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Price report · Colonoscopy

Colonoscopy abroad or at home: waits and published prices compared

We read what clinics in 8 countries publish for a colonoscopy and set it against the official wait and the self-pay price in the UK, Canada, Ireland and the US. Price unit: one diagnostic or screening colonoscopy, with sedation and biopsies shown separately where the clinic prices them separately.

Updated 26 October 2026 · Every figure links to its source

Countries with a price
5 of 8Poland, Hungary, South Korea, Thailand and China
Lowest abroad
£48China, before travel
UK private
£1,890lowest published self-pay price
Price lines read
1111 providers

Short answer

Providers in 5 countries publish a price for a colonoscopy that we could check. Converted to pounds, they run from £48 to £643, before flights and a hotel. Paying privately in the UK costs about £1,890 to £3,510.

Countries with a price
5 of 8: Poland, Hungary, South Korea, Thailand and China
Range abroad
about £48 to £643 before travel
UK private
about £1,890 to £3,510
NHS England
30.9% waiting over 6 weeks (August 2026)
Price is for
one diagnostic or screening colonoscopy, with sedation and biopsies shown separately where the clinic prices them separately

Key findings

  1. 5 of 8 countries publish a comparable price. The lowest is China at £48; the highest published figure is £643, before travel.
  2. From the UK, 5 of 5 countries are cheaper than a private colonoscopy at home before travel, and 5 after an example flight and 3 hotel nights. The lowest UK self-pay price we found is £1,890.
  3. Official waits: England, 30.9% waiting over 6 weeks (August 2026) and Ireland (public hospitals), about 30% waiting over 6 months (24 September 2026).
  4. No verified comparable price in Mexico, Turkey and Japan. A gap means we could not find a price the provider publishes itself, not that the treatment is unavailable.

Figure 1Lowest to highest comparable price, by country (GBP, before travel)

Each bar runs from the lowest to the highest published price that matches the unit; the dashed line is the lowest UK self-pay price we found. Converted at the ECB rate. Click a country for every price line.

Figure 2Cheapest total trip from each home country

Cheapest total trip for a colonoscopy from the UK, Canada, Ireland and the US
FromPolandHungarySouth KoreaThailandChinaPay at home
UK£467£666£1,450£1,610£988from £1,890
CanadaC$1,820C$2,240C$2,500C$3,180C$1,910not verified
Ireland€548€780€1,640€1,860€1,130not verified
US$1,370$1,650$1,950$2,460$1,490from $1,640
Lowest published price plus an example return flight and 3 hotel nights, in each reader's currency. Green means the trip costs less than the lowest self-pay price at home. Flights and hotels are round examples, not quotes: put in your own.

What a colonoscopy is

A colonoscopy is a camera test of the large bowel. The day before, you drink a laxative preparation to empty the bowel. Most clinics offer sedation. Small growths (polyps) can be removed during the test and sent to a lab, which can add a fee and a few days for the result.

Colonoscopy prices by country

The range in each country covers only the prices that match the unit above. Click a country for every price line, what it includes, and how to book as a visitor.

Colonoscopy published prices by country
CountryProvidersIn GBPIn CADIn EURIn USD
Poland2£107–£135C$201–C$253€128–€162$144–$181
Hungary1£276–£422C$517–C$790€330–€504$369–$565
South Korea1£311C$581€371$415
Thailand2£618–£643C$1,160–C$1,200€739–€768$827–$859
China1£48C$90€58$64

No page yet for Mexico, Turkey and Japan: we did not find a published price there that we could verify.

Waiting and paying at home

The latest official waiting figure in each country, and what providers there publish as a self-pay price.

Waiting times and self-pay prices at home for colonoscopy
Where you liveOfficial waitPay at home
UK30.9% waiting over 6 weeksEngland, August 2026£1,890 to £3,510
CanadaNo official figure foundNot verified
IrelandAbout 30% waiting over 6 monthsIreland (public hospitals), 24 September 2026Not verified
USNo national figure$1,6402021 hospital data or a dental school

Add your flight and hotel

Choose where you live and the calculator lines up your wait, your price at home and each country's price plus travel for a colonoscopy.

Open the calculator

How to compare colonoscopy prices

  • Check whether sedation or anaesthesia is in the price. Many price lists show it as a separate line.
  • Ask how biopsy and polyp removal are charged, and how long the lab result takes.
  • Some clinics only sell a colonoscopy as part of a health-check package.
  • Ask whether the bowel preparation is supplied and when you must start it.

Do not travel for a colonoscopy if

  • Bleeding from the bottom, black stools, a change in bowel habit with weight loss, or a positive home screening test: these belong on an urgent pathway at home first. In England, ask your GP about the urgent suspected-cancer referral.
  • People with serious heart, lung or kidney disease, or on blood thinners, unless the clinic has reviewed their medicines in advance.
  • Travelling alone with no one to collect you after sedation. Clinics usually require an escort.

Before you book

  • Send the clinic your medicines list, especially blood thinners, diabetes medicines and iron tablets.
  • Plan two nights at least: the preparation day keeps you close to a toilet.
  • Do not fly on the day of the test if you have had sedation or a polyp removed; ask the clinic how long to wait.

After you come home

  • Give your doctor the report, photos and lab results. Ask the clinic to email the lab result if it arrives after you leave.
  • Know who to call if you have bleeding or tummy pain after you fly home.

Bringing results home so your own doctor can use them is covered in how to bring your results home.

Colonoscopy abroad: questions

Where is a colonoscopy cheapest abroad?

Before flights, the lowest published prices we found are in China (about £48), Poland (about £107 to £135) and Hungary (about £276 to £422). The cheapest country is not always the cheapest trip: a short flight can matter more than the price difference.

How long is the wait for a colonoscopy on the NHS?

In England, 30.9% waiting over 6 weeks in August 2026: Share of people on the NHS colonoscopy waiting list who had already waited 6 weeks or more (76,686 waiting; gastroscopy 73,297 waiting, 29.9%). Waits vary by hospital, and an urgent referral is faster.

How much does a private colonoscopy cost in the UK?

about £1,890 to £3,510 at the UK providers we checked, before any consultant fees they list separately.

What does the price of a colonoscopy usually include?

On this site the price should cover one diagnostic or screening colonoscopy, with sedation and biopsies shown separately where the clinic prices them separately. Check whether sedation or anaesthesia is in the price. Many price lists show it as a separate line.

How long do I need to stay abroad for a colonoscopy?

2 days: bowel preparation the day before, the test the next day, and someone to take you back to your hotel after sedation. Ask the clinic for the schedule in writing before you book flights.

Sources

  1. Cennik usług medycznych obowiązujący od 1.01.2026 (price list valid from 1 January 2026). Szpital MSWiA w Poznaniu (Ministry of Interior hospital, Poznań), 1 January 2026. Read 26 October 2026.
  2. Cennik (price list). Centrum Medyczne Damiana, Warsaw. Read 26 October 2026.
  3. Prices. Wáberer Medical Center, Budapest. Read 26 October 2026.
  4. 종합건진 프로그램 (comprehensive check-up programmes). Kangbuk Samsung Hospital Total Healthcare Center, Seoul. Read 26 October 2026.
  5. Bumrungrad International Hospital: top surgical packages 2025 (sheet hosted by FWD Insurance Thailand). Bumrungrad International Hospital, via FWD Insurance, 2025. Read 26 October 2026.
  6. Colon cancer screening packages. BNH Hospital, Bangkok. Read 26 October 2026.
  7. Hu Yi Bao Jia Cai Fa [2025] No. 52 (沪医保价采发〔2025〕52号): digestive endoscopy price items, effective 30 June 2026 (in Chinese). Shanghai Municipal Healthcare Security Administration, 2025. Read 26 October 2026.
  8. Colonoscopy. St John & St Elizabeth Hospital, London. Read 26 October 2026.
  9. Colonoscopy, Cambridge Hospital. Nuffield Health. Read 26 October 2026.
  10. Colonoscopy, Bournemouth Hospital. Nuffield Health. Read 26 October 2026.
  11. Price transparency in hospitals: cash prices for common services (Jiang, Makary, Bai), JAMA Network Open. JAMA Network Open, via PubMed Central, 21 December 2021. Read 26 October 2026.
  12. Monthly Diagnostic Waiting Times and Activity, August 2026. NHS England, 8 October 2026. Read 26 October 2026.
  13. Open data: inpatient/day case GI endoscopy waiting list by hospital, 2026. National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF), October 2026. Read 26 October 2026.
  14. Euro foreign exchange reference rates. European Central Bank, 23 October 2026. Read 26 October 2026.