Knee arthroscopy cost in California without insurance
In California, the median cash price for Knee arthroscopy is $5,148.00 across 53 hospitals, from $655.63 to $17,055.23. The lowest is at Cedars-Sinai Marina Hospital (Marina del Rey). The US median is $3,172.60.
Knee arthroscopy uses a small camera and tools through tiny cuts to trim or repair a torn meniscus, rebuild a torn ACL or smooth damaged cartilage. It is almost always same-day surgery. The price depends on what is done inside the knee, and ACL reconstruction costs much more than a simple meniscus trim.
Collected Sep 23, 2026 One price per hospital: its lowest outpatient cash price for the code
Knee arthroscopy prices in California by type
29881 is arthroscopy with a meniscus trim and is used in the state table; 29880 trims both menisci; 29888 is ACL reconstruction; 29882 is a meniscus repair; and 29877 is cartilage smoothing.
| Procedure | Hospitals | Range | Median | US median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Knee arthroscopy Knee arthroscopy with meniscus trim · code 29881 | 53 | $655.63–$17,055.23 | $5,148.00 | $3,172.60 |
| Knee arthroscopy (both menisci) Knee arthroscopy with removal of both torn meniscus parts · code 29880 | 52 | $890.97–$24,557.37 | $4,187.00 | $2,796.81 |
| ACL reconstruction Arthroscopic ACL reconstruction or repair of the knee · code 29888 | 54 | $1,541.22–$44,210.72 | $9,286.00 | $6,474.54 |
| Knee arthroscopy, meniscus repair Knee arthroscopy with meniscus repair (one side of the knee) · code 29882 | 51 | $1,032.00–$33,557.85 | $4,187.00 | $3,549.59 |
| Knee arthroscopy, cartilage smoothing Knee arthroscopy with smoothing of damaged cartilage (chondroplasty) · code 29877 | 48 | $830.40–$16,646.68 | $5,148.00 | $3,265.60 |
Outpatient cash prices in California. Each hospital counts once, at its lowest cash price for the code; prices for both sides of the body and inpatient prices are not mixed in. Pick a procedure to compare every hospital in the state.
Lowest Knee arthroscopy prices in California
- Cedars-Sinai Marina Hospital, Marina del Rey$655.63
- Healdsburg Hospital, Healdsburg$856.80
- Madera Community Hospital, Madera$1,021.80
- NorthBay Medical Center, Fairfield$1,617.23
- County of Monterey, Salinas$1,803.00
Knee arthroscopy cost by metro area in California
- Los Angeles, CA14 hospitals
- San Francisco, CA9 hospitals
- Riverside, CA5 hospitals
- San Diego, CA5 hospitals
- Sacramento, CA3 hospitals
- Vallejo, CA3 hospitals
- Fresno, CA2 hospitals
- San Jose, CA2 hospitals
- Santa Rosa, CA2 hospitals
Knee arthroscopy cost in other states
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New York
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
Paying cash: what to do
- Ask for a bundled self-pay price that includes the surgeon, anesthesia, facility and follow-up visits; hospital file prices usually cover only the facility.
- Ask whether the price includes the brace, crutches and physical therapy after surgery.
- Ambulatory surgery centers usually charge much less than hospital outpatient departments for the same arthroscopy.