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From Ireland · Hip replacement · Hungary

Hip replacement in Hungary from Ireland: what the trip costs against the wait at home

Prices checked 26 October 2026 (Taipei time)

Short answer

For Irish patients, a hip replacement in Hungary costs €6,240 at the clinic we checked, or about €7,320 once an example return flight and 10 hotel nights are added.

Clinic price
€6,2401 provider, one primary total hip replacement on one side, with the implant and hospital stay. Fees that leave out the implant or the stay are shown but not compared
Example trip
€7,320clinic €6,240 + flight €180 + 10 hotel nights €900
Pay privately in Ireland
Not verified
Wait in Ireland
About 35% waiting over 6 months (all orthopaedic surgery) (24 September 2026)
Time there
About 10 to 14 days in many cases: 2 to 4 nights in hospital, then time near the clinic until the surgeon says you can fly. Ask for the clinic’s own rule
Rank from Ireland
2 of 4 countries by total trip cost

Figure 1Where the money goes, in EUR

Trip total €7,320

Lowest published clinic price, an example return fare from Ireland and 10 hotel nights at €90. Examples, not quotes.

Figure 2Hip replacement: cheapest trip from Ireland, by country

Total trip in EUR: lowest to highest published price plus the same example flight and hotel rules. Click a country for its page for Irish patients.

Published hip replacement prices in Hungary

Each row is a price the provider publishes itself, in its own currency, with what it includes. The converted amounts use a fixed European Central Bank rate.

Hip replacement prices in Hungary
ProviderPublished priceWhat the price is forSource
CMed MagánkórházSzékesfehérvár2,290,000 HUFabout £5,230 · €6,240 · C$9,780 · $6,990Hip replacement, full package with prosthesisPre-operative anaesthesia and outpatient exam, the operation, a basic implant, 2 days of hotel service with nursing, in-hospital physiotherapy, an X-ray of the implant, “intelligent” dressing and stitch removal. Options: ceramic heads +80,000 to +130,000; extra nursing day 54,000; negative-pressure dressing 120,000.CMed Magánkórház (Székesfehérvár)read 26 October 2026
Semmelweis Premium (Semmelweis University’s private service)Budapest1,860,000 HUFabout £4,250 · €5,070 · C$7,950 · $5,680Hip prosthesis, cemented or uncemented, surgery feeSurgery fee only: “does not include the cost of preliminary examinations, the necessary implants, single-use surgical instruments, the hospital stay required by the medical protocol, or histology”. Indicative; a quote confirms the price.Not comparableSemmelweis Premium (Budapest)read 26 October 2026

Prices are copied as published, in the provider's currency. Conversions use the European Central Bank reference rates of 23 October 2026 and are rounded. A provider can change a price at any time: ask for a written quote.

Budapest clinics publish prices in forints. The Buda Eye Centre lets patients pay in euros at the National Bank of Hungary rate and runs a Fast Track programme for patients from abroad (price list, in Hungarian).

MRI: a Hungarian business paper reported in February 2026 that private providers have not been allowed to perform MRI or CT scans since 1 November 2025 and that the state bought their machines (Economx, in Hungarian). Wáberer Medical Center still listed MRI prices when we read its page on 26 October 2026. Ask the clinic in writing whether it can book your scan before you buy a flight. We have not read the legal text.

Against waiting or paying in Ireland

Ireland (public hospitals), 24 September 2026: About 35% waiting over 6 months (all orthopaedic surgery). Orthopaedics as a whole, not hip replacement alone: 14,988 adults on the inpatient/day-case list, 5,275 (35.2%) waiting over 6 months; another 82,991 waiting for a first orthopaedic outpatient appointment, 46.4% of them over 6 months. Waits and prices for a hip replacement in Ireland.

Can the HSE pay?

From Ireland (HSE): Hungary is one of the EU countries listed for the Cross Border Directive scheme. You pay the provider yourself and then claim back the smaller of what you paid and what the same care would cost in the Irish public system; travel and hotels are not covered, and you need a referral from a GP or a consultant you saw as a public patient. HSE: Cross Border Directive, how much you can claim.

Planning the trip from Ireland

  1. Get a written quoteSend the clinic your referral or reason for a hip replacement and ask for an itemised price in writing, with the date and what happens if the result needs follow-up.
  2. Before you goSend recent X-rays and a list of your medicines, and ask for a written, itemised quote with the implant named.
  3. Before you goPlan help at home and the exercises for the weeks after you return.
  4. Before you goCheck your travel insurance covers planned surgery abroad and a delayed flight home. Most standard policies do not.
  5. Entry rulesCheck the official advice before booking: Irish citizens (DFA travel advice, choose the country).
  6. LanguageHungarian; Budapest private clinics usually have English pages and staff.
  7. After you returnGive your GP the operation note with the implant details, and ask who will check your wound and do your follow-up X-ray.
  8. After you returnA hot, swollen calf, chest pain or breathlessness after the flight need emergency care straight away.

Add your flight and hotel

Put in your real fare from Ireland and your hotel to see the total for Hungary next to every other country.

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Hip replacement in Hungary from Ireland: questions

How much is a hip replacement in Hungary for Irish patients?

The published prices we found work out at €6,240 at the clinic, from CMed Magánkórház. With an example return flight of €180 and 10 hotel nights at €90, the trip comes to about €7,320. Your own fares and dates will change the total.

Is it cheaper than paying privately in Ireland?

We have not verified a self-pay price in Ireland for this, so compare the trip total with a written quote from a provider at home.

How long is the wait for a hip replacement in Ireland?

Ireland (public hospitals): About 35% waiting over 6 months (all orthopaedic surgery) (24 September 2026). Orthopaedics as a whole, not hip replacement alone: 14,988 adults on the inpatient/day-case list, 5,275 (35.2%) waiting over 6 months; another 82,991 waiting for a first orthopaedic outpatient appointment, 46.4% of them over 6 months.

How many days do I need in Hungary?

About 10 to 14 days in many cases: 2 to 4 nights in hospital, then time near the clinic until the surgeon says you can fly. Ask for the clinic’s own rule. That is our planning estimate, not medical advice; ask the clinic for its schedule in writing.

Will the HSE pay for it?

Possibly in part: the Cross Border Directive scheme refunds up to what the same care costs in the Irish public system, after you have paid and with a referral.

Sources

  1. Csípőprotézis (árak, incl. térdprotézis). CMed Magánkórház (Székesfehérvár). Read 26 October 2026.
  2. Áraink: ortopédia. Semmelweis Premium (Budapest). Read 26 October 2026.
  3. Open data: inpatient/day case waiting list by specialty, 2026. National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF), October 2026. Read 26 October 2026.
  4. Cross Border Directive: how to get healthcare abroad. Health Service Executive (HSE). Read 26 October 2026.
  5. Cross Border Directive: DRG codes and how much you can claim. Health Service Executive (HSE). Read 26 October 2026.
  6. Árlista (price list). Budai Szemészeti Központ (Buda Eye Centre), Budapest. Read 26 October 2026.
  7. Minden MR- és CT-gépet megvett az állam. Economx (Hungarian business news), 4 February 2026. Read 26 October 2026.
  8. Prices. Wáberer Medical Center, Budapest. Read 26 October 2026.
  9. Euro foreign exchange reference rates. European Central Bank, 23 October 2026. Read 26 October 2026.