Compare published hospital prices before you open a bill.

What is HospitalPricer?

What is HospitalPricer?

HospitalPricer makes the prices hospitals publish searchable and comparable — discounted cash prices, gross (list) charges, and rates negotiated with insurers. Hospitals are required to post these publicly; we organize them so you can ask better questions before you get care.

Will these prices be my final bill?

No. These are the hospital's published reference prices, not a personalized estimate. What you actually owe depends on your insurance, deductible, network status, the exact services performed, and the care setting. Always confirm with the hospital and your insurer.

Where do the numbers come from?

Directly from the prices each hospital publishes. We never invent or estimate prices — if a hospital doesn't disclose a value, we show nothing.

What does a blank or missing price mean?

It means the hospital did not publish a price for that service in its file. We leave it blank rather than show $0 or guess — a blank is missing data, never a free service.

What is a CPT code?

A CPT (or HCPCS) code is the standardized billing code that identifies a specific medical service — for example, 20610 is a major-joint injection. Hospitals report many of their prices by code, so searching a code lets you compare the exact same service across hospitals.

How do I search by a CPT code?

Type the code — like 70551 for an MRI of the brain — into the search box, or open the CPT / HCPCS codes page. We line up every hospital that publishes a price for that exact code so you compare the same service, not just similar-sounding ones.

How do I compare prices by procedure?

Open a procedure such as MRI, CT scan, or colonoscopy from the Procedures page or search its name. Each procedure page shows the cities and hospitals that publish a price for it, side by side, so you can see how much published prices vary.

How do I compare hospitals by state?

Open the Hospitals page to see coverage by state, the hospital systems represented, and the most widely published procedures, then pick a state to see its hospitals by city. Each state page lists every hospital there with published prices.

How do I compare hospital systems?

Many hospitals belong to a larger system, such as Henry Ford Health or Saint Luke's. On the search page you can filter by system to compare every hospital within it, and each hospital shows the system it belongs to.

What is the difference between a gross charge, a cash price, and a negotiated rate?

The gross (list) charge is the hospital's full undiscounted price and is rarely what anyone pays. The discounted cash price is what the hospital offers a self-pay patient. A negotiated rate is what a specific insurance plan has agreed to pay. We show whichever of these a hospital discloses, labeled clearly.

What is an allowed amount, and what do the 10th and 90th percentiles mean?

An allowed amount is what an insurer has historically paid for a service. Under CMS rules, when a negotiated rate is based on a percentage or formula, hospitals publish the spread of those historical amounts — the 10th percentile (lower end), the median (middle), and the 90th percentile (higher end), plus how many payments it's based on. Where a hospital publishes this, we show it as a range. It is not your final bill, and it is only present on some rows.

Is an allowed amount my final bill?

No. An allowed amount is historical insurer-payment data the hospital publishes, not a quote or what you will owe. What you actually pay depends on your plan, deductible, network status, and the exact services. A blank value means the hospital didn't publish usable allowed-amount data for that item — never that it is $0.

Why do hospital prices vary so much for the same service?

Hospitals set their own prices and negotiate separately with each insurer, so published prices for the same code can differ widely between hospitals — and even between plans at one hospital. Comparing the disclosed prices is exactly what this site is for; it does not mean one hospital is 'better' or 'worse'.

Which states and hospitals are covered?

Coverage is shown live in the coverage section on this page — the current states, hospitals, and cities included. We add more states and hospital systems as we verify their published prices, and we never list a hospital or state without real data behind it.

Why aren't all hospitals listed yet?

We only add a hospital once we can verify the prices it publishes and line them up consistently with other hospitals. We're expanding steadily across states and hospital systems, and a hospital you don't see today may simply not be added yet.

How often do these prices change?

Hospitals update their published prices periodically — often annually, or whenever rates change. We refresh our data when they do. Always confirm current pricing directly with the hospital and your insurer before care.

How should I use this data?

Use it to understand the range of what hospitals publish for a service before you receive care, and as a starting point for questions to your hospital and insurer. It is a research and transparency tool — not a quote, and not medical advice. Always confirm specifics with the hospital and your plan.