More women than ever are freezing their eggs, but many aren’t returning to use them, study finds

More women are freezing their eggs, but few appear to be returning to use them, a new study found. 

The study was led by researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles, and published last month in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. It found that the number of planned, elective egg freezing cycles increased exponentially between 2014 and 2021, jumping from 4,153 to 16,436. 

Notably, women increasingly chose to freeze their eggs at younger ages, the study found. In 2014, the average age for egg freezing was 36. Seven years later, in 2021, that had dropped to 34.9 years of age.

“This is the largest U.S. study to date on elective fertility preservation, revealing insights into the clear shift in reproductive behavior as more women delay childbearing to pursue education, careers, and personal goals,” Lindsay Kroener, a professor in reproductive endocrinology and infertility at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and senior author of the study, said in a statement.”

Women may be increasingly opting out of having children 

Despite the uptick in women choosing to preserve their eggs, fewer than 6% of these women used their frozen eggs within the study’s five to seven year follow-up period. Of those that did go back to use their eggs, they tended to be between the ages of 38 and 42 years of age. 

The study’s findings follow previous research that shows an increasing number of women are deciding not to have children. A 2024 United Nations report found that global fertility is in decline. And other research suggests more women may also be choosing not to marry, too. A 2019 Morgan Stanley study based on Census Bureau data, projected 45% of prime working age women (ages 25–44) will be single by 2030, up from 41% in 2018.

Women may be choosing not to have children for a number of reasons, including the rising cost of childcare (and cost of living) and the fact that women disproportionately feel forced to leave their jobs to care for young children. However, experts say more research is needed before coming to any strong conclusions. 

“It will be important to see how return rates for thawing evolve with a longer follow-up period. Over time, we may find that more young patients ultimately return to use their eggs,” Kroener said.

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