Lower back MRI with contrast cost in Memphis, TN
In Memphis, TN-MS-AR, 12 hospitals list a cash price for MRI of the lower back, without and then with contrast dye: from $905.70 to $1,951.84, with a median of $1,696.31. The lowest listed price is at Baptist Memorial Hospital-Crittenden — $790.61 less than the median here. Across Tennessee, the median is $953.70 at 43 hospitals.
Cash prices at 12 facilities across 7 cities for code 72158, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 27, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Feb 27, 2026 and Feb 28, 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 Memphis, TN-MS-AR.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baptist Memorial Hospital-Crittenden lowest West Memphis, AR · (870) 394-7800 HC MR SPINE LUMBAR W WO CONTRAST | $905.70 | $6,038.00 | $310.67–$4,830.40 | 85% | Feb 27, 2026 source file |
| Baptist Memorial Hospital-DeSoto Southaven, MS · (662) 772-4000 HC MR SPINE LUMBAR W WO CONTRAST | $1,207.60 | $6,038.00 | $310.67–$5,434.20 | 80% | Feb 27, 2026 source file |
| Baptist Memorial Hospital-Memphis Memphis, TN · (901) 226-5000 HC MR SPINE LUMBAR W WO CONTRAST | $1,267.98 | $6,038.00 | $310.67–$5,434.20 | 79% | Feb 28, 2026 source file |
| Baptist Memorial Hospital-Women's Memphis, TN HC MR SPINE LUMBAR W WO CONTRAST | $1,267.98 | $6,038.00 | $310.67–$5,434.20 | 79% | Feb 27, 2026 source file |
| Baptist Memorial Hospital-Collierville Collierville, TN HC MR SPINE LUMBAR W WO CONTRAST | $1,267.98 | $6,038.00 | $310.67–$5,434.20 | 79% | Feb 27, 2026 source file |
| Baptist Memorial Hospital-Tipton Covington, TN · (901) 476-2621 HC MR SPINE LUMBAR W WO CONTRAST | $1,533.84 | $6,391.00 | $284.51–$5,751.90 | 76% | Feb 27, 2026 source file |
| Methodist Lebonheur Germantown Hosp Germantown, TN HC MRI, Lumbar Spine Combo - MRI Lumbar Spine W WO Contrast | $1,858.78 | $8,449.00 | $50.00–$1,048.77 | 78% | — source file |
| Methodist South Hospital Memphis, TN HC MRI, Lumbar Spine Combo - MRI Lumbar Spine W WO Contrast | $1,858.78 | $8,449.00 | $50.00–$1,048.77 | 78% | — source file |
| Methodist Olive Branch Hospital Olive Branch, MS · (662) 932-9000 HC MRI, Lumbar Spine Combo - MRI Lumbar Spine W WO Contrast | $1,858.78 | $8,449.00 | — | 78% | — source file |
| Methodist North Hospital Memphis, TN HC MRI, Lumbar Spine Combo - MRI Lumbar Spine W WO Contrast | $1,858.78 | $8,449.00 | $50.00–$1,048.77 | 78% | — source file |
| Methodist University Hospital Memphis, TN · (901) 516-8274 HC MRI, Lumbar Spine Combo - MRI Lumbar Spine W WO Contrast | $1,858.78 | $8,449.00 | — | 78% | — source file |
| Methodist Lebonheur Childrens Hosp Memphis, TN HC MRI, Lumbar Spine Combo - MRI Lumbar Spine W WO Contrast | $1,951.84 | $8,872.00 | — | 78% | — source file |
Outpatient: lowest $905.70, median $1,696.31, highest $1,951.84 — a 2.2× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 12 facilities here, median $1,696.31. 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 6 of 9 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 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.