The national average cost of an MRI in the United States is $1,325, but what you actually pay can range from $400 to over $12,000. The biggest factors driving that spread are where you get the scan, what body part is being imaged, whether you have insurance, and whether contrast dye is involved.
Cost by Body Part
Not all MRIs cost the same. A scan of a small joint like a knee is simpler and faster than a detailed cardiac or brain scan, and pricing reflects that. Here are typical price ranges across common MRI types in the U.S.:
- Brain: $1,600 to $8,400
- Neck: $500 to $11,800
- Chest: $500 to $7,900
- Breast: $500 to $10,300
- Abdomen: $1,600 to $7,600
- Pelvis: $500 to $7,900
- Upper extremity (shoulder, elbow, wrist): $1,050 to $7,000
- Lower extremity (hip, knee, ankle): $975 to $6,300
- Cardiac: $430 to $6,500
- Bone: $410 to $2,100
Those ranges are wide because they reflect everything from a cash-pay scan at an independent imaging center to a hospital-billed scan in an expensive metro area. Your real price will fall somewhere in between based on the other factors below.
Why the Facility You Choose Matters Most
The single biggest way to control what you pay for an MRI is choosing where to get it done. A hospital-based imaging department will almost always charge more than an independent, freestanding imaging center, often by hundreds or thousands of dollars. A knee MRI, for example, can cost as little as $268 at an independent outpatient facility but climb to $3,227 at a hospital-affiliated outpatient center.
The reason comes down to something called a facility fee. Hospitals add a separate line item to your bill to cover the overhead costs of running a full hospital. This fee alone can equal or even exceed the actual cost of the MRI scan itself, effectively doubling what you owe. Freestanding imaging centers don’t carry the same overhead and don’t tack on that fee.
If your doctor orders an MRI and you have any flexibility in where to go, calling an independent imaging center for a price quote before scheduling at a hospital can save you a significant amount of money.
How Insurance Changes Your Bill
With private insurance, your out-of-pocket cost depends on your plan’s deductible, copay, and coinsurance structure. If you’ve already met your deductible for the year, you’ll typically pay a percentage of the approved amount (often 10% to 20%) rather than the full price. If you haven’t met your deductible, especially on a high-deductible health plan, you could be responsible for the entire cost until you hit that threshold.
Medicare beneficiaries pay considerably less. After meeting the deductible, Medicare covers 80% of the approved amount, leaving you with about $60 on average at an ambulatory surgical center or $94 at a hospital outpatient department. Even with Medicare, choosing a non-hospital facility saves money.
Without any insurance, you’re looking at the full price, but many imaging centers offer cash-pay or self-pay rates that are lower than what they’d bill an insurance company. Nationwide scheduling services and independent centers routinely offer MRIs without contrast for $300 to $500, compared to national averages closer to $900. It’s always worth asking about a cash-pay discount before assuming the quoted price is fixed.
Contrast Dye Adds $100 to $500
Some MRIs require an injection of contrast dye (a substance containing gadolinium) to make certain tissues, blood vessels, or abnormalities show up more clearly on the images. Your doctor will specify whether you need a scan “with contrast,” “without contrast,” or “with and without,” meaning they run the scan twice.
Adding contrast typically increases the total bill by $100 to $500. That covers the cost of the dye itself, the supplies for the injection, and sometimes additional technologist time. If you’re comparing prices between facilities, make sure you’re comparing the same type of scan, since a quote for an MRI without contrast won’t match your final bill if your order calls for contrast.
Geographic Price Differences
Where you live in the country also shifts the price. California consistently ranks among the most expensive states for imaging. A report from Castlight Health found that Sacramento topped the list at an average of $2,635 for an MRI, followed by San Francisco at $2,244. Other expensive cities included Kansas City ($2,047), Miami ($1,968), Dallas ($1,934), and Denver ($1,908).
Smaller cities and rural areas tend to have lower prices, though with fewer facilities there may be less competition to drive costs down. If you live near a state line or between metro areas, it can be worth checking prices at facilities 30 to 60 minutes away.
Open vs. Closed MRI Machines
If you’re claustrophobic or physically larger, you may need or prefer an open MRI machine, which has a wide opening instead of a narrow tube. Open MRIs can actually cost less than closed machines. The equipment itself is less expensive to purchase and maintain, and some facilities pass those savings along to patients. Image quality on open machines has improved significantly in recent years, though closed-bore MRIs still produce higher-resolution images for certain types of scans. Your doctor can tell you whether an open machine is appropriate for what they need to see.
How to Get the Best Price
Start by asking your doctor’s office for the specific billing code (called a CPT code) for your scan. Common ones include 70551 for a brain MRI without contrast, 72148 for a lumbar spine without contrast, and 73721 for a lower extremity joint (hip, knee, or ankle) without contrast. Having this code lets you call facilities and get an apples-to-apples price comparison.
Next, check both hospital-affiliated and independent imaging centers in your area. Ask specifically about self-pay or cash-pay pricing, even if you have insurance. In some cases, paying the cash rate out of pocket is cheaper than going through your plan, particularly if you haven’t met a high deductible. Just keep in mind that a cash payment won’t count toward your annual deductible.
If you do use insurance, call your insurer before scheduling to confirm the scan is covered and that the facility you’ve chosen is in-network. Out-of-network MRIs can cost two to three times more, and prior authorization is required by many plans. Getting these details sorted before your appointment prevents surprise bills after the fact.