Infertility Rate Statistics in US 2026 | Age, Male & Female Rate Facts

The infertility rate in US 2026 stands at approximately 13.4% of women ages 15-49 experiencing impaired fecundity and 11.4% of men ages 15-49 reporting some form of infertility, according to CDC National Survey of Family Growth data. Among married women trying to conceive for the first time, the rate climbs to 19.4%, while the national IVF live-birth rate per transfer for women under 35 sits at 51.4%.

What is Infertility Rate in us?

The infertility rate measures the share of reproductive-age men and women who are physically unable to conceive after regular, unprotected intercourse, typically defined by clinicians as 12 months of trying without a pregnancy for women under 35, or six months for women over 35. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tracks this figure through the National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG), a long-running household survey that separates two related but distinct concepts: impaired fecundity, a broader physical difficulty with conceiving or carrying a pregnancy to term, and infertility, a narrower clinical classification applied specifically to married couples who have not conceived after a year of trying. Both measures matter for anyone researching the infertility rate in US 2026, because public health agencies, insurers, and fertility clinics each lean on a slightly different definition when reporting numbers.

Infertility touches roughly 1 in 6 American adults at some point during their reproductive years, and the burden falls on both sexes almost equally. Female-factor infertility, male-factor infertility, and combined or unexplained infertility each account for close to a third of diagnosed cases, which is why modern fertility workups test both partners rather than one. This report walks through the latest male and female infertility rate facts, breaks down infertility by age and marital status, and lays out what treatment through IVF and other assisted reproductive technology (ART) actually costs American families in 2026.

Understanding these numbers matters beyond the doctor’s office. Employers are redesigning benefits packages around fertility coverage, state legislatures are debating new insurance mandates, and public health researchers are watching infertility trends alongside a national birth rate that keeps falling. Every figure in this report comes from a federal agency or a peer-reviewed publication, not a private estimate, so readers can treat these numbers as a reliable baseline for personal decisions, workplace policy conversations, or further research into reproductive health in the United States.

Interesting Facts About Infertility Rate in US 2026

The table above puts the scale of the problem in context. 13.4% of women and 11.4% of men of reproductive age report a fertility problem, and those numbers sit against a backdrop of a national general fertility rate that fell to 53.1 births per 1,000 women in 2025, the lowest figure recorded since data collection began in 1909. Falling birth rates and rising infertility rates are not the same phenomenon, but they compound each other: fewer women are having children at all, and a meaningful share of those who want children are running into a biological or medical barrier.

The gap between 8.5% infertility among all married women and 19.4% among married women who have never given birth is one of the more important numbers in this dataset. It shows that a first pregnancy is the hardest hurdle for many couples, while women who have already carried one pregnancy to term face a substantially lower infertility rate going forward. This pattern, known clinically as primary versus secondary infertility, shapes how doctors counsel patients and how insurers structure fertility benefit limits.

Public health researchers also use these figures to plan resource allocation. Regions with higher concentrations of first-time parents in their late thirties, for example, tend to see greater demand for fertility clinics and diagnostic testing, which in turn shapes where new ART facilities open and how state Medicaid programs think about covering infertility diagnostics versus full treatment cycles.

Female Infertility Rate in US 2026

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG), Key Statistics on Infertility.

Female infertility statistics show a condition that is more evenly distributed across the population than most people assume. 13.4% of all reproductive-age women report impaired fecundity, and the figure barely shifts between women who have never given birth (13.8%) and women who already have a child (13.1%). Marital status moves the needle more than parity does: married women report impaired fecundity at 16.3%, noticeably higher than the population-wide average, largely because married women are more likely to be actively trying to conceive and therefore more likely to notice and report a problem.

Age remains the single strongest predictor of female fertility decline. Egg quantity and quality both drop measurably after 35, and the decline accelerates again after 40, which is why reproductive endocrinologists routinely recommend a fertility evaluation after six months of trying for women in this age bracket rather than the standard twelve. Diagnostic causes on the female side include ovulation disorders, which account for up to 25% of female infertility cases, along with blocked fallopian tubes, endometriosis, and diminished ovarian reserve. A detailed breakdown of national fertility and birth trends by year is available in female fertility rate statistics in the US, which tracks the total fertility rate alongside these infertility figures.

Married Women Infertility Rate in US 2026

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG), 2015-2019 data cycle.

This table isolates the CDC’s strict clinical definition of infertility, which applies only to married couples who have tried to conceive for a full year without success. 8.5% of all married women fall into that category, but the number nearly triples to 19.4% for married women who have never had a live birth. That gap is the clearest statistical illustration of primary infertility in the current dataset, and it explains why so much fertility-clinic marketing and insurance-benefit design targets first-time parents specifically.

Married women who already have one child face a much lower infertility rate at 6.0%, roughly a third of the primary infertility figure. Clinicians describe this as secondary infertility, and it can still be caused by age, weight changes, new medical conditions, or a partner’s changing sperm health, even when the first pregnancy was straightforward. Recognizing secondary infertility matters for public health planning, because these patients are sometimes overlooked by providers who assume that a prior successful pregnancy rules out a current fertility problem.

Male Infertility Rate in US 2026

Source: National Center for Health Statistics, National Health Statistics Reports No. 202, CDC.

Male infertility rate data has historically lagged female data because national surveys tested men’s fertility indicators far less consistently, but the CDC’s most recent report puts overall male infertility at 11.4% for men ages 15-49, rising steadily with age from 7.8% among men in their late teens and early twenties to 14.3% among men approaching 50. That upward slope mirrors the female pattern, though the underlying biology differs. Male fertility decline is more gradual than female decline and rarely produces a hard cutoff, but sperm quality, motility, and DNA integrity all trend downward across the decades.

Male factor infertility accounts for 30% to 40% of all diagnosed infertility cases, either alone or combined with a female factor, which makes it roughly as common a cause as female-factor infertility. Low sperm count, medically termed oligospermia, affects close to 9% of men of reproductive age and is among the most frequent findings in a male fertility workup. Other leading causes include varicocele, hormonal imbalances, prior infections, and lifestyle factors such as smoking, heavy alcohol use, and prolonged heat exposure. Despite being a factor in roughly a third of all infertility cases, male-factor infertility remains underdiagnosed, since many couples begin fertility testing on the female partner first.

Couples navigating a new diagnosis often want a wider view of the health landscape their treatment sits inside, and a useful next stop is health insurance cost statistics by state, which shows how 2026 premium increases are reshaping what fertility-related coverage actually costs on top of a standard plan.

IVF and ART Success Rates in US 2026

Source: CDC National ART Surveillance System (NASS), Assisted Reproductive Technology Fertility Clinic Success Rates Report.

IVF success rates in the US 2026 remain heavily age-dependent, and this table is the single most consulted reference point for patients starting treatment. Fresh, own-egg IVF transfers deliver a 51.4% live-birth rate for women under 35, a figure that drops by roughly a third to 37.2% for the 35-37 bracket, then falls sharply to 22.6% for ages 38-40 and 11.0% for 41-42. By the time a patient is over 42, the fresh own-egg live-birth rate per transfer has fallen to just 4.5%, which is why most clinics begin recommending donor eggs or embryo screening options for patients in this age range.

Every fertility clinic performing ART in the United States is legally required to report cycle-level outcome data to the CDC under the Fertility Clinic Success Rate and Certification Act, which is why this dataset is considered the most standardized comparison available to American patients. Roughly 500 fertility clinics submit data annually through the National ART Surveillance System, and the CDC cross-checks results with the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology to keep reporting consistent across clinics. Singleton live births made up 96.74% of IVF-related deliveries in the most recent reporting year, reflecting a broader national push toward single-embryo transfer to reduce the health risks associated with multiple births.

Infertility Treatment Cost and Insurance Coverage in US 2026

Source: State Mandates and Employer Programs report, Fertility and Sterility journal analyses, and 2026 fertility clinic pricing surveys.

IVF cost in the US 2026 varies enormously depending on where a patient lives and what kind of insurance they carry. Patients with no fertility coverage at all pay an average of $23,474 per cycle, while patients with strong employer-sponsored coverage, meaning a low deductible plan that treats fertility medications and procedures like any other covered service, typically pay between $1,500 and $6,000 out of pocket per cycle. Most patients need more than one cycle to achieve a live birth, with an average of roughly 2.3 cycles, so total family-building spending frequently lands between $40,000 and $60,000 even for patients with partial coverage.

Insurance access is improving but remains uneven. As of 2026, 21 states plus Washington, DC have some form of fertility insurance mandate, yet only about 27% of Americans with employer-sponsored insurance actually have IVF coverage, partly because roughly 60% of employer plans are self-funded and therefore exempt from state mandate laws. States with strong coverage requirements, including Massachusetts, Illinois, New York, and New Jersey, show substantially higher IVF utilization rates than states without a mandate, underscoring how directly coverage policy shapes who can actually access treatment. For families weighing these costs against other household financial pressures, medical debt statistics in the US offers useful context on how unplanned medical expenses, fertility treatment included, are affecting American household budgets more broadly.

Fertility Service Use in US 2026

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Use of Fertility Services in Women Ages 20-49 in the United States: 2022-2023.”

Just 13.7% of American women ages 20-49 have ever used a fertility service in their lifetime, a figure that includes everything from a basic consultation to full IVF treatment. Simple medical advice is the most common entry point, used by 6.3% of women, followed by ovulation-inducing medication at 4.2%. Artificial insemination, a lower-intensity treatment than IVF, has been used by just 1.4% of women in this age range, reflecting how many patients move directly to IVF once a specific diagnosis, particularly a male-factor or tubal diagnosis, rules out simpler interventions.

The gap between the 13.4% of women reporting impaired fecundity and the 13.7% who have ever used a fertility service suggests that most women experiencing a fertility problem do eventually seek some form of medical support, even if that support stops at a consultation. Cost, geography, and insurance access remain the biggest barriers standing between a fertility diagnosis and active treatment, which is a large part of why the coverage gap detailed in the cost section above continues to draw attention from state lawmakers and employer benefit teams heading into 2026.

Geography plays a quiet but significant role here as well. Women living within driving distance of a major metropolitan fertility clinic use services at noticeably higher rates than women in rural counties, where the nearest reproductive endocrinologist can be hours away. This access gap compounds the cost barrier already documented above, since travel time and lost wages add another layer of expense on top of the clinical bill itself.

Employer benefit design is starting to close part of that gap. A growing number of large US companies now offer standalone fertility benefit vendors that reimburse travel, lodging, and childcare costs tied to treatment, on top of the medical cycle itself, specifically to reduce the disadvantage rural and lower-income employees otherwise face when accessing care.

FAQ: Infertility Rate in US 2026

What Is the Infertility Rate in the US in 2026?

13.4% of women ages 15-49 report impaired fecundity, and 11.4% of men in the same age range report some form of infertility, based on the most recent CDC National Survey of Family Growth data.

How Common Is Infertility in the US in 2026?

Infertility affects roughly 1 in 6 American adults at some point during their reproductive years, with the burden split close to evenly between male-factor, female-factor, and combined or unexplained cases.

What Percentage of Women Are Infertile in the US?

Among married women who have never had a live birth, 19.4% meet the CDC’s clinical definition of infertility, compared with 6.0% of married women who already have one or more children.

What Percentage of Men Are Infertile in the US?

11.4% of men ages 15-49 report some type of infertility, rising from 7.8% among men in their late teens and early twenties to 14.3% among men ages 45-49.

What Are the Leading Causes of Female Infertility?

Ovulation disorders account for up to 25% of female infertility cases, followed by blocked fallopian tubes, endometriosis, and diminished ovarian reserve tied to advancing age.

What Are the Leading Causes of Male Infertility?

Low sperm count, or oligospermia, affects close to 9% of reproductive-age men and is one of the most common findings in a male fertility workup, alongside varicocele and hormonal imbalances.

Does Health Insurance Cover IVF in the US in 2026?

Coverage depends heavily on state and employer. 21 states plus Washington, DC have a fertility insurance mandate in 2026, but only about 27% of people with employer-sponsored insurance actually have IVF benefits.

How Much Does IVF Cost Per Cycle in the US in 2026?

The average cost without insurance is $23,474 per cycle. Patients with strong coverage typically pay $1,500 to $6,000 out of pocket, while those with partial coverage pay $10,000 to $13,000.

What Is the IVF Success Rate by Age in the US?

Fresh, own-egg IVF transfers succeed at a 51.4% live-birth rate for women under 35, falling to 37.2% for ages 35-37, 22.6% for 38-40, and 4.5% for women over 42.

Is Infertility Rising in the US?

Diagnosed infertility rates have stayed relatively stable in recent survey cycles, but assisted reproductive technology use has climbed 5% to 10% annually, and the national birth rate has fallen to a record low of 53.1 births per 1,000 women in 2025, intensifying attention on fertility trends overall.

Disclaimer: This research report is compiled from publicly available sources. While reasonable efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, no representation or warranty, express or implied, is given as to the completeness or reliability of the information. We accept no liability for any errors, omissions, losses, or damages of any kind arising from the use of this report.

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