Donor Nexus Team
September 16, 2026
The short answer
An egg donor's blood type has no known effect on donor egg IVF success, and professional guidance on egg donation does not ask clinics to match donors and recipients by blood type.1,2
Blood type comes up in two situations. One is when the person carrying the pregnancy is Rh negative, which routine prenatal care is set up to manage. The other is when parents would like their child's blood type to fit a combination they could have had genetically.
Blood type is listed on many egg donor profiles next to height, eye color and education, so it is easy to assume it should play a part in choosing a match. For most intended parents, it doesn't need to.
If you have found a donor you feel good about and then noticed her blood type is different from yours, this guide explains what that difference means for your cycle, your pregnancy and your family, with a blood type chart you can use to check any pairing.
Does an egg donor's blood type affect IVF success?
No. Blood type is defined by markers on the surface of red blood cells, and those markers have no known role in how an egg is fertilized, how an embryo develops or whether it implants. When researchers looked at single embryo transfers in a study published in Fertility and Sterility, a woman's ABO blood type was not associated with her chance of a live birth once other factors were accounted for.1
The American Society for Reproductive Medicine's 2024 guidance on gamete and embryo donation doesn't include blood type among the requirements for matching a donor with a recipient. It does recommend that clinics consider the recipient's blood type, Rh factor and antibody screen, particularly when the recipient is Rh negative.2 That check is about you as the person carrying the pregnancy, and it is part of care whether you use donor eggs or your own.
| Question | Does the donor's blood type matter? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| IVF success | No | Blood type has no known effect on fertilization, embryo development or implantation. |
| Your baby's health | No | Any blood type difference between you and your baby is checked in routine prenatal and newborn care, the same as in any pregnancy. |
| You are Rh negative | Sometimes | The donor's Rh factor helps decide whether your baby could be Rh positive. Rh immune globulin shots prevent the antibodies that can cause problems. |
| Your child's blood type fitting yours | Only if it matters to you | Some parents prefer a donor whose blood type fits a combination they could have had genetically. |
| Donor embryos | No | The embryo's blood type comes from both embryo donors, and the same Rh check applies to the pregnancy. |
When an egg donor's blood type matters, and when it doesn't.267
How is a baby's blood type inherited?
Your blood type has two parts. The ABO group (A, B, AB or O) depends on which markers sit on your red blood cells, and the Rh factor is a protein that is either present (positive) or absent (negative). Together they make up the eight common blood types: A+, A-, B+, B-, O+, O-, AB+ and AB-.3
Every person carries two ABO genes and passes one of them to each child. The A and B genes are codominant with each other and dominant over the O gene, which is recessive, so a person only has type O blood when they carry two copies.4 That means someone with type A blood could carry AA or AO, someone with type B could carry BB or BO, type AB is always AB, and type O is always OO.
With donor eggs, the genes for your baby's blood type come from the egg donor and the sperm provider, so the donor's blood type takes the place of the intended mother's in the chart below. Carrying the pregnancy doesn't change which blood type your baby inherits, although the pregnancy itself still shapes your baby's development in other ways, which our guide to epigenetics and donor eggs explains.
What blood types can your baby have?
Find the egg donor's blood type in the left column, then read across to the sperm provider's blood type.
| Egg donor's blood type | Sperm provider is O | Sperm provider is A | Sperm provider is B | Sperm provider is AB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| O | O | O or A | O or B | A or B |
| A | O or A | O or A | O, A, B or AB | A, B or AB |
| B | O or B | O, A, B or AB | O or B | A, B or AB |
| AB | A or B | A, B or AB | A, B or AB | A, B or AB |
Blood type inheritance chart for the ABO group. Any blood type not listed for a pairing is not possible from that combination, except in rare genetic cases.4
Here is how that plays out. Say the intended father is type O and the donor you are leaning toward is type AB. Your baby could be type A or type B, but not O or AB. If the intended mother is also type O, an A or B child isn't a combination the two of you could have had genetically, and that is usually the moment some parents start to weigh a donor's blood type.
How is the Rh factor inherited?
Rh positive is dominant. A person is Rh negative only when both of their Rh genes are the Rh-negative version, which in many people is simply a missing RHD gene.5 How common that is varies by ancestry: about 15% of white people are Rh negative, compared with about 8% of Black people and about 1% of people of Asian descent.5
| Egg donor's Rh factor | Sperm provider's Rh factor | Your baby's possible Rh factor |
|---|---|---|
| Negative | Negative | Negative only |
| Positive | Negative | Positive or negative (negative only if the donor carries an Rh-negative gene) |
| Negative | Positive | Positive or negative (negative only if the sperm provider carries an Rh-negative gene) |
| Positive | Positive | Positive or negative (negative only if both carry an Rh-negative gene) |
Rh factor inheritance by egg donor and sperm provider.5
What if you are Rh negative and using donor eggs?
This is the situation where blood type has a medical role, and it comes from the pregnancy more than from the donor. If you are Rh negative and your baby is Rh positive, your immune system can make antibodies against the baby's red blood cells when your blood and the baby's blood mix, which most often happens at delivery. A first pregnancy is usually not affected, but those antibodies can harm a later Rh-positive baby.6
With donor eggs, your baby's Rh factor comes from the donor and the sperm provider. So even if you and your partner are both Rh negative, an Rh-positive donor means your baby could be Rh positive.
Your OB plans for this by checking your blood type and antibody status early in pregnancy. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends Rh immune globulin (often known by the brand name RhoGAM) at 28 weeks for Rh-negative patients who have not developed antibodies, and again within 72 hours of delivery if the baby is Rh positive.7 It is also given after an amniocentesis, an injury to the abdomen or a pregnancy loss at 12 weeks or later.6 For bleeding or a pregnancy loss before 12 weeks, ACOG and ASRM no longer recommend routine Rh testing or treatment, though you can still talk it through with your fertility clinic or OB.8,9 Since these shots came into use, serious disease from Rh incompatibility has become much less common.5
An Rh-negative donor paired with an Rh-negative sperm provider can only produce an Rh-negative baby, so some Rh-negative intended mothers look for that pairing. Filtering this way narrows your donor pool a great deal, and because routine prenatal care is built to handle an Rh difference, you can weigh that smaller pool against the other traits you care about.
Does blood type work the same way with donor embryos?
Yes. With embryo donation, the embryo's blood type comes from the egg and sperm that created it, and it has no known effect on whether a transfer succeeds. If you are Rh negative, your OB follows the same Rh testing and treatment plan described above.
Why do some intended parents match blood types?
For most families, the reason is privacy. A child's blood type can come up in ordinary places, like a biology class, a blood drive or a doctor's office, and a type that doesn't fit the parents' own types can raise questions before parents have decided how and when to share their child's donor conception story. Cultural and religious considerations shape this decision for some families as well.
Matching blood types only covers one detail, though. Consumer DNA tests can identify genetic relationships directly, which is one reason many families plan for openness from early on. How much you share, and when, is your family's decision, and our guides to privacy and secrecy in donor conception and talking to your child about donor conception can help you think it through.
If blood type does matter to you, you can take it into account from the start. Donor Nexus profiles in the egg donor database list blood type when it is known, so you can compare it alongside the traits you are already weighing. For other genetic questions that come up during matching, see our articles on choosing a donor who is a genetic carrier, genetic compatibility and how eye color is inherited, along with tips on choosing an egg donor from a mother through egg donation.
Frequently asked questions about egg donor blood type
Does an egg donor need the same blood type as the intended mother?
No. A donor's blood type has no known effect on donor egg IVF success, and fertility guidance does not call for matching donors and recipients by blood type. Some parents still prefer a donor whose blood type fits a combination they could have had genetically, which is a personal choice and not a medical requirement.
Can a baby have a different blood type than both parents?
Yes. Each parent can carry a hidden O gene, so two type A parents can have a type O child, and a type A parent and a type B parent can have a child with any of the four ABO types. With donor eggs, your baby's blood type comes from the egg donor and the sperm provider.
Does the mother carrying the pregnancy pass her blood type to the baby?
No. Blood type is set by the genes in the egg and the sperm. During pregnancy the mother's blood and the baby's blood circulate separately, with the placenta exchanging oxygen and nutrients between them, so carrying the pregnancy does not change the baby's blood type.
Is an Rh-negative egg donor a problem?
No. Rh incompatibility happens when the person carrying the pregnancy is Rh negative and the baby is Rh positive. A donor's Rh-negative status cannot create that situation on its own. If you are Rh negative, your OB tests you early in pregnancy and offers Rh immune globulin when it is needed.
Can you choose an egg donor by blood type at Donor Nexus?
Yes, with help from our team. Blood type isn't a search filter in the donor database, but Donor Nexus egg donor profiles list it when it is known, and our team can help you find donors with a specific blood type.
Blood type rarely needs to decide your match, so you can focus on the donor whose health history, background and personality feel right for your family. When you are ready to start comparing profiles, you can register to browse the Donor Nexus donor database.
Sources
- Pereira N, Patel HH, Stone LD, et al. Association between ABO blood type and live-birth outcomes in single-embryo transfer cycles. Fertility and Sterility. 2017;108(5):791-797.
- Practice Committee of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine and Practice Committee of the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology. Guidance regarding gamete and embryo donation. Fertility and Sterility. 2024;122:799-813.
- American Red Cross. Blood types explained.
- Dean L. The ABO blood group. In: Blood Groups and Red Cell Antigens. Bethesda (MD): National Center for Biotechnology Information (US); 2005. Chapter 5.
- Dean L. The Rh blood group. In: Blood Groups and Red Cell Antigens. Bethesda (MD): National Center for Biotechnology Information (US); 2005. Chapter 7.
- MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia. Rh incompatibility. U.S. National Library of Medicine; reviewed January 2025.
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Practice Bulletin No. 181: Prevention of Rh D alloimmunization. Obstetrics and Gynecology. 2017;130(2):e57-e70.
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. ACOG Clinical Practice Update: Rh D immune globulin administration after abortion or pregnancy loss at less than 12 weeks of gestation. Obstetrics and Gynecology. 2024;144(6):e140-e143.
- American Society for Reproductive Medicine. Position statement on Rho(D) immune globulin administration in the first trimester. Fertility and Sterility. 2026;126:492-493.
Related reading
Medical disclaimer
This article shares general information about blood type inheritance and donor egg IVF and is not medical advice. The blood type charts show which types are genetically possible and cannot confirm your family's blood types, which only testing can do. Your fertility doctor and OB know your history, so their guidance comes first.
If you are pregnant and have vaginal bleeding, severe abdominal pain or an injury to your abdomen, contact your OB or seek emergency care right away.
Last updated September 2026. See sources.
Donor Nexus Team
The Donor Nexus Team is the group of case managers, donor coordinators, and egg bank staff who run the agency's Fresh Donor Matching, Frozen Egg Bank, and Embryo Donation programs day to day. Since 2012 they ha…
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