MRI in Australia

602 imaging practices in Australia are accredited for MRI and take referred patients. 218 of them are outside a capital city.

An MRI uses a magnetic field rather than x-rays, and the machines are expensive, so far fewer places have one.

Coverage by state: 204 in New South Wales, 140 in Victoria, 140 in Queensland, 46 in Western Australia, 40 in South Australia, 16 in Australian Capital Territory, 12 in Tasmania and 4 in Northern Territory.

Every scan needs a referral, and the practice — not the patient — is what determines whether Medicare eligibility applies. Pick your state below, then your town, for the nearest machine and how far it is.

411 practices nationally are on the Australian Government's Medicare-eligible MRI list (last updated 17 February 2026). The other 191 have an accredited MRI that is not on that list, so a scan there may not attract a rebate — that difference is the thing worth checking before you book.

On our count, 169 towns with imaging of their own have no MRI at all. Those towns are where the distance matters most, and each has a page giving the nearest machine measured from there rather than from the nearest capital.