Hip and knee replacement in China
Hip and knee replacement at a Chinese public hospital, after national implant price cuts
For people in the US, UK, Canada and Australia facing a long wait or a five-figure bill for a new hip or knee. China’s 2021 national procurement cut the average price of a hip or knee prosthesis by 82%. At two public tertiary hospitals studied in 2022, the whole hospital bill averaged about CNY 26,365–26,530 (≈ USD 3,950) for local patients. Foreign patients pay in full and there is no official price for them, so every quote is individual.
Total hospital bill for a hip, mean per stay, one Zhejiang tertiary hospital (peer-reviewed study, 2022, local patients)
CNY 26,530 (≈ USD 3,950)
Total hospital bill for a knee, mean per stay, one Shandong tertiary hospital (peer-reviewed study, 2022, insured patients)
CNY 26,365 (≈ USD 3,950)
Average hip prosthesis price after China’s 2021 national procurement (was about CNY 35,000)
CNY 7,000 (≈ USD 1,050)
UK private hip replacement, average guide package price, Leeds (PHIN, 2025)
GBP 14,071
Hip or knee replacement, published prices (sources: hospital, insurer and broker pages, 2023–26; China: peer-reviewed single-hospital studies, 2022)
| Where | Price | What it covers (source type, year) |
|---|---|---|
| USA (Arizona hospital, self-pay) | USD 19,500 hip; USD 22,250 total joint | One night in hospital; excludes surgeon and anaesthetist fees (hospital price list, current) |
| USA (Oklahoma surgery centre) | USD 17,679 knee | All-inclusive cash price with surgeon, anaesthesia and physio (clinic page, current) |
| UK private | GBP 14,071 hip; GBP 13,315–15,720 knee | Guide package prices in Leeds, including surgeon and aftercare (PHIN, 2025) |
| Canada private | CAD 20,000–28,000 per joint | Private clinic prices (CBC, 2023) |
| Australia private | AUD 24,092–29,208 hip; AUD 22,189–26,852 knee | Hospital charges only, excluding doctors’ fees (insurer claims data, 2023–24) |
| Turkey (Istanbul) | EUR 9,100–16,900 hip | Includes prosthesis, hospital nights and initial physio (hospital group guide, 2026) |
| Mexico (Tijuana) | USD 9,000–15,000 knee | Packages usually include surgeon, anaesthesia and implant (broker, 2026) |
| India | USD 5,000–10,300 knee | International patient listings (broker, 2026) |
| Thailand (Bangkok) | THB 310,000 knee; THB 420,000 hip | Standard packages exclude the implant, consultations and lab tests; robotic knee with implant THB 460,000 (hospital package, 2026) |
| China, hip (one Zhejiang tertiary hospital) | CNY 26,530 (≈ USD 3,950) | Mean total hospital bill per stay, before insurance, local patients; not a price list (peer-reviewed study, 2022) |
| China, knee (one Shandong tertiary hospital) | CNY 26,365 (≈ USD 3,950) | Mean total hospital bill per stay, insured local patients; not a price list (peer-reviewed study, 2022) |
| China, foreign patients | Quoted individually | No official figure; foreign patients pay the full price |
United States
Self-pay prices rarely mean the same thing
One Arizona hospital lists a self-pay hip replacement at USD 19,500, but that excludes the surgeon’s and anaesthetist’s fees. One Oklahoma surgery centre lists an all-inclusive knee at USD 17,679. Before you compare anything, ask what the price leaves out.
United Kingdom
A long list, or about GBP 14,000 privately
In June 2026, only 60.9% of people on England’s trauma and orthopaedics waiting list had waited under 18 weeks, against a 92% standard. Going private costs an average guide price of about GBP 14,071 for a hip in Leeds and GBP 13,315–15,720 for a knee (PHIN, 2025).
Canada & Australia
Private surgery is expensive or restricted
Canadian private clinics charge about CAD 20,000–28,000 per joint, and Alberta residents cannot have private surgery for an insured service in their own province (CBC, 2023). In Australia, hospital charges alone for a hip are AUD 24,092–29,208 before doctors’ fees (Medibank claims, 2023–24).
Why China
National procurement cut the price of the implant itself
In China’s 2021 national procurement, the average hip prosthesis fell from about CNY 35,000 (≈ USD 5,200) to about CNY 7,000 (≈ USD 1,050) and the average knee from about CNY 32,000 (≈ USD 4,800) to about CNY 5,000 (≈ USD 750). At two tertiary hospitals studied after the change, the whole hospital bill averaged about CNY 26,365–26,530 (≈ USD 3,950) for local patients. As a foreign patient you pay the full price without Chinese insurance, so we get an individual quote from the hospital for your case.
Plan for the recovery
Leaving hospital is not the same as flying home
UK hospitals advise waiting about 12 weeks after a hip or knee replacement before a long-haul flight, and surgeons’ advice in one UK survey ranged from 35 to 180 days. A trip to China for a joint replacement therefore means either a long stay or a flight date agreed with your surgeon in advance, with blood-clot prevention and a fit-to-fly letter. We plan this with you before you book.
We handle the China part
An English-speaking coordinator from airport to aftercare
We book the hospital, meet you at the airport, arrange a hotel near the hospital, put an interpreter beside you at every appointment, help with WeChat and Alipay payment, translate your reports into English and stay in touch for follow-up after you fly home.
How a joint replacement trip to China works
- 1
1. Send your X-rays and history from home
Upload recent X-rays or scans and a list of your conditions and medicines. A Chinese orthopaedic surgeon reviews them, and we send you an individual quote with what it includes.
- 2
2. Pre-operative assessment in China
Tests and a consultation confirm you are fit for surgery and settle the approach and implant.
- 3
3. Surgery and hospital stay
At one Chinese tertiary hospital the mean stay after a hip replacement was 6.36 days in 2022. Physiotherapy starts in hospital.
- 4
4. Recovery before you fly
Stitches or clips usually come out after about 10 days, and UK hospitals advise about 12 weeks before a long-haul flight. Your flight date is agreed with the surgeon, and you leave with your records in English for your own doctor.
Common questions
How much does a hip replacement cost?
It depends on the country and on what the price covers. Published examples: USD 19,500 self-pay at one Arizona hospital, excluding the surgeon’s and anaesthetist’s fees; an average guide package price of about GBP 14,071 in Leeds (PHIN, 2025); CAD 20,000–28,000 at Canadian private clinics (CBC, 2023); and AUD 24,092–29,208 in hospital charges alone in Australia (Medibank claims, 2023–24). In Istanbul, one hospital group quotes EUR 9,100–16,900 including the prosthesis. Always ask whether the implant, surgeon, anaesthetist and physiotherapy are included.
How much does knee replacement surgery cost?
One Oklahoma surgery centre lists an all-inclusive cash price of USD 17,679, while broker guides put typical US prices between about USD 20,000 and more than USD 70,000. UK private guide packages in Leeds are GBP 13,315–15,720 (PHIN, 2025), and Australian hospital charges are AUD 22,189–26,852 before doctors’ fees (Medibank, 2023–24). Abroad, Tijuana packages are about USD 9,000–15,000 and Indian hospitals list about USD 5,000–10,300 for international patients (broker listings, 2026).
How much does a hip or knee replacement cost in China?
There is no official price for foreign patients, so each case is quoted individually. The best published figures come from two peer-reviewed single-hospital studies of local patients in 2022: the whole hospital bill averaged CNY 26,530 (≈ USD 3,950) for a hip at a Zhejiang tertiary hospital and CNY 26,365 (≈ USD 3,950) for a knee at a Shandong tertiary hospital. China’s 2021 national procurement brought the average prosthesis price down to about CNY 7,000 (≈ USD 1,050) for a hip and CNY 5,000 (≈ USD 750) for a knee. Stories of patients paying about CNY 5,000 (≈ USD 750) out of pocket are after Chinese medical insurance, which does not apply to visitors. International departments charge more: broker listings show about USD 9,500–17,500 for a hip.
Where can you get a hip or knee replacement abroad?
Common choices are Turkey, Mexico, India, Thailand and China. Published prices include EUR 9,100–16,900 for a hip in Istanbul including the prosthesis, USD 9,000–15,000 for a knee in Tijuana and USD 5,000–10,300 for a knee in India. In Bangkok, one hospital’s standard packages of THB 310,000 for a knee and THB 420,000 for a hip exclude the implant, consultations and lab tests; its robotic knee package with an implant is THB 460,000. Compare total prices with the same items included, and the time you must stay before flying.
How long is the hospital stay, and when can you fly home?
The NHS says people usually go home 1 to 3 days after a hip replacement and 1 to 4 days after a knee replacement if all goes well. At one Chinese tertiary hospital the mean stay after a hip replacement was 6.36 days in 2022. Flying is a separate question: two UK hospitals advise waiting about 12 weeks, or three months, before a long-haul flight, and in a UK survey surgeons’ advice ranged from 35 to 180 days, with a median of 90. Some airlines ask for a doctor’s certificate. Plan either a long stay or a flight date agreed with your surgeon in advance.
Complete package
Make the stay count: replacement + health checkup + TCM
A joint replacement means weeks in China, not days. The same stay can include a full health checkup before surgery and TCM consultations while you recover, at public-hospital prices. We plan and quote all three together.
- Your hip or knee replacement, quoted from your X-rays
- Health checkup from CNY 1,320 (≈ USD 200)
- TCM consultation from CNY 50 (≈ USD 7)
Questions patients ask
- Knee Replacement Recovery Timeline: How Long to Stay in China
Knee replacement recovery week by week: hospital stay, stitches, driving, physio, and what UK hospitals say about waiting before a long-haul flight home.
- Knee Replacement Pain and Complications: What Is Normal
How painful knee replacement recovery is, how long pain lasts, stiffness and manipulation under anaesthesia, kneeling, and what to do if pain persists.
- Knee Replacement Cost: USA, UK, Canada, Australia and China
What a total knee replacement costs self-pay in the US, UK, Canada and Australia, what foreign patients pay in China, and how long to plan to stay afterwards.
- Hip and Knee Replacement: Alternatives, Age Limits, Approaches
Alternatives to hip and knee replacement, what patients report about PRP and stem cells, whether age rules you out, and how surgical approaches differ.
- Hip Replacement Recovery Timeline: Walking, Sleeping, Flying Home
Hip replacement recovery week by week: hospital stay, walking, sleeping on your side, normal pain, and how long to wait before a long-haul flight from China.
- Hip Replacement Cost Abroad: Turkey, Mexico, India, China
What a total hip replacement costs self-pay at home and abroad, what foreign patients pay in China, what packages include, and how long to stay after surgery.
- Anterior vs Posterior Hip Replacement and Choosing a Surgeon
Anterior, posterior and lateral hip replacement compared, dislocation precautions, how long implants last, and questions to ask a surgeon in China or at home.
- Hip and Knee Replacement Wait Times: NHS, Canada, Australia
How long people wait for hip and knee replacement on the NHS, in Canada and in Australia, what the figures mean, and the options if you cannot wait any longer.
USD amounts converted at about CNY 6.70 per USD (2026-10-07), for reference only. Foreign patients pay the full listed price.