Abdominal MRI cost in Charlotte, NC
In Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC, 17 hospitals list a cash price for MRI of the abdomen without contrast: from $486.50 to $5,709.75, with a median of $1,839.00. The lowest listed price is at MUSC Chester Regional Medical Center — $1,352.50 less than the median here. Across North Carolina, the median is $2,089.50 at 59 hospitals.
- The median here, $1,839.00, is about the same as the US median of $1,864.50.
- That is 7.5× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($243.77).
- 3 of 17 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Cash prices at 17 facilities across 14 cities for code 74181, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Nov 11, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Dec 31, 2025 and Nov 4, 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 Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MUSC Chester Regional Medical Center lowest Chester, SC · (803) 581-3151 HB MRI ABDOMEN WO CONTRAST File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $486.50 | $973.00 | — | 50% |
| Iredell Memorial Hospital Statesville, NC · (704) 878-5661 MRCP+1 more line at this price File of Dec 31, 2025 · source file | $777.06 | $2,878.00 | $659.35–$5,756.00 | 73% |
| Duke Health Lake Norman Hospital Mooresville, NC · (704) 660-4000 HC MRI ABDOMEN WO CNTRST+2 more lines at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $1,795.77 | $6,651.00 | $425.34–$4,323.15 | 73% |
| Carolinas Medical Center Charlotte, NC · (704) 355-2000 HC MRI ABDOMEN W/O CONTRAST+1 more line at this price File of Oct 29, 2026 · source file | $1,839.00 | $3,678.00 | $231.86–$3,310.20 | 50% |
| Carolinas Medical Center-Northeast Concord, NC · (704) 783-3000 HC MRI ABDOMEN W/O CONTRAST File of Nov 4, 2026 · source file | $1,839.00 | $3,678.00 | $231.86–$3,494.10 | 50% |
| Atrium Health Mercy, a facility of Carolinas Medical Center Charlotte, NC HC MRI ABDOMEN W/O CONTRAST File of Oct 29, 2026 · source file | $1,839.00 | $3,678.00 | $231.86–$3,383.76 | 50% |
| Atrium Health Lincoln Lincolnton, NC · (980) 212-2000 HC MRI ABDOMEN W/O CONTRAST File of Oct 29, 2026 · source file | $1,839.00 | $3,678.00 | $231.86–$3,494.10 | 50% |
| Atrium Health Anson Wadesboro, NC · (704) 694-5131 HC MRI ABDOMEN W/O CONTRAST File of Oct 28, 2026 · source file | $1,839.00 | $3,678.00 | $231.86–$3,494.10 | 50% |
| Atrium Health Pineville Charlotte, NC · (704) 379-5000 HC MRI ABDOMEN W/O CONTRAST File of Oct 29, 2026 · source file | $1,839.00 | $3,678.00 | $231.86–$3,383.76 | 50% |
| Atrium Health Union Monroe, NC · (704) 283-3100 HC MRI ABDOMEN W/O CONTRAST File of Oct 29, 2026 · source file | $1,839.00 | $3,678.00 | $231.86–$3,494.10 | 50% |
| Atrium Health University City Charlotte, NC · (704) 548-6000 HC MRI ABDOMEN W/O CONTRAST File of Oct 29, 2026 · source file | $1,839.00 | $3,678.00 | $231.86–$3,567.66 | 50% |
| MUSC Lancaster Medical Center Lancaster, SC · (803) 286-1481 HB MRI ABDOMEN WO CONTRAST File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $3,009.50 | $6,019.00 | — | 50% |
| CaroMont Regional Medical Center - Gastonia Gastonia, NC · (704) 834-4891 HCHG MRI ABDOMEN WO CONT File of May 11, 2026 · source file | $4,708.00 | $4,708.00 | $243.77–$4,472.60 | — |
| Gaston Memorial Hospital Belmont, NC · (704) 834-4891 HCHG MRI ABDOMEN WO CONT File of May 11, 2026 · source file | $4,708.00 | $4,708.00 | $243.77–$4,472.60 | — |
| Gaston Memorial Hospital Mount Holly, NC · (704) 834-4891 HCHG MRI ABDOMEN WO CONT File of May 11, 2026 · source file | $4,708.00 | $4,708.00 | $243.77–$4,472.60 | — |
| Piedmont Medical Center Fort Mill, SC · (803) 329-1234 MRI ABDOMEN W/O CM File of Apr 15, 2026 · source file | $5,709.75 | $7,613.00 | $1.00–$5,785.88 | 25% |
| Piedmont Medical Center Rock Hill, SC · (803) 329-1234 MRI ABDOMEN W/O CM File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $5,709.75 | $7,613.00 | $1.00–$5,785.88 | 25% |
Outpatient: lowest $486.50, median $1,839.00, highest $5,709.75 — a 11.7× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 16 facilities here, median $1,839.00. 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 12 of 15 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 abdominal MRI is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Abdominal MRI explained.