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NEED TO KNOW
Stephanie Levich, founder and president of Family Match Consulting says the surrogacy journey can cost up to $200,000
Levich has worked with numerous high-profile clients including Meghan Trainor and Paris Hilton
"Working with celebrities isn't fundamentally different," Levich tells PEOPLE
As more celebrities turn to surrogacy to grow their families, questions around how the process works, and how much it actually costs, remain widely misunderstood.
"The estimate that I give clients for, like, all in, all things is about $200,000," celebrity surrogacy consultantStephanie Levich, exclusively tells PEOPLE. "It varies a lot, but that's a good number for people to understand what surrogacy in the U.S. looks like today."
Levich is the founder and president ofFamily Match Consulting, a firm that has worked with high-profile parents includingMeghan Trainorand Daryl Sabara,Paris HiltonandCarter Reum,Erin Andrews,Maria Menounos, andJohn LegendandChrissy Teigen. With more than 20 years of experience in the field, Levich says the timeline and cost can be overwhelming for intended parents, but explains that clarity is key.
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"That estimate includes the major components of a surrogacy journey: surrogate compensation, agency fees, legal fees, insurance-related costs, escrow fees, surrogate screening expenses, medication, and medical costs, among others," she explains.
For clients looking to work with the consulting firm, their "standard search" is estimated at roughly $4,850. "If they are engaging us for our full consulting package, which begins at $40,000 (and can be higher depending on the level of support needed), the estimate increases accordingly. In those cases, a more accurate all-in estimate would be approximately $215,000 to $250,000+," Levich explains for the total cost of the surrogacy journey plus their firm's expenses.
"There are also ways to reduce costs, which we help clients think through and navigate," she adds.
"If all goes well, wematch clients with a surrogatewithin about three months," Levich explains. "From there, it's usually four to six months until there's a pregnancy, and then a pregnancy. So putting that all together… 18 to maybe 24 months is a very good overall estimate from saying, 'Yep, let's start surrogacy' until hopefully baby in arms."
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Meghan Trainor/Instagram
Family Match Consulting operates as a consulting and advocacy service, helping clients navigate the many moving parts of surrogacy.
"We're really like project managers," Levich says. "We bring in the right mental health professionals, attorneys, insurance brokers, escrow providers. We really bring in whatever's needed throughout."
When it comes to celebrity clients, Levich acknowledges added layers of privacy but says the motivation is the same. "At the core, working with celebrities isn't fundamentally different," she explains. "The reason they arepursuing surrogacyis the same as any other intended parent: they want to build a family."
The "All About That Bass" singer 32, and theSpy Kidsactor, 33,welcomed their third child together, a daughter, via surrogate on Jan. 18, 2026.
Paris Hilton Instagram
Levich says that desire is what made recent criticism toward Trainor particularly frustrating after the pop star shared photos doing skin-to-skin contact with herbaby following a surrogacy birth.
"It was really infuriating to see some of the backlash Meghan Trainor got," she admits. "Skin-to-skin is widely recognized as best practice for newborn regulation and for bonding, and that doesn't change in a surrogacy birth."
Ultimately, Levich hopes greater openness, particularly from public figures, will continue to reduce stigma. "When people are open about it, it makes others feel like this is a path they can explore," she says. "The more we talk about it, the more that stigma is reduced."
For those feeling intimidated by the process, her advice is simple: "Just start the conversation."
Read the original article onPeople
