Lower back MRI with contrast cost in Riverside, CA
In Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA, 14 hospitals list a cash price for MRI of the lower back, without and then with contrast dye: from $446.00 to $11,323.54, with a median of $3,224.00. The lowest listed price is at Desert Valley Hospital and 2 other hospitals — $2,778.00 less than the median here. Across California, the median is $3,783.24 at 100 hospitals.
Cash prices at 14 facilities across 12 cities for code 72158, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Apr 1, 2026 and Sep 17, 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 Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Desert Valley Hospital lowest Victorville, CA · (760) 241-8000 MRI L-SPINE W&W/O CON | $446.00 | $6,006.45 | $318.04–$6,006.45 | 93% | Sep 1, 2026 source file |
| Chino Valley Medical Center lowest Chino, CA · (909) 627-6111 Hc Mri, Lumbar Spine Combo | $446.00 | $8,359.59 | $318.04–$8,359.59 | 95% | Sep 1, 2026 source file |
| Montclair Hospital Medical Center lowest Montclair, CA · (909) 625-8300 Hc Mri, Lumbar Spine Combo | $446.00 | $8,359.59 | $318.04–$8,359.59 | 95% | Sep 1, 2026 source file |
| San Antonio Regional Hospital Upland, CA · (909) 985-2811 MRI scan of lower spinal canal before and after contrast | $1,461.00 | $16,320.00 | $439.74–$29,988.00 | 91% | Apr 2, 2026 source file |
| St Mary Medical Center Apple Valley, CA · (760) 242-2311 HC MRI LUMBAR SPINE W/O & W/DYE | $1,684.80 | $3,510.00 | — | 52% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Loma Linda University Medical Center - Murrieta Murrieta, CA · (951) 290-4000 HC MRI L-SPINE W & WO CONTRAST | $2,723.40 | $6,052.00 | $325.00–$5,235.12 | 55% | Sep 2, 2026 source file |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Moreno Valley Moreno Valley, CA · (951) 251-6530 MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR W/O & W/CONTR MATRL | $3,224.00 | $6,200.00 | $324.00–$965.00 | 48% | — source file |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Riverside Riverside, CA · (951) 353-2000 MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR W/O & W/CONTR MATRL | $3,224.00 | $6,200.00 | $324.00–$965.00 | 48% | — source file |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Fontana Fontana, CA · (909) 427-5000 MRI SPINAL CANAL LUMBAR W/O & W/CONTR MATRL | $3,224.00 | $6,200.00 | $324.00–$965.00 | 48% | — source file |
| Loma Linda University Childrens Hospital Loma Linda, CA · (909) 558-8000 HC MRI L-SPINE W & WO CONTRAST | $3,224.25 | $7,165.00 | $448.71–$6,090.25 | 55% | Sep 2, 2026 source file |
| Palo Verde Hospital Blythe, CA · (760) 922-4115 MRI Spine Lumbar w/ + w/o Contrast | $4,326.75 | $5,769.00 | — | 25% | Jul 1, 2026 source file |
| Loma Linda University Medical Center Loma Linda, CA · (909) 558-4000 HC MRI L-SPINE W & WO CONTRAST | $5,555.70 | $12,346.00 | $448.71–$11,111.40 | 55% | Sep 2, 2026 source file |
| Hospital of Barstow Barstow, CA · (760) 256-1761 MRI scan of lower spinal canal before and after contrast | $8,050.10 | $13,416.83 | $583.81–$10,733.46 | 40% | Sep 17, 2026 source file |
| Riverside University Medical Center Moreno Valley, CA · (951) 486-4000 HC MRI L-Spine W & WO Contrast | $11,323.54 | $11,323.54 | $221.73–$11,323.54 | — | — source file |
| Riverside University Medical Center Moreno Valley, CA · (951) 486-4000 HC MRI L-Spine W & WO Contrast | $11,323.54 | $11,323.54 | $221.73–$11,323.54 | — | — source file |
Outpatient: lowest $446.00, median $3,224.00, highest $11,323.54 — a 25.4× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 9 facilities here, median $3,224.00. 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 8 of 12 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.