Urine culture cost in Columbus, OH
In Columbus, OH, 16 hospitals list a cash price for urine culture for bacteria, with colony count: from $41.60 to $135.85, with a median of $83.73. The lowest listed price is at Mount Carmel Grove City and 5 other hospitals — $42.13 less than the median here. Across Ohio, the median is $53.10 at 99 hospitals.
Cash prices at 16 facilities across 10 cities for code 87086, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Carmel Grove City lowest Grove City, OH HC Culture Colony Count Urine | $41.60 | $64.00 | $7.09–$632.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Diley Ridge Medical Center lowest Canal Winchester, OH · (614) 838-7911 HC Culture Colony Count Urine | $41.60 | $64.00 | $7.09–$632.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Mount Carmel East lowest Columbus, OH · (614) 234-5000 HC Culture Colony Count Urine | $41.60 | $64.00 | $7.09–$632.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Mount Carmel New Albany Surgical Hospital lowest New Albany, OH · (614) 775-6600 HC Culture Colony Count Urine | $41.60 | $64.00 | $7.09–$632.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Mount Carmel Dublin lowest Dublin, OH · (380) 898-9000 HC Culture Colony Count Urine | $41.60 | $64.00 | $7.09–$69.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Mount Carmel St Ann's lowest Westerville, OH · (614) 546-4034 HC Culture Colony Count Urine | $41.60 | $64.00 | $7.09–$632.00 | 35% | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
| Morrow County Hospital Mount Gilead, OH · (419) 946-5015 Bacterial colony count, urine | $49.86 | $76.70 | $3.98–$74.40 | 35% | Oct 22, 2025 source file |
| Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus, OH · (614) 722-2000 URINE CULTURE, QUANTITATIVE | $81.00 | $90.00 | $42.30–$88.20 | 10% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Grady Memorial Hospital Delaware, OH · (740) 368-5145 Hc Culture Urine Aerobic Colony Count | $86.45 | $133.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Berger Hospital Circleville, OH · (740) 420-8008 Hc Culture Urine Aerobic Colony Count | $87.75 | $135.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Pickerington Methodist Hospital Pickerington, OH Hc Culture Urine Aerobic Colony Count | $135.85 | $209.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Grove City Methodist Grove City, OH Hc Culture Urine Aerobic Colony Count | $135.85 | $209.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Doctors Hospital Columbus, OH · (614) 544-2136 Hc Culture Urine Aerobic Colony Count | $135.85 | $209.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Riverside Methodist Hospital Columbus, OH · (614) 566-5000 Hc Culture Urine Aerobic Colony Count | $135.85 | $209.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Grant Medical Center Columbus, OH · (614) 566-9164 Hc Culture Urine Aerobic Colony Count | $135.85 | $209.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Dublin Methodist Hospital Dublin, OH · (614) 544-8000 Hc Culture Urine Aerobic Colony Count | $135.85 | $209.00 | — | 35% | Apr 1, 2026 source file |
| Mount Carmel St Ann's Westerville, OH · (614) 546-4034 HC Culture Colony Count Urine | $20,157.70 | — | $632.00–$7,518.69 | — | Mar 31, 2026 source file |
Outpatient: lowest $41.60, median $83.73, highest $135.85 — a 3.3× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 15 facilities here, median $86.45. 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 urine culture grows bacteria from a urine sample in the lab and counts how many colonies appear. It is used to confirm a urinary tract infection, especially when symptoms return or first treatment does not work.
What the price covers
The price usually covers the culture and colony count. If bacteria grow, identifying them and testing which antibiotics work are separate codes with their own charges.