How Much Does a Tubal Ligation Cost in 2026?
With most insurance, a tubal ligation (getting your tubes tied) is $0, it is covered as preventive care under the Affordable Care Act. Without insurance, it typically costs $1,500 to $6,000, depending on the method and where it is done.
- Under the ACA, most non-grandfathered health plans must cover female sterilization (tubal ligation), including anesthesia, with no cost-sharing when you stay in-network. For most insured patients that means $0.
- You can still be billed in a few cases: a grandfathered plan, a religious or moral-exemption employer, an out-of-network provider or facility, or the service being coded wrong (for example, billed as a separate diagnostic procedure or an add-on at the time of a C-section). Medicaid generally covers it at $0 too.
- The main dollar figure to plan for is the self-pay price. A postpartum tubal done at delivery is the cheapest route because you are already in the operating room; a stand-alone laparoscopic procedure is the typical uninsured case.
Tubal Ligation Cost by Method (Self-Pay)
Cash / self-pay price ranges for people without coverage. With most insurance, these are $0. The method, and whether it is done at delivery, are the biggest factors.
| Method | Cash price |
|---|---|
| Laparoscopic interval tubal ligation (outpatient) | $1,500 to $6,000 |
| Postpartum tubal ligation (add-on at delivery) | A few hundred to ~$2,000 added |
| Bilateral salpingectomy (full tube removal, outpatient) | $5,000 to $12,000 |
Lowest cost: A postpartum tubal done at the time of delivery, since the surgery is bundled into care you are already receiving. For a stand-alone procedure, an outpatient surgery center is usually cheaper than a hospital. Getting your tubes tied is permanent; a hysterectomy removes the whole uterus and is a separate decision, not a sterilization choice.
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What Makes Up the Bill
If you are paying yourself, total billed charges for a stand-alone laparoscopic tubal ligation are typically $6,000 to $20,000 before any cash discount. It is usually split across:
The single biggest lever is the facility fee, which is why an ambulatory surgery center is far cheaper than a hospital operating room. A postpartum tubal avoids most of this because the delivery already covers the room, the anesthesia, and the surgeon's time, so only a small add-on charge applies. If you are insured, remember the whole bill should be $0 in-network; a charge usually signals a coverage or coding issue, not a cost you actually owe.
With vs. Without Insurance
With insurance (most plans)
$0
Under the ACA, most non-grandfathered plans must cover female sterilization, including the anesthesia, with no copay, deductible, or coinsurance when you use in-network providers. You could still be billed with a grandfathered plan, a religious or moral-exemption employer, an out-of-network surgeon, facility, or anesthesiologist, or if the service is coded as something other than preventive sterilization. Confirm your preventive benefit and that everyone is in-network before the procedure.
Without insurance (self-pay)
$1,500 to $6,000
That range is for a stand-alone laparoscopic procedure; a postpartum tubal at delivery costs much less as an add-on, and a full salpingectomy costs more. Ask for the all-in cash or prompt-pay price up front, and compare a surgery center against the hospital. Planned Parenthood and some clinics offer income-based or sliding-scale pricing.
Prices vary widely by region and provider. Within a single metro, hospital-reported cash prices for the same sterilization code can differ by several times over, so shopping 3-4 local facilities and asking each for an all-in price matters more than your region alone.
How to Pay Less
If you are insured, make sure it is billed as preventive and in-network
Ask your insurer to confirm tubal ligation is covered at $0 under your preventive-care benefit, then confirm the surgeon, the facility, AND the anesthesiologist are all in-network. If a bill arrives anyway, ask the billing office to recheck the coding and appeal it. A charge is usually a coverage or coding error, not a cost you owe.
If you are already having a baby, ask about a postpartum tubal
Having the procedure right after a vaginal delivery or during a planned C-section means only a small add-on charge instead of a separate surgery with its own facility and anesthesia fees. Decide and sign any required consent well ahead of your due date.
Choose an outpatient surgery center and request an all-in cash price
If you are self-pay, an ambulatory surgery center carries a much lower facility fee than a hospital. Ask for a single bundled price that includes the surgeon, anesthesia, and facility so there are no surprise add-ons. Hospitals commonly cut 30-60% for cash paid upfront.
Check Medicaid, a clinic, or sliding-scale pricing
Medicaid covers sterilization at $0 with a signed consent form and a 30-day waiting period. Planned Parenthood and community health centers often offer income-based pricing, and some states fund family-planning programs that cover the procedure for people who do not have full Medicaid.
Check hospital charity care, or get the bill reduced
Uninsured or lower income? Many hospitals offer free or discounted care. Use the charity care finder to see if you qualify nearby. Already billed? CareRoute Bill Defense reviews and negotiates it down, with no fee unless we save you money.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a tubal ligation free with insurance?
For most people, yes. Under the Affordable Care Act, most non-grandfathered health plans must cover female sterilization (tubal ligation), including the anesthesia, with no cost-sharing when you use an in-network provider, so your out-of-pocket is $0. You can still be billed in a few cases: a grandfathered plan, an employer with a religious or moral exemption, an out-of-network surgeon or facility, or the procedure being coded as something other than preventive sterilization. If a bill shows up, that is usually a coverage or coding problem worth disputing, not a cost you simply owe.
How much does it cost to get your tubes tied without insurance?
For a self-pay patient, a laparoscopic interval tubal ligation (done on its own, not at delivery) typically costs $1,500 to $6,000, and bundled cash prices at hospitals can run higher. A postpartum tubal done right after a vaginal delivery or during a C-section is much cheaper as an add-on because you are already in the operating room. Always ask for the all-in cash or prompt-pay price up front, and ask whether a nearby surgery center is cheaper than the hospital.
Why did I get a bill if a tubal ligation is supposed to be covered?
A bill for a procedure that should be $0 usually comes from one of four things: an out-of-network surgeon, facility, or anesthesiologist; a grandfathered or religious/moral-exemption plan that is not required to cover it; the service being coded as a diagnostic or separate procedure instead of preventive sterilization; or a tubal done at the time of a C-section being billed as an add-on surgery. Ask the billing office and your insurer to recheck the coding and your preventive-care benefit, and appeal if it was processed wrong.
Does Medicaid cover getting your tubes tied?
Yes. Medicaid generally covers tubal ligation at $0 for enrollees 21 and older. Federal rules require a signed sterilization consent form and a waiting period of at least 30 days (and no more than 180 days) between signing the consent and the procedure, so plan ahead. If you deliver before the 30 days pass, a postpartum tubal may be delayed. There is no out-of-pocket cost when the consent and timing rules are met.
How much does Medicare pay for a tubal ligation?
Medicare rarely applies here because tubal ligation is for people of reproductive age, and most payer rules that matter are commercial or Medicaid ACA preventive coverage. For reference, under the 2026 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule the surgeon's fee is about $333 for a laparoscopic tubal ligation (CPT 58670 fulguration or 58671 clips/rings) and about $332 for an abdominal/open tubal ligation (CPT 58600). A facility fee would be billed separately.
More Cost Guides
Sources
- CMS 2026 Physician Fee Schedule, national payment from total RVUs and the $33.4009 conversion factor (CPT 58670/58671 laparoscopic, 58600 abdominal, 58605/58611 postpartum, 58661 salpingectomy)
- HealthCare.gov and the ACA contraceptive-coverage mandate (female sterilization covered with no cost-sharing on most non-grandfathered plans)
- KFF, Sterilization or Permanent Contraception as a Family Planning Method
- MDsave and GoodRx bundled and cash pricing for laparoscopic and postpartum tubal ligation
- Planned Parenthood patient information on tubal ligation and bilateral salpingectomy
- Healthcare Bluebook and FAIR Health fair-price data
Prices are national estimates for 2026 and vary by location, provider, method, and your specific plan. Last updated October 2, 2026.