Planning a family without a romantic partner? Start prepared.

Free guides, calculators, and checklists for platonic co-parenting, embryo freezing, and known-donor arrangements, so you walk into the clinic, the attorney's office, and the first co-parent conversation knowing exactly what to ask.

Take the 2-minute readiness quiz New here? Start with the basics
Advertisement

Co-parenting readiness quiz

Eight questions, scored instantly. Nothing you enter leaves your browser.

Two decisions, not one

Embryo and egg freezing is fertility preservation: a medical timing question. Platonic co-parenting is a relationship structure: a legal-parenting question. Most people here are weighing both at once. Start with whichever is unsettled, or read the bridge guide first.

Read the bridge guide: donor vs. co-parent →

Path 1: The co-parenting relationship

Legal-parenting planning: finding, vetting, and formalizing a co-parent partnership.

Tool

Co-Parent Compatibility Checklist

A scored, 20-question check across money, custody, values, and logistics, for evaluating a specific potential co-parent.

Run the checklist →

What Is Platonic Co-Parenting?

The complete plain-English guide: how it works, who does it, and what the research says about outcomes.

Read guide →

How to Find a Platonic Co-Parent

Platforms compared, vetting steps, and the conversations that must happen before anything else.

Read guide →

Questions to Ask a Potential Co-Parent

Thirty of the questions that matter most, drawn from our 200-question workbook.

Read guide →

Co-Parenting Agreements, Explained

What goes in one, what courts actually enforce, and why you draft it before conception, not after.

Read guide →

Legal Red Flags to Catch Early

The warning signs in people, promises, and paperwork that family-law attorneys see end up in court.

Read guide →

Known Donor Agreements

How a known-donor arrangement differs from co-parenting, and why mixing them up creates legal chaos.

Read guide →

Path 2: Fertility timing & preservation

Medical planning: whether and when to freeze, and what it costs.

Tool

Embryo Freezing Cost Calculator

Estimate cycles, medication, genetic testing, and storage for your city tier, including donor and co-parent scenarios.

Open calculator →
Tool

Freeze Now vs. Wait

Weigh age, budget, and your co-parent search timeline against what fertility research actually says about waiting.

Compare options →
Tool

Fertility Timeline Planner

Map the months from "exploring" to "trying": matching, agreements, clinic workups, and legal steps in order.

Build my timeline →

Egg Freezing While You Search

Buying time on your own terms: realistic costs, success statistics by age, and when it makes sense.

Read guide →

Freezing Embryos With a Co-Parent

Consent forms, disposition decisions, and what happens to embryos if you part ways.

Read guide →

The Real Cost of Platonic Co-Parenting

Every line item from first conversation to first birthday: legal, medical, and the ones nobody budgets for.

Read guide →
Advertisement
The Complete Toolkit: $49

The Co-Parenting Preparation Toolkit

Everything on this site gets you oriented. The toolkit gets you to the table prepared:

  • Co-parenting agreement template, an educational draft to bring to your attorney
  • The 200-Questions Co-Parent Workbook, organized by deal-breaker category
  • Fertility clinic interview script and family-law attorney interview script
  • Legal red-flag checklist and a cost-planning spreadsheet

$49 one-time, instant download

See what's inside

Common questions

What is platonic co-parenting?

Platonic co-parenting (also called elective co-parenting) is when two or more people agree to conceive and raise a child together without being in a romantic relationship. Co-parents may be friends, acquaintances, or people who met through a dedicated platform, and they typically formalize expectations in a written agreement reviewed by attorneys. Full guide here.

Is a co-parenting agreement legally binding?

Partially, and it varies by state. Courts decide custody and support based on the child's best interests, not private contracts, but the agreement still forces alignment before conception and documents intent, which matters. See what courts actually enforce.

How much does embryo freezing cost?

Typically $12,000–$25,000 for a cycle including medication in the US, plus $500–$1,000 per year of storage, with wide variation by city and clinic. Estimate your total with the calculator.

Do I need an attorney before finding a co-parent?

Not to explore, but absolutely before conceiving or signing anything. Parentage law varies dramatically by state, and pre-conception mistakes are the hardest to fix. Know the red flags first.