COVID-19 PCR test cost in Louisville, KY
In Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN, 18 hospitals list a cash price for COVID-19 PCR test (SARS-CoV-2 lab test): from $26.18 to $154.80, with a median of $57.94. The lowest listed price is at Norton Clark Hospital — $31.76 less than the median here. Across Kentucky, the median is $68.39 at 61 hospitals.
- The median here, $57.94, is 41% below the US median of $98.92.
- That is 1.1× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($51.31).
- Every hospital here lists a cash price below its full list price.
Cash prices at 18 facilities across 9 cities for code 87635, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Nov 9, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Jan 1, 2026 and Sep 30, 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 Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Norton Clark Hospital lowest Jeffersonville, IN · (812) 283-2147 HB COVID-19 NON CDC File of Jun 3, 2026 · source file | $26.18 | $187.00 | $20.52–$163.63 | 86% |
| University of Louisville Hospital Louisville, KY · (502) 562-3000 SARS-COV-2 COVID-19 AMP File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $34.80 | $145.00 | $24.36–$145.00 | 76% |
| Saints Mary & Elizabeth Hospital Louisville, KY SARS-COV-2 COVID-19 AMP File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $52.20 | $145.00 | $24.36–$145.00 | 64% |
| Norton Children's Hospital Louisville, KY HB COVID-19 (S/O) File of Feb 11, 2026 · source file | $53.60 | $268.00 | $44.22–$227.80 | 80% |
| Norton Brownsboro Hospital Louisville, KY HB COVID-19 (S/O) File of Feb 11, 2026 · source file | $53.60 | $268.00 | $44.22–$222.44 | 80% |
| Norton Hospital Louisville, KY · (502) 629-8000 HB COVID-19 (S/O) File of Feb 11, 2026 · source file | $53.60 | $268.00 | $44.22–$222.44 | 80% |
| Norton West Louisville Hospital Louisville, KY HB COVID-19 (S/O) File of Feb 11, 2026 · source file | $53.60 | $268.00 | $44.22–$222.44 | 80% |
| Norton Women's and Kosair Children's Hospital Louisville, KY HB COVID-19 (S/O) File of Feb 13, 2026 · source file | $53.60 | $268.00 | $44.22–$222.44 | 80% |
| UofL Health -Shelbyville Shelbyville, KY · (502) 647-4000 SARS-COV-2 COVID-19 AMP File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $55.10 | $145.00 | $19.42–$145.00 | 62% |
| CHI Saint Joseph Flaget Memorial Hospital Bardstown, KY · (502) 350-5000 Iadna Sars-Cov-2 Covid-19 Amplified Probe Tq+1 more line at this price File of Sep 30, 2026 · source file | $60.77 | $144.00 | $20.52–$114.77 | 58% |
| UofL Health-Louisville – South Hospital Shepherdville, KY SARS-COV-2 COVID-19 AMP File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $65.25 | $145.00 | $24.36–$145.00 | 55% |
| UofL Health - Jewish Hospital and Mary & Elizabeth Hospital Louisville, KY · (502) 587-4011 SARS-COV-2 COVID-19 AMP File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $65.25 | $145.00 | $24.36–$145.00 | 55% |
| Norton Brownsboro Hospital Louisville, KY HB COVID-19 NON CDC File of Feb 11, 2026 · source file | $69.80 | $349.00 | $51.31–$289.67 | 80% |
| Norton Hospital Louisville, KY · (502) 629-8000 HB COVID-19 NON CDC File of Feb 11, 2026 · source file | $69.80 | $349.00 | $51.31–$289.67 | 80% |
| Norton Women's and Kosair Children's Hospital Louisville, KY HB COVID-19 NON CDC File of Feb 13, 2026 · source file | $69.80 | $349.00 | $51.31–$289.67 | 80% |
| Norton Children's Hospital Louisville, KY HB COVID-19 NON CDC File of Feb 11, 2026 · source file | $69.80 | $349.00 | $51.31–$296.65 | 80% |
| Norton West Louisville Hospital Louisville, KY HB COVID-19 NON CDC File of Feb 11, 2026 · source file | $69.80 | $349.00 | $51.31–$289.67 | 80% |
| Our Lady of Peace Louisville, KY SO SARS-COV-2 COVID-19 AMP File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $81.49 | $145.00 | $26.10–$145.00 | 44% |
| St. Vincent Salem Hospital Salem, IN · (812) 883-5881 SARS-COV-2 COVID19 AMP PRB HIGHTECH+1 more line at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $126.60 | $211.00 | $20.52–$116.99 | 40% |
| St. Vincent Salem Hospital Salem, IN · (812) 883-5881 SARS-COV-2 COVID-19 AMP PRB+1 more line at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $132.60 | $221.00 | $20.52–$116.99 | 40% |
| Baptist Health LaGrange La Grange, KY · (502) 222-5388 Amplifed DNA or RNA probe detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (Covid-19) antigen File of Sep 25, 2026 · source file | $134.69 | $179.59 | $20.52–$359.18 | 25% |
| Baptist Health Floyd New Albany, IN · (812) 944-7701 Amplifed DNA or RNA probe detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (Covid-19) antigen File of Sep 25, 2026 · source file | $134.69 | $179.59 | $20.52–$269.39 | 25% |
| Baptist Health Louisville Louisville, KY · (502) 897-8100 Amplifed DNA or RNA probe detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (Covid-19) antigen File of Sep 25, 2026 · source file | $134.69 | $179.59 | $20.52–$359.18 | 25% |
| Harrison County Hospital Corydon, IN · (812) 738-4251 Amplifed DNA or RNA probe detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (Covid-19) antigen File of Jul 16, 2026 · source file | $154.80 | $258.00 | $20.52–$232.20 | 40% |
| St. Vincent Salem Hospital Salem, IN · (812) 883-5881 SARS-COV-2 COVID-19 AMP PRB VIRACOR+1 more line at this price File of Jan 1, 2026 · source file | $430.80 | $718.00 | $20.52–$116.99 | 40% |
Outpatient: lowest $26.18, median $57.94, highest $154.80 — a 5.9× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 14 facilities here, median $53.60. 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 17 of 18 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 COVID-19 PCR test is, what the price covers and why prices differ: COVID-19 PCR test explained.