What a colonoscopy costs: United States vs. other countries
An examination of the large bowel with a camera, including a biopsy.
Typical price paid to hospitals and doctors for a colonoscopy, from one report on the same basis: $1,215 in the United States, $2,109 in the United Kingdom, $503 in Germany, $1,122 in Australia. Source: International Health Care Cost Comparison Report 2024 (Report dated October 2024. Prices are for 2022.). These are not what one patient was charged; what patients pay is in the table.
| Country | Price paid to the hospital | What a patient usually pays | Typical wait |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $1,215 (iFHP) | With Medicare and no extra insurance: $166 at a surgery center or $279 at a hospital, on average (with a biopsy) (Medicare.gov) | Not yet sourced |
| Canada | From $51.95 in Canadian dollars, not converted: the doctor’s fee in Ontario for the first part of a colonoscopy. Each further section of the bowel adds $31.15 to $51.75 and a biopsy adds $27.05. Hospital costs not included (Ontario) | No charge for medically necessary hospital and doctor care (Commonwealth Fund) | Not yet sourced |
| United Kingdom | $2,109 (iFHP) | No charge. NHS care is free when you use it (Commonwealth Fund) | 29.5% of people waiting had waited 6 weeks or more (England) (NHS England) |
| France | €853.72: the set payment to a public hospital, same-day care, for a diagnostic digestive endoscopy with anaesthesia (ATIH) | National insurance pays 70% of an outpatient visit (Commonwealth Fund) | Not yet sourced |
| Germany | $503 (iFHP) | Co-payments are capped at 2% of gross income a year (Commonwealth Fund) | Not yet sourced |
| Japan | ¥15,500 for a full colonoscopy and ¥3,100 for a biopsy: national fees, not added up. Lab fees are separate (MHLW Japan) | 30% of the bill for most adults, with a monthly cap (Commonwealth Fund) | Not yet sourced |
| Australia | $1,122 (iFHP) | Not yet sourced | Not yet sourced |
Where no sourced figure exists, the cell says so. We do not fill gaps with estimates.