Costs
What treatment in China costs
Indicative ranges to give you a sense of scale, what a quote actually covers, and the costs most people forget to count.
Treatment in China typically costs 60–80% less than the same procedure in the United States. A knee replacement runs roughly $8,000–14,000 against $35,000–50,000; CAR-T cell therapy roughly $150,000–230,000 against $550,000–850,000. Your own figure depends on your diagnosis and comes from a case review.
Read these as a sense of scale
The figures below are published estimates compiled from 2026 reporting and industry sources, not quotes from our network. Real cost turns on your diagnosis, the stage or complexity of your case, which hospital is right for it, and what happens once treatment starts. A straightforward case sits at the bottom of a range; a complicated one can sit above it.
The figure that matters to you is the itemised quote that comes back from a case review, which states what it excludes as plainly as what it covers. We would rather give you that than let you plan around a number from a table.
Indicative costs
Last reviewed September 2026. All figures in USD.
| Procedure | China | United States | Saving | Time in country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAR-T cell therapyWidely reported through 2026 as the largest single cost gap in cancer care. | $150,000 – $230,000 | $550,000 – $850,000 | ~73% | 6–10 weeks in country |
| Total knee replacement | $8,000 – $14,000 | $35,000 – $50,000 | ~74% | 5–7 nights inpatient, ~3 weeks in country |
| Total hip replacement | $9,000 – $15,000 | $35,000 – $55,000 | ~73% | 5–7 nights inpatient, ~3 weeks in country |
| Spinal fusion, single level | $12,000 – $25,000 | $60,000 – $110,000 | ~78% | 5–7 nights inpatient, ~4 weeks in country |
| ACL reconstruction | $4,000 – $8,000 | $20,000 – $35,000 | ~78% | 1–2 nights, ~2 weeks in country |
| Coronary artery bypass | $15,000 – $35,000 | $70,000 – $120,000 | ~74% | 7–10 nights inpatient, 4–5 weeks in country |
| Coronary angioplasty and stent | $10,000 – $20,000 | $30,000 – $60,000 | ~67% | 2–3 nights inpatient, ~2 weeks in country |
| Dental implant, per implantChina's 2023 bulk-procurement policy cut implant prices sharply. | $700 – $1,400 | $3,000 – $5,000 | ~74% | 2 trips, or one extended stay |
| Full-arch implants, per archWhere the saving is largest in dental work, and where most dental travel happens. | $7,000 – $14,000 | $20,000 – $35,000 | ~62% | 2 trips, roughly 4–6 months apart |
| IVF, single cycle | $7,000 – $14,000 | $15,000 – $30,000 | ~53% | 3–4 weeks in country per cycle |
| Cataract surgery, per eyePerformed on daily operating lists at the specialist eye hospitals. | $1,200 – $3,000 | $3,500 – $7,000 | ~60% | Day case, ~1 week in country per eye |
| Glaucoma surgery, per eye | $1,800 – $4,500 | $6,000 – $12,000 | ~65% | 1–2 nights, ~2 weeks in country |
| Comprehensive health screening | $800 – $2,500 | $3,000 – $8,000 | ~70% | 2–4 days |
What you get back from a case review
We shortlist the three hospitals that best fit your case and price them side by side, so you are choosing between real options rather than accepting the first one offered. For each, you get a full rundown:
- Medical cost — The hospital's own quote, itemised — surgeon, theatre, implant or drug, inpatient nights, imaging and labs.
- Accommodation — Priced for the actual length of stay, including a companion, near that particular hospital.
- Flights — Routing and indicative fares from your city, which differ by destination — not every hospital is in a city with nonstop service.
- Interpretation and coordination — Our own fee where one applies, stated separately rather than buried.
- Time in country — How long each option would keep you there, which is often what decides it.
The cheapest option is not always the right one, and we will say which we would choose and why. The decision stays yours.
What the hospital figure does not include
Comparing a Chinese hospital invoice against a US one understates the real trip. These are the items that decide whether travelling is actually worth it for you.
- Return flights — Two people, if a companion travels
- Accommodation — Often several weeks, and longer than the inpatient stay
- Visa fees — Where a visa is required for your passport
- Interpreter and coordination — Included in what we arrange; confirm with any facilitator
- Follow-up at home — Your own clinician's time, and any imaging they want repeated
- Lost income — Usually the largest item people leave out
For a knee replacement the extras typically add a few thousand dollars, and the saving still holds comfortably. For a procedure where the gap is smaller, they can close it entirely — and if that is your situation, we will say so.
The gap is widest in cancer care, where it is the difference between a treatment being within reach for a family and not. See cancer treatment in China for CAR-T costs and eligibility. There are also pages for joint replacement and spine surgery, dental implants and eye surgery.
Why it costs less
Not because the care is worth less. Chinese hospital pricing is set within a public system where the state negotiates hard on devices and drugs — the 2023 bulk-procurement round cut dental implant prices by more than half nationally, to take one example. Staff costs are lower, the major teaching hospitals run at volumes that would be unusual anywhere else, and there is no equivalent of the US billing and insurance layer that a domestic price has to carry.
None of which tells you whether a given hospital is good, which is a separate question and the one worth asking. See how Chinese hospitals are graded.
Paying, and getting some back
Foreign patients are self-pay in China — how deposits and hospital billing actually work is on insurance and paying in China.
Most patients pay out of pocket and pursue partial reimbursement afterwards, if at all. Our insurance and reimbursement guide sets out what to ask your insurer before you travel and what documentation to bring home.
Sources
- Cheaper CAR-T therapy drawing global cancer patients to China — Asia Times
- Surgery cost in China: real prices for 20+ procedures — Sylk Health
- Hospital price transparency research — RAND Corporation
What would your treatment cost?
Send your diagnosis and recent records. A case manager comes back with an itemised quote for your case, stating what it excludes as clearly as what it covers.
Request a free case review