CEA test cost in San Francisco, CA
In San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA, 23 hospitals list a cash price for carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) test: from $134.40 to $286.00, with a median of $193.29. The lowest listed price is at Stanford Health Care Tri-Valley — $58.89 less than the median here. Across California, the median is $106.38 at 189 hospitals.
Cash prices at 23 facilities across 15 cities for code 82378, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 29, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Feb 28, 2026 and Jul 22, 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 San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stanford Health Care Tri-Valley lowest Pleasanton, CA · (925) 847-3000 HC Cea | $134.40 | $336.00 | — | 60% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Chinese Hospital San Francisco, CA · (415) 677-2480 Carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) protein level | $138.00 | $138.00 | $18.96–$260.90 | — | Jul 22, 2026 source file |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Antioch Antioch, CA · (925) 813-6500 CARCINOEMBRYONIC ANTIGEN CEA | $192.08 | $343.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% | — source file |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Rafael San Rafael, CA · (415) 444-2000 CARCINOEMBRYONIC ANTIGEN CEA | $192.08 | $343.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% | — source file |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Leandro San Leandro, CA · (510) 454-1000 CARCINOEMBRYONIC ANTIGEN CEA | $192.08 | $343.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% | — source file |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Fremont Fremont, CA · (510) 784-4000 CARCINOEMBRYONIC ANTIGEN CEA | $192.08 | $343.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% | — source file |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Francisco San Francisco, CA · (415) 833-2646 CARCINOEMBRYONIC ANTIGEN CEA | $192.08 | $343.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% | — source file |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Redwood City Redwood City, CA · (650) 299-2000 CARCINOEMBRYONIC ANTIGEN CEA | $192.08 | $343.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% | — source file |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Oakland/Richmond Oakland, CA · (510) 752-1000 CARCINOEMBRYONIC ANTIGEN CEA | $192.08 | $343.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% | — source file |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - Walnut Creek Walnut Creek, CA · (925) 295-4000 CARCINOEMBRYONIC ANTIGEN CEA | $192.08 | $343.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% | — source file |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - South San Francisco South San Francisco, CA · (650) 742-3200 CARCINOEMBRYONIC ANTIGEN CEA | $192.08 | $343.00 | $18.00–$55.00 | 44% | — source file |
| Sequoia Hospital Redwood City, CA · (650) 369-5811 CARCINOEMBRYONIC AG | $193.29 | $531.00 | $18.96–$435.42 | 64% | Feb 28, 2026 source file |
| California Pacific Medical Center- Van Ness Campus San Francisco, CA · (415) 600-6000 HCHG CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center - Herrick Campus Berkeley, CA · (510) 204-4444 HCHG CORE CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center - Herrick Campus Berkeley, CA · (510) 204-4444 HCHG CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center-Summit Campus-Hawthorne Oakland, CA · (510) 655-4000 HCHG CORE CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center-Summit Campus-Hawthorne Oakland, CA · (510) 655-4000 HCHG CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Mills-Peninsula Medical Center Burlingame, CA · (650) 696-5400 HCHG CORE CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Mills-Peninsula Medical Center Burlingame, CA · (650) 696-5400 HCHG CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Novato Community Hospital Novato, CA · (415) 209-1300 HCHG CORE CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Mills Health Center San Mateo, CA · (650) 696-5400 HCHG CORE CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Novato Community Hospital Novato, CA · (415) 209-1300 HCHG CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Mills Health Center San Mateo, CA · (650) 696-5400 HCHG CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Sutter Delta Medical Center Antioch, CA · (925) 779-7200 HCHG CORE CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center Oakland, CA · (510) 655-4000 HCHG CORE CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center Oakland, CA · (510) 655-4000 HCHG CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| California Pacific Medical Ctr-Davies Campus Hospital San Francisco, CA · (415) 600-6000 HCHG CORE CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| California Pacific Medical Ctr-Davies Campus Hospital San Francisco, CA · (415) 600-6000 HCHG CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Eden Medical Center Castro Valley, CA · (510) 537-1234 HCHG CORE CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Eden Medical Center Castro Valley, CA · (510) 537-1234 HCHG CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center - Alta Bates Camp Berkeley, CA · (510) 204-4444 HCHG CORE CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Alta Bates Summit Medical Center - Alta Bates Camp Berkeley, CA · (510) 204-4444 HCHG CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| California Pacific Medical Center- Van Ness Campus San Francisco, CA · (415) 600-6000 HCHG CORE CEA | $286.00 | $286.00 | — | — | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
Outpatient: lowest $134.40, median $193.29, highest $286.00 — a 2.1× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 22 facilities here, median $286.00. 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 2 of 11 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 CEA test measures a protein that can be high in colorectal and some other cancers. It is used to follow treatment and watch for recurrence, not to screen healthy people.
What the price covers
The price usually covers running the test. The blood draw (36415) is often billed as a separate line.
6 rows held back from this comparison
They are priced below $1 or below a tenth of the national median for code 82378 ($111.00). 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.
| St. Rose Hospital Hayward, CALC -CARCINOEMBRYONICAGCEA | $0.95 | file |
| Sequoia Hospital Redwood City, CARL-A-CEA 80080 | $2.19 | file |
| Sequoia Hospital Redwood City, CARL-A-CEA FL 20742 | $3.64 | file |
| Stanford Health Care Tri-Valley Pleasanton, CAHC 6956 Cea | $4.49 | file |
| St. Rose Hospital Hayward, CALC -CARCINO EMBRYONICAG | $6.42 | file |
| St. Rose Hospital Hayward, CALC-CEA FLUID | $6.89 | file |