For single people, there are so many options for finding a potential partner online. Apps like Tinder and Bumble give single women and men so many options in finding the right mate in terms of looks and interests. But once the relationship is well underway, things tend to get a little more complicated. For couples in search of a sperm donor, the search can be a little more exhausting than swiping just left and right, requiring them to scour countless databases looking for the perfect match (if only there were a Tinder for that). Luckily, it seems someone thought of an ingenious was to remedy that gap in the system — and this new London sperm bank app is making finding a donor easier than ever.
The London Sperm Bank has launched a free app that allows women in the United Kingdom to access all of the data in the London Sperm Bank from the comfort of their own phones. This makes the process of finding the right donor far more streamlined than before; Scouring databases prior to the app's creation might have taken hours sitting in front of the computer, searching for the perfect one in the past. And now? It's as simple as swiping through a filtered list.
Those in need of a sperm donor can search through the database on their phones while they're in the waiting room at the doctor's office. And it gets even better — according to CNN, the app allows users to sort through the database by eye color, hair color and even lists the personality traits of the sperm donors. Once people find the traits they like, each profile lists the donor's education, occupation, religion, height and all important details when it comes to finding someone to donate their DNA. This is great for potential mothers-to-be who definitely know they potentially want to have a child with green eyes or with red hair. And according to the app's description, the London Sperm Bank has more than 25,000 vials of sperm at any given time. That's a lot of choices.
The app boasts an option to create a "wish list" of traits mothers want in a donor so the bank will be able to find the perfect match for potential parents if they can not find it themselves. While it might not be as fun as swiping left or right, the app does allow for a super specific search (a feature that Tinder does not have, sorry). But the free app does eventually come with a price tag: According to CNN, it costs upwards of $1,000 to secure a donor with the London Sperm Bank on top of the major costs for fertility treatments once the sperm has been obtained. So scroll all you want — just remember that, like any fertility treatment, it'll still cost you a good chunk of change in the end.
The new process for finding a sperm donor makes it accessible for people who are always on the go, which is a huge improvement: sperm donations weren't always super accessible in the United Kingdom. In 2015, according to The Guardian, Britain's national sperm bank was experiencing a serious shortage of sperm. This new app is a major change from previous shortages in the past.
Couples looking to build their family now have even more options of getting there — and no matter how silly or strange or unusual it might sound, an app that makes it easier for all is definitely a good thing.
