Barium swallow cost in Pittsburgh, PA
In Pittsburgh, PA, 15 hospitals list a cash price for Barium swallow (esophagus X-ray with contrast): from $237.00 to $1,312.80, with a median of $810.00. The lowest listed price is at UPMC Jameson — $573.00 less than the median here. Across Pennsylvania, the median is $427.80 at 63 hospitals.
Cash prices at 15 facilities across 10 cities for code 74220, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Mar 6, 2026 and Apr 14, 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 Pittsburgh, PA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UPMC Jameson lowest New Castle, PA ESOPHAGUS X-RAY XM SNGL CNTRST | $237.00 | $395.00 | $25.88–$420.98 | 40% | — source file |
| UPMC Washington Washington, PA ESOPHAGUS/BA SWALLOW | $324.10 | $463.00 | $43.12–$391.41 | 30% | — source file |
| Uniontown Hospital Uniontown, PA SINGLE CONTRAST X-RAY OF ESOPHAGUS | $460.00 | $920.00 | $21.36–$396.12 | 50% | — source file |
| Uniontown Hospital Uniontown, PA X-RAY XM ESOPHAGUS 1CNTRST | $510.00 | $1,020.00 | $21.36–$396.12 | 50% | — source file |
| UPMC Washington Washington, PA ESOPHAGUS SINGLE CONTRAST | $556.50 | $795.00 | $43.12–$572.40 | 30% | — source file |
| West Penn Allegheny Health System INC Wexford, PA HC XR ESOPHAGUS W CNTRST | $688.20 | $930.00 | $36.00–$568.98 | 26% | Apr 14, 2026 source file |
| West Penn Allegheny Health System INC Wexford, PA HC LIMITED ESOPHOGRAM | $688.20 | $930.00 | $36.00–$568.98 | 26% | Apr 14, 2026 source file |
| Jefferson Regional Medical Center Jefferson Hills, PA HC XR ESOPHAGUS W CNTRST | $753.30 | $930.00 | $36.00–$561.00 | 19% | Apr 14, 2026 source file |
| UPMC St Margaret Pittsburgh, PA ESOPHAGUS X-RAY XM SNGL CNTRST | $779.40 | $1,299.00 | $41.25–$1,104.15 | 40% | — source file |
| UPMC Passavant - McCandless Pittsburgh, PA HC ESOPHAGUS | $804.00 | $1,340.00 | $41.25–$1,139.00 | 40% | — source file |
| UPMC McKeesport McKeesport, PA ESOPHAGUS X-RAY XM SNGL CNTRST | $810.00 | $1,350.00 | $41.25–$1,147.50 | 40% | — source file |
| UPMC East Monroeville, PA ESOPHAGUS X-RAY XM SNGL CNTRST | $832.80 | $1,388.00 | $41.25–$1,110.40 | 40% | — source file |
| UPMC Mercy Pittsburgh, PA ESOPHAGUS X-RAY XM SNGL CNTRST | $873.00 | $1,455.00 | $41.25–$1,309.50 | 40% | — source file |
| UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital Pittsburgh, PA HC ESOPHAGUS | $903.60 | $1,506.00 | $41.25–$1,385.52 | 40% | — source file |
| UPMC Childrens Hospital of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh, PA ESOPHAGUS X-RAY XM SNGL CNTRST | $976.80 | $1,628.00 | $86.56–$1,465.20 | 40% | Mar 6, 2026 source file |
| Highlands Hospital Connellsville, PA ESOPHAGUS | $1,293.00 | $2,155.00 | $726.24–$1,680.90 | 40% | — source file |
| Monogahela Valley Hospital Monongahela, PA BA/RHB SWALLOW | $1,293.00 | $2,155.00 | $579.70–$2,640.95 | 40% | — source file |
| Monogahela Valley Hospital Monongahela, PA BARIUM SWALLOW/ESOPHAGUS | $1,293.00 | $2,155.00 | $579.70–$2,640.95 | 40% | — source file |
| UPMC Presbyterian Pittsburgh, PA ESOPHAGUS X-RAY XM SNGL CNTRST | $1,312.80 | $2,188.00 | $27.00–$1,859.80 | 40% | Mar 6, 2026 source file |
Outpatient: lowest $237.00, median $810.00, highest $1,312.80 — a 5.5× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 14 facilities here, median $821.40. 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 it is
A barium swallow is a live X-ray of the esophagus while you drink barium. It shows narrowing, hernias and problems with how food passes.
What the price covers
The price usually covers the study and the barium. The radiologist's reading may be billed separately.
2 rows held back from this comparison
They are priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 74220 ($425.55). Such a line is almost always a physician's fee billed separately, an assistant's share or a placeholder — a real charge, but not the price of the procedure itself.
| Jefferson Regional Medical Center Jefferson Hills, PACHG RADIOLOGIC EXAM ESOPHAGUS SINGLE CONTRAST STUDY | $15.20 | file |
| West Penn Allegheny Health System INC Wexford, PACHG RADIOLOGIC EXAM ESOPHAGUS SINGLE CONTRAST STUDY | $20.80 | file |