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Updated 15 October 2026

MRI in Shanghai: price, booking and reports for foreigners

At a Shanghai public tertiary hospital, the city's maximum price for an MRI is CNY 430 per body part without contrast and CNY 455 with contrast (in force since 30 April 2025). Private international hospitals list the same scan at CNY 3,000 (Jiahui) and CNY 5,100 to 6,800 (United Family). Whether a hospital sells an MRI on its own to a foreign patient is not confirmed. The same applies to the images: we found no hospital that confirms a disc or link you can use abroad. We ask the hospital for you, book, send an interpreter with you, and translate the report into English.

Quick answers

  • What does an MRI cost? The city's public price is a small fraction of the private list prices. Both are in the table below.
  • Can a foreigner book just an MRI? Not confirmed. No source we found says whether a hospital sells an MRI without a doctor's visit or a package. We ask for you.
  • Is an MRI part of a checkup package? Yes, at Sixth People's, Zhongshan and Ruijin. The packages choose the body parts.
  • Who explains the result? The hospital's doctors. We translate. We never interpret results ourselves.
  • Can I take the images home? Not confirmed for most hospitals. See the section on images below.

Tell us which body part, what you need and when you are in Shanghai. Before you decide anything, a coordinator sends you the hospital fee and our fee in writing. The consultation is free. Email contact@sanarouter.com

This page does not give medical advice. A doctor decides whether you need an MRI and which one. In an emergency, call 120.

Hospital facts checked 8 to 9 October 2026; page published 15 October 2026.

How much does an MRI cost in Shanghai?

The city sets a maximum price for imaging at public hospitals. The price is per body part. Here is the public figure next to the private prices we found:

WhereMRI, one body part, without contrastSource
Public tertiary hospitals (city maximum)CNY 430Shanghai Healthcare Security Administration, in force from 30 April 2025
Jiahui (private)CNY 3,000Hospital price list (undated)
United Family (private)CNY 5,100 to 6,800Hospital price list, November 2025

What else is in the city's notice:

  • Contrast costs more. With contrast, the maximum is CNY 455 per body part. The contrast drug is charged separately.
  • More than one body part. For one exam of several parts, the second part is charged at 75 percent and the third at 50 percent. The fourth and later parts are not charged.
  • Digital image storage. A hospital that provides digital image processing and storage may add CNY 5. Shanghai Children's Hospital's 2026 list shows CNY 435 for an MRI without contrast. That is CNY 5 above the city price. The list does not say why.
  • International departments. We found no source that says a public international department charges more for an MRI. Ruijin's price page says its international department charges tests at standard (non-VIP) hospital rates (2020). We ask each hospital for the MRI price before you book.

Full price comparison, with specialist visits, checkups and colonoscopy: What hospital care costs in Shanghai.

Where can a foreigner get an MRI in Shanghai?

The route with the most published prices is a checkup package that includes MRI. Three public hospitals publish package prices with MRI listed:

HospitalPackage with MRIPublished priceSource year
Sixth People's Hospital, Health Management CenterPremium: one MRI of the head, cervical spine or lumbar spineCNY 6,593 (men), CNY 6,723 (unmarried women), about CNY 7,288 (married women)2026
Zhongshan Hospital, Health Management Center (not the international center)Men's Select: head and cervical-spine MRI. Men's Premium includes the Select itemsAbout CNY 6,500 (Select) and about CNY 10,000 (Premium); the final price is the day's bill2026
Ruijin Hospital, international department, Huangpu campusInpatient Supreme A, B and C: up to two, two and three MRI scansCNY 10,587 to 13,465, depending on the package and sex2020
Ruijin Hospital, international department, Jiading campusCheckup B (cervical and lumbar MRI) and C (head and lumbar MRI with head MRA)CNY 8,506 to 12,649, depending on the package and sex2025

Sixth People's and Zhongshan sell these packages through their health management centers, not their international departments. We did not find whether a foreign passport is enough at those centers. For Zhongshan's women's packages, the MRI is not confirmed: the full item list is on the hospital's own sheet.

At Zhongshan's Sheshan campus, the 3-day inpatient package lists optional PET/MRI at CNY 18,000 extra, "for reference only" (2024).

Zhongshan's international center building has MRI and CT in the same building, according to our profile, so most tests stay under one roof. Shanghai East Hospital and Fudan University Cancer Center list MRI among their equipment; that tells you the hospital owns a scanner, not that a foreign patient can book one directly.

We did not re-check any Ruijin price on the hospital's own site (the site did not load on 7 and 8 October 2026). The 2020 prices come from older package pages. We confirm the current price before you book.

Can I book just an MRI, without a package?

Not confirmed. No hospital we cover says whether it sells an MRI on its own to a foreign patient, or whether you first need a clinic visit where a doctor orders it. One 2024 media report (Xinmin Evening News) describes a UK patient seen in English by an orthopedic doctor at Ruijin's international department, who arranged an MRI. That is one report, not a rule.

What we do: you tell us the body part and what a doctor asked for. We ask the hospital whether it books the MRI alone, or whether a clinic visit is the route, and we tell you the cost of each in writing.

Is there a full body MRI in Shanghai?

We did not find one. No package or price list in our sources lists a full-body MRI. The packages above list MRI of chosen body parts: head, cervical spine, lumbar spine, and head vessels (MRA). If you want a full-body scan, tell us. We ask whether any hospital offers it.

How long is the wait for an MRI in Shanghai?

The only MRI waiting times we found are from Red House Hospital (obstetrics and gynecology). They apply hospital-wide, not to the international department. Posted in July 2024, in working days: gynecologic MRI 6; breast MRI 6 at its Huangpu campus and 17 at its Yangpu campus. For the other hospitals we did not find a waiting time for MRI. Ask before you fix your flight.

Can I take the MRI images home, and will the report be in English?

Not confirmed for most hospitals we cover. What the sources say:

  • The city's notice. A public hospital that is asked for images to take away must tell the patient in writing about two choices: film at CNY 20 per sheet, or free paper prints. The same notice allows a hospital to offer digital cloud film instead of physical film if the patient agrees.
  • Zhongshan. The international center has film collection after 2 working days and gives printed films to inpatients. For checkups, cloud film needs a real-name check by face or bank card; whether a foreign passport passes is not confirmed.
  • Xinhua Hospital. Imaging reports and images can be viewed in the hospital's WeChat account for the most recent six months (2024). Whether a foreign patient can link an account is not confirmed.
  • Ruijin. The checkup packages say CT and MRI are done without film.
  • Shanghai East Hospital. Its imaging department uses PACS and cloud imaging. Whether you get a cloud link that works abroad, or a DICOM disc, is not stated.
  • Renji Hospital. It says imaging results can be viewed online, and the discharge package includes imaging materials in a format that is not stated. Whether overseas patients get a disc or a link is not confirmed.

No hospital we cover confirms an English MRI report. A 2025 city news report says Sixth People's WeChat account offers machine translation of radiology results into English. Insurers may not accept it. Renji gives English record summaries at discharge. We translate the written report; report translation is included in our visit fee. Ask for the images and the report before you leave. See also: After a hospital visit in China.

Who explains my MRI result?

The hospital's doctors. SanaRouter does not interpret results. China's patient-escort standard, GB/T 47801-2026, does not allow escorts to interpret test results. Our interpreter translates what the doctor says, and we translate the written report into English.

Will my insurer pay for an MRI in Shanghai?

That depends on your policy, and we cannot promise it. If you pay yourself, we translate the itemized receipt and the report so you can claim. We can ask your insurer whether it accepts translations.

What should I bring on MRI day?

  • Your passport, and the booking confirmation.
  • Earlier scans on disc, with their reports.
  • A list of your medicines.
  • A way to pay. You pay the hospital directly, usually before each test.
  • Questions for the staff: how you will get the report, and whether you can take the images (disc or link). Ask for the itemized receipt before you leave.

What SanaRouter does for an MRI

  1. Free consultation: which hospital, which route, and what it costs.
  2. Booking: we book through the hospital's international department or by phone, using your passport. For a package sold by a health management center, we first ask which channel takes a passport.
  3. On the day: an interpreter goes with you, for up to half a day.
  4. Afterwards: we translate the report into English. The hospital's doctors explain it.

You pay the hospital directly. Our fee: see "What we charge" on What hospital care costs in Shanghai.

We are not a medical provider and do not give medical advice.

How we chose what to list

Public hospitals on this page come from our 22 public hospital profiles. The private prices come from the hospitals' own price lists. A hospital price appears only if the hospital or the city published it. Prices that appear only on booking platforms are left out: those platforms sell the packages, so we treat them as leads and confirm with the hospital. Where a source is old or could not be re-checked, we say so next to the fact. We do not use prices that patients report in online forums.

To book an MRI, tell us the body part and your dates in Shanghai. Before you decide anything, a coordinator sends you the hospital fee and our fee in writing. Email contact@sanarouter.com

Sources

SanaRouter coordinatorA person replies by email
Tell us what's going on. We'll show you where we'd likely book you, and a person takes it from there.

In an emergency, call 120. We book visits; we don't give medical advice.