A Holter monitor records every heartbeat for a day or two while you go about your life, and it is usually the next test after an EKG either catches something odd or misses something you can feel. What you pay has almost nothing to do with the recording itself and almost everything to do with which of three very different devices got ordered, and who ends up mailing you the bill.
This guide covers 2026 cash prices for the classic 24 to 48 hour Holter, the 14 to 30 day adhesive patch monitors (Zio and similar), and event and mobile cardiac telemetry monitors, plus why a single monitor can generate three separate charges from three separate companies.
What Does a Holter Monitor Cost Without Insurance?
Figures below are published cash prices as of August 2026 alongside average submitted charges from the CMS Medicare Physician & Other Practitioners file (2024 claims, released May 2026). A submitted charge is roughly what a provider bills before any discount, which is the number an uninsured patient tends to see first.
| Service | Low | Average | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Holter monitor, 24 to 48 hours (prepaid cash) | $120 | $215 | $378 |
| Holter monitor, 48 hours (average facility cash price) | n/a | $606 | n/a |
| Holter monitor 24 to 48 hours (hospital charge before discount) | n/a | $1,122 | n/a |
| Holter monitor 48 hours to 7 days (hospital charge before discount) | n/a | $1,478 | n/a |
| 14-day patch monitor, Zio (published self-pay price) | n/a | $395 | n/a |
| 30-day event monitor (prepaid cash) | $486 | $593 | $700 |
| Full 48-hour Holter service, CPT 93224 (average billed charge) | n/a | $380.34 | n/a |
| Recording only, 48 hours, CPT 93225 (average billed charge) | n/a | $119.11 | n/a |
| Scanning analysis with report, CPT 93226 (average billed charge) | n/a | $481.04 | n/a |
| Patch analysis 8 to 15 days, CPT 93247 (average billed charge) | n/a | $1,219.60 | n/a |
| Mobile cardiac telemetry, CPT 93229 (average billed charge) | n/a | $4,289.74 | n/a |
Sources: prepaid cash prices from MDsave’s national Holter monitoring and 30-day event monitor listings; the facility cash-price average from Turquoise Health’s price-transparency data; hospital charges from Avita Health System’s published outpatient list; the Zio self-pay figure from Heart Hippo’s published pricing for the iRhythm patch; billed-charge figures are national average submitted charges in the CMS 2024 physician file (office setting).
Note how far apart those sources sit for what is nominally the same 48-hour test. MDsave’s prepaid national average is $215, Turquoise Health’s facility average cash price is $606, and Avita’s pre-discount charge is $1,122. All three are real 2026 numbers. They describe different transactions, and the gap between them is the entire reason to ask about price before the device goes on.
The three devices you are choosing between
Classic Holter (24 to 48 hours). A recorder on a strap with several electrodes. This is the cheapest option and the one MDsave sells prepaid for $120 to $378. In 2024 Medicare claims, the bundled 48-hour code (93224) carried an average submitted charge of $380.34, with Medicare allowing $68.10.
Long-term patch (3 to 15 days). A single adhesive patch worn continuously, the category Zio and similar devices sit in. iRhythm’s Zio bills under CPT 93242 through 93248 depending on duration. In 2024 Medicare data, the 3 to 7 day analysis code (93243) averaged $1,559.84 in submitted charges and the 8 to 15 day code (93247) averaged $1,219.60. Self-pay is dramatically cheaper: $395 for the monitor, per Heart Hippo’s published Zio pricing.
Event and mobile cardiac telemetry (up to 30 days). These transmit data while you wear them rather than storing it for later analysis. MDsave’s 30-day event monitor runs $486 to $700. Mobile cardiac telemetry (CPT 93229) is the most expensive cardiac monitoring you can be handed: an average submitted charge of $4,289.74 in 2024 Medicare claims, with Medicare allowing $1,014.59.
What Drives the Price
Which device got ordered
This is the single biggest factor, and it is decided in a 30-second conversation you may not realize is a pricing conversation. The spread between a 48-hour Holter (average submitted charge $380.34) and mobile cardiac telemetry (average submitted charge $4,289.74) is more than tenfold in the CMS 2024 data. Asking which one is being ordered, and whether a shorter or simpler version answers the same question, is a fair thing to raise.
The three-way billing split
Long-term monitoring is deliberately split across three codes billed by three different parties. iRhythm’s own billing guide lays it out: the hookup code (93242 or 93246) is billed by the ordering physician, the recording and analysis code (93243 or 93247) is billed by iRhythm, and the interpretation code (93244 or 93248) is billed by whoever reads it. A 24 to 48 hour Holter splits the same way across 93225 (recording), 93226 (scanning analysis), and 93227 (interpretation).
That means one monitor can produce three envelopes weeks apart. It is not duplicate billing, but it does mean a quoted price covering only one of the three is not the price you will pay.
Hospital versus independent cardiology office
The same logic that makes hospital EKGs expensive applies here. Avita Health System’s published list shows $1,122 for a 24 to 48 hour Holter and $1,478 for a 48-hour-to-7-day study before any discount, against MDsave’s $215 national average for prepaid Holter monitoring. Our EKG cost guide covers the same office-versus-facility gap on the test that usually comes first.
Whether an outside company supplies the device
Patch and telemetry monitors are frequently supplied by a third-party company rather than the clinic. That is useful for you, because the company runs its own self-pay program. iRhythm says patients can be offered a discounted self-pay price, financial assistance, or a monthly payment plan. You have to call and ask, which is the part most people skip.
How long you wear it
Duration is priced in steps, not smoothly, and the steps are not where you would guess. In 2024 CMS data the recording component actually falls from $119.11 (48 hours, CPT 93225) to $77.87 (more than 48 hours up to 7 days, CPT 93242), while the analysis side climbs from $481.04 to $1,559.84. The recorder is cheap; the analysis is where the money sits.
Cash Price vs. Insurance
Cardiac monitoring is one of the clearer cases where a cash price can beat running the study through coverage, particularly under a high-deductible plan where you pay the negotiated rate in full until the deductible is met. A $395 self-pay patch or a $215 prepaid Holter is frequently less than the patient share of a facility-billed study.
The timing rule is strict, though. Self-pay pricing is a pre-service arrangement almost everywhere. Once a claim has been submitted, most providers and monitoring companies will not retroactively convert you to their cash rate. If you are uninsured, say so before the device is fitted or shipped, and ask for the self-pay price on all three components (hookup, analysis, interpretation), not just the one the person on the phone quotes.
Also confirm who supplies the device. If the answer is an outside monitoring company, get that company’s name and call its patient billing line directly for its self-pay number before the order goes through.
How to Pay Less
- Ask which monitor is being ordered, and what the simpler version costs. The spread between a 48-hour Holter and 30-day telemetry is more than tenfold in CMS submitted-charge data. Check any quote you are given against our fair price checker.
- Buy it prepaid where you can. MDsave sells 24 to 48 hour Holter monitoring at $120 to $378 (national average $215) and 30-day event monitoring at $486 to $700 (national average $593), paid upfront with no claim filed.
- Call the monitoring company for its self-pay rate. iRhythm publishes no price but confirms a discounted self-pay option exists, and Heart Hippo lists $395 for the Zio monitor itself. That number is the anchor to negotiate against.
- Get the price for all three billing components in writing. Hookup, analysis, and interpretation are billed separately by different parties. A quote covering one of them is not a quote.
- Pull the hospital’s posted cash price if a hospital is involved. Hospitals must publish standard charges and discounted cash prices, and 93224 through 93227 sit in those files. Our hospital price transparency guide walks through finding and reading them.
- Fight the bill after the fact if the numbers do not match. Request an itemized hospital bill to confirm you were not charged both a bundled code and its component codes, then work through our medical bill negotiation guide. For large hospital balances, run our charity care checker and read our hospital charity care guide.
What Usually Comes Before and After
A Holter monitor rarely arrives on its own. It typically follows a standard 12-lead EKG and often sits alongside imaging, so pricing the whole sequence rather than one test at a time is what keeps the total from surprising you.
An in-office EKG runs $20 to $145 as a cash price. An echocardiogram is the usual imaging companion, and a stress test is the common next step when symptoms show up with exertion. If the conversation is about long-term risk rather than a specific rhythm complaint, a calcium score test is the cheap cash-pay scan that often gets discussed instead.
This is a cost guide, not medical guidance. Which test you need is between you and a clinician. What it should cost is the part this page can help with.
Bottom Line
A 24 to 48 hour Holter is a $120 to $378 purchase if you buy it prepaid, and a four-figure charge if it runs through a hospital chargemaster untouched. Patch monitors have a published self-pay price around $395 that almost nobody is offered unless they ask. The most useful question before any monitor goes on is not what it costs but which device it is and who bills for the three pieces. Get all three numbers up front and the bill is boring. Skip that step and it arrives in installments.