Healthcare

Portugal — Healthcare: Average Medical Costs

Under the public SNS, user fees (taxas moderadoras) are waived for most primary care and basic diagnostics; non-exempt groups pay roughly €5 for a GP visit and €15 for an ER admission. Without insurance, private-sector out-of-pocket costs run: €50-80 for a GP consultation, €80-150 for a specialist consultation, €250-350 for an MRI, and €200-500+/day for a private hospital room (excluding surgical supplies/physician fees). Dental care is almost entirely private — a standard checkup/cleaning averages €50-75, basic extractions €40-90. Prescription medications are heavily co-funded by the state under a tiered subsidy system (Co-participação de Medicamentos) scaling across four categories (90%, 69%, 37%, 15%) based on therapeutic necessity and chronic nature.

Serviço Nacional de Saúde (SNS) · Last verified 2026-07-17

Key Facts

  • Public SNS user fees are waived for most primary care visits; non-exempt GP visits cost ~€5, ER admissions ~€15.
  • Private GP consultation without insurance: €50-80; specialist consultation: €80-150.
  • Private MRI (standard region): €250-350; private hospital room: €200-500+/day.
  • Dental care is almost entirely private: checkup/cleaning €50-75, basic extraction €40-90.
  • Prescription medications are subsidized in four tiers (90%, 69%, 37%, 15%) based on therapeutic necessity.

Related Topics

public-healthcareprivate-insurance
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