Nearly 50 Years of IVF Progress: What UK Success Rates Mean Today

World IVF Day falls on 25 July every year, the anniversary of Louise Brown's birth in 1978, the world's first baby born through in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment. At LivingCare, we've partnered with the fertility experts at JIVA Fertility to give patients a clear, evidence-based picture of what IVF success actually looks like today, and to support you through the earliest, often most uncertain, part of the journey. In 2026, the anniversary marks 48 years since that first birth, a good moment to look past the history and ask a more practical question: what do the IVF success rates say today, and what should shape your own next step?

What the numbers tell us

• It took nearly 100 attempts before the first baby was born from IVF treatment in 1978.
• Live birth rates per embryo transferred have risen from 9% in 1991 to 38% in 2024 for women under 35 years of age.
• Multiple births from IVF have fallen from 28% in the early 1990s to 3.2% in 2024, among the lowest rates recorded anywhere in the world.
• More than 1.3 million IVF cycles have taken place in the UK since 1991, resulting in an estimated 390,000 babies.
• The age of the female partner (who wishes to conceive) remains the single biggest factor in an individual's own chances, more significant than any particular clinic or the fertility treatment add-on.

Louise Brown's Birth Changed Reproductive Medicine

Louise Brown was born on 25 July 1978 at Oldham and District General Hospital, following years of unexplained infertility experienced by her mother, Lesley Brown, linked to blocked fallopian tubes. The team behind her birth, Obstetrician and Gynaecologist Mr. Patrick Steptoe, Physiologist Sir Robert Edwards and Nurse/Embryologist Jean Purdy, had spent a decade refining the technique before it succeeded, at a time when the idea of conceiving outside the body was treated with scepticism by the society and much of the medical establishment. Sir Robert Edwards later received the 2010 Nobel Prize for this work, a recognition that came more than three decades after that first birth. Reproductive medicine has moved a long way since then, and the anniversary each year is as much a chance to check current statistics as it is to mark the history.

Nearly Five Decades of Rising Success

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) has published UK fertility data since 1991, and the improvement it shows is substantial. In 1991, a woman aged under 35 years had a 9% chance of a live birth per embryo transferred. By 2016, that had reached 29%, with an average of 21% across all age. By 2024, women aged 18 to 34 achieved a 38% live birth rate per embryo transferred.

Treatment volumes have grown alongside those outcomes. The IVF clinics in the UK carried out roughly 19,000 IVF cycles in the early 1990s, rising to more than 78,000 by 2024, treating around 53,000 patients that year. Since 1991, over 1.3 million IVF cycles and more than 260,000 donor insemination cycles have been carried out in the UK, resulting in an estimated 390,000 babies. In 2024 alone, over 21,000 babies were born in the UK from IVF treatment, meaning around 1 in 31 UK births were from IVF treatment (one child in every classroom), compared with roughly 1 in 65 in 2004.

Age Still Shapes Individual Chances More Than Any Other Factor

Across every year of HFEA data, female age has remained the strongest single predictor of IVF success, more so than any specific clinic, protocol or paid treatment add-on. The most recent full age-band breakdown, from HFEA Fertility treatment figures for 2024, puts the live birth rate per embryo transferred (fresh and frozen combined) at:

‍

IVF success reduces with advancing age, largely because egg quality and quantity decline over time. That does not make IVF ineffective for older patients, but it does mean realistic, individualised expectations matter more than any single headline figure. These are population averages across every licensed UK clinic. Apart from female partner's age, the IVF success depend on various other factors such as previous pregnancies, egg reserve, cause for infertility, pelvic pathologies, treatment history, etc., which is exactly what an early, personalised assessment is designed to establish.

Safer Treatment Has Followed Higher Success Rates

Higher IVF success rates have come with a significant safety improvement too. The rate of multiple births from IVF, which is a recognised complication of IVF, has fallen from 28% in the early 1990s to 3.2% in 2024, among the lowest rates recorded anywhere in the world. Multiple births carry real risks for both women and their babies, including preterm birth, pre-eclampsia, stillbirth, neonatal death, excessive bleeding at delivery... So, this reduction matters as much as the headline success figures.

The change has come from steady, compounding improvements rather than one breakthrough: precise hormone stimulation protocols, better embryo development methods and embryo selection, and most importantly, HFEA's initiative and the shift towards transferring a single, carefully selected embryo instead of several at once.

Early Assessment Helps You Understand Your Options

Before any decision about IVF, it helps to understand your own fertility profile, what NHS-funded treatment you may be entitled to locally, and whether the timing is right for you. This is where LivingCare's role sits: a calm, unhurried first conversation about your history and options, without assuming that specialist treatment is the immediate next step for everyone. For some patients, that assessment is enough to answer their question. For others, it is the start of a referral into more advanced fertility care.

We know that reaching out about fertility is rarely a small step, and many patients come to that first conversation feeling anxious or unsure what to expect. Our role is to listen to your history, talk through what an initial assessment involves in plain terms, and help you understand which options are realistic for your circumstances before any bigger decision has to be made. That reassurance, alongside clear information, is often what patients say they needed most at the start.

Common Questions About IVF Progress and Success

Who was the world's first IVF baby, and when was she born?

Louise Brown, born on 25 July 1978 at Oldham and District General Hospital in Greater Manchester, following treatment developed by Mr Patrick Steptoe, Sir Robert Edwards and Jean Purdy.

Why is World IVF Day marked on 25 July?

25 July is Louise Brown's birthday, the date in 1978 that the first baby conceived through IVF treatment was born, after nearly 100 attempts. The date is marked annually to recognise the progress made in reproductive medicine since then.

What is the IVF success rate in the UK today?

According to the most recent HFEA figures with a full age-band breakdown, the 2024 live birth rate per embryo transferred was 38% for women aged 18 to 34, falling through 31% for 35 to 37, 24% for 38 to 39, 16% for 40 to 42, and 8% for those aged 43 to 44. Individual chances depend on various other factors.

Has IVF become safer since the 1970s?

Yes. Alongside rising success rates, UK clinics have moved from transferring several embryos at once to single embryo transfer as standard practice, which has significantly cut the health risks linked to multiple births.

If you're unsure about your fertility, your cycle history, or how age may be affecting your chances of conceiving, speak with one of us at LivingCare Thorpe Park Clinic. We'll guide you through an initial assessment and, if needed, connect you with Fertility Specialists at our trusted partner JIVA Fertility for specialised fertility care.

Book a consultation | Fertility services

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and should not replace medical advice. Always speak to a healthcare provider about your individual health needs.

‍