OBJECTIVES: To estimate the relative value attached to several main characteristics associated with the process of maternity care during the intrapartum stage for women who have chosen to deliver at home compared with women who have chosen to deliver in hospital. METHODS: The attributes included in the exercise were continuity of care, the location for delivery, the level of pain relief available, the locus of control for decision-making and the probability of being transferred to another location during labor. The attributes and their associated levels were chosen as a consequence of a literature review and several focus groups held with women who had recently delivered either at home or in hospital. A self-completion questionnaire using the conjoint analysis technique was developed and administered to two samples. The first sample comprised 250 women who had delivered in hospital within the preceding 12 months and who were clinically defined as low risk prior to their delivery. The second sample comprised 180 women who had delivered at home within the preceding 12 months. RESULTS: Response rates of 52% and 63% were achieved for the hospital and home birth groups respectively. For the hospital birth group, statistically significant attributes affecting preferences were the level of continuity of care experienced (p<0.001) and the likelihood of transfer during labor (p=0.012), with higher continuity of care and a lower likelihood of transfer being preferred. For the home birth group, statistically significant attributes included location of care (p<0.001), pain relief (p=0.033) and the likelihood of transfer during labor (p=0.028) with a home location, more natural methods of pain relief and a lower likelihood of transfer being preferred. CONCLUSIONS: If, as suggested by recent evidence, it is the case that there are no differences in the clinical outcomes between home and hospital birth for low risk women, then traditional measures used in health economics (e.g. quality adjusted life years or QALY’s) would detect no difference between the alternative modes of delivery. However, the results of this study suggests that aspects associated with the process of maternity care are also important and these preferences differ considerably for women who choose to deliver at home relative to women who choose to deliver in hospital. This study has wider implications in demonstrating the application of a technique that can be used to ascertain the utility or value attached to attributes or characteristics associated with the process of health care.