A DNA fragmentation test measures how much of the genetic material inside your sperm is broken. A standard semen analysis can look completely normal while fragmentation is high, which is why this test is usually ordered after a loss, a failed cycle, or a year of unexplained results. Book online, give your sample at a specialty lab near you.
DNA fragmentation is not a routine first test. Most men should start with a standard semen analysis. A DFI test earns its place when something in the history doesn't add up:
Worth being straight about the limits: a DFI test does not replace a semen analysis. It reports a fragmentation index — the share of sperm carrying damaged DNA — and not your count, motility, or morphology. Most patients order it alongside a semen analysis rather than instead of one, and guidelines still treat it as a targeted test rather than a screen for everyone.
Choose one of the locations below. A licensed physician on Hera's clinical team reviews and signs your lab order, so there's no doctor's visit, referral, or consult fee.
You collect at the location in a private room, the same as a standard semen analysis. Abstain from ejaculation for 2 to 5 days beforehand, and check whether your lab wants a semen analysis run at the same visit — many can do both from one sample.
Some labs run the assay in-house; others collect your sample and send it to a reference lab. Either way you walk into a local door, and the roster below says which is which. Methods vary — SCSA, TUNEL, COMET, or SCD — and your report names the one used, because thresholds differ between them.
Your DFI percentage lands in your private Hera dashboard with a plain-English explanation of what that number means for conception and for treatment choices, and you can book time with our clinical team to talk it through.
30 locations across 12 states and provinces currently accept Hera DFI orders. Some run the assay themselves; others collect your sample and send it to a reference lab. We add locations as we confirm them — if nothing is close to you, tell us where you are and we'll work on it.
DFI is a specialty assay, so the map is thinner than our 700+ semen analysis labs and it's filling in lab by lab. If there's no location within reach, a standard semen analysis at a lab near you is the right first step anyway — it's the test that tells you count, motility, and morphology, and it's what a fertility clinic will ask for first.
It measures the proportion of your sperm carrying broken or damaged DNA strands, reported as a DNA Fragmentation Index (DFI) percentage. Standard semen analysis looks at how many sperm there are, how well they swim, and what shape they are — none of which reveals whether the genetic cargo inside them is intact.
Yes, and that combination is exactly why the test exists. Count, motility, and morphology can all sit in the normal range while a significant share of sperm carry fragmented DNA. It's a common finding in couples told they have unexplained infertility.
No. The assay reports a fragmentation index and does not measure concentration, motility, or morphology. Order it alongside a semen analysis, not instead of one. Many of our labs can run both from a single visit — say so in your scheduling notes when you book.
Thresholds depend on the method used. As a rough guide, under 15% is generally considered low, 15-30% moderate, and above 30% high, but SCSA, TUNEL, COMET, and SCD assays don't share one scale. Your report names the method, and your Hera results explanation interprets the number against the right reference range.
No. DNA fragmentation is an in-lab test — you give the sample at the location you book. Hera's mail-in DFI kit was retired in 2026 in favour of specialty labs, because in-lab collection avoids the transit delay that can affect the result.
No. A licensed physician on Hera's clinical team reviews and signs your lab order after you book, which is what the lab needs to run the test.
A $60 one-time Hera fee for the physician-signed order and coordination, plus the lab's own price. Confirmed lab prices currently run from about $295 to $600 depending on location and method. Where we haven't confirmed a lab's price yet, we say so and confirm it with you before you book. Nothing goes through insurance.
Often, yes — it responds to the causes more than most semen parameters do. Treating a varicocele, stopping smoking, addressing infection or fever, reducing heat exposure, and in some cases antioxidant therapy have all been associated with improvement. Retesting after about three months, one full cycle of sperm production, is the usual way to check.
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