Lower back MRI cost in Detroit, MI
In Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI, 30 hospitals list a cash price for MRI of the lower back, no contrast dye: from $233.59 to $6,334.50, with a median of $2,969.85. The lowest listed price is at Henry Ford Rochester Hospital — $2,736.26 less than the median here. Across Michigan, the median is $1,794.55 at 89 hospitals.
- The median here, $2,969.85, is 56% above the US median of $1,903.81.
- That is 12.2× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($243.77).
- Detroit, MI ranks 2nd of 2 metro areas in Michigan by median, cheapest first.
- 9 of 30 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Cash prices at 30 facilities across 22 cities for code 72148, 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 2, 2026.
Lowest$233.59Henry Ford Rochester Hospital
Median$2,969.85half of hospitals charge less
Highest$6,334.50in this market
Difference27.1×highest vs lowest
Where each hospital's price falls
Each dot is one hospital's cash price on a scale from the lowest to the highest in Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI.
median
Lowest $233.59Highest $7,777.50
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Henry Ford Rochester Hospital lowest Rochester, MI · (248) 652-5000 MRI LUMBAR SPINE W/O CONTRAST File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $233.59 | $497.00 | $293.37–$303.81 | 53% |
| Henry Ford Health Hospital Detroit, MI · (313) 916-2600 HB MRI LUMBAR SPINE W/O CONTRAST File of Jun 28, 2026 · source file | $328.08 | $2,834.00 | $109.89–$546.80 | 88% |
| Henry Ford Health West Bloomfield Hospital West Bloomfield, MI · (248) 325-1000 HB MRI LUMBAR SPINE W/O CONTRAST File of Jun 28, 2026 · source file | $328.08 | $2,834.00 | $109.89–$546.80 | 88% |
| Ascension River District Hospital East China Township, MI · (810) 329-7111 MRI SPINE LUMBAR W/O CONTRAST+1 more line at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $586.88 | $1,048.00 | $143.88–$779.32 | 44% |
| Henry Ford Health St John Hospital Detroit, MI · (313) 343-4000 MRI SPINE LUMBAR W/O CONTRAST+1 more line at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $983.92 | $1,757.00 | $143.88–$779.32 | 44% |
| McLaren Port Huron Port Huron, MI · (810) 987-5000 MRI LUMBAR SPINE W/O DYE File of Dec 31, 2025 · source file | $1,134.29 | $2,268.57 | $132.22–$1,152.43 | 50% |
| McLaren Port Huron Port Huron, MI · (810) 987-5000 MRI Spine Lumbar w/o Contrast File of Dec 31, 2025 · source file | $1,175.90 | $2,351.80 | $132.22–$1,763.85 | 50% |
| Henry Ford Providence Novi Hospital - Novi Campus Novi, MI · (248) 849-3000 L-SPINE W/O CONTRAST-MRI+1 more line at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $1,347.36 | $2,406.00 | $143.88–$506.35 | 44% |
| Henry Ford Providence Southfield Hospital Southfield, MI · (248) 849-3000 L-SPINE W/O CONTRAST-MRI+1 more line at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $1,347.36 | $2,406.00 | $143.88–$506.35 | 44% |
| Henry Ford Health Warren Hospital Warren, MI · (586) 573-5000 MRI SPINE LUMBAR W/O CONTRAST+1 more line at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $1,480.08 | $2,643.00 | $143.88–$779.32 | 44% |
| Surgeons Choice Medical Center Southfield, MI MRI LUMBAR WO CON File of May 8, 2026 · source file | $1,500.00 | $1,500.00 | $209.69–$232.99 | — |
| McLaren Oakland Pontiac, MI · (248) 338-5000 MRI Spine Lumbar w/o Contrast File of Dec 31, 2025 · source file | $1,526.40 | $3,052.80 | $132.22–$2,357.68 | 50% |
| McLaren Lapeer Region Lapeer, MI · (810) 667-5500 MRI Spine Lumbar w/o Contrast File of Dec 31, 2025 · source file | $1,545.95 | $3,091.90 | $132.22–$2,164.33 | 50% |
| McLaren Macomb Mount Clemens, MI · (586) 493-8000 MRI Spine Lumbar w/o Contrast File of Dec 31, 2025 · source file | $1,794.55 | $3,589.10 | $132.22–$2,422.64 | 50% |
| Karmanos Cancer Center Detroit, MI · (800) 576-6266 MRI LUMBAR SPINE W/O CON+1 more line at this price File of Dec 31, 2025 · source file | $2,269.65 | $4,539.30 | $132.22–$3,404.48 | 50% |
| St Joseph Mercy Oakland Pontiac, MI · (248) 858-3000 HC MRI Lumbar Spine W/O Contrast File of Mar 31, 2026 · source file | $2,969.85 | $4,569.00 | $130.66–$4,569.00 | 35% |
| St Mary Mercy Livonia Livonia, MI · (734) 655-4800 HC MRI Lumbar Spine W/O Contrast File of Mar 31, 2026 · source file | $2,969.85 | $4,569.00 | $130.66–$4,569.00 | 35% |
| St Joseph Mercy Livingston Hospital Brighton, MI · (517) 545-6000 HC MRI Lumbar Spine W/O Contrast File of Mar 31, 2026 · source file | $2,969.85 | $4,569.00 | $133.27–$4,569.00 | 35% |
| Beaumont Hospital - Dearborn Dearborn, MI · (313) 593-7125 HC MRI LUMBAR SPINE WO CONTRAST File of May 1, 2026 · source file | $3,780.00 | $3,780.00 | — | — |
| Beaumont Hospital - Taylor Taylor, MI · (313) 295-5000 HC MRI LUMBAR SPINE WO CONTRAST+1 more line at this price File of May 1, 2026 · source file | $3,780.00 | $3,780.00 | — | — |
| Beaumont Hospital Royal Oak Royal Oak, MI · (248) 898-5400 HC MRI LUMBAR SPINE WO CONTRAST File of May 1, 2026 · source file | $3,780.00 | $3,780.00 | — | — |
| Corewell Health Trenton Hospital Trenton, MI · (734) 671-3800 Hc Mri Lumbar Spine Wo Contrast+1 more line at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,780.00 | $3,780.00 | — | — |
| Corewell Health Wayne Hospital Wayne, MI · (734) 467-4175 Hc Mri Lumbar Spine Wo Contrast+1 more line at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,780.00 | $3,780.00 | — | — |
| Corewell Health Farmington Hills Hospital Farmington Hills, MI · (248) 471-8000 HC MRI LUMBAR SPINE WO CONTRAST File of May 1, 2026 · source file | $3,780.00 | $3,780.00 | — | — |
| Beaumont Hospital - Grosse Pointe Grosse Pointe, MI · (313) 473-1000 Hc Mri Lumbar Spine Wo Contrast+1 more line at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,780.00 | $3,780.00 | — | — |
| Beaumont Hospital, Troy Troy, MI · (248) 964-8800 Hc Mri Lumbar Spine Wo Contrast+1 more line at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,780.00 | $3,780.00 | — | — |
| VHS Detroit Receiving Hospital Detroit, MI · (313) 745-2941 MRI SPINE LUMBAR W/O CM File of Apr 7, 2026 · source file | $3,935.25 | $5,247.00 | — | 25% |
| Harper University Hospital Detroit, MI · (313) 745-6211 MRI SPINE LUMBAR W/O CM+1 more line at this price File of Aug 20, 2026 · source file | $4,285.50 | $5,714.00 | $1.00–$471.65 | 25% |
| VHS Huron Valley-Sinai Hospital Commerce Charter Twp, MI · (248) 937-3370 MRI SPINE LUMBAR W/O CM+1 more line at this price File of May 20, 2026 · source file | $4,890.75 | $6,521.00 | $1.00–$471.65 | 25% |
| VHS Childrens Hospital of Michigan Detroit, MI · (313) 745-5437 MRI SPINE LUMBAR W/O CM File of Apr 6, 2026 · source file | $5,015.25 | $6,687.00 | — | 25% |
| VHS Sinai Grace Hospital Detroit, MI · (313) 966-3300 MRI LUMBAR SPINE W/O CONT File of Apr 8, 2026 · source file | $6,334.50 | $8,446.00 | — | 25% |
| VHS Sinai Grace Hospital Detroit, MI · (313) 966-3300 MRI SPINE LUMBAR W/O CM File of Apr 8, 2026 · source file | $7,777.50 | $10,370.00 | — | 25% |
Hospital The hospital that published the price, its city and the line exactly as written in its price file.
Cash price The hospital's own price for a patient paying without insurance (“discounted cash” in its price file). Hospitals must publish it under federal law, 45 CFR 180.50. Call to confirm it before booking. More
List price The hospital's full chargemaster price (“gross charge”) before any discount. Almost nobody pays it; the gap to the cash price shows what the self-pay discount is worth. More
Insurers pay The lowest and highest rates this hospital has agreed with insurance plans for the same item, from its price file. If the cash price is below what your plan pays and you have not met your deductible, paying cash can cost you less. More
Off list How much lower the cash price is than the list price.
At or below Medicare This cash price is at or below what Medicare pays a hospital for the same service, which is unusually low. It is what the hospital's file says; confirm it and what it includes before booking. More
No cash discount This line's cash price equals the hospital's full list price. Many hospitals still reduce bills for uninsured patients: ask the billing office for its self-pay discount in writing. More
Outpatient: lowest $233.59, median $2,969.85, highest $6,334.50 — a 27.1× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 25 facilities here, median $2,969.85. 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 19 hospitals that publish insurer rates for this code here, the cash price is below the highest rate a health plan has negotiated, and at 1 it is 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.