How much does an ultrasound cost without insurance?

Ultrasound uses no radiation and no contrast, which keeps it cheaper than CT or MRI, but the code depends on the body region and on whether the study is complete or limited. Obstetric ultrasounds have their own code family entirely.

We are not going to make up an average

Nearly every “average cost” figure you will find for this procedure traces back to sites citing each other rather than to data. This one does not publish a number it cannot source. What it does instead is better: below is how to get the actual price your provider has already published — federal rules require it to exist, and it is specific to the facility that will bill you.

How to find the real price for you

1
Get the code from your order
Ultrasound codes distinguish complete from limited studies — a complete abdominal ultrasound is 76700, a limited one 76705 — and obstetric scans are coded separately by trimester and by whether the pregnancy is single or multiple.
2
Open the hospital's standard charges file
Every hospital must publish one, usually linked from a page called “price transparency” or “standard charges.” Search it for the code — not the words — and look for the column marked discounted cash price. Ignore the gross charge: that is the chargemaster figure almost nobody pays.
3
Watch for this specifically
Confirm with the ordering clinician whether the order is for a complete or a limited study, because the two codes differ in price and a limited study is sometimes all the clinical question requires. For pelvic imaging, also confirm whether a transvaginal study is included — it is often a second code on the same visit.
4
Ask for it in writing, in advance
If you are uninsured or self-pay, ask for a Good Faith Estimate before scheduling. That document is what a later bill gets measured against — and if the bill lands $400 or more above it, a federal dispute process opens for 120 calendar days. How that works.

CMS — Hospital price transparency ↗

What drives the price

Complete versus limited. A complete study images every required structure in the region; a limited one targets a specific question and costs less.
The region: abdominal, pelvic, transvaginal, thyroid, vascular and obstetric are all separate codes.
Doppler. Adding blood-flow imaging to a study is typically an additional code rather than part of the base scan.
Setting. Hospital outpatient departments generally price above freestanding imaging centres for the identical study.

If the bill has already arrived

Ultrasound is one of the studies where an independent imaging centre most reliably undercuts a hospital outpatient department. If a hospital bill sits far above its own published cash price for the code, the cash-price letter is the route.

Billed above the cash price →

Before anything else, though: request the itemized bill and check it for errors. If the amount is simply unaffordable and the hospital is a nonprofit, the charity care screener is usually the more productive route.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a complete and a limited ultrasound?

A complete study documents all the structures the code requires for that region; a limited study looks at one thing. They are different codes at different prices, and which one is ordered is a clinical decision — but it is reasonable to ask which you are booked for.

Why was I billed for two ultrasounds in one appointment?

Commonly a transabdominal and a transvaginal pelvic study performed in the same visit, which are separate codes. Adding Doppler flow imaging also generates its own code. The itemized bill shows which codes were billed; if one was not performed, that is a billing error to dispute.

Are pregnancy ultrasounds priced differently?

Yes — obstetric ultrasound has its own code family, varying by trimester and by whether the pregnancy is single or multiple. A detailed anatomy scan is a different, more expensive code than a quick dating scan.

Is ultrasound cheaper than an MRI?

Considerably, in general. They answer different clinical questions, so it is not usually a choice you make — but where a clinician considers either adequate, the cost difference is worth raising.

Other procedures

Urgent care visit MRI CT scan Emergency room visit

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