Intrauterine insemination with partner's sperm can be used as a potentially effective treatment for infertility of all causes in women under about age 45 except for cases with tubal blockage, severe tubal damage, very poor egg quantity and quality, ovarian failure (menopause), and severe male factor infertility. In vitro fertilization with the woman's eggs or IVF with donor eggs are alternatives for couples that are not candidates for artificial insemination.

It is most commonly used for infertility associated with endometriosis, unexplained infertility, anovulatory infertility, very mild degrees of male factor infertility, cervical infertility and for some couples with immunological abnormalities.

It is a reasonable initial treatment that should be utilized for a maximum of about 3-6 months in women who are ovulating (releasing eggs) on their own. It can be reasonable to use it for somewhat longer than this in women with anovulation that have been stimulated to ovulate.

It should not be used in women with blocked fallopian tubes. Tubal patency should be demonstrated prior to performing insemination. This is usually done with an x-ray study called a hysterosalpingogram.

It has very little chance of working in women that are over 40 years old, or in younger women with a significantly elevated day 3 FSH level, or other indications of significantly reduced ovarian reserve.

If the sperm count, motility or morphology is more than slightly low, insemination is quite unlikely to be successful. In that situation, IVF with ICSI is indicated and has high success rates.