Wait times · United States

Booking fast isn't the problem.
Booking cheap is.

In the United States, a comprehensive executive physical is not hard to book quickly. It is hard to book cheaply. The same imaging, endoscopy and labs run about $3,700 in a major U.S. metro and about ₩1,000,000–1,100,000 (≈ $708–778) at our Korean partner centers, completed the same day. This page compares the two directly. The methodology line under the comparison table names every source this page draws on and the date each was read. Individual figures carry their own notes where there is more to say.

Price my program See the report format
2–3 wks
Wait for an MRI (self-pay)

Typical time to get a cash-pay appointment in a major metro, and close to half of MRI orders are then performed more than ten days after the booked date. The United States publishes no diagnostic queue, so treat this as the typical case rather than a measured median (read 2026-08-06). The U.S. wait problem is smaller than the price problem.

$3,700
Comprehensive screening, self-pay

Average executive physical in a major metro, as published by imaging providers and price guides (read 2026-08-06). No US law requires a clinic to publish one fixed cash price the way 의료법 제45조 does in Korea, so this is a typical figure rather than a single published list price.

≈ $708–778
Same program in Seoul

Comprehensive tier at the partner centres' own published prices, converted at 1 USD = ₩1,413 (open.er-api.com, 2026-08-19). See /pricing/.

2–3 wks
Full written report

Same-day consult on preliminary findings; the full report follows in two to three weeks depending on the centre. KMI publishes about two weeks; Hanaro publishes no figure at all (measured 2026-07-28). You are not in Korea waiting for it. Reports are sent by email (or by post, at one centre) once ready, after you have already flown home, so a longer report does not mean a longer trip.

The methodology line under the comparison table names every source this page draws on and the date each was read. Individual figures carry their own notes where there is more to say.

The arithmetic

United States. Korea.

What you are comparing
SELF-PAY, NO INSURANCE ROUTE
United States
AVERAGE CASH PRICE, MAJOR METRO
Korea
AVERAGE FIXED PACKAGE, ACCREDITED CENTER
Wait for an MRI
2–3 wks TO GET AN APPOINTMENT; ABOUT HALF OF ORDERS THEN SLIP PAST THE BOOKED DATE
From 1 wk EARLIEST SLOT, NO REFERRAL STEP
Wait for a colonoscopy
3 wks TYPICAL SELF-PAY BOOKING; NO NATIONAL QUEUE IS PUBLISHED
From 1 wk EARLIEST SLOT, NO REFERRAL STEP
One MRI region, self-pay
$400–3,500 IMAGING CENTRE TO HOSPITAL OUTPATIENT
≈ $226 PUBLISHED PARTNER-CENTRE PRICE, ₩319,000
One CT, self-pay
$300–3,275 SAME SCAN, SAME SPREAD
≈ $93 PUBLISHED PARTNER-CENTRE PRICE, ₩131,000
Comprehensive screening package
$3,700 AVERAGE EXECUTIVE PHYSICAL
≈ $708–778 COMPREHENSIVE TIER, PARTNER-CENTRE PUBLISHED PRICE
Everything in one visit
No SPREAD ACROSS 3–5 SEPARATE APPOINTMENTS
Yes ONE SCHEDULED DAY, ONE BUILDING
Price known before you book
Rarely BILLED AFTER THE FACT
Always QUOTED IN YOUR CURRENCY, HELD 60 DAYS
≈ $2,900–3,000lower out-of-pocket
1 tripinstead of five appointments
Price my program

United States wait figures are the only ones on this site not from a national statistical publisher, because the United States publishes no diagnostic queue: routine MRI appointments commonly take two to three weeks to schedule, and a national analysis of outpatient imaging found close to half of MRI orders performed more than ten days after the booked date. Read 2026-08-06. Treat them as the typical case rather than a measured median. Korea side: a Korean partner centre's published non-covered (비급여) price list, the itemised document 의료법 제45조 requires a clinic to publish, read 2026-08-19. A brain MRI is ₩319,000 and a chest and rib CT is ₩131,000. Home side: self-pay prices as published by imaging providers and price guides in each market, read 2026-08-06. Converted at 1 USD = ₩1,413 and the same day's cross rates (open.er-api.com, 2026-08-19) (https://open.er-api.com/v6/latest/USD), measured 2026-08-06.

Next steps

What to check before you book.

How it works

Screen, scan, report: the five steps from first message to English report in hand.

Programs & pricing

Three fixed-price tiers, quoted in your currency before you book.

Will my doctor accept it?

What's in the report file, who signs it, and the honest limits of a result from a clinic your GP hasn't heard of.

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Meridiko curates health checkup packages with Korean clinics for international patients. Meridiko is not a medical institution and does not provide medical advice. Consult your doctor.