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Procedure price report · Magnetic resonance imaging

MRI of the chest without and with contrast

CPT 71552the billing code this page is about

Magnetic resonance imaging of the chest taken first without contrast material and then repeated after contrast is given.

Hospitals typically charge $2,425 cash for this outpatient procedure — the median across 2,968 hospitals that filed a usable cash price; the average of the middle 60% is $2,545. Most fall between $1,232 and $4,352 (20th–80th percentile).

Hospitals
2,968
States
50
Filings dated
Aug 2022 – Sep 2026
Computed
September 25, 2026
Prices checked
through September 24, 2026

Median: half of hospitals filed less, half more — and it is a price some hospital actually filed. Average of the middle 60%: the mean of the prices between the 20th and 80th percentiles. We never publish the plain average, the lowest or the highest price: the extremes in hospital price files are chargemaster artefacts, not prices anyone pays.

What hospitals charge, from cheapest to most expensive

Cash price percentiles, outpatient, across 2,968 hospitals. Each figure is a price a hospital filed. 10th: one in ten hospitals charges less; 25th: a quarter charge less; Median: half charge less; 75th: three quarters charge less; 90th: nine in ten charge less.
10th25thMedian75th90th
$738$1,434$2,425$3,887$6,512

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 8.8× what the cheapest tenth charges ($738 vs $6,512).

How the prices are spread

$500 – $668: 88 hospitals$500$668 – $893: 159 hospitals$893 – $1,194: 175 hospitals$893$1,194 – $1,595: 292 hospitals$1,595 – $2,132: 376 hospitals$1,595$2,132 – $2,850: 510 hospitals$2,850 – $3,809: 446 hospitals$2,850$3,809 – $5,090: 347 hospitals$5,090 – $6,804: 154 hospitals$5,090$6,804 – $9,093: 125 hospitals$6,804median $2,425price bands are equal on a log scale
Hospitals per price band (2,672 of 2,968 — the bands cover the 5th to 95th percentile)
FromToHospitals
$500$66888
$668$893159
$893$1,194175
$1,194$1,595292
$1,595$2,132376
$2,132$2,850510
$2,850$3,809446
$3,809$5,090347
$5,090$6,804154
$6,804$9,093125

Against Medicare

Medicare pays (OPPS 2026, national rate)$356
Median cash price$2,425
Cash as a multiple of Medicare6.8×

The Medicare figure is the national unadjusted OPPS rate for this code — what Medicare itself pays a hospital before local wage adjustment. It is a benchmark, not a price anyone is charged.

By state

The median cash price in each state, against the national median of $2,425.

Alaska: median $3,386 across 13 hospitalsAK$3,386Maine: median $1,618 across 24 hospitalsME$1,618Vermont: median $3,958 across 11 hospitalsVT$3,958New Hampshire: median $3,224 across 20 hospitalsNH$3,224Washington: median $2,512 across 66 hospitalsWA$2,512Idaho: median $2,263 across 20 hospitalsID$2,263Montana: median $3,244 across 15 hospitalsMT$3,244North Dakota: median $3,526 across 24 hospitalsND$3,526Minnesota: median $2,033 across 82 hospitalsMN$2,033Illinois: median $3,597 across 130 hospitalsIL$3,597Wisconsin: median $2,536 across 100 hospitalsWI$2,536Michigan: median $2,491 across 75 hospitalsMI$2,491New York: median $1,825 across 98 hospitalsNY$1,825Massachusetts: median $3,158 across 48 hospitalsMA$3,158Oregon: median $2,564 across 44 hospitalsOR$2,564Nevada: median $2,202 across 17 hospitalsNV$2,202Wyoming: median $2,123 across 12 hospitalsWY$2,123South Dakota: median $4,277 across 18 hospitalsSD$4,277Iowa: median $2,762 across 69 hospitalsIA$2,762Indiana: median $1,291 across 90 hospitalsIN$1,291Ohio: median $2,101 across 126 hospitalsOH$2,101Pennsylvania: median $2,343 across 114 hospitalsPA$2,343New Jersey: median $662 across 56 hospitalsNJ$662Connecticut: median $2,451 across 22 hospitalsCT$2,451Rhode Island: median $2,127 across 10 hospitalsRI$2,127California: median $3,878 across 203 hospitalsCA$3,878Utah: median $3,831 across 39 hospitalsUT$3,831Colorado: median $2,572 across 59 hospitalsCO$2,572Nebraska: median $3,635 across 69 hospitalsNE$3,635Missouri: median $2,336 across 69 hospitalsMO$2,336Kentucky: median $1,882 across 52 hospitalsKY$1,882West Virginia: median $2,171 across 38 hospitalsWV$2,171Virginia: median $2,692 across 65 hospitalsVA$2,692Maryland: median $1,470 across 36 hospitalsMD$1,470Delaware: 6 hospitals filed a usable price — fewer than 10, so no figureDEArizona: median $1,516 across 49 hospitalsAZ$1,516New Mexico: median $2,339 across 22 hospitalsNM$2,339Kansas: median $1,897 across 72 hospitalsKS$1,897Arkansas: median $1,194 across 26 hospitalsAR$1,194Tennessee: median $1,009 across 73 hospitalsTN$1,009North Carolina: median $2,653 across 84 hospitalsNC$2,653South Carolina: median $2,998 across 49 hospitalsSC$2,998Oklahoma: median $1,406 across 49 hospitalsOK$1,406Louisiana: median $1,112 across 44 hospitalsLA$1,112Mississippi: median $1,458 across 38 hospitalsMS$1,458Alabama: median $1,876 across 34 hospitalsAL$1,876Georgia: median $2,243 across 92 hospitalsGA$2,243Hawaii: median $1,833 across 12 hospitalsHI$1,833Texas: median $2,597 across 222 hospitalsTX$2,597Florida: median $4,387 across 162 hospitalsFL$4,387
Cash price by state, most expensive first. National median $2,425. A state needs at least 10 hospitals with a usable price to show a figure.
StateHospitalsMedianvs national20th–80th
Florida FL162$4,387+81%$1,810 – $9,953
South Dakota SD18$4,277+76%$3,868 – $4,515
Vermont VT11$3,958+63%$2,394 – $6,028
California CA203$3,878+60%$1,777 – $8,097
Utah UT39$3,831+58%$2,272 – $4,508
Nebraska NE69$3,635+50%$2,722 – $4,395
Illinois IL130$3,597+48%$1,915 – $4,851
North Dakota ND24$3,526+45%$2,792 – $4,561
Alaska AK13$3,386+40%$1,248 – $5,798
Montana MT15$3,244+34%$2,083 – $3,638
New Hampshire NH20$3,224+33%$2,359 – $8,366
Massachusetts MA48$3,158+30%$1,535 – $4,694
South Carolina SC49$2,998+24%$1,671 – $3,215
Iowa IA69$2,762+14%$2,090 – $3,951
Virginia VA65$2,692+11%$1,815 – $5,048
North Carolina NC84$2,653+9%$1,872 – $3,910
Texas TX222$2,597+7%$1,251 – $5,315
Colorado CO59$2,572+6%$1,399 – $3,602
Oregon OR44$2,564+6%$2,078 – $3,553
Wisconsin WI100$2,536+5%$1,240 – $3,327
Washington WA66$2,512+4%$1,590 – $3,793
Michigan MI75$2,491+3%$1,481 – $4,470
Connecticut CT22$2,451+1%$1,579 – $4,430
Pennsylvania PA114$2,343−3%$643 – $6,059
New Mexico NM22$2,339−4%$1,414 – $3,203
Missouri MO69$2,336−4%$1,522 – $3,860
Idaho ID20$2,263−7%$1,831 – $3,061
Georgia GA92$2,243−7%$1,191 – $3,561
Nevada NV17$2,202−9%$1,320 – $3,961
West Virginia WV38$2,171−10%$1,713 – $3,576
Rhode Island RI10$2,127−12%$746 – $4,200
Wyoming WY12$2,123−12%$1,202 – $4,209
Ohio OH126$2,101−13%$1,522 – $3,137
Minnesota MN82$2,033−16%$1,060 – $3,003
Kansas KS72$1,897−22%$875 – $3,960
Kentucky KY52$1,882−22%$1,070 – $3,474
Alabama AL34$1,876−23%$1,166 – $4,049
Hawaii HI12$1,833−24%$1,648 – $2,676
New York NY98$1,825−25%$528 – $4,517
Maine ME24$1,618−33%$915 – $3,333
Arizona AZ49$1,516−37%$500 – $6,261
Maryland MD36$1,470−39%$998 – $2,243
Mississippi MS38$1,458−40%$873 – $2,047
Oklahoma OK49$1,406−42%$728 – $2,450
Indiana IN90$1,291−47%$816 – $3,103
Arkansas AR26$1,194−51%$584 – $1,731
Louisiana LA44$1,112−54%$790 – $2,325
Tennessee TN73$1,009−58%$669 – $2,203
New Jersey NJ56$662−73%$421 – $2,090
Delaware DE6not enough hospitals filed a usable price

Hospitals like yours

The same distribution cut by the kind of hospital. Hospital type and ownership come from CMS; a hospital counts as part of a system when its price file is shared with at least one other hospital under the same brand. The national median is $2,425.

Cash price by hospital segment. A segment needs at least 20 hospitals to show a figure.
SegmentHospitalsMedian20th–80th
Hospital type
Acute care2,206$2,337$1,174 – $4,508
Children’s62$3,546$2,536 – $5,534
Critical access690$2,593$1,472 – $3,983
Ownership
For-profit422$3,192$1,356 – $10,435
Government495$2,311$1,122 – $3,740
Non-profit2,041$2,377$1,229 – $4,120
System affiliation
Part of a system2,454$2,479$1,240 – $4,424
Independent514$2,266$1,102 – $3,909

Cash price vs list price

Median list price (chargemaster)$4,276
Median cash price$2,425
Cash as a share of list, median hospital63%

At the typical hospital, asking for the cash price cuts the list price by about 37%. The share is the median of each hospital’s own cash ÷ list ratio, over hospitals that filed both — not the ratio of the two medians above.

The same procedure, inpatient

2,031 hospitals filed a usable inpatient cash price for this code. The median is $2,503 and the average of the middle 60% is $2,604; most fall between $1,298 and $4,250.

Cash price percentiles, inpatient, across 2,031 hospitals. Each figure is a price a hospital filed. 10th: one in ten hospitals charges less; 25th: a quarter charge less; Median: half charge less; 75th: three quarters charge less; 90th: nine in ten charge less.
10th25thMedian75th90th
$808$1,522$2,503$3,852$5,882

The most expensive tenth of hospitals charges at least 7.3× what the cheapest tenth charges ($808 vs $5,882).

Of the 2,239 hospitals that filed this code inpatient, 2,031 gave a usable cash price; 109 carried a plausibility flag, 0 filed a number their own filing marks as not a price, 0 gave an estimate, and 99 a list price only.

How complete is this

2,968 of the 3,956 hospitals with a price file in our corpus (75%) filed a usable outpatient cash price for this code, and those are the hospitals every figure on this page is computed from.

What the 3,279 hospitals that filed this code at all gave us
Usable cash price — counted2,968
Cash price carrying a plausibility flag — shown on the compare tool, excluded here199
A number the filing itself marks as not a price (a placeholder, a ratio) — excluded0
An estimate rather than a filed cash price — excluded4
A list price only, no cash figure — excluded108
Hospitals that filed this code3,279

Sections not shown for this setting

  • Since our last snapshot: there is no earlier snapshot at least 90 days older than this one yet.

We last checked these hospitals’ price files for changes between September 4, 2026 and September 24, 2026; the figures were computed September 25, 2026 from filings loaded through September 24, 2026. The percentiles and averages use only the “counted” row.

Related procedures

Part of the Magnetic resonance imaging family.

Hospitals file this code under descriptions such as MRI Chest W/O & W/Contrast Material|PROFESSIONAL COMPONENT.

Method

Source
The machine-readable price files every U.S. hospital is required by CMS to publish, parsed per hospital. Nothing is surveyed, sampled or modelled.
What counts
One cash (self-pay) price per hospital for this code and setting. A hospital’s own filing can rule its number out — a placeholder, a “not applicable” note, a list price standing in for cash — and our plausibility checks can flag a price far below what every other hospital files. Both kinds are disclosed above and excluded from the statistics; on the compare tool a flagged price is still shown.
Statistics
Percentiles are discrete: each is a price some hospital filed. The average is the mean of the prices between the 20th and 80th percentiles. We never publish the plain mean, the minimum or the maximum. A state needs 10 hospitals and a segment 20 to show a figure; otherwise the row shows its count and no number. Medicare is the national unadjusted OPPS rate where one exists.
Names
Procedure names on these pages are our own plain-language titles, not the AMA’s copyrighted CPT descriptors. The code is the identity.

The full rules — sources, statistics, thresholds, limitations — are on the methodology page.

Download this page’s figures: JSON · CSV. Aggregates only — the per-hospital prices are on the compare tool.

Cite: HospitalRates.com, “MRI of the chest without and with contrast (CPT 71552) — cash price report,” computed September 25, 2026. https://hospitalrates.com/procedures/cpt-71552-mri-of-the-chest-without-and-with-contrast