Sperm banks make information available about the sperm donors whose donations they hold to enable customers to select the donor whose sperm they wish to use. This information is often available by way of an online catalog. Subscription fees to be able to view the sperm donor through California Cryobank, for example, start at $145. This cost could potentially be a barrier for many on limited income and may not have discretionary income to spend on sperm donor services.
A sperm bank will also usually have facilities to help customers to make their choice and they will be able to advise on the suitability of donors for individual donors and their partners.
Where the recipient has a partner, they may prefer to use sperm from a donor whose physical features are similar to those of their partner if they have one. In some cases, the choice of a donor with the correct blood group will be paramount, with particular considerations for the protection of recipients with negative blood groups. If a surrogate is to be used, such as where the customer is not intending to carry the child, considerations about their blood group etc. will also need to be taken into account. Similar considerations will apply where both partners in a lesbian couple intend to have a child using the same donor.
Information made available by a sperm bank will usually include the race, height, weight, blood group, health and eye color of the donor. Sometimes information about the donors age, family history and educational achievements will also be given. Some sperm banks make a personal profile of a donor available and occasionally more information may be purchased about a donor, either in the form of a DVD or in written form. Catalogs usually state whether samples supplied by a particular donor have already given rise to pregnancies, but this is not necessarily a guide to the fecundity of the sperm since a donor may not have been in the program long enough for any pregnancies to have been recorded. The donors educational qualification is also taken into account when choosing a donor.
If an individual intends to have more than one child, they may wish to have the additional child or children by the same donor. Sperm banks will usually advise whether sufficient stocks of sperm are available from a particular donor for subsequent pregnancies, and they normally have facilities available so that the woman may purchase and store additional vials from that donor on payment of an appropriate fee. These will be stored until required for subsequent pregnancies or they may be on-sold if they become surplus to the woman's requirements.
The catalogue will also state whether samples of sperm are available for ICI, IUI, or IVF use.