Therapy session, 30 min cost in San Diego, CA
In San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA, 12 hospitals list a cash price for psychotherapy session, 30 minutes: from $138.75 to $318.24, with a median of $270.00. The lowest listed price is at Rady Children's Hospital - San Diego — $131.25 less than the median here. Across California, the median is $318.24 at 117 hospitals.
- The median here, $270.00, is 60% above the US median of $168.38.
- That is 1.5× Medicare's 2026 national rate for the same service ($181.34).
- San Diego, CA ranks 2nd of 4 metro areas in California by median, cheapest first.
- Every hospital here lists a cash price below its full list price.
Cash prices at 12 facilities across 8 cities for code 90832, as an outpatient — the setting a self-pay patient normally buys. Collected Sep 29, 2026; the hospital files themselves were last updated between Apr 1, 2026 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 San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA.
Hospitals, cheapest first
| Hospital | Cash price | List price | Insurers pay | Off list |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rady Children's Hospital - San Diego lowest San Diego, CA · (858) 576-1700 Rch Therapy Ncrc 30 Minutes File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $138.75 | $185.00 | — | 25% |
| Rady Children's Hospital - San Diego San Diego, CA · (858) 576-1700 Rch Individual Therapy 30Min Lcsw+2 more lines at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $139.20 | $185.60 | — | 25% |
| UC San Diego Medical Center San Diego, CA · (619) 543-6222 Individual therapy, 30 minutes File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $165.55 | $301.00 | $34.10–$406.35 | 45% |
| Rady Children's Hospital - San Diego San Diego, CA · (858) 576-1700 Rch Psychotherapy Patient &/ Family 30 Minutes+2 more lines at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $174.00 | $232.00 | — | 25% |
| Rady Children's Hospital - San Diego San Diego, CA · (858) 576-1700 Rch Individual Therapy 30 Min Phd File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $200.25 | $267.00 | — | 25% |
| Paradise Valley Hospital National City, CA · (619) 470-4321 PSYCH IND ACT 20-30M+2 more lines at this price File of Sep 1, 2026 · source file | $227.00 | $375.00 | $18.98–$1,044.75 | 39% |
| Sharp Mesa Vista Hospital San Diego, CA · (858) 278-4110 HC PSYCHOTHERAPY PATIENT &/ FAMILY 30 MINUTES File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $270.00 | $360.00 | $106.92–$324.00 | 25% |
| Sharp Coronado Hospital and Healthcare Center Coronado, CA · (619) 435-6251 HC PSYCHOTHERAPY PATIENT &/ FAMILY 30 MINUTES File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $270.00 | $360.00 | $1.00–$352.80 | 25% |
| Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center Chula Vista, CA · (619) 502-5800 HC PSYCHOTHERAPY PATIENT &/ FAMILY 30 MINUTES File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $270.00 | $360.00 | $1.15–$352.80 | 25% |
| Grossmont Hospital La Mesa, CA · (619) 465-0711 HC PSYCHOTHERAPY PATIENT &/ FAMILY 30 MINUTES File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $270.00 | $360.00 | $50.40–$6,868.48 | 25% |
| Palomar Medical Center Poway Poway, CA · (858) 485-6511 Indiv Therapy Brief 30 min PHP+1 more line at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $308.15 | $513.58 | — | 40% |
| Palomar Medical Center Escondido Escondido, CA Indiv Therapy 30 MIN Brief OP+1 more line at this price File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $308.15 | $513.58 | — | 40% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Diego - Clairemont Mesa San Diego, CA · (619) 528-5000 PSYCHOTHERAPY W/PATIENT 30 MINUTES File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $318.24 | $612.00 | — | 48% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Diego - Zion San Diego, CA · (619) 528-5000 PSYCHOTHERAPY W/PATIENT 30 MINUTES File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $318.24 | $612.00 | — | 48% |
| Kaiser Foundation Hospital - San Marcos San Marcos, CA · (760) 528-6295 PSYCHOTHERAPY W/PATIENT 30 MINUTES File of Apr 1, 2026 · source file | $318.24 | $612.00 | — | 48% |
Outpatient: lowest $138.75, median $270.00, highest $318.24 — a 2.3× difference within the same market.
As an inpatient, the same code is billed by 11 facilities here, median $270.00. 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 6 of 6 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 therapy session, 30 min is, what the price covers and why prices differ: Therapy session, 30 min explained.