Before a patient ever emails a clinic abroad, they’ve already done their homework. Weeks of it. Usually alone, usually at night, usually starting in the same place: a search bar.
In 2024, we surveyed 1,189 patients worldwide who were researching IVF treatment abroad. We asked how they search, how long it takes, whom they trust – and what they couldn’t find. The results show a research journey that is fast, Google-driven, and running into the same walls over and over.
Google isn’t a channel. It’s THE channel.
We asked patients how they research IVF clinics abroad. One answer towered over the rest:
| Research channel | Share of patients |
|---|---|
| 74% | |
| IVF clinic websites | 27% |
| Internet forums | 22% |
| Facebook groups | 21% |
| Recommendations from friends | 13% |
| Online patient reviews | 12% |
| Doctor recommendation / referral | 10% |
| Online ads of IVF clinics | 9% |
| Agencies / facilitators | 3% |
74% of patients research through Google – almost three times more than clinic websites, the second most used channel. Doctors, the traditional gatekeepers of medical decisions, guide just 10% of searches. Agencies and facilitators barely register at 3%.
The modern IVF-abroad journey doesn’t start in a consultation room. It starts with a search query.
Patients decide faster than you’d think
For a decision this big – medical, financial, emotional, international – the timelines are short.
38% of patients spend just one month researching before choosing a clinic. 44% take two to six months. Only 18% take longer than six months.
In other words: for most patients, the entire journey from “let’s look abroad” to “let’s contact this clinic” fits inside half a year – and for the largest single group, inside four weeks.
What patients search for – and can’t find
Here’s where the journey breaks down. We asked patients what information they wanted but could not find on clinic websites:
- 56% couldn’t find information specifically for international patients – how treatment works when you live in another country, how cycles are managed remotely, where to stay.
- 55% couldn’t find a detailed breakdown of treatment costs.
- 50% couldn’t find a detailed breakdown of success rates.
- 37% couldn’t find enough information about the doctors and their expertise.
Read that again. Half of the patients actively trying to give a clinic their business couldn’t find the clinic’s prices or results. These aren’t casual browsers – these are motivated patients hitting an information wall.
And the wall doesn’t shrink with experience. Among patients with two failed cycles behind them, the share who couldn’t find international-patient information rose to 61%. Among those with four or more cycles, 58% couldn’t find detailed costs and 56% couldn’t find detailed success rates – the highest levels in the survey. The more a patient has been through, the more precise their questions get, and the less the average clinic website answers them.
The trust gap: patients read the numbers, but don’t believe them
Finding information is one problem. Believing it is another.
We asked patients whether they trust the treatment success rates published on clinic websites. The result: an almost perfect split. 51% trust them. 49% don’t.
And trust falls as experience grows. Among patients who have never done IVF, 38% distrust published success rates. Among patients with at least one cycle behind them, distrust jumps to 56%. The patients who know the process best believe the numbers least.
Costs fare much better. 69% of patients trust the prices clinics publish, and even among experienced patients, distrust only reaches 33%. Patients don’t assume clinics lie about prices – they just can’t find the full breakdown.
So whom do patients trust? Independent voices. When asked for their most trusted sources of information on clinics abroad, patients ranked Google reviews first at 46%, doctor recommendations second at 37%, and internet forums third at 33%. Clinic websites came in at 26% – behind recommendations from friends at 32%. What a clinic says about itself carries less weight than what others say about it.
What this means if you’re researching clinics right now
Four lessons from 1,189 fellow patients.
Take your time – the month most patients spend is the floor, not the ceiling. The patients with the most experience had the most questions, not the fewest.
Triangulate. The most trusted research mix in the survey is also the smartest one: independent reviews and forums for honesty, clinic websites for specifics, and a doctor’s perspective for medical judgment. No single source survives on its own.
Treat missing information as information. If a clinic doesn’t publish clear prices or explain how it handles international patients, you’ve learned something about how it communicates.
And ask for age-stratified success rates for patients like you – your age group, your diagnosis, your treatment type. A single headline percentage tells you very little. Half of patients already sense this; that’s exactly what the 49% distrust figure is measuring.
And a message to clinics
Our data describes a strange equilibrium: patients research clinics mainly through Google, half of them can’t find prices or results on clinic websites, and half don’t believe the results when they do find them.
The fix is not more marketing. It’s more transparency: a dedicated international patient section, itemised costs, honestly presented success rates with methodology, and visible, credible reviews. The clinics that close the information gap won’t just rank better – they’ll be believed.
FAQ
How do most patients research IVF clinics abroad?
Through Google. In our 2024 survey of 1,189 patients, 74% used Google to research clinics – nearly three times more than clinic websites (27%), the next most common channel. Internet forums (22%) and Facebook groups (21%) followed.
How long do patients take to choose an IVF clinic abroad?
38% choose within one month, 44% take two to six months, and 18% take more than six months. Most patients complete the entire research journey in under half a year.
Do patients trust IVF success rates published by clinics?
Half don’t. 49% of patients distrust success rates on clinic websites – and among patients with at least one IVF cycle behind them, distrust rises to 56%. Published costs are trusted far more (69%).
What information is hardest to find on IVF clinic websites?
Information for international patients (56% couldn’t find it), detailed cost breakdowns (55%), detailed success rates (50%), and information about the doctors (37%).
What sources do IVF patients trust most?
Google reviews (46%), doctor recommendations (37%) and internet forums (33%) – all independent sources. Clinic websites ranked lower, at 26%.
This article is based on “Seeking IVF Treatment Abroad: Patient Research 2024” – IVF Media’s survey of 1,189 patients worldwide, conducted January–June 2024. Read more about the research here →
Read the full series
This article is part of our five-part series based on our 2024 survey of 1,189 patients researching IVF treatment abroad:
- Why Patients Go Abroad for IVF: Cost Drives the English-Speaking World, Law Drives Europe
- The Most Popular IVF Destinations Abroad – and Who Chooses Them
- How Much Are Patients Willing to Pay for IVF Abroad? Half Budget Under €7,000
- Google First, Clinic Websites Second: How Patients Research IVF Clinics Abroad – and What They Can’t Find (this article)
- What Makes Patients Choose an IVF Clinic Abroad? The Doctor, Not the Building
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