Lower back MRI with contrast cost in Charleston, SC — inpatient
In Charleston-North Charleston, SC, 5 hospitals list a cash price for MRI of the lower back, without and then with contrast dye as an inpatient: from $1,275.50 to $2,265.90, with a median of $2,265.90. The lowest listed price is at MUSC Medical Center — $990.40 less than the median here. Across South Carolina, the median is $2,265.90 at 19 hospitals.
Cash prices at 5 facilities across 3 cities for code 72158, as an inpatient (admitted to hospital) . Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Apr 1, 2026 and Apr 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 Charleston-North Charleston, SC.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MUSC Medical Center lowest Charleston, SC · (843) 792-2300 HB MRI L-SPINE W/WO CONTRAST | $1,275.50 | $2,551.00 | — | 50% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Roper Hospital Charleston, SC · (843) 724-2800 HC MRI-Spine Lumbar WO & W Cont | $2,265.90 | $3,486.00 | — | 35% | — source file |
| Roper St Francis Mount Pleasant Hospital Mount Pleasant, SC HC MRI-Spine Lumbar WO & W Cont | $2,265.90 | $3,486.00 | — | 35% | — source file |
| Roper St Francis Hospital Berkeley Summerville, SC · (854) 529-3002 HC MRI-Spine Lumbar WO & W Cont | $2,265.90 | $3,486.00 | — | 35% | — source file |
| Bon Secours St Francis Xavier Hospital Charleston, SC · (843) 402-1006 HC MRI-Spine Lumbar WO & W Cont | $2,265.90 | $3,486.00 | — | 35% | — source file |
Inpatient: lowest $1,275.50, median $2,265.90, highest $2,265.90 — a 1.8× difference within the same market.
As an outpatient, the same code is billed by 5 facilities here, median $2,265.90 — that is the price to compare if you are not being admitted.
What it is
This MRI of the lumbar spine takes one set of pictures without contrast dye and a second set after the dye is injected into a vein. The dye helps tell scar tissue from a new disc problem after back surgery and can show infection, inflammation or tumors.
What the price covers
The hospital price usually covers both sets of images; the contrast agent may appear as a separate line on some bills. The radiologist's reading is often billed separately.