Shoulder replacement cost in the UK (2026)

Private, NHS and abroad

By Saher Shodhan·Updated 31 October 2026·All guides

Home › Guides › Shoulder replacement cost in the UK (2026): private, NHS and abroad

A shoulder replacement costs £12,749 to £16,250 if you pay for it yourself at a UK private hospital, on the hospitals' own price pages checked on 31 Oct 2026 [1] to [4]. Practice Plus Group charges a fixed £12,749 [1]. On the NHS it costs nothing, but in August 2026 the median wait for trauma and orthopaedic treatment in England was about 14 weeks (13.8) [10]. Three Polish hospitals' own price lists put it at £5,814 to £8,649 (checked 6 Oct 2026) [13].

Written by Saher Shodhan. Every price on this page was checked against the provider's own page on 31 Oct 2026, unless a row says otherwise. Sources are numbered at the end.

Shoulder Replacement Cost in the UK: the Short Answer

Route	What you pay	What it usually covers
UK private, self-pay	£12,749 to £16,250	From Practice Plus Group's fixed price to the Horder Centre's guide price. What each price covers differs: see the table below.
NHS	No charge	843,419 people were waiting for trauma and orthopaedic treatment in England in August 2026, and 61.1% had waited under 18 weeks.
Poland, private	£5,814 to £8,649	From 3 Polish hospitals' own price lists, each including the implant. What else each includes differs. Flights and a hotel come on top.

UK: providers' own price pages, checked 31 Oct 2026 [1] to [4]. NHS: NHS England, August 2026 figures, published 8 Oct 2026 [9]. Abroad: Thera clinic price index, checked 6 Oct 2026 [13].

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UK self-pay prices by hospital

Provider	Hospital	Price	What the price covers	Checked
Practice Plus Group	Its hospitals in England	£12,749	Fixed price for shoulder replacement surgery. The initial consultation, £145, is extra. The provider says the price "includes prescriptions, aftercare, equipment used, and any extra complications that may arise".	31 Oct 2026
Circle Health Group	Circle Reading	from £14,600	A "from" price. Circle says the consultant and anaesthetist set their own fees, so the final price may vary.	6 Oct 2026
KIMS Hospital	Maidstone, Kent	from £15,049	Guide price for shoulder replacement surgery	31 Oct 2026
Spire Healthcare	Spire St Anthony's, Sutton, London	from £15,862	Primary total shoulder replacement: the initial consultation (£225) plus treatment from £15,637, with aftercare included.	31 Oct 2026
Horder Healthcare	The Horder Centre	from £16,250	Total shoulder replacement. The provider says the price "includes surgery, hospital stay, and follow-up". The initial consultation, £220, is extra. Guide price effective from 1 Jan 2026.	31 Oct 2026

Providers' own price pages, checked 31 Oct 2026 [1] to [4]; Circle Reading from the Thera UK price round, checked 6 Oct 2026 [5]. These are published fixed, "from" and guide prices. Ask each hospital for a written quote after your consultation.

Nuffield Health does not publish a shoulder replacement price on its treatment page. It asks you to contact your local hospital and gives a fixed price after your first consultation (checked 31 Oct 2026) [6].

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Why Shoulder Replacement Prices Vary

Which operation: the National Joint Registry describes several types, including a standard total and a reverse total shoulder replacement. "In a reverse total shoulder replacement, the socket and metal ball are switched" [7]. Spire's price is for a primary total shoulder replacement [3]. Ask which operation a quote is for.
Whether the consultation is included: Practice Plus Group (£145) and the Horder Centre (£220) charge for the first consultation on top. Spire St Anthony's "from" price already includes it (£225) [1] [3] [4].
Surgeon and implant: Spire says its price "can increase depending on your choice of Consultant" and "may also vary depending on the type of anaesthetic, implant or drug used, and your medical history" [3].
Which hospital: the published prices run from £12,749 at Practice Plus Group to from £16,250 at the Horder Centre [1] [4].

What's Included in the Price?

Each provider words it differently, so compare quotes line by line:

Practice Plus Group: "prescriptions, aftercare, equipment used, and any extra complications that may arise" [1].
Spire Healthcare: the price includes aftercare, which Spire says covers consultations and physiotherapy visits up to the number in your treatment letter, removal of stitches, dressings and medication for up to 14 days after you leave hospital [3].
Horder Healthcare: surgery, hospital stay and follow-up. It says consultations, diagnostic scans and tests needed to reach a diagnosis "are not part of your procedure price" [4].

Ask each hospital, in writing, whether these are in the price:

The first consultation, and any scans and tests after it
The type of implant your surgeon recommends
Physiotherapy after the sessions in the package
Treatment if something goes wrong
Travel and somewhere to stay, for you and anyone with you

Can You Get a Shoulder Replacement on the NHS?

Yes. NHS treatment is free, but you may wait. The National Joint Registry says "joint replacements are nearly always carried out because of pain that cannot be controlled by other methods such as painkillers, physiotherapy or other surgery" [7].

In August 2026, 843,419 people were waiting for trauma and orthopaedic treatment in England, and 61.1% had waited under 18 weeks [9]. The median wait for this specialty was about 14 weeks (13.8) [10]. These are the latest published figures, for August 2026. They cover all trauma and orthopaedic treatment, not shoulder replacements alone. NHS England publishes the September 2026 figures on 12 Nov 2026.

The NHS says that "in many cases you have the legal right to choose where you have your NHS treatment", and you can ask to be moved "to a different provider if you're likely to wait longer than the maximum waiting time" [11]. My Planned Care has information for people waiting for treatment [12].

Shoulder Replacement Abroad: Prices and Checks

Three Polish hospitals' own price lists put a shoulder replacement at £5,814 to £8,649, converted at the European Central Bank rate (checked 6 Oct 2026) [13]. Two more price lists, in Poland and Lithuania, give a price without the implant, so we leave them out (checked 6 Oct 2026) [13]. If a clinic abroad quotes you, ask whether the implant is included, and add flights, a hotel and follow-up care.

For the comparison with one country, see shoulder replacement in Latvia against the UK. Our guides to shoulder replacement costs in Poland, shoulder replacement abroad, step by step and the countries UK patients choose for shoulder surgery go further.

When this may not be right for you

The National Joint Registry says to "ask your specialist about what shoulder replacement they recommend and what the advantages and disadvantages of it are" [7]. Its S-Predict tool can "estimate your chances of experiencing an adverse outcome within 90 days of your surgery", to discuss with your doctor [8]. If your NHS wait is short, NHS treatment costs nothing, and you can ask to move hospital if you are likely to wait longer than the maximum time [11]. Abroad, you travel back with your arm recovering, so any follow-up in the UK needs planning before you go.

Before you pay a deposit

Three checks to make yourself before any money changes hands:

Find the hospital on its country's official register of healthcare providers, under the company name on the quote.
Get your surgeon's name in writing, look them up where the country has a public register of doctors, and ask how many shoulder replacements they do a year.
Ask what happens, and who pays, if you need help with the new shoulder after you are back in the UK.

Our 15 questions to ask a hospital abroad give you the wording.

Clinics we hold, by country

Each has a free summary page: the register entry we found, the Google listings and any published prices. Thera is free for patients. No clinic can pay to change the prices we publish.

Poland12 orthopaedic clinics with a free summary page
Lithuania5 orthopaedic clinics with a free summary page
Latvia4 orthopaedic clinics with a free summary page

Frequently asked questions

How much does a shoulder replacement cost?

At a UK private hospital, £12,749 to £16,250 if you pay for it yourself, on the hospitals' own price pages checked on 31 Oct 2026. On the NHS it is free. Three Polish hospitals' price lists put it at £5,814 to £8,649 (checked 6 Oct 2026).

How much is a private shoulder replacement in the UK?

Practice Plus Group charges a fixed £12,749, plus £145 for the first consultation. KIMS Hospital lists it from £15,049, Spire St Anthony's from £15,862 including the consultation, and the Horder Centre from £16,250, all checked on 31 Oct 2026.

Sources

Practice Plus Group, private patient prices: shoulder replacement surgery £12,749, initial consultation £145, and what the price includes. Checked 31 Oct 2026.
KIMS Hospital, private medical treatment price list: shoulder replacement surgery from £15,049. Checked 31 Oct 2026.
Spire Healthcare, Spire St Anthony's, shoulder replacement: primary total shoulder replacement from £15,862 (consultation £225, treatment from £15,637), and the notes on what the price covers. Checked 31 Oct 2026.
Horder Healthcare, self-pay treatment prices: total shoulder replacement from £16,250, initial consultation £220, guide prices effective from 1 Jan 2026. Checked 31 Oct 2026.
Circle Health Group, Circle Reading, treatment prices: shoulder replacement from £14,600, recorded in the Thera UK price round. Checked 6 Oct 2026.
Nuffield Health, total shoulder replacement surgery (no price on the page; contact your local hospital). Checked 31 Oct 2026.
National Joint Registry, Shoulder replacement. Read 31 Oct 2026.
National Joint Registry, NJR S-Predict, patient decision support tool (shoulder). Read 31 Oct 2026.
NHS England, referral to treatment waiting times, August 2026, statistical press notice, table 1, Trauma and Orthopaedic Service (excludes trusts that did not send data). Published 8 Oct 2026.
NHS England, incomplete pathways by commissioner, August 2026, national sheet, Trauma and Orthopaedics median wait 13.8 weeks (an estimate from grouped data). Published 8 Oct 2026.
NHS, Your choices in the NHS. Read 31 Oct 2026.
NHS, My Planned Care. Read 31 Oct 2026.
Thera Travel, clinic price index: clinics' own published price lists. Shoulder replacement, Poland: £5,814 to £8,649 from 3 full price lists; 2 lists without the implant left out. Checked 6 Oct 2026.

This guide is general information, not medical advice.

Clinics UK patients look at

The four with the most Google reviews among the orthopaedic clinics we hold. Each has a free page with its records.

Apollo Hospitals, Greams Road, ChennaiChennai, India

KIMS-Sunshine Hospitals, BegumpetHyderabad (Begumpet), India

Yashoda Hospitals, SomajigudaHyderabad (Somajiguda, Raj Bhavan Road), India

Yashoda Hospitals, MalakpetHyderabad (Malakpet, Nalgonda X Roads), India

Written by Saher Shodhan

Saher Shodhan is the founder of Thera Travel, which publishes what the official records show about clinics abroad, each fact with the date it was checked, and answers patients' enquiries, free. More about Thera → How we write and check our guides →