Illinois surrogacy agencies compared: fees, surrogate pay, escrow and model (2026)

Comparison table and all statements about other agencies are pending legal review. Figures for other agencies will be taken only from each agency's own public pages, cited by URL and dated. Last checked: [date].

This page is written by Nancy Block, RN, founder of Private Label Surrogacy. We are one of the agencies in the table, so we have built it to be checkable: every figure for another agency links to that agency's own page, with the date we read it, and a cell stays blank when an agency does not publish the figure. We do not estimate other agencies' numbers, and we do not rank anyone.

Which surrogacy agencies are based in Illinois?

Several surrogacy agencies are headquartered in the Chicago area, including ConceiveAbilities, Family Source Consultants, Golden Surrogacy and Private Label Surrogacy. National agencies such as Circle Surrogacy also match Illinois surrogates and intended parents.

The list of agencies actually headquartered in Illinois is being confirmed.

Private Label Surrogacy is based in Northbrook, at 1721 Mission Hills Road, Unit 406. It was founded in 2017 by Nancy Block, RN, who started The Center for Egg Options Illinois in 2000 and ran it for 15 years. PLS serves intended parents across the US and abroad, and its surrogates live in surrogacy-friendly US states.

A Chicago-area address is not, by itself, an advantage for Illinois parents. Under Illinois law, the clinic and the attorneys drive the legal process. What matters more is how the agency screens surrogates, who holds your money, and how many families each case manager carries.

How do their published fees compare?

Agency fees are the one figure most agencies publish, and the one most often compared. They are also the hardest to compare fairly, because agencies include different things.

Before comparing fees, check three things for each agency:

1. What the fee covers. Some agency fees include screening costs, such as the psychological evaluation and background checks. Others list those as third-party costs. A lower fee that excludes screening may cost the same in the end.
2. When it is paid. A fee staged to milestones keeps less of your money with the agency before work is done. A fee due in full at signing does the opposite.
3. What happens if the journey changes. Refund and rematch terms can be worth more than a difference in the headline fee.

PLS publishes: a $35,000 program fee, paid $15,000 at signing, $15,000 at surrogate acceptance and $5,000 at medical clearance. Program fee: confirm current schedule. A $42,000 fee ($20,000 / $17,000 / $5,000) is proposed for new agreements, and a proposed Assured tier at $55,000 adds priority matching, unlimited rematches and no new agency fee if the first surrogate does not succeed. Third-party costs (legal, escrow, psychological evaluation, background checks, insurance review, travel and monitoring) are listed separately and total $15,300 to $29,000.

The agency fee is a minority of what you will spend. A whole journey typically costs $150,000 to $200,000. Surrogate compensation, insurance and clinic fees move the total more than the agency fee does.

How does surrogate compensation compare?

Surrogate base compensation is the figure agencies most often advertise to surrogates. To compare it fairly, look at the total package, not the base alone.

The total package includes the base plus allowances and reimbursements: a monthly allowance, fees at medication start and transfer, additional compensation for multiples, maternity clothing, lost wages, housekeeping late in pregnancy, and life insurance. Two agencies with the same base can differ by thousands of dollars once these are added.

PLS publishes:

All PLS compensation figures pending confirmation with Nancy Block.

Surrogates at PLS also receive mental-health support and at least six nutrition consults across the journey with Julie Bendix, MPH, RD, LD, CLC.

Who holds the money at each agency?

This is the column we would ask you to read first. Illinois does not regulate surrogacy agencies or require independent escrow. Each agency sets its own policy, so you have to ask.

The question has three parts:

1. Who holds surrogate compensation and expense funds? An independent licensed escrow agent, or the agency, its owner or an affiliated company?
2. Can you verify it? Statements directly from the escrow company, a named bank, an account in the parties' names, a license you can look up.
3. Can you choose? May you use your own escrow company?

PLS: you fund an independent licensed escrow agent, $10,000 at match and the balance before medications start. You may choose your own escrow company. PLS has always used independent licensed escrow and has never held client funds.

The Surro Connections collapse in late 2025, followed by a federal indictment in August 2026, and the SEAM escrow failure, which involved more than $16 million, are why this column matters. For a step-by-step check, see how to vet a surrogacy agency's finances.

Who reviews surrogate medical records, and how?

Every surrogate is medically screened by the fertility clinic before transfer. The question for an agency is what happens before that: who reads her prenatal and delivery records, and decides whether to show her profile to you.

Possible answers range from a physician who reads every record and writes a summary, to a nurse who reviews them, to a coordinator who collects them and forwards them to the clinic. Each model shifts more or less of the screening onto the clinic, and onto your timeline.

PLS: Mark Silverberg, DDS, MD, Executive Director, personally reads every surrogate candidate's prenatal and delivery records and writes a physician medical summary that goes to your fertility clinic. The PLS agency agreement defines this as review by a board-certified physician. PLS was founded by a nurse: Nancy Block spent 17 years as an OB/GYN and fertility nurse and staff educator at Northwestern Memorial Hospital's Prentice Women's Pavilion.

How big is each agency and who owns it?

Size is not a quality measure. A larger agency may have more surrogates available; a smaller one may have more senior people on each journey. What you want to know is who makes decisions about your journey, and how many other journeys they are carrying.

Ownership matters for a different reason. An agency owned by its founders answers to them. An agency owned by investors, or carrying debt, has other obligations. Neither is wrong. Ask.

PLS: founded by Nancy Block, RN, who personally runs matching. Mark Silverberg, DDS, MD, is Executive Director. Two case managers, Natalie Gaudio-Fricano and Jenni Symons, both former surrogates, carry the active matches, and the caseload is capped. Cap: [PLS_CASELOAD_CAP]. Jan Telman Berman, Global Surrogacy Coordinator, manages national and international cycles. PLS works with 14 partner fertility centers. New York licenses surrogacy agencies; PLS is applying.

What the table cannot tell you: questions to ask on the call

A table compares what agencies publish. It cannot tell you how an agency behaves when something goes wrong. Ask every agency on your list, including PLS:

1. Who holds our money, and can we see the escrow agent's license and a sample statement?
2. Who reads the surrogate's medical records before we see her profile?
3. Are the psychologist and both attorneys independent of you?
4. How many active matches does each case manager carry?
5. What is your wait from signing to meeting a screened surrogate, and from what date?
6. How do you report results, and what are the definitions?
7. What happens to each fee if the match ends or a transfer fails?
8. May we speak with a recent parent and a surrogate who has delivered?

Write down the answers. Compare them side by side. The agency with the most specific answers is usually the one doing the work.

How we built this table and when it was last checked

• Sources. Every figure for another agency comes from that agency's own public website. Each cell links to the page and shows the date we read it.
• Blanks. If an agency does not publish a figure, the cell is blank. We do not estimate.
• PLS figures. Taken from PLS's current fee schedule and compensation schedule, with proposed figures labeled.
• Review. The table is checked quarterly and reviewed by counsel before each update. Last checked: [date]. Reviewed by [attorney name], [firm].
• Corrections. If an agency's published figure has changed, email team@privatelabelsurrogacy.com and we will update the table with the new source and date.

For how we think about "best" lists, see the best surrogacy agencies in Illinois and Chicago, and how to judge them. For a local overview, see surrogacy agencies in Chicago.

Sources

• Each listed agency's public website, cited by URL and date in the table. [URLs and dates to be added.]
• Illinois Gestational Surrogacy Act (2005), Illinois General Assembly. Pending review by counsel.
• SEEDS, Society for Ethics in Egg Donation and Surrogacy, of which Nancy Block, RN, is a former President.
• [News reporting and court filings on the Surro Connections and SEAM collapses: outlet or court, date.]
• Private Label Surrogacy fee schedule and compensation schedule.