How long is the NHS wait for Audiology assessment?

There is no single national wait — it depends on which hospital you are sent to. Audiology waits vary between hospitals, sometimes several-fold, so the useful thing is to compare your own area. The table above ranks the NHS trusts and independent providers reporting Audiology to NHS England, shortest median wait first, from NHS England's DM01 diagnostic figures.

Can I choose which hospital does my Audiology assessment?

For a planned, non-urgent test, you can ask. If your GP refers you to a consultant-led service, you have a legal right, with exceptions, to choose the provider, including one with a shorter wait — the NHS Right to Choose. For a test your GP orders directly, ask your GP whether you can have it at a different hospital. Most people are never told this and go to their nearest by default. It does not apply to urgent or emergency tests.

What does "seen within 6 weeks" mean for Audiology assessment?

Six weeks is the NHS operational standard for diagnostic tests — patients should wait no longer than that. The "within 6 weeks" figure for each hospital is the share of its patients who met that standard; the median is the typical wait. Both come from NHS England's monthly DM01 statistics.

Diagnostics

NHS Audiology assessment waiting times

Also called: audiology, hearing test.

An audiology assessment tests your hearing and, where needed, fits and reviews hearing aids. It is used to investigate hearing loss, tinnitus and balance problems, and to provide and maintain hearing aids. There is no single national wait: it depends heavily on which hospital you are sent to, and the spread between hospitals is large. Below, the NHS trusts and independent providers reporting Audiology to NHS England are ranked by median wait, shortest first.

Compiled by Dr Mustafa Ghafouri (MBChB, MSc) · NHS England DM01 data, August 2026

Typical hospital wait

3 weeks

median across 134 NHS trusts and independent providers

Fastest hospital

under 1 week

shortest published median

Hospitals compared

134

122 NHS trusts and 12 independent providers reporting Audiology

Find your wait

Compare Audiology assessment waits near you

Enter your postcode to see the hospitals near you ranked by wait and distance. Free, independent, from NHS figures.

Audiology assessment waits by hospital, shortest first

Median wait and the percentage of patients seen within 6 weeks — the NHS operational standard for diagnostics. Hospitals with very few patients waiting are excluded so a median is meaningful.

#	Hospital or provider	Median wait	Within 6 weeks
1	The Living Care GroupLeeds	under 1 week	100%
2	Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation TrustBath	under 1 week	77%
3	Ashford and St Peter's Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustChertsey	about 1 week	100%
4	Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation TrustLondon	about 1 week	100%
5	East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation TrustCanterbury	about 1 week	100%
6	George Eliot Hospital NHS TrustNuneaton	about 1 week	100%
7	Shropshire Community Health NHS TrustShrewsbury	about 1 week	100%
8	Hampshire and Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Foundation TrustSouthampton	about 1 week	100%
9	Phoenix Health Solutions Limited HQPontefract	about 1 week	100%
10	Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation TrustWirral	about 1 week	100%
11	Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation TrustAshton-under-Lyne	about 1 week	99%
12	Lewisham and Greenwich NHS TrustLondon	about 1 week	98%
13	Epsomedical GroupCobham	about 1 week	97%
14	Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation TrustTorquay	about 1 week	95%
15	Fairfield Independent HospitalSt. Helens	about 1 week	92%
16	Leeds Community Healthcare NHS TrustLeeds	2 weeks	100%
17	South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust	2 weeks	100%
18	Royal Free London NHS Foundation TrustLondon	2 weeks	100%
19	Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS TrustWakefield	2 weeks	100%
20	Croydon Health Services NHS TrustThornton Heath	2 weeks	99%
21	North Cheshire and Mersey NHS Foundation TrustWarrington	2 weeks	99%
22	Airedale NHS Foundation TrustKeighley	2 weeks	99%
23	University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation TrustSouthampton	2 weeks	98%
24	East Sussex Healthcare NHS TrustSt. Leonards-on-Sea	2 weeks	98%
25	Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustCheltenham	2 weeks	98%
26	University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS TrustStoke-on-Trent	2 weeks	97%
27	Manchester University NHS Foundation TrustManchester	2 weeks	97%
28	James Paget University Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustGreat Yarmouth	2 weeks	97%
29	Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS TrustMaidstone	2 weeks	96%
30	Imperial College Healthcare NHS TrustLondon	2 weeks	96%
31	Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS TrustTruro	2 weeks	96%
32	East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation TrustColchester	2 weeks	96%
33	Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustBasingstoke	2 weeks	95%
34	Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustSutton-in-Ashfield	2 weeks	94%
35	North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation TrustHartlepool	2 weeks	93%
36	InHealth LimitedBeaconsfield	2 weeks	93%
37	London North West University Healthcare NHS TrustHarrow	2 weeks	93%
38	Somerset NHS Foundation TrustTaunton	2 weeks	92%
39	York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustYork	2 weeks	92%
40	Wye Valley NHS TrustHereford	2 weeks	91%
41	Kingston and Richmond NHS Foundation TrustKingston upon Thames	2 weeks	90%
42	Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation TrustHuddersfield	2 weeks	90%
43	Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation TrustWestcliff-on-Sea	2 weeks	90%
44	Sussex Community NHS Foundation TrustBrighton	2 weeks	86%
45	Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustLiverpool	2 weeks	83%
46	The Yorkshire ClinicBingley	2 weeks	82%
47	Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustSheffield	2 weeks	81%
48	Nottingham University Hospitals NHS TrustNottingham	2 weeks	80%
49	Sheffield Children's NHS Foundation TrustSheffield	2 weeks	80%
50	University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustLondon	2 weeks	78%
51	The Rotherham NHS Foundation TrustRotherham	3 weeks	100%
52	Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation TrustReading	3 weeks	99%
53	Northampton General Hospital NHS TrustNorthampton	3 weeks	95%
54	South Warwickshire University NHS Foundation TrustWarwick	3 weeks	94%
55	Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS TrustRomford	3 weeks	93%
56	The Dudley Group NHS Foundation TrustDudley	3 weeks	89%
57	East Lancashire Hospitals NHS TrustBlackburn	3 weeks	88%
58	University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation TrustKendal	3 weeks	87%
59	Frimley Health NHS Foundation TrustCamberley	3 weeks	86%
60	University Hospitals of Leicester NHS TrustLeicester	3 weeks	86%
61	South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation TrustSunderland	3 weeks	86%
62	Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustSwindon	3 weeks	83%
63	West Suffolk NHS Foundation TrustBury St. Edmunds	3 weeks	83%
64	The Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustUxbridge	3 weeks	82%
65	Birmingham Women's and Children's NHS Foundation TrustBirmingham	3 weeks	81%
66	Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustCambridge	3 weeks	80%
67	North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation TrustCarlisle	3 weeks	80%
68	Midlands Partnership University NHS Foundation TrustStafford	3 weeks	80%
69	The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustNewcastle upon Tyne	3 weeks	79%
70	Bristol NHS Foundation TrustBristol	3 weeks	78%
71	County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation TrustDarlington	3 weeks	78%
72	Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS TrustPrescot	3 weeks	75%
73	Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS TrustCarshalton	3 weeks	72%
74	Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS TrustAmersham	3 weeks	70%
75	Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS TrustWorcester	3 weeks	68%
76	Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation TrustLondon	3 weeks	68%
77	The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS TrustShrewsbury	3 weeks	68%
78	Gateshead Health NHS Foundation TrustGateshead	3 weeks	65%
79	Salisbury NHS Foundation TrustSalisbury	3 weeks	61%
80	East Cheshire NHS TrustMacclesfield	4 weeks	75%
81	Buckshaw HospitalChorley	4 weeks	73%
82	Medway NHS Foundation TrustGillingham	4 weeks	71%
83	Kent Community Health NHS Foundation TrustAshford	4 weeks	67%
84	St Martins HospitalBath	4 weeks	67%
85	Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation TrustBarnsley	4 weeks	64%
86	Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS TrustHull	4 weeks	62%
87	Walsall Healthcare NHS TrustWalsall	4 weeks	61%
88	Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation TrustSalford	4 weeks	60%
89	University Hospitals Plymouth NHS TrustPlymouth	4 weeks	59%
90	Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation TrustChester	5 weeks	59%
91	University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS TrustCoventry	5 weeks	57%
92	South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustMiddlesbrough	5 weeks	56%
93	Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS TrustLeeds	5 weeks	54%
94	The Royal Wolverhampton NHS TrustWolverhampton	5 weeks	53%
95	Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation TrustLondon	5 weeks	52%
96	University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation TrustBirmingham	5 weeks	52%
97	Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation TrustExeter	5 weeks	52%
98	Springfield HospitalChelmsford	5 weeks	51%
99	Bolton NHS Foundation TrustBolton	5 weeks	51%
100	Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustNorwich	6 weeks	49%
101	Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS TrustSmethwick	6 weeks	49%
102	Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustCrewe	6 weeks	47%
103	Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustBradford	6 weeks	44%
104	The Hamptons Hospital LtdPeterborough	6 weeks	41%
105	Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust	6 weeks	40%
106	Stockport NHS Foundation TrustStockport	7 weeks	46%
107	Chesterfield Royal Hospital NHS Foundation TrustChesterfield	7 weeks	44%
108	Whittington Health NHS TrustLondon	7 weeks	43%
109	Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation TrustGrimsby	7 weeks	42%
110	Royal Surrey NHS Foundation TrustGuildford	7 weeks	39%
111	West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS TrustWatford	7 weeks	38%
112	North West Anglia NHS Foundation TrustPeterborough	7 weeks	38%
113	University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation TrustDerby	8 weeks	42%
114	University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation TrustWorthing	8 weeks	39%
115	Barts Health NHS TrustLondon	9 weeks	33%
116	Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustWigan	10 weeks	36%
117	Omnes Healthcare LtdSalford	10 weeks	32%
118	Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustBlackpool	11 weeks	33%
119	Harrogate and District NHS Foundation TrustHarrogate	12 weeks	34%
120	Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustOxford	12 weeks	22%
121	West London NHS TrustSouthall	13 weeks	35%
122	Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation TrustMilton Keynes	13 weeks	27%
123	First Community Health and Care CICRedhill	13 weeks	25%
124	Doncaster and Bassetlaw Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustDoncaster	13 weeks	24%
125	The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS TrustHarlow	13 weeks	24%
126	Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation TrustKettering	13 weeks	20%
127	Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS TrustPortsmouth	13 weeks	19%
128	Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustPreston	13 weeks	19%
129	United Lincolnshire Teaching Hospitals NHS TrustLincoln	13 weeks	17%
130	East and North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS TrustStevenage	13 weeks	12%
131	Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation TrustLuton	13 weeks	11%
132	The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, King's Lynn, NHS Foundation TrustKing's Lynn	13 weeks	11%
133	Oxleas NHS Foundation TrustDartford	13 weeks	7%
134	Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust	13 weeks	4%

Can I choose where I have my Audiology?

For a planned, non-urgent diagnostic test you can ask. If your GP refers you to a consultant-led service, you have a legal right, with exceptions, to choose the provider — including one with a shorter wait. For a test your GP orders directly, ask your GP whether you can have it at a different hospital. Most people are never told this and go to their nearest by default. If the test leads to a referral, you can also compare NHS waiting times for treatment at hospital trusts in England.

How the NHS Right to Choose works

Where these numbers come from

Waits are from NHS England's monthly Diagnostic Waiting Times and Activity (DM01) statistics, for August 2026. Each figure is the provider's median wait for that test; “within 6 weeks” is the NHS operational standard. Nothing here is medical advice — the site surfaces the published data so you and your GP can use it.

NHS England DM01 source data

Frequently asked questions

How long is the NHS wait for Audiology assessment?: There is no single national wait — it depends on which hospital you are sent to. Audiology waits vary between hospitals, sometimes several-fold, so the useful thing is to compare your own area. The table above ranks the NHS trusts and independent providers reporting Audiology to NHS England, shortest median wait first, from NHS England's DM01 diagnostic figures.
Can I choose which hospital does my Audiology assessment?: For a planned, non-urgent test, you can ask. If your GP refers you to a consultant-led service, you have a legal right, with exceptions, to choose the provider, including one with a shorter wait — the NHS Right to Choose. For a test your GP orders directly, ask your GP whether you can have it at a different hospital. Most people are never told this and go to their nearest by default. It does not apply to urgent or emergency tests.
What does "seen within 6 weeks" mean for Audiology assessment?: Six weeks is the NHS operational standard for diagnostic tests — patients should wait no longer than that. The "within 6 weeks" figure for each hospital is the share of its patients who met that standard; the median is the typical wait. Both come from NHS England's monthly DM01 statistics.

Compare other NHS scans and tests

All NHS diagnostic waiting times

See also our guide to NHS ENT waiting times.