Egg freezing in Turkey: what it is and how it works
Egg freezing (oocyte cryopreservation) lets you store your own eggs at the age they were collected, to be thawed and fertilised later. A normal month produces one egg. In a freezing cycle you take hormone injections for about 10 to 12 days so that several eggs mature together; the eggs are collected through the vagina under sedation using an ultrasound-guided needle, and the mature ones are frozen by vitrification, a flash-freezing method that avoids damaging ice crystals. The eggs then wait in liquid nitrogen until you want to use them. Turkish fertility centres treat many international patients and can usually fit a cycle into a trip of around two weeks.
This guide explains how the cycle works, what the evidence says about success, how many eggs are generally advised, what a cycle costs in Turkey compared with the UK, US and Germany, how it compares with freezing embryos, what recovery is like and how to choose a clinic. The wider range of services is in our overview of IVF and fertility treatments in Turkey.
Egg Freezing in Turkey: how it works
- 1Send your photos and questions
Free and without obligation: tell us what you want to change and send a few photos — by form or WhatsApp.
- 2Get a written plan and price
A surgeon reviews your case and you receive a personal plan with the price, usually within 24 hours. Compare hospitals; nothing is paid in advance.
- 3Travel, surgery and aftercare
Airport pick-up, examination, surgery and check-ups in Istanbul, then follow-up with your surgeon after you fly home.
- Within about 2 hours
A coordinator replies in your language by WhatsApp or e-mail.
- Within 24 hours
A surgeon reviews your photos and you receive a written plan with the surgeon's name and the price.
- You decide
Ask anything and take your time — nothing is paid in advance.
Why plan Egg Freezing in Turkey with Treat Journey?
- Free for patients
Searching, comparing and requesting quotes costs nothing. You pay the hospital directly, at the price in your written quote — never a pre-payment to us.
- Real hospital prices, published
Every price on this page is the hospital's own price for international patients, shown live in your currency, with what the package includes.
- A named surgeon and a written plan
Your quote names the surgeon and the hospital and lists exactly what is included — no anonymous packages.
- Licensed hospitals only
We list licensed hospitals with an international patient department; accreditations such as JCI are shown on each hospital page.
- Honest reviews
We show real patient reviews, including Google reviews and critical ones, and we never invent ratings.
- Support before, during and after
A coordinator in your language answers within hours, arranges transfers and an interpreter, and stays in touch after you fly home.
Does egg freezing actually work?
Vitrification works well in the laboratory: in experienced hands most frozen eggs survive thawing, and babies born from frozen eggs have been followed for many years without a clear rise in abnormalities. What is less certain is how likely any one woman is to have a baby from her stored eggs. Success depends mainly on your age when the eggs were frozen and the number of eggs stored; figures from large registries are still fairly limited because most women have not yet returned to use their eggs. The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) and the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) both stress that egg freezing is not insurance and that no clinic can promise a baby. Treat it as improving your options, not securing them.
How many eggs do you need, and does age matter?
Age matters more than any other factor. Eggs frozen before about 35 carry a higher chance per egg than eggs frozen after 38, because younger eggs are more likely to be chromosomally normal. Clinics often suggest aiming for around 10 to 15 mature eggs for women in their early or mid thirties, and more for women who are older, but these are rules of thumb rather than promises, and your result depends on your own ovarian response. A blood test for anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) and an ultrasound count of resting follicles give an estimate of how many eggs a cycle may yield. Many women need more than one cycle to reach their target, and the clinic should say so before you start.
Egg freezing cost in Turkey compared with the UK, US and Germany
The ranges below are approximate prices for one stimulation and collection cycle, including freezing but usually not the medication or long-term storage. They are not hospital quotes, and each hospital confirms its price in writing.
| Country | Cycle with freezing (approx.) | Medication (approx.) |
|---|---|---|
| Turkey | €1,500 – €3,800 | €500 – €1,500 |
| United Kingdom | €3,200 – €5,500 | €700 – €1,800 |
| United States | €7,000 – €14,000 | €2,000 – €5,500 |
| Germany | €2,500 – €5,000 | €600 – €1,600 |
The price changes with your dose of medication, the number of monitoring scans, the type of sedation, the number of eggs frozen and what the package contains. Check whether the first year of storage is included: after that an annual storage fee applies, and a second cycle is a separate cost.
Who should consider egg freezing, and who may not be suited?
People most often freeze eggs to delay childbearing for personal or career reasons, before treatment that may harm fertility such as chemotherapy, because of conditions like endometriosis or a family history of early menopause, or before gender-affirming treatment. It is generally most useful for women in their twenties and thirties. It may be less suitable if you are close to menopause with a very low egg count, have a health condition that makes hormone stimulation or sedation unsafe, or already have a partner and would prefer to freeze embryos. A fertility doctor will take a history and review your hormone tests and scan before recommending a cycle, and may advise against one if the expected number of eggs is very low.
The cycle step by step: stimulation, trigger, collection and vitrification
- Baseline tests. AMH blood test, ultrasound and infection screening, often done from your home country before you travel.
- Stimulation. Daily injections of follicle-stimulating hormone for about 10 to 12 days, with a second drug to stop early ovulation; see pharmacological stimulation for IVF for how the protocols work. You are scanned every two to three days to adjust the dose.
- Trigger injection. A final injection matures the eggs about 36 hours before collection.
- Egg collection. A 15- to 20-minute procedure under light sedation; a needle passes through the vaginal wall into each follicle. There are no cuts.
- Vitrification. The embryologist freezes the mature eggs within hours of collection; immature eggs generally cannot be used.
Egg freezing compared with embryo freezing and other options
| Option | Best suited to | Typical limits |
|---|---|---|
| Egg freezing | Women without a partner or who do not wish to create embryos yet; those facing cancer treatment | Eggs must survive thawing and fertilisation later; no pregnancy is secured |
| Embryo freezing (embryo cryopreservation) | Couples or women using donor sperm who accept creating embryos now | Needs sperm at the time; consent rules apply to future use of the embryos |
| Ovarian tissue freezing | Girls and women who cannot delay chemotherapy | Surgery needed; still considered specialist and not available everywhere |
| Waiting and trying naturally | Younger women with no medical reason to freeze | Egg quantity and quality continue to fall with age |
For a wider picture of what can be done before cancer or other treatment, see our guide to fertility preservation.
Trip length and recovery after egg collection
Plan around 12 to 16 days in Turkey if you start stimulation there; some clinics let you begin injections at home and travel only for the last scans and collection, which can shorten the trip to about five to seven days. Right after collection you may feel crampy and bloated and need to rest for the day. Most women are back at desk work within one or two days and resume exercise after about a week, once the ovaries have settled. Mild spotting and bloating can last until your next period, which usually arrives within two weeks. Flying is generally allowed once the doctor has seen you, but avoid long-haul travel if you have significant swelling or pain.
Risks and complications of egg freezing
The NHS and the HFEA describe the main risks. Ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) is an over-response to the hormones that causes abdominal swelling and, in severe cases, fluid build-up that needs hospital care; modern protocols use a different trigger injection to make it uncommon. Collection carries small risks of bleeding, infection and a reaction to sedation. Hormone injections can cause headaches, mood changes and bloating. There is no strong evidence that a freezing cycle harms your future fertility or raises cancer risk, but long-term data are still limited. The most important risk is a different one: believing the eggs guarantee a pregnancy and delaying other options as a result.
What happens after the eggs are frozen?
The eggs are stored in a cryotank under a contract that sets the storage period, the fee and your consent to later use. When you decide to use them, they are thawed, injected with sperm by ICSI and any resulting embryos are transferred to your womb after hormone preparation. You can also move the eggs to a clinic near home. Keep your contact details up to date with the clinic and keep a copy of the number and type of eggs frozen. Ask how many eggs were frozen, how many were not mature and what the laboratory's own survival and fertilisation rates are.
How to choose a clinic, red flags and questions to ask
Choose a licensed centre with experienced embryologists, a vitrification protocol it can describe, and an honest estimate of your expected yield. Red flags include promises of a baby, a price with no breakdown, pressure to start before tests are complete, no plan for OHSS and no written storage contract. Read how our process works and request a written plan through the free quote page. Questions to ask:
- What does the cycle price include, and are medication and storage extra?
- How many eggs do you expect from me, and how is that estimated?
- What are the laboratory's thaw survival and fertilisation rates for frozen eggs?
- How is OHSS prevented and treated, and who looks after me if I develop it after I fly home?
- How and at what cost can my eggs be moved to another clinic?
Frequently asked questions
Egg freezing, or oocyte cryopreservation, means collecting your eggs after hormone stimulation and freezing them by vitrification so they can be thawed and fertilised later. It stores eggs at the age they were frozen.
The freezing method works well, and most eggs survive thawing in skilled laboratories. Whether you have a baby depends mainly on your age at freezing and the number of eggs stored, so no clinic can promise a pregnancy.
A cycle with freezing is roughly €1,500 to €3,800 in Turkey, against about €3,200 to €5,500 in the UK, plus medication and storage. The hospital confirms its price in a written quote that shows what is included.
Clinics often aim for around 10 to 15 mature eggs for women in their early to mid thirties, and more when older. This is a rule of thumb; your own response to stimulation decides what is possible, and you may need a second cycle.
Eggs frozen in your twenties and early thirties generally give the highest chance per egg, because younger eggs are more often chromosomally normal. Chances fall steadily after about 35, but freezing later can still be worthwhile.
The injections cause mild discomfort and bloating, and egg collection is done under light sedation. Afterwards you may have cramps for a day or two, usually relieved by simple painkillers.
Most women return to desk work within one or two days and exercise after about a week. Bloating and spotting can last until the next period, usually within two weeks.
It is widely used and generally safe. The main risks are ovarian hyperstimulation, bleeding, infection and a reaction to sedation; a doctor should explain how they are prevented and treated.
Egg freezing stores unfertilised eggs and needs no sperm now. Embryo freezing creates embryos first and is used by couples or women with donor sperm; embryos are created now, so consent rules apply to their later use.
Allow about 12 to 16 days if the whole cycle is done there. If you start injections at home, a trip of around five to seven days for the final scans and collection may be enough.