friendly state, with many IVF clinics. We work with many surrogates from Northern California – San Francisco, Sacramento and San Jose – down the coast from Los Angeles and Long Beach to Irvine and San Diego.

Read on to see how rewarding being a surrogate can be when you help those who aren't able to have a baby on their own experience the joys of parenthood.

What Is a Surrogate

A woman who wishes to carry a baby for someone else is called a surrogate. You may also see or hear the terms surrogate mother, gestational carrier or gestational surrogate. Surrogates carry babies for Intended Parents who are unable to have a baby on their own. Most surrogate mothers are gestational surrogates, meaning the surrogate mother does not use her own eggs and doesn't share any genetics with the baby. Surrogates are compensated and protected legally by a contract signed by all parties.

Circle Surrogacy only works with gestational carriers – women who do not share biology with the baby they are carrying.

Surrogates are women who have children of their own, have had relatively easy pregnancies and births (they like being pregnant!), and many have completed their own families. Surrogate mothers want to help others have their own families.

What is surrogacy? It's an amazing way to help make intended parents' dreams come true and give others the ultimate gift: a baby!

Surrogate FAQs

5 Things To Know About Being a Surrogate

There is a lot of information out there about becoming a surrogate, but here are 5 quick things for you to know before you begin!

Surrogates do NOT use their own DNA (eggs) for the babies they carry
Surrogates are paid throughout the entirety of their journey (not at the end) and start before pregnancy
Surrogates have a say in with whom they match; all matches are mutual
Surrogates DO need to give themselves injections as part of the IVF process; most surrogates say these needles are no big deal
Surrogates will have to say goodbye to the baby; they look forward to "giving the baby back" to their intended parents; because they are not genetically related to the baby, surrogates do not feel an "attachment" to the babies they carry

Ready to learn more? Read on!

I'm ready to apply now

The Process for Surrogates in California

At Circle, our surrogates receive the support and guidance of our experienced social workers and program coordinators, many who have been surrogates themselves. We support women wherever they are in the process whether they are ready to apply now or want to talk with experienced surrogates or Surrogate Advisors about how to become a surrogate mother in Los Angeles, San Francisco, or other California community. Here is an overview of the process:

Pre-screening
Consultation
Matching with intended parents
Medical screening and legal contracts
Monitoring appointments and embryo transfer
Pregnancy
Delivery

Learn more about the surrogacy process at Circle.

Getting Started as a Surrogate

Wherever you are in your journey, we suggest completing our online surrogacy application. It takes only about 10 minutes to complete and there is no obligation to proceed if you aren’t ready.

Surrogate Carrier Being Supported by Fellow Surrogate Carrier

Surrogate Mother Requirements in California

Women who become surrogate mothers are generous, adventurous and kind. They are teachers, nurses and stay-at-home moms. They are passionate about their families. They are spirited, caring and selfless. They are just like you.

Surrogate mother requirements in California are straightforward. Women who would like to apply to become surrogate mothers must:

Have delivered a child of their own and are currently parenting at least one child.
Have had uncomplicated pregnancies and deliveries, as documented by medical records.
Be between 21 and 41 years old
Typically have a Body Mass Index (BMI) of no higher than 32. Calculate My BMI.
Be citizens, legal residents or legal immigrants of the United States. If a surrogate is a legal resident or legal immigrant of the United States, the surrogate must be able to provide documentation that is valid for at least 2 years.
Not participate in the following government aid programs: cash assistance, welfare, public housing and section 8. All other forms of government assistance will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

There are additional requirements for becoming a surrogate that also apply to most states.

Apply to become a surrogate

Benefits of Being a Surrogate in California

High surrogate pay is just one of the reasons being a surrogate mother in California is so appealing. Women who wish to become a surrogate mother in Los Angeles, San Francisco and other cities and towns across California, enjoy surrogate benefits such as:

Location, location, location! Surrogates who live in California are in close proximity to Circle's offices and some of the country's best fertility clinics with whom Circle Surrogacy has established relationships. In some instances, you may be working with intended parents using these clinics, which would reduce the amount of travel you would have to do.
Gain an incredible sense of self-fulfillment from giving the greatest gift humanly possible to another family
Build a life-long relationship with forever-grateful intended parents
Work with a personal Program Coordination Team and licensed social worker
Opportunity to work with local and international intended parents

And, as mentioned, California surrogate mothers receive generous compensation with a customized benefits package.

The Circle Surrogate Promise

The Circle Surrogate Promise was created for surrogates because we truly care about our carriers, and we want each of them to have the most successful and rewarding journey possible.

In the past, our carriers shared thoughts and improvements with their social workers, or during their exit interviews, and we took all of those conversations and suggestions to heart and improved on our offerings to our gestational carriers.

Guaranteed Pay, Security and Support

The Circle Surrogate Promise is a program exclusive to Circle Surrogates; no other agency can offer the same level of security and support.

Circle Surrogacy promises:

Guaranteed Compensation. Circle Surrogacy financially backs their Intended Parents, so a surrogate’s escrow account is always funded to ensure she is always paid in full and on time.
No medical bill liability. Circle Surrogacy takes on the liability of medical bills. We listened to our past surrogates and their frustrations with medical bills and we’ve made big changes. While we can never stop having you receive medical bills (since you are the “patient”), our new Fixed Cost programs for Intended Parents allow us to protect both the surrogates and the intended parents, and ensure all medical bills will be paid in a timely manner.
$5,000 compensation, even if you leave the program. If you are accepted into our surrogate program and you are medically cleared and matched with intended parents – but you don’t achieve a pregnancy – we will compensate you for your time, energy and dedication thus far in your journey (up to $5,000 total).
Empowerment in birth choices. Not every gestational carrier has the same desires when it comes to the birth of their surro baby. At Circle, our surrogates have choices for her preferred birth options, such as doula care, a hospital birth, or using a birth center with a midwife.
Personalized, small agency feel, with the resources of a large agency. The first person you speak with at Circle will likely be an experienced carrier who guides you through the process until you are matched with intended parents, personally introducing you to your dedicated social worker and journey support team, all of whom are in house at Circle. You’ll always be supported by a Circle employee, who knows all the details about you and your journey (you’ll never have to worry about working with a third party who doesn’t even know your name!) Plus, with our expanded team, we are able to offer support groups, virtual events, one-on-one surrogate mentorship and more.

How Much Do Surrogates Get Paid in California?

Gestational surrogates are paid for carrying a baby for someone. This compensation is often called a "surrogate base compensation" or "surrogate payment". At Circle Surrogacy, base compensation for a surrogate in California can range from $40,000-$45,000, depending on where the surrogate lives and whether or not the surrogate has insurance. As a surrogate, you will be paid your base compensation plus additional payments for milestones along your journey.

Total compensation package for a surrogate from California can be up to $60,000-$65,000+.

How does surrogate mother pay work in California?

Your surrogate compensation is paid to you throughout the duration of your surrogacy journey. In fact, you will receive payments before you are even pregnant.

Surrogate pay includes the following:

Base compensation. This depends on whether or not you have health insurance, if you're a first-time surrogate, and the state where you will be a surrogate.
Payments before you are pregnant. You will be compensated early in your journey for completing tasks and milestones. These payments are in addition to your base compensation.
Payments during and after pregnancy. Surrogate mothers also receive financial support for necessities during the pregnancy, such as maternity clothing, housekeeping, for pumping and shipping breast milk, and more.
Additional benefits. Surrogates will also receive benefits that, while not monetary payments, are priceless in ensuring you're protected, and you have a smooth journey. These benefits include social work support, legal counsel, life insurance, and more.

Your base compensation is paid monthly in nine installments beginning with the confirmation of heartbeat, which occurs around 6 weeks gestation. However, you will receive compensation in the time leading up to that for transfers as well as the medical screening and signing your contract.

How Circle Supports Surrogates

As the world leader in this field, Circle brings 25 years of experience and passion to surrogacy in California. Our team supports you every step of the way—from the day you begin exploring surrogacy to your meeting with the prospective parents, and throughout your entire pregnancy to birth. We’ll help you navigate the screening process, ensure you match with the perfect intended parent or parents, and guide you through the legal and social work aspects of surrogate parenting.

The Circle team is deeply passionate about our work, and many of us are experienced surrogates ourselves. (Some have completed 3 journeys!) That means we’re not just bringing you world-class expertise in the myriad legal, social, and medical aspects of your surrogacy process. We’re delivering hands-on guidance that’s informed by our experience. Our team is ready to answer any question you can dream of (and then some).

We can also connect you with skilled, trustworthy experts. For example, when it’s time for you to review legal contracts, we’ll recommend an attorney local to you with whom we’ve worked with previously, and who has a strong working knowledge of Assisted Reproduction Technology law. It’s just one more way we can clear the path for you and make the entire surrogacy program as seamless as possible. Read our blog post about the 10 steps to becoming to a surrogate.

Intended Parents with their hands on their surrogate's belly

Finding a Perfect Intended Parent Match

For many California surrogacy candidates, the question of who you help is crucial. After all, you and the prospective parents are going to join together on an incredible and intimate journey. You want to be sure that you connect with and trust them fully. That’s why Circle Surrogacy built an extensive and thorough matching process.

To get you started, your Surrogate Support Team will try to find the perfect intended parent(s) for you, based on personality fit and legal circumstances. You’ll get to review each other’s profiles, ask questions, and generally feel each other out. There will also be an initial Skype call, and possibly an in-person meeting. It’s all about making sure both you and the intended parent(s) feel completely comfortable with the match. And of course, the surrogacy agreement only moves forward if you do.

Circle works with single parents, LGBTQ+ and heterosexual couples, domestic and international couples, and more. We’re confident you’ll be able to find a great match.

The Ultimate Guide to Surrogacy in California

Our Surrogate Agency Offices in California

Table of Contents

A Guide to Surrogacy in California

For Intended Parents

For Surrogates