- 16organisations (of 156 in our database) do planned MRI under the programme
- 35 000 ֏the fund pays for one area, 1.5 Tesla
- ×3gap between the cheapest and priciest brain MRI
What a brain MRI costs
The table shows one and the same study: an MRI of the brain or of one area, without contrast, for someone paying out of pocket. Field strength is given where the clinic itself states it: that is not a detail — it determines what the doctor will see.
| Where | Price | Scanner |
|---|---|---|
| Fund — programme tariff | 35 000 ֏ | 1.5 Tesla |
| Heratsi YSMU | 35 000 ֏ | 0.35 Tesla |
| Surb Grigor Lusavorich, 21:00–09:00 | 40 000 ֏ | 1.5 Tesla |
| Emerte, on Sundays | 45 000 ֏ | 3 Tesla |
| Heratsi YSMU | 50 000 ֏ | 1.5 Tesla |
| Surb Grigor Lusavorich, daytime | 50 000 ֏ | 1.5 Tesla |
| Erebuni | 50 000 ֏ | 1.5 Tesla, Magnetom Aera |
| Emerte | 50 000 ֏ | 3 Tesla |
| LDC MIBS Yerevan | 55 000 ֏ | 1.5 Tesla |
| Ultraimaging, screening | 57 600 ֏ | results on a disc |
| Izmirlian | 60 000 ֏ | 1.5 Tesla |
| LDC MIBS Yerevan | 75 000 ֏ | 3 Tesla |
| Emerte, premium tariff | 103 000 ֏ | 3 Tesla |
Clinic prices are a snapshot of 15 September 2026; the fund tariff is from 24 August 2026. MR angiography, special protocols (epilepsy, multiple sclerosis) and bundled packages are deliberately excluded: those are different studies and different money. Emerte lists two tariffs on one page — basic and “premium”; both are shown.
It is cheaper at night
The most unexpected finding. At Surb Grigor Lusavorich the same study costs 50,000 drams during the day and 40,000 between nine in the evening and nine in the morning — it says so in the price list. Emerte has a Sunday price: 45,000 instead of 50,000. The scanner sits idle at night and on Sundays, and the clinics pass that on to people for whom the time of the visit does not matter.
Contrast is almost always a separate line
This is the main reason the amount at the desk comes out higher than expected. The contrast agent is almost never included in the price of the study: at YSMU it is +25,000 drams, at Erebuni, Surb Grigor Lusavorich and Ultraimaging +30,000. So a 1.5 Tesla MRI with contrast comes to about 80,000 drams where the study itself costs 50,000. The fund pays 60,000 for a contrast MRI.
What Tesla means and why it matters
Tesla is the strength of the magnet. The higher it is, the finer the detail on the image and the shorter the scan. Yerevan has 0.35, 1.5 and 3 Tesla machines, and the price difference between them is real: at MIBS the same study costs 55,000 at 1.5 Tesla and 75,000 at 3. The state programme distinguishes them too: for one area the fund pays 35,000 at 1.5 Tesla and 50,000 at 3.
Which field strength you need is decided by the doctor who referred you. This is not a choice to make on price.
MRI is the country’s narrowest bottleneck
In the fund tariffs we analysed (156 organisations from the Medaro catalogue, data as of 24 August 2026) only 16 do planned MRI (25 counting Emergency Short-term Hospitalization tariffs), against 45 with CT and 83 with ultrasound. The fund’s full list as of 29 September 2026 has 517 medical organisations, and only 17 of them offer one-area MRI on a 1.5 Tesla machine. Supply is narrowest here.
What to ask when you book
- Is contrast included in the quoted amount — almost always not.
- How many areas were ordered: the price grows with each one.
- What the field strength is, and whether it suits your referral.
- Is there a night or weekend rate — the difference reaches 20 %.
- How the results are given — disc, film or a link — and whether that is included.
Every figure here is a snapshot taken on 15 September 2026 from the centres’ own websites. Price lists change; check the amount with the place you are going to before your visit.
When an article is not the answer — call 103
With these signs you do not look up prices or book a test; you call an ambulance.
- A sudden severe headache, “the worst of my life”
- Weakness on one side, a drooping face, trouble speaking
- A head injury with loss of consciousness or vomiting
- A first-ever seizure in an adult
Where the data comes from
- Universal Health Insurance Fund — list of organisations and tariffs — data as of
- Universal Health Insurance Fund — Medical Organizations and Pharmacies: 517 medical organisations (584 addresses), 17 of them offering one-area MRI at 1.5 Tesla — data as of
- Erebuni Medical Center price list, MRI — data as of
- LDC MIBS Yerevan price list — data as of
- Ultraimaging radiology centre price list — data as of
- Surb Grigor Lusavorich Medical Center price list — data as of
- Yerevan State Medical University price list — data as of
- Izmirlian Medical Center price list — data as of
- Emerte Medical Center price list — data as of
- Medaro catalogue: organisations and state-programme services — data as of
This material is for reference and does not replace a consultation: it contains no diagnoses, treatment plans or dosages. Prices and tariffs change — check the terms with the organisation and with the fund before your visit. Medaro does not provide medical services and does not take appointments.