How much an ER visit costs

What goes into an ER bill

Clinician fees only: national averages on commercial insurance claims, 2023 ³. The hospital adds its own facility fee, which averaged $713 per ER visit in 2021, from $257 for the simplest visits to $930 for the most complex ⁴.

With insurance

In employer plans, the average ER copay was $217 in 2023, and plans that use coinsurance charged 21% on average ⁵. Sixty percent of covered workers were in a plan that waives ER cost sharing if you’re admitted ⁵. Your deductible may apply too ⁶.

In 2019, one in four ER visits by people in large employer plans cost more than $907 out of pocket ².

Federal law limits surprise bills. In most cases you’re protected from unexpected out-of-network bills for ER visits ⁷, insurers can’t require prior approval for ER care, and they can’t charge you more for using an out-of-network ER ⁶.

Without insurance

An ER can’t turn you away because you can’t pay. Hospitals must give a medical screening exam and stabilizing treatment regardless of ability to pay ⁸. You can still be billed afterward.

Uninsured and out-of-network patients are often billed the hospital’s list prices. A study of 2013 Medicare data found ER doctors’ charges averaged 4.4 times what Medicare pays ⁹.

• Ask the hospital’s billing office about financial assistance and self-pay discounts.
• Ask for an itemized bill and check the visit level (1 to 5), which drives much of the price ⁴.
• Ask the hospital for a payment plan before the bill goes to collections.

Why ER visits cost so much

ERs are staffed and equipped around the clock for emergencies, and the hospital charges a facility fee on top of the clinician’s fee. Facility fees rose 531% from 2004 to 2021, and visits are being billed at higher levels: the share of level 5 facility claims rose from 5% to 20% ⁴.

When cost shouldn’t decide

If you think it could be an emergency, go to the ER or call 911. You often can’t tell from symptoms alone which visits will turn out to be minor: one study found the complaints behind visits later diagnosed as “primary care” problems were the same ones behind 88.7% of all ER visits, and some of those patients needed emergency care or a hospital stay ¹⁰.

More cost guides

How much urgent care costs · ER vs urgent care cost · How much an ambulance costs · Does insurance cover urgent care? · Urgent care or the ER? · Urgent care near you

Sources

1. Health Care Cost Institute: Urgent care spending increased by 50% over 5 years (Jan. 28, 2026; 2018–2022 data)
2. Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker: Emergency department visits exceed affordability threshold for many consumers with private insurance (Dec. 16, 2022; 2019 data)
3. FAIR Health: FH Healthcare Indicators and FH Medical Price Index 2025, white paper (March 2025; 2023 data; PDF)
4. Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker: How do facility fees contribute to rising emergency department costs? (Mar. 27, 2023; 2004–2021 data)
5. KFF: 2023 Employer Health Benefits Survey (2023; PDF)
6. HealthCare.gov: Getting emergency care
7. CMS: Know your medical bill rights (No Surprises Act; updated Oct. 1, 2026)
8. CMS: Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act (EMTALA) (updated Mar. 10, 2026)
9. Xu T, et al. Variation in emergency department vs internal medicine excess charges in the United States. JAMA Internal Medicine, 2017 (2013 data)
10. Raven MC, et al. Comparison of presenting complaint vs discharge diagnosis for identifying “nonemergency” emergency department visits. JAMA, 2013 (2009 data)

Last updated November 15, 2026. Prices vary by state, clinic, insurance plan and what care you need; the figures above are averages and ranges from the cited sources, not quotes. Ask the clinic or your insurer for your own cost. General information, not medical advice. In an emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest ER whatever the cost.