Introducing the Embryo Grading Chart & Ranking Tool: A Game-Changer for IVF Patients

If you’ve ever stared at a list of embryo grades and felt completely lost about what they actually mean for your IVF success, boy do I have a new tool for you!

I’m thrilled to announce the launch of my Embryo Grading Chart & Ranking Tool, a free and accessible resource I created to empower patients navigating embryo transfer decisions. Built using real-world clinical data from over 2,200 single euploid embryo transfers, originally published in a study I co-authored with colleagues at RMA of New York, this tool is the first of its kind to allow users to input embryo morphology grades and receive a personalized ranking based on predicted likelihood of live birth.

👉 Try the Embryo Grading & Ranking tool now!

My name is Dr. Lucky Sekhon, and I am a practicing REI in New York, and author of the best-selling book The Lucky Egg: Understanding Your Fertility and How to Get Pregnant NOW. I created this tool, because I believe people deserve access to clear, evidence-based fertility education that empowers, not overwhelms, them. I’ve spent years helping patients navigate IVF decisions in my clinic, and I’ve experienced it firsthand as a fertility patient myself. That’s why I wrote The Lucky Egg: to pull back the curtain on reproductive medicine and share the roadmap I wish every patient had. If you are interested in staying up to date with my latest content on fertility, I encourage you to follow me on Instagram or subscribe to my monthly newsletter, The Lucky Egg Drop.

Why Morphology Still Matters—Even After PGT

There’s a common misconception that once an embryo is PGT-normal, all embryos are created equal. But that’s not what the data shows.

Morphology grading, which looks at three key features of the blastocyst stage, still holds predictive value for implantation and live birth. Even among genetically normal (euploid) embryos, the quality of structure can impact outcomes.

Here’s a quick breakdown of the grading system:

Morphology Component	What It Reflects	Grading Scale
Expansion Stage	How developed the blastocyst is	1 to 6
Inner Cell Mass (ICM)	Cells that become the fetus	A (best) to C
Trophectoderm (TE)	Cells that become the placenta	A (best) to C

In our study, embryos with an ICM grade of A had significantly higher live birth rates than those with a C grade (55.6% vs. 32.3%). Similarly, Trophectoderm grades of A or B were associated with better outcomes than Trophectoderm grade C. And embryos that reached the blastocyst stage by Day 5 performed better than those that reached the same stage by Day 6. Importantly, when comparing embryos head‑to‑head, a Day 5 embryo with slightly lower morphology grades will often have higher reproductive potential than a Day 6 or Day 7 embryo with the same, or even better morphology, underscoring that timing of development and morphology need to be interpreted together, not in isolation. My new embryo ranking tool takes all of these factors into account when generating its output for you.

What This Tool Actually Does

The Embryo Grading Chart & Ranking Tool is designed to take commonly reported blastocyst morphology grades and apply evidence-based ranking logic to help you understand which embryos are more likely to result in a live birth. It uses two key factors:

1. Blastocyst day — whether an embryo reached full blastocyst stage by Day 5, 6, or 7
2. Morphology — specifically the expansion stage, inner cell mass (ICM), and trophectoderm (TE) grades

These inputs are used to sort and compare embryos, giving each one a relative probability of success based on large-scale published outcome data.

Let’s Walk Through an Example

Let’s say you’ve just received your embryo report and you’re looking at three embryos:

• Embryo 1: 5AB (Day 5/6)
• Embryo 2: 3AB (Day 5/6)
• Embryo 3: 5AA (Day 7)

You enter these into the tool and receive the following output:

At first glance, you might assume that embryo 3 (5AA) is the best option: it has a “perfect” morphology grade. But this is where blastocyst timing becomes crucial.

Embryo 3 reached the blastocyst stage on day 7, which is considered delayed. Even with excellent morphology, day 7 embryos consistently have lower implantation and live birth rates compared to embryos that reached blast earlier. In fact, a day 5 embryo with a slightly lower grade (like 5AB or 3AB) tends to have a higher chance of success than a top-graded day 7 embryo.

That’s why the tool ranks embryo 1 and embryo 2 ahead of embryo 3, even though their morphology appears less ideal. The tool integrates both timing and morphology into one unified framework that reflects how embryologists and clinicians think about transfer priority in real-world practice.

This doesn’t mean a day 7 embryo with excellent morphology can’t lead to a healthy baby, but when comparing multiple embryos, the earlier-developing blastocysts typically have an edge.

Want to Learn More About Grading?

I’ve written extensively about embryo grading and how it fits into the bigger IVF picture, including how to interpret those cryptic 5AA vs. 6BC labels, and why blastocyst day matters. If you’re just diving into this topic, or need a refresh, check out this deep dive: Embryo Grading and How It Influences IVF Outcomes. I also go into much further detail in my book The Lucky Egg, with a whole chapter devoted to PGT testing and embryo morphology, so please pick up my book if you are interested in learning more.

Why I Built This

Too many patients are handed embryology reports with no real explanation, and expected to make life-changing decisions based on a string of letters and numbers. I wanted to change that.

This tool was born from the same frustration that led me to write The Lucky Egg: a lack of accessible, trustworthy information for people trying to build their families. My goal is to give you the data, context, and confidence you need to make empowered choices, without needing a PhD in embryology.

Whether you’re between retrievals, prepping for a transfer, or just trying to understand your options, this tool puts knowledge back where it belongs: in your hands.

Try the Embryo Grading Chart & Ranking Tool here!

Other Free Tools to Try on the Lucky Egg

The Embryo Grading Chart & Ranking Tool is just the latest in a number of different tools I’ve created over the years and published for free on this site, please check those out as well:

Frozen Embryo Transfer (FET) Due Date Calculator

This calculator helps you estimate the likely timing of your frozen embryo transfer cycle based on your cycle type (medicated or natural), embryo maturity, and other cycle factors: giving you a clearer picture of key dates on your transfer timeline.

Online AMH Level Check

An ovarian reserve estimator that uses your AMH level to give you an idea of how your ovaries might respond to stimulation, a helpful reference point when thinking about IVF or egg freezing outcomes.

Beta hCG Level Calculator

Input your beta hCG hormone level and estimated due date, and this tool tells you what week of pregnancy you’re likely in and how your beta hCG compares to typical ranges, especially useful in early IVF pregnancies when levels are being monitored closely.

Egg Freezing Success Calculator

A tool that helps estimate the probability of achieving a certain number of mature eggs or embryos based on factors like age and ovarian reserve, giving you a realistic sense of what to expect from an egg freezing cycle.

Euploid Embryo Predictor Tool

Using age and AMH level, this AI‑based tool estimates your chances of producing at least one genetically normal (euploid) embryo in your first IVF cycle, something many patients ask about before starting treatment.

IVF Due Date Calculator

Once you know your embryo transfer date or expected conception timing, this tool helps project your estimated due date, just like the ones used in obstetrics, but tailored for IVF cycles.