If you’re thinking of taking the surrogacy path, here’s the deal. There are two kinds of surrogates. A traditional surrogate is a woman who becomes artificially inseminated by a man’s sperm and delivers the baby for others to care for, though she is the biological mother.

A gestational surrogate is when a man and a woman do IVF to create an embryo and implants it into the uterus of a carrier. The surrogate then carries the baby until birth.

She doesn’t have any genetic connection to the baby, but her womb serves as a home for other peoples’ child.

Gestational surrogacy is a more common approach to surrogacy, one that you might opt for if you have medical problems with your uterus, you’ve undergone a hysterectomy or certain conditions make pregnancy risky for you. You also may want to consider surrogacy if you’ve tried other medical intervention technique with no success.

There are a few ways in which you’d find a surrogate. One could be a friend or family member, or you could reach out to a surrogacy agency to help you find a surrogate and act as a bridge between you and a surrogate. The latter may be easier legally, but more expensive, as the cost of a surrogate can range from $80,000 to $120,000. While no regulations exist in terms of who can be a surrogate, you should generally choose one who is legally considered an adult, has had one healthy baby (so she knows what she’s in for) and has passed a psychological screening. She should also sign a contract about her role in the pregnancy specifically, as parental rights are not guaranteed after a surrogate birth, unless she legally expresses so.

She should also be checked for any infectious diseases and made sure she is up to date on immunization and overall healthy.