Brain MRI cost in Philadelphia, PA
In Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD, 26 hospitals list a cash price for MRI of the brain, no contrast dye: from $234.00 to $8,106.86, with a median of $1,331.20. The lowest listed price is at Lower Bucks Hospital — $1,097.20 less than the median here. Across Pennsylvania, the median is $1,821.95 at 103 hospitals.
- The median here, $1,331.20, is 28% below the US median of $1,840.20.
- That is 5.5× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($243.77).
- Philadelphia, PA has the lowest median of 2 metro areas in Pennsylvania with at least 10 hospitals pricing this code.
- 8 of 26 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Cash prices at 26 facilities across 21 cities for code 70551, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Oct 26, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Dec 31, 2025 and Sep 21, 2026.
Where each hospital's price falls
Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lower Bucks Hospital lowest Bristol, PA · (215) 785-9200 Hc Mri Brain File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $234.00 | $3,241.69 | $187.78–$2,593.35 | 93% |
| Roxborough Memorial Hospital Philadelphia, PA · (215) 483-9900 Hc Mri Brain File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $243.00 | $3,808.34 | $195.14–$3,694.09 | 94% |
| Virtua West Jersey Hospital - Marlton Voorhees, NJ · (856) 247-3000 HC MRI Brain W/O Contrast File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $943.70 | $9,437.00 | $253.60–$4,545.00 | 90% |
| Virtua Memorial Hospital Mount Holly, NJ · (609) 267-0700 HC MRI Brain W/O Contrast File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $943.70 | $9,437.00 | $253.60–$4,545.00 | 90% |
| Virtua West Jersey Hospital - Voorhees Voorhees, NJ · (856) 247-3000 HC MRI Brain W/O Contrast+1 more line at this price File of Jun 1, 2026 · source file | $943.70 | $9,437.00 | $253.60–$4,545.00 | 90% |
| Virtua Willingboro Hospital Willinboro, NJ · (609) 835-2900 HC MRI Brain W/O Contrast File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $943.70 | $9,437.00 | $253.60–$4,545.00 | 90% |
| Virtua Our Lady of Lourdes Camden, NJ · (856) 886-5373 HC MRI Brain W/O Contrast File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $943.70 | $9,437.00 | $253.60–$4,545.00 | 90% |
| Holy Redeemer Hospital and Medical Center Meadowbrook, PA · (215) 947-3000 Brain w/o Contrast - HRHMC MRI File of Sep 21, 2026 · source file | $1,228.98 | $2,048.29 | $241.63–$1,577.18 | 40% |
| Inspira Health Center Woodbury Woodbury, NJ MRI BRAIN W/O CONT File of Mar 24, 2026 · source file | $1,249.97 | $1,249.97 | $215.18–$990.00 | — |
| Inspira Medical Center Mannington Salem, NJ MRI BRAIN W/O CONT File of Mar 24, 2026 · source file | $1,249.97 | $1,249.97 | $210.62–$990.00 | — |
| Inspira Medical Center Elmer Elmer, NJ · (856) 363-1000 MRI BRAIN W/O CONT File of Mar 24, 2026 · source file | $1,249.97 | $1,249.97 | $227.47–$990.00 | — |
| Inspira Medical Center Mullica Hill Mullica Hill, NJ · (856) 363-1000 MRI BRAIN W/O CONT File of Mar 24, 2026 · source file | $1,249.97 | $1,249.97 | $227.47–$990.00 | — |
| Lankenau Medical Center Wynnewood, PA · (610) 645-2000 Hc Mri Brain W/O Contrast File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,331.20 | $3,328.00 | — | 60% |
| Paoli Hospital Paoli, PA · (610) 648-1000 Hc Mri Brain W/O Contrast File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,331.20 | $3,328.00 | — | 60% |
| The Bryn Mawr Hospital Bryn Mawr, PA · (610) 526-3000 Hc Mri Brain W/O Contrast File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,331.20 | $3,328.00 | — | 60% |
| Riddle Memorial Hospital Media, PA · (610) 566-9400 Hc Mri Brain W/O Contrast File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,331.20 | $3,328.00 | — | 60% |
| St. Francis Hospital Wilmington, DE · (302) 421-4100 HC MRI Brain W/O Contrast File of Mar 31, 2026 · source file | $1,535.30 | $2,362.00 | $248.89–$2,267.52 | 35% |
| Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital Darby, PA · (215) 237-4000 HC MRI Brain W/O Contrast+1 more line at this price File of Mar 31, 2026 · source file | $1,821.95 | $2,803.00 | $196.10–$2,590.00 | 35% |
| Union Hospital of Cecil County Elkton, MD · (410) 392-7009 MRI,BRAIN,WO CONTRAST GLR File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $2,126.00 | $2,126.00 | — | — |
| St Mary Medical Center Langhorne, PA · (215) 750-2003 HC MRI Brain W/O Contrast File of Mar 31, 2026 · source file | $2,143.05 | $3,297.00 | $205.78–$3,132.15 | 35% |
| Shriners Childrens - Philadelphia Philadelphia, PA · (215) 430-4000 MRI BRAIN STEM W/O DYE File of Mar 19, 2026 · source file | $2,175.90 | $2,175.90 | $166.04–$647.42 | — |
| Nemours Children's Hospital, Delaware Wilmington, DE · (302) 651-4000 MRI Brain W/O Contrast+1 more line at this price File of Mar 10, 2026 · source file | $2,315.00 | $2,315.00 | — | — |
| Nazareth Hospital Philadelphia, PA · (215) 335-6000 HC MRI Brain W/O Contrast File of Mar 31, 2026 · source file | $2,796.95 | $4,303.00 | $205.78–$4,216.94 | 35% |
| St Luke's Hospital - Grand View Campus Sellersville, PA · (215) 453-4000 HB MRI BRAIN STEM W/O DYE File of Feb 26, 2026 · source file | $5,859.90 | $6,511.00 | $240.49–$38,825.15 | 10% |
| St Luke's Hospital - Upper Bucks Campus Quakertown, PA · (267) 985-1000 HB MRI BRAIN STEM W/O DYE File of Feb 26, 2026 · source file | $5,859.90 | $6,511.00 | $247.46–$2,272.34 | 10% |
| The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Philadelphia, PA · (215) 590-1000 MRI Brain W/O Contrast File of Dec 31, 2025 · source file | $8,106.86 | $8,106.86 | $363.15–$7,296.17 | — |
Outpatient: lowest $234.00, median $1,331.20, highest $8,106.86 — a 34.6× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 17 facilities here, median $1,331.20. Inpatient and outpatient prices are not comparable and are kept on separate pages: the inpatient charge covers admission, not the same purchase.
Cash or insurance?
At 12 of 20 hospitals that publish insurer rates for this code here, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated, and at none is it below every plan's rate. If you have insurance but have not met your deductible, you usually pay your plan's negotiated rate, which falls somewhere in the "Insurers pay" column. Paying cash can cost less, but a cash payment usually does not count toward your deductible. Ask the hospital for both numbers before you book.
What brain MRI is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Brain MRI explained.