Blood culture cost in Columbus, OH
In Columbus, OH, 16 hospitals list a cash price for blood culture for bacteria: from $37.80 to $124.80, with a median of $97.18. The lowest listed price is at Nationwide Children's Hospital — $59.38 less than the median here. Across Ohio, the median is $93.60 at 99 hospitals.
Cash prices at 16 facilities across 10 cities for code 87040, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 23, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Oct 22, 2025 and Apr 1, 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 Columbus, OH.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list | File date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nationwide Children's Hospital lowest Columbus, OH · (614) 722-2000 RFIDB REFERRED TESTING ID BLOOD | $37.80 | $42.00 | $19.74–$41.16 | 10% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Morrow County Hospital Mount Gilead, OH · (419) 946-5015 Bacterial blood culture | $84.37 | $129.80 | $5.10–$125.91 | 35% | Oct 22, 2025 source file |
| Doctors Hospital Columbus, OH · (614) 544-2136 Hc Culture Blood Aerob Anaerob Pltlt | $93.60 | $144.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Doctors Hospital Columbus, OH · (614) 544-2136 Hc Bacterial Culture, Cell Product | $93.60 | $144.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Dublin Methodist Hospital Dublin, OH · (614) 544-8000 Hc Culture Blood Aerob Anaerob Pltlt | $93.60 | $144.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Riverside Methodist Hospital Columbus, OH · (614) 566-5000 Hc Culture Blood Aerob Anaerob Pltlt | $93.60 | $144.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Dublin Methodist Hospital Dublin, OH · (614) 544-8000 Hc Bacterial Culture, Cell Product | $93.60 | $144.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Grant Medical Center Columbus, OH · (614) 566-9164 Hc Culture Blood Aerob Anaerob Pltlt | $93.60 | $144.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Pickerington Methodist Hospital Pickerington, OH Hc Bacterial Culture, Cell Product | $93.60 | $144.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Grant Medical Center Columbus, OH · (614) 566-9164 Hc Bacterial Culture, Cell Product | $93.60 | $144.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Grove City Methodist Grove City, OH Hc Culture Blood Aerob Anaerob Pltlt | $93.60 | $144.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Pickerington Methodist Hospital Pickerington, OH Hc Culture Blood Aerob Anaerob Pltlt | $93.60 | $144.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Grove City Methodist Grove City, OH Hc Bacterial Culture, Cell Product | $93.60 | $144.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Riverside Methodist Hospital Columbus, OH · (614) 566-5000 Hc Bacterial Culture, Cell Product | $93.60 | $144.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Grady Memorial Hospital Delaware, OH · (740) 368-5145 Hc Culture Blood | $100.75 | $155.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Grady Memorial Hospital Delaware, OH · (740) 368-5145 Hc Culture Blood Aerob Anaerob Pltlt | $100.75 | $155.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Berger Hospital Circleville, OH · (740) 420-8008 Hc Culture Blood Aerob Anaerob Pltlt | $103.35 | $159.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Berger Hospital Circleville, OH · (740) 420-8008 Hc Culture Blood | $103.35 | $159.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Diley Ridge Medical Center Canal Winchester, OH · (614) 838-7911 HC Culture Blood | $124.80 | $192.00 | $9.07–$632.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Mount Carmel Grove City Grove City, OH HC Culture Blood | $124.80 | $192.00 | $9.07–$632.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Mount Carmel St Ann's Westerville, OH · (614) 546-4034 HC Culture Blood | $124.80 | $192.00 | $9.07–$632.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Mount Carmel Dublin Dublin, OH · (380) 898-9000 HC Culture Blood | $124.80 | $192.00 | $9.07–$192.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Mount Carmel New Albany Surgical Hospital New Albany, OH · (614) 775-6600 HC Culture Blood | $124.80 | $192.00 | $9.07–$632.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Mount Carmel East Columbus, OH · (614) 234-5000 HC Culture Blood | $124.80 | $192.00 | $9.07–$632.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Doctors Hospital Columbus, OH · (614) 544-2136 Hc Culture Blood | $157.95 | $243.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Dublin Methodist Hospital Dublin, OH · (614) 544-8000 Hc Culture Blood | $157.95 | $243.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Riverside Methodist Hospital Columbus, OH · (614) 566-5000 Hc Culture Blood | $157.95 | $243.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Pickerington Methodist Hospital Pickerington, OH Hc Culture Blood | $157.95 | $243.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Grove City Methodist Grove City, OH Hc Culture Blood | $157.95 | $243.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Grant Medical Center Columbus, OH · (614) 566-9164 Hc Culture Blood | $157.95 | $243.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus, OH · (614) 722-2000 CULTURE BLOOD | $190.80 | $212.00 | $99.64–$207.76 | 10% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Diley Ridge Medical Center Canal Winchester, OH · (614) 838-7911 HC Culture Blood | $921.05 | — | $19.33–$632.00 | — | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Mount Carmel East Columbus, OH · (614) 234-5000 HC Culture Blood | $4,372.32 | — | $9.66–$1,965.35 | — | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Mount Carmel St Ann's Westerville, OH · (614) 546-4034 HC Culture Blood | $9,505.31 | — | $632.00–$9,259.00 | — | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
Outpatient: lowest $37.80, median $97.18, highest $124.80 — a 3.3× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 15 facilities here, median $100.75. 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 8 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 blood culture checks for bacteria or yeast in the blood. It is ordered for fever with signs of a serious infection, such as sepsis.
What the price covers
The price is usually for one culture set. The blood draw (36415) is often billed as a separate line.