Rapid flu test cost in Boston, MA
In Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, 20 hospitals list a cash price for rapid flu test (influenza antigen): from $22.49 to $308.00, with a median of $121.50. The lowest listed price is at Boston Medical Center South — $99.01 less than the median here. Across Massachusetts, the median is $48.44 at 24 hospitals.
- The median here, $121.50, is 101% above the US median of $60.40.
- That is 7.3× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($16.55).
- 12 of 20 hospitals list a cash price equal to their full list price, with no self-pay discount.
Cash prices at 20 facilities across 15 cities for code 87804, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Nov 3, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Dec 15, 2025 and Sep 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 Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston Medical Center South lowest Brockton, MA · (508) 427-3000 HC Chg Detect Agent,Immun,Dir Obs,Influenza File of Mar 13, 2026 · source file | $22.49 | $49.97 | $16.55–$394.86 | 55% |
| Boston Medical Center Brighton Boston, MA · (617) 789-3000 HC Chg Detect Agent,Immun,Dir Obs,Influenza File of Mar 13, 2026 · source file | $25.57 | $56.81 | $12.67–$475.07 | 55% |
| Southcoast Hospitals Group - Tobey Hospital Campus Wareham, MA · (508) 679-3131 HC Detect Agent-Immun-Dir Obs-Influenza File of Dec 15, 2025 · source file | $26.50 | $53.00 | $11.33–$40.33 | 50% |
| Tufts Medical Center Boston, MA · (617) 636-5000 HC Chg Iaadiadoo Influenza File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $37.10 | $53.00 | $13.92–$71.84 | 30% |
| Lowell General Hospital Lowell, MA · (978) 937-6000 HC Chg Iaadiadoo Influenza File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $37.10 | $53.00 | $18.28–$56.68 | 30% |
| Melrosewakefield Healthcare Melrose, MA · (781) 979-3000 HC Chg Iaadiadoo Influenza File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $37.10 | $53.00 | $18.55–$530.75 | 30% |
| Signature Healthcare Brockton Hospital Brockton, MA · (508) 941-7000 INFLUENZA ASSAY W/ OPTIC+2 more lines at this price File of Jan 28, 2026 · source file | $46.90 | $67.00 | $14.90–$39.39 | 30% |
| Emerson Hospital Concord, MA · (978) 369-1400 INFLUENZA INFECTIOUS AGENT File of May 18, 2026 · source file | $106.50 | $142.00 | $11.39–$142.00 | 25% |
| Shriners Childrens - Boston Boston, MA · (617) 722-3000 INFLUENZA ASSAY W/OPTIC File of Mar 17, 2026 · source file | $114.20 | $114.20 | $14.32–$817.41 | — |
| Lahey Hospital & Medical Center, Burlington Burlington, MA · (781) 744-5100 CHG IAADIADOO INFLUENZA File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $116.00 | $116.00 | — | — |
| New England Baptist Hospital Boston, MA · (617) 754-5800 CHG IAADIADOO INFLUENZA File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $127.00 | $127.00 | — | — |
| Parkland Medical Center Derry, NH · (603) 421-2100 INFLUENZA VIRUS A AG OIA+1 more line at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $165.50 | $165.50 | $34.76–$157.22 | — |
| Plaistow Fser Plaistow, NH · (603) 421-2100 INFLUENZA VIRUS B AG OIA+1 more line at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $165.50 | $165.50 | $34.76–$157.22 | — |
| Winchester Hospital Winchester, MA · (781) 729-9000 CHG IAADIADOO INFLUENZA File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $178.00 | $178.00 | — | — |
| Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Boston, MA · (617) 667-7000 CHG IAADIADOO INFLUENZA File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $184.00 | $184.00 | — | — |
| Frisbie Memorial Hospital Rochester, NH · (603) 332-5211 INFLUENZA VIRUS AG OIA+2 more lines at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $246.00 | $246.00 | $65.29–$196.80 | — |
| Dover Emergency Room Dover, NH · (603) 436-5110 INFLUENZA VIRUS B AG OIA+1 more line at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $268.00 | $268.00 | $68.88–$254.60 | — |
| Portsmouth Regional Hospital Portsmouth, NH · (603) 436-5110 INFLUENZA VIRUS B AG OIA+1 more line at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $268.00 | $268.00 | $68.88–$254.60 | — |
| Seabrook Emergency Seabrook, NH · (603) 436-5110 INFLUENZA VIRUS B AG OIA+1 more line at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $268.00 | $268.00 | $68.88–$254.60 | — |
| Exeter Hospital Exeter, NH · (603) 778-7311 CHG IAADIADOO INFLUENZA File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $308.00 | $308.00 | — | — |
Outpatient: lowest $22.49, median $121.50, highest $308.00 — a 13.7× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 13 facilities here, median $106.50. 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 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 rapid flu test is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Rapid flu test explained.