Lower back MRI cost in Boston, MA
In Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, 27 hospitals list a cash price for MRI of the lower back, no contrast dye: from $403.04 to $8,430.75, with a median of $2,204.00. The lowest listed price is at Boston Medical Center South — $1,800.96 less than the median here. Across Massachusetts, the median is $1,805.25 at 33 hospitals.
- The median here, $2,204.00, is 16% above the US median of $1,903.81.
- That is 9.0× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($243.77).
- 18 of 27 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Cash prices at 27 facilities across 20 cities for code 72148, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Nov 3, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Dec 15, 2025 and Sep 1, 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 Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston Medical Center South lowest Brockton, MA · (508) 427-3000 HC Chg MRI Spinal Canal Lumbar W/O Contrast Material File of Mar 13, 2026 · source file | $403.04 | $895.64 | $285.95–$814.43 | 55% |
| Boston Medical Center Brighton Boston, MA · (617) 789-3000 HC Chg MRI Spinal Canal Lumbar W/O Contrast Material File of Mar 13, 2026 · source file | $449.36 | $998.58 | $285.95–$1,548.00 | 55% |
| Signature Healthcare Brockton Hospital Brockton, MA · (508) 941-7000 MRI; LUMBAR W/O CNTRST File of Jan 28, 2026 · source file | $795.90 | $1,137.00 | $81.05–$939.87 | 30% |
| Anna Jaques Hospital Newburyport, MA · (978) 463-1000 HC MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR WO CONTRAST MATERIAL File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $876.00 | $876.00 | — | — |
| Winchester Hospital Winchester, MA · (781) 729-9000 HC MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR WO CONTRAST MATERIAL File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,058.00 | $1,058.00 | — | — |
| Tufts Medical Center Boston, MA · (617) 636-5000 HC MRI Spine Lumbar WO Contr File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,141.70 | $1,631.00 | $230.56–$1,631.00 | 30% |
| Lowell General Hospital Lowell, MA · (978) 937-6000 HC MRI Spine Lumbar WO Contr File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,381.10 | $1,973.00 | $144.14–$2,456.00 | 30% |
| Southcoast Hospitals Group - Tobey Hospital Campus Wareham, MA · (508) 679-3131 HC MRI- Lumbar Spine File of Dec 15, 2025 · source file | $1,447.50 | $2,895.00 | $185.92–$2,203.10 | 50% |
| Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital-Milton Milton, MA · (617) 696-4600 HC MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR WO CONTRAST MATERIAL File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,760.00 | $1,760.00 | — | — |
| Melrosewakefield Healthcare Melrose, MA · (781) 979-3000 HC MRI Spine Lumbar WO Contr File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,793.40 | $2,562.00 | $115.28–$2,562.00 | 30% |
| Emerson Hospital Concord, MA · (978) 369-1400 MRI LUMBAR SACRUM WO CONTRAST+1 more line at this price File of May 18, 2026 · source file | $1,805.25 | $2,407.00 | $557.75–$2,407.00 | 25% |
| Boston Medical Center Boston, MA · (617) 638-8000 HC Chg MRI Spinal Canal Lumbar W/O Contrast Material File of Mar 13, 2026 · source file | $1,815.30 | $4,034.00 | $230.56–$3,428.90 | 55% |
| Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital - Plymouth Plymouth, MA · (508) 746-2000 HC MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR WO CONTRAST MATERIAL File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,924.00 | $1,924.00 | — | — |
| Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital - Needham Needham, MA · (781) 453-3002 HC MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR WO CONTRAST MATERIAL File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $2,204.00 | $2,204.00 | — | — |
| Cambridge Health Alliance Cambridge, MA · (617) 665-1000 HC MRI - Lumbar Spine File of Mar 20, 2026 · source file | $2,467.00 | $2,467.00 | $285.02–$2,467.00 | — |
| Mount Auburn Hospital Cambridge, MA · (617) 492-3500 HC MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR WO CONTRAST MATERIAL File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $2,741.00 | $2,741.00 | — | — |
| New England Baptist Hospital Boston, MA · (617) 754-5800 HC MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR WO CONTRAST MATERIAL File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $2,941.00 | $2,941.00 | — | — |
| Lahey Hospital & Medical Center, Burlington Burlington, MA · (781) 744-5100 HC MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR WO CONTRAST MATERIAL File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $2,945.00 | $2,945.00 | — | — |
| Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Boston, MA · (617) 667-7000 HC MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR WO CONTRAST MATERIAL File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,237.00 | $3,237.00 | — | — |
| Exeter Hospital Exeter, NH · (603) 778-7311 HC MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR WO CONTRAST MATERIAL File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $4,751.00 | $4,751.00 | — | — |
| Frisbie Memorial Hospital Rochester, NH · (603) 332-5211 MRI L-SPINE W/O CONT+1 more line at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $5,016.00 | $5,016.00 | $413.32–$4,012.80 | — |
| Shriners Childrens - Boston Boston, MA · (617) 722-3000 MRI LUMBAR SPINE W/O DYE File of Mar 17, 2026 · source file | $6,654.80 | $6,654.80 | $177.84–$817.41 | — |
| Seabrook Emergency Seabrook, NH · (603) 436-5110 Magnetic resonance (eg, proton) imaging, spinal canal and contents, lumbar; without contrast material +1 more line at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $7,613.00 | $7,613.00 | $313.66–$7,232.35 | — |
| Dover Emergency Room Dover, NH · (603) 436-5110 Magnetic resonance (eg, proton) imaging, spinal canal and contents, lumbar; without contrast material +1 more line at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $7,613.00 | $7,613.00 | $313.66–$7,232.35 | — |
| Portsmouth Regional Hospital Portsmouth, NH · (603) 436-5110 MRI L-SPINE W/O CONT+1 more line at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $7,613.00 | $7,613.00 | $313.66–$7,232.35 | — |
| Plaistow Fser Plaistow, NH · (603) 421-2100 MRI L-SPINE W/O CONT File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $8,430.75 | $8,430.75 | $260.51–$8,009.21 | — |
| Parkland Medical Center Derry, NH · (603) 421-2100 MRI L-SPINE W/O CONT File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $8,430.75 | $8,430.75 | $260.51–$8,009.21 | — |
Outpatient: lowest $403.04, median $2,204.00, highest $8,430.75 — a 20.9× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 20 facilities here, median $1,799.33. 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 9 of 17 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 lower back MRI is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Lower back MRI explained.