MRI and CT scans in China
MRI and CT scans at a Chinese public hospital, with your images and an English report to take home
For people in the US, UK, Canada and Australia facing a large bill or a long wait for a scan. After China’s 2024–25 national radiology price reform, an MRI at a public hospital costs about CNY 500 (≈ USD 75) and a CT about CNY 200 (≈ USD 30) in some provinces. You leave with copies of your images and a report you can request in English, so your doctor at home can read them. Foreign patients pay the full listed price, so we quote each scan individually.
MRI at a Chinese public hospital after the 2024–25 national radiology price reform (Xinhua, 2025)
CNY 500 (≈ USD 75)
CT at a Chinese public hospital in some provinces after the reform, cut from over CNY 300 (Xinhua, 2025)
CNY 200 (≈ USD 30)
USA: MRI at a hospital outpatient department, self-pay (cost guide, 2025–26)
USD 1,200–3,500+
UK private MRI, one body part (cost guide, 2026)
GBP 249–750
MRI, CT and PET-CT, published self-pay prices (sources: clinic price lists, cost guides, Canada’s Drug Agency survey, WA Health fee schedule, 2022–26; China: Xinhua and provincial price notices, 2024–25)
| Where | Price | What it covers (source type, year) |
|---|---|---|
| USA, MRI | USD 300–800 freestanding; USD 1,200–3,500+ hospital | Self-pay ranges by setting (cost guide, 2025–26) |
| USA, New Jersey imaging centre | MRI USD 650 (USD 995 with contrast); CT USD 350 (USD 550 with contrast) | Self-pay list price (clinic price list, 2026) |
| UK private, MRI | GBP 249–750 | One body part (cost guide, 2026) |
| UK private, CT | GBP 492–699 | One body part; contrast extra at some providers (clinic price lists, 2026) |
| UK private, PET-CT | GBP 1,255–2,200 | PET-CT at two providers (clinic price lists, 2026) |
| Canada private | MRI CAD 762 average; CT CAD 310 average | Facility charges at private clinics in 7 provinces; only 8 of 68 facilities answered (Canada’s Drug Agency survey, 2022–23) |
| Australia, overseas patients | MRI AUD 2,108–4,280; CT AUD 220–4,365 | Non-Medicare patients at WA public hospitals (WA Health fee schedule, 2026–27) |
| China, MRI | CNY 500 (≈ USD 75) | Public hospitals after the national reform; plain-scan caps include Guangdong CNY 505 (≈ USD 75), Shanghai tertiary CNY 430 (≈ USD 64) and Anhui CNY 460 (≈ USD 69) (Xinhua and provincial notices, 2024–25) |
| China, CT | CNY 200 (≈ USD 30) | Public hospitals in some provinces after the reform, down from over CNY 300 (≈ USD 45) (Xinhua, 2025) |
| China, PET-CT | CNY 2,450–2,500 (≈ USD 370) | Local scan in Anhui and Shaanxi after the 2025 cuts; whole-body scans cost more (media reports, 2025) |
| China, foreign patients | Quoted individually | Foreign patients pay the full listed price; international departments charge more |
United States
The same MRI can cost several times more depending on where you go
A self-pay MRI costs about USD 300–800 at a freestanding imaging centre and USD 1,200–3,500 or more in a hospital outpatient department (cost guide, 2025–26). One New Jersey imaging centre lists an MRI at USD 650, or USD 995 with contrast, and a CT at USD 350. Ask whether the radiologist’s report is included.
UK, Canada & Australia
Paying privately to skip the queue
A private MRI of one body part in the UK costs about GBP 249–750, and a CT GBP 492–699. Private clinics in seven Canadian provinces charge an average of CAD 762 for an MRI and CAD 310 for a CT (Canada’s Drug Agency survey, 2022–23). In Australia, Medicare covers many scans for residents, but an overseas patient at a WA public hospital pays AUD 2,108–4,280 for an MRI.
Why China
Large public hospitals, at prices set after a national reform
China’s National Healthcare Security Administration issued a radiology pricing guideline in November 2024, and 22 provinces had cut their radiology fees by May 2025. An MRI at a public hospital now costs about CNY 500 (≈ USD 75), and a CT about CNY 200 (≈ USD 30) in some provinces. A local PET-CT fell to about CNY 2,450–2,500 (≈ USD 370) in Anhui and Shaanxi. Foreign patients pay the full listed price without Chinese insurance, so we get an individual quote for your scan.
Take it home
Your images and an English report, so your own doctor can use them
A scan abroad is only useful if your doctor at home can read it. Chinese hospitals issue reports in Chinese by default, so ask for an English version when you register; one Zhejiang University hospital gives foreign patients free English radiology reports. Ask for a full copy of the images in a digital format, not only printed films. Your doctor at home decides whether to rely on them or repeat the scan.
Safety first
Contrast, metal implants and radiation are checked by the hospital
Tell the hospital before you travel about any pacemaker, implant or metal in your body, kidney problems, contrast allergies, pregnancy and whether you are claustrophobic. The hospital’s radiology department runs its own safety questions and decides whether a scan is suitable and whether contrast is used. A CT uses X-rays and an MRI does not.
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 scan trip to China works
- 1
1. Tell us which scan and why
Send your doctor’s request or your symptoms, any previous reports and a list of implants or metal in your body. We ask the hospital for a quote and a confirmed date before you book flights.
- 2
2. See a specialist in China
Scans are booked through a hospital doctor, so we arrange a consultation with the relevant specialist, with an interpreter beside you.
- 3
3. Your scan
You answer the radiology department’s safety questions, then have the MRI or CT. If contrast is needed, the hospital decides and explains it first.
- 4
4. Report and images to take home
You leave with a digital copy of your images and a report in English, and we can help you discuss the findings with the specialist before you fly.
Common questions
How much does a spine or brain MRI cost?
Published prices are usually per body part, not per area of the body. In the US, a self-pay MRI costs about USD 300–800 at a freestanding imaging centre and USD 1,200–3,500 or more in a hospital outpatient department (cost guide, 2025–26). A UK private MRI of one body part is about GBP 249–750, and Alberta clinics charge CAD 675–850. At Chinese public hospitals an MRI costs about CNY 500 (≈ USD 75) after the 2024–25 price reform, with plain-scan caps such as CNY 430 (≈ USD 64) at Shanghai tertiary hospitals. Contrast and extra body parts add to the price everywhere.
How much does a routine CT scan cost in the US?
Cost guides put US cash prices between about USD 250 and 3,000, with a national average around USD 1,200 (2026). Freestanding centres are much cheaper than hospitals: one New Jersey imaging centre lists a CT at USD 350 without contrast and USD 550 with contrast, and a CT of the abdomen and pelvis at USD 550–900 (clinic price list, 2026).
How much does a CT scan cost at a hospital in China?
After the national radiology price reform, a CT at a public hospital costs about CNY 200 (≈ USD 30) in some provinces, down from over CNY 300 (≈ USD 45) (Xinhua, 2025), and one reported reference cap for a plain CT is CNY 255 (≈ USD 38). Prices differ by province and hospital level. Foreign patients pay the full listed price, contrast and extra body parts are charged on top, and international departments charge more.
How much does a full-body scan cost?
Full-body MRI screening is sold privately at home: Prenuvo lists its whole-body scan at USD 2,499 in the US and GBP 2,499 in London, and OneMRI in Australia charges AUD 2,990 (2026). We found no standard full-body MRI package at Chinese public hospitals. The closest is a checkup tier: one Hangzhou public hospital’s top tier, CNY 6,880–7,723 (≈ USD 1,050–1,150), includes CT, an MRI of the head plus one other area and tumour markers. Australian radiologists warn that scanning people without symptoms can lead to tests for harmless findings, so talk to your doctor first.
Will my doctor at home accept an MRI or CT done in China?
That is your doctor’s decision, but you can make it easy. Ask the hospital for a full digital copy of the images, not only printed films, and for the report in English: reports are issued in Chinese by default, and some hospitals, such as one Zhejiang University hospital, provide free English radiology reports to foreign patients. Bring any earlier scans so the new report can be compared with them. We translate reports and send everything to you before you fly.
Questions patients ask
- Using a Scan Done Abroad at Home: Images, Reports, Doctors
Can a scan done in China be used by your doctor at home? How to bring the images home in DICOM format, get an English report, and what doctors at home say.
- MRI vs CT vs PET Scan: Which One Do You Need?
How MRI, CT and PET-CT differ, when each is used, what radiation risk means, whether PET-CT suits healthy people, and what each scan costs in China and at home.
- MRI and CT Wait and Results Times: UK, Canada and China
How long MRI and CT scans take to book and report in England and Canada, what official waiting data shows, and what patients in China say about getting results.
- MRI Contrast and Metal Implants: Is It Safe for You?
When an MRI needs contrast, what gadolinium side effects are common, which metal implants and piercings matter, and how MRI safety screening works in China.
- MRI and Claustrophobia: Open MRI, Sedation and Noise
Claustrophobic about an MRI? How to cope with anxiety, when an open MRI works, how medication or sedation is arranged, the noise, and planning a scan in China.
- CT Scan Cost in the US, UK, Canada, Australia and China
What a CT scan costs without insurance in the US, UK, Canada and Australia, what Chinese public hospitals charge after the 2025 price cuts, and radiation facts.
- Brain and Spine MRI Cost, and When You Actually Need One
What a brain or spine MRI costs in the US, UK, Canada, Australia and China, and when back pain, a herniated disc or headaches usually call for a scan at all.
USD amounts converted at about CNY 6.70 per USD (2026-10-07), for reference only. Foreign patients pay the full listed price.