Private MRI

Sources and retrieval dates

Last reviewed 5 October 2026 by Pete, editor (not a clinician). Prices checked 5 October 2026.

Every price on this site comes from a centre's own published page, checked by Pete on 5 October 2026. The NHS waiting figure comes from NHS England's monthly diagnostics release (DM01) for July 2026, published 10 September 2026. We delete any price row we cannot re-check.

Where does the NHS waiting figure come from?

NHS England's diagnostics waiting times data for July 2026 (DM01, published 10 September 2026) show that 21.4% of people waiting for an MRI had already waited six weeks or more. The figure is the share of people on the MRI waiting list at the end of the month who had already waited six weeks or more from referral. The same report gave the MRI waiting list as 391,764 people at the end of July 2026. For June 2026, the figure was 22.3%. The NHS operational standard is that fewer than 1% of patients should wait six weeks or more; the report said it was not met.

This is a national figure for England. Waits differ by NHS trust and by type of scan. NHS England's data page also publishes figures for each provider, which is where to look for your local trust. We replace the figure each month, when NHS England publishes a new release, and name the month in the sentence.

How do we check prices?

Pete opens each centre's own price page, reads the price, the referral rule and the report time as the centre states them, and records the date. We do not use prices from comparison sites, adverts or phone calls, because we cannot show you those. If a page no longer shows a price, or we cannot match it, we delete the row. If two pages from the same centre disagree, we say so next to the row. On 5 October 2026, Vista Health's prostate page and its general MRI price list showed different prices for the same prostate scans; we show the prostate page figures and flag the difference.

We re-check every row on the first Monday of each month. See editorial policy.

Which sources did we use?

NHS England, NICE, regulators and other references

Centre price pages

What about CQC and PHIN?

Every provider of MRI scans in England must be registered with the Care Quality Commission. We do not copy CQC ratings onto this site, because they change and we would rather you read the current version: search for any centre on the CQC website. The Private Healthcare Information Network (PHIN) publishes information about private hospitals and consultants in the UK. Both are listed above.

Why are some centres missing?

Because we could not verify their prices. Many centres, including some large hospital groups, do not publish an MRI price, or publish one only after you enter details or call. We do not list a price we cannot show you on the centre's own website. A missing centre is not a judgement on its quality.

Which NICE guidance do we cite, and why?

We cite NICE only where it has guidance that directly affects whether a scan is useful: low back pain and sciatica (NG59), osteoarthritis (NG226), prostate cancer diagnosis (NG131), headaches (CG150) and suspected cancer referral (NG12). NICE guidance is written for clinicians. We quote it in general terms and you should discuss it with yours.

Can I suggest a source?

Yes. Email hello@private-mri.co.uk with the centre and the URL of its price page. We will check it and add it if it meets the rules above.

Where does your NHS MRI waiting figure come from?

NHS England's monthly diagnostics release (DM01). The current figure is for July 2026, published 10 September 2026.

How often do you check prices?

Every month, on the first Monday, against each centre's own page. We delete a row we cannot re-check.

Why is a centre I know not listed?

Because it does not publish a price we could verify on its own website. That is not a judgement on its quality.

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