Donating sperm can help infertile couples or single women have children. But the process involves more than just making a deposit at a sperm bank. Here’s an in-depth look at sperm donation.
What are the requirements to donate sperm?
To donate sperm, you typically must:
- Be between 18 and 40 years old
- Be in good health
- Have no serious genetic diseases in your family history
- Pass screening for infectious diseases like HIV and hepatitis
- Have normal sperm shape, movement, and counts
- Commit to donate regularly for 6–12 months
Sperm banks have strict criteria because they want donors who produce high quality sperm with the lowest risk of passing on diseases. You’ll have to complete an application, take blood tests, have a physical exam, and provide your family medical history.
How does the donation process work?
Here are the typical steps to becoming an approved sperm donor:
- Apply to a sperm bank. The biggest ones are California Cryobank, Fairfax Cryobank, and Seattle Sperm Bank.
- Get screened. You’ll have an STD test, genetic test, blood test, urine test, and physical exam. The genetic test checks for conditions like cystic fibrosis.
- Get accepted. If your sperm and health checks out, you become a registered donor.
- Make donations. You’ll provide semen samples 1–3 times per week. Samples are cryopreserved and quarantined for 6 months.
- Get paid. You’ll earn around $50–$150 per usable sample, depending on the sperm bank.
The entire screening and donation process takes about 2–3 months. You continue donating for up to a year to build up inventory at the sperm bank.
What happens during the donation process?
When you go in to make a donation, here’s what you can expect:
- You check in at the front desk.
- Staff bring you to a private room with pornographic materials and a specimen cup.
- You masturbate to ejaculation and catch the semen in the cup.
- Staff pick up the sample, analyze it, and freeze viable sperm.
- You check out when finished.
The whole visit takes about an hour. Some sperm banks limit how often you can donate to ensure sperm quality. You may need 1–5 days of abstinence between donations.
How is sperm donated and stored?
After collection, sperm samples are processed and frozen:
- Analysis: Technicians examine sperm count, motility, and morphology.
- Washing: They remove seminal fluid and non-motile sperm.
- Freezing: Viable sperm are placed in vials and frozen in liquid nitrogen at -196°C.
- Storage: Frozen vials are stored in the sperm bank’s cryogenic tanks indefinitely.
Frozen sperm retains viability almost indefinitely. It’s thawed when needed for artificial insemination or IVF. Frozen sperm only has a 10–15% chance of conception per cycle, so recipient couples often require multiple cycles.
How much can you earn from sperm donation?
Payment for sperm donation varies by sperm bank. On average, you can expect to earn:
| Per sample | $50-$150 |
| Per week | $200-$500 |
| Per month | $800-$2000 |
| Per year | $10,000-$20,000 |
How much you make depends on your donation frequency and sperm quality. You may earn bonuses for regular donations over an extended period.
What are the benefits of sperm donation?
Donating sperm offers several benefits:
- Earn money – Get paid for each usable sample you provide.
- Help others – Give infertile couples the chance to have children.
- Flexible schedule – Make donations when convenient as long as you meet volume requirements.
- Screening – Get free, regular STD testing and checkups.
For eligible, healthy men, sperm donation provides an easy way to make extra income on your own schedule. It also gives the satisfaction of helping create families.
What are the downsides to sperm donation?
While rewarding overall, sperm donation has some potential downsides:
- Time commitment – You need to donate 1-3 times per week for up to a year.
- Inconvenience – You must store samples and transport them to the sperm bank.
- No anonymity – Offspring from your sperm can contact you when they turn 18 in most states.
- No medical history – You won’t have access to recipient medical records or info on pregnancies/children conceived.
Sperm donation requires dedication over an extended period. While paid, it’s more than just quick cash. You also give up anonymity and access to your biological children’s information.
What are the legal issues around sperm donation?
Legally, sperm donation works as follows:
- You have no parental rights or responsibilities to offspring conceived from your donations.
- Donor-conceived offspring can access your identity in many states.
- You’re not obligated to have a relationship with offspring who contact you.
- Number of families and offspring you can help create may be limited by state laws.
While you have no parental obligations, offspring can seek you out. You may be contacted by 10+ donor-conceived children over your lifetime.
Conclusion
Donating sperm is a big commitment. The screening process is rigorous and you must donate consistently and long-term to build up inventory. However, you get paid for each donation and have the reward of helping infertile couples or singles have children.
While donation is anonymous, donor-conceived offspring can access your identity in many states. So you may be contacted in the future by people who view you as a biological parent. Overall though, sperm donation provides a unique way to earn reasonable pay while performing a valuable service.