How long is the NHS wait for Echocardiogram?

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

Can I choose which hospital does my Echocardiogram?

For a planned, non-urgent test, often yes. In England you have a legal right, when your GP refers you, to ask to be seen at a hospital with a shorter wait — the NHS Right to Choose. 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 Echocardiogram?

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 Echocardiogram waiting times

An echocardiogram is an ultrasound scan of the heart. It shows the heart muscle, valves and pumping function in real time, painlessly and without radiation. It is used to investigate breathlessness, murmurs, palpitations and known or suspected heart conditions. There is no single national wait: it depends heavily on which hospital you are sent to, and the spread between trusts is large. Below, every English NHS trust that reports Echo is ranked by its median wait, shortest first.

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

Typical trust wait

2 weeks

median across 134 trusts

Fastest trust

under 1 week

shortest published median

Hospitals compared

134

English NHS trusts reporting Echo

Find your wait

Compare Echocardiogram waits near you

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

Echocardiogram waits by hospital, shortest first

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

#	Hospital trust	Median wait	Within 6 weeks
1	CORA HEALTH DIAGNOSTICS (FORMERLY HEALTHSHARE DIAGNOSTICS)WEST MALLING	under 1 week	100%
2	ROYAL BERKSHIRE NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTREADING	under 1 week	99%
3	MID YORKSHIRE TEACHING NHS TRUSTWAKEFIELD	about 1 week	100%
4	SOUTH WARWICKSHIRE UNIVERSITY NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTWARWICK	about 1 week	100%
5	UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS COVENTRY AND WARWICKSHIRE NHS TRUSTCOVENTRY	about 1 week	100%
6	SOUTH TYNESIDE AND SUNDERLAND NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTSUNDERLAND	about 1 week	100%
7	EAST LANCASHIRE HOSPITALS NHS TRUSTBLACKBURN	about 1 week	100%
8	LEEDS TEACHING HOSPITALS NHS TRUSTLEEDS	about 1 week	100%
9	BRISTOL NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTBRISTOL	about 1 week	100%
10	EAST AND NORTH HERTFORDSHIRE TEACHING NHS TRUSTSTEVENAGE	about 1 week	100%
11	DONCASTER AND BASSETLAW TEACHING HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTDONCASTER	about 1 week	99%
12	CROYDON HEALTH SERVICES NHS TRUSTTHORNTON HEATH	about 1 week	99%
13	SHEFFIELD CHILDREN'S NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTSHEFFIELD	about 1 week	98%
14	NORTHUMBRIA HEALTHCARE NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTNORTH SHIELDS	about 1 week	98%
15	CHESTERFIELD ROYAL HOSPITAL NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTCHESTERFIELD	about 1 week	97%
16	MANCHESTER UNIVERSITY NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTMANCHESTER	about 1 week	97%
17	NORTH CUMBRIA INTEGRATED CARE NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTCARLISLE	about 1 week	97%
18	ROYAL SURREY NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTGUILDFORD	about 1 week	95%
19	SALISBURY NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTSALISBURY	about 1 week	93%
20	THE DUDLEY GROUP NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTDUDLEY	about 1 week	93%
21	GREAT WESTERN HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTSWINDON	about 1 week	85%
22	TORBAY AND SOUTH DEVON NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTTORQUAY	about 1 week	75%
23	TAMESIDE AND GLOSSOP INTEGRATED CARE NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTASHTON-UNDER-LYNE	2 weeks	100%
24	AIREDALE NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTKEIGHLEY	2 weeks	100%
25	THE ROTHERHAM NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTROTHERHAM	2 weeks	100%
26	PRACTICE PLUS GROUP HOSPITAL - BARLBOROUGHCHESTERFIELD	2 weeks	100%
27	MEDWAY NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTGILLINGHAM	2 weeks	100%
28	INHEALTH LIMITEDBEACONSFIELD	2 weeks	100%
29	NORTH BRISTOL NHS TRUSTBRISTOL	2 weeks	100%
30	WEST SUFFOLK NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTBURY ST. EDMUNDS	2 weeks	99%
31	FRIMLEY HEALTH NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTCAMBERLEY	2 weeks	99%
32	UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS BIRMINGHAM NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTBIRMINGHAM	2 weeks	99%
33	BARTS HEALTH NHS TRUSTLONDON	2 weeks	99%
34	UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS SUSSEX NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTWORTHING	2 weeks	99%
35	BOLTON NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTBOLTON	2 weeks	99%
36	WIRRAL UNIVERSITY TEACHING HOSPITAL NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTWIRRAL	2 weeks	99%
37	THE ROYAL MARSDEN NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTLONDON	2 weeks	99%
38	UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTLONDON	2 weeks	98%
39	MAIDSTONE AND TUNBRIDGE WELLS NHS TRUSTMAIDSTONE	2 weeks	98%
40	MID CHESHIRE HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTCREWE	2 weeks	98%
41	THE CHRISTIE NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTMANCHESTER	2 weeks	97%
42	IMPERIAL COLLEGE HEALTHCARE NHS TRUSTLONDON	2 weeks	96%
43	MERSEY AND WEST LANCASHIRE TEACHING HOSPITALS NHS TRUSTPRESCOT	2 weeks	96%
44	SANDWELL AND WEST BIRMINGHAM HOSPITALS NHS TRUSTSMETHWICK	2 weeks	96%
45	DARTFORD AND GRAVESHAM NHS TRUSTDARTFORD	2 weeks	96%
46	ROYAL PAPWORTH HOSPITAL NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTCAMBRIDGE	2 weeks	96%
47	SOUTH TEES HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTMIDDLESBROUGH	2 weeks	95%
48	EAST CHESHIRE NHS TRUSTMACCLESFIELD	2 weeks	95%
49	ASHFORD AND ST PETER'S HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTCHERTSEY	2 weeks	95%
50	EAST KENT HOSPITALS UNIVERSITY NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTCANTERBURY	2 weeks	94%
51	LEWISHAM AND GREENWICH NHS TRUSTLONDON	2 weeks	94%
52	NORTH TEES AND HARTLEPOOL NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTHARTLEPOOL	2 weeks	94%
53	KETTERING GENERAL HOSPITAL NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTKETTERING	2 weeks	94%
54	ST GEORGE'S UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTLONDON	2 weeks	93%
55	LIVERPOOL HEART AND CHEST HOSPITAL NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTLIVERPOOL	2 weeks	93%
56	NORTHERN LINCOLNSHIRE AND GOOLE NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTGRIMSBY	2 weeks	92%
57	EAST SUSSEX HEALTHCARE NHS TRUSTST. LEONARDS-ON-SEA	2 weeks	91%
58	UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS PLYMOUTH NHS TRUSTPLYMOUTH	2 weeks	91%
59	THE PRINCESS ALEXANDRA HOSPITAL NHS TRUSTHARLOW	2 weeks	91%
60	MILTON KEYNES UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTMILTON KEYNES	2 weeks	90%
61	SHERWOOD FOREST HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTSUTTON-IN-ASHFIELD	2 weeks	89%
62	GATESHEAD HEALTH NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTGATESHEAD	2 weeks	87%
63	HOMERTON HEALTHCARE NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTLONDON	2 weeks	86%
64	GUY'S AND ST THOMAS' NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTLONDON	2 weeks	85%
65	UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS OF LEICESTER NHS TRUSTLEICESTER	2 weeks	85%
66	EAST SUFFOLK AND NORTH ESSEX NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTCOLCHESTER	2 weeks	84%
67	UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS DORSET NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTPOOLE	2 weeks	84%
68	JAMES PAGET UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTGREAT YARMOUTH	2 weeks	83%
69	LIVERPOOL UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTLIVERPOOL	2 weeks	83%
70	UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS OF DERBY AND BURTON NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTDERBY	2 weeks	83%
71	KINGSTON AND RICHMOND NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTKINGSTON UPON THAMES	2 weeks	81%
72	WORCESTERSHIRE ACUTE HOSPITALS NHS TRUSTWORCESTER	2 weeks	80%
73	WYE VALLEY NHS TRUSTHEREFORD	2 weeks	79%
74	ROYAL FREE LONDON NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTLONDON	2 weeks	79%
75	OXFORD UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTOXFORD	2 weeks	78%
76	GREAT ORMOND STREET HOSPITAL FOR CHILDREN NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTLONDON	2 weeks	77%
77	CARE PLUS GROUPGRIMSBY	2 weeks	72%
78	BRADFORD TEACHING HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTBRADFORD	2 weeks	68%
79	HAMPSHIRE AND ISLE OF WIGHT HEALTHCARE NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTSOUTHAMPTON	3 weeks	100%
80	THE ROYAL WOLVERHAMPTON NHS TRUSTWOLVERHAMPTON	3 weeks	99%
81	WALSALL HEALTHCARE NHS TRUSTWALSALL	3 weeks	99%
82	STOCKPORT NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTSTOCKPORT	3 weeks	93%
83	NORTH WEST ANGLIA NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTPETERBOROUGH	3 weeks	89%
84	WHITTINGTON HEALTH NHS TRUSTLONDON	3 weeks	88%
85	COUNTY DURHAM AND DARLINGTON NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTDARLINGTON	3 weeks	88%
86	QUEEN VICTORIA HOSPITAL NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTEAST GRINSTEAD	3 weeks	88%
87	EPSOM AND ST HELIER UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS NHS TRUSTCARSHALTON	3 weeks	82%
88	NORTH CHESHIRE AND MERSEY NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTWARRINGTON	3 weeks	80%
89	THE NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTNEWCASTLE UPON TYNE	3 weeks	78%
90	CALDERDALE AND HUDDERSFIELD NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTHUDDERSFIELD	3 weeks	78%
91	NOTTINGHAM UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS NHS TRUSTNOTTINGHAM	3 weeks	77%
92	DORSET COUNTY HOSPITAL NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTDORCHESTER	3 weeks	75%
93	SHEFFIELD TEACHING HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTSHEFFIELD	3 weeks	75%
94	WEST HERTFORDSHIRE TEACHING HOSPITALS NHS TRUSTWATFORD	3 weeks	74%
95	UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS OF MORECAMBE BAY NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTKENDAL	3 weeks	73%
96	THE SHREWSBURY AND TELFORD HOSPITAL NHS TRUSTSHREWSBURY	3 weeks	71%
97	HARROGATE AND DISTRICT NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTHARROGATE	3 weeks	68%
98	NORTHERN CARE ALLIANCE NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTSALFORD	3 weeks	66%
99	KING'S COLLEGE HOSPITAL NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTLONDON	3 weeks	64%
100	THE HILLINGDON HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTUXBRIDGE	4 weeks	97%
101	PRACTICE PLUS GROUP SURGICAL CENTRE - ST MARYS PORTSMOUTHPORTSMOUTH	4 weeks	90%
102	ROYAL UNITED HOSPITALS BATH NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTBATH	4 weeks	88%
103	PORTSMOUTH HOSPITALS UNIVERSITY NHS TRUSTPORTSMOUTH	4 weeks	81%
104	BARNSLEY HOSPITAL NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTBARNSLEY	4 weeks	75%
105	ROYAL CORNWALL HOSPITALS NHS TRUSTTRURO	4 weeks	75%
106	GEORGE ELIOT HOSPITAL NHS TRUSTNUNEATON	4 weeks	74%
107	NORFOLK AND NORWICH UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTNORWICH	4 weeks	72%
108	DORKING HEALTHCARE LIMITED (DHC)REDHILL	4 weeks	70%
109	UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL SOUTHAMPTON NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTSOUTHAMPTON	4 weeks	70%
110	HAMPSHIRE HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTBASINGSTOKE	4 weeks	66%
111	UNITED LINCOLNSHIRE TEACHING HOSPITALS NHS TRUSTLINCOLN	4 weeks	65%
112	UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS OF NORTH MIDLANDS NHS TRUSTSTOKE-ON-TRENT	4 weeks	64%
113	BIRMINGHAM WOMEN'S AND CHILDREN'S NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTBIRMINGHAM	4 weeks	63%
114	WRIGHTINGTON, WIGAN AND LEIGH TEACHING HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTWIGAN	4 weeks	62%
115	BLACKPOOL TEACHING HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTBLACKPOOL	4 weeks	61%
116	BEDFORDSHIRE HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTLUTON	4 weeks	60%
117	THE QUEEN ELIZABETH HOSPITAL, KING'S LYNN, NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTKING'S LYNN	4 weeks	59%
118	SOMERSET NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTTAUNTON	4 weeks	58%
119	CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTCAMBRIDGE	4 weeks	57%
120	THE HAMPTONS HOSPITAL LTDPETERBOROUGH	5 weeks	91%
121	BUCKINGHAMSHIRE HEALTHCARE NHS TRUSTAMERSHAM	5 weeks	79%
122	YORK AND SCARBOROUGH TEACHING HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTYORK	5 weeks	58%
123	COUNTESS OF CHESTER HOSPITAL NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTCHESTER	5 weeks	57%
124	CHELSEA AND WESTMINSTER HOSPITAL NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTLONDON	5 weeks	53%
125	ROYAL DEVON UNIVERSITY HEALTHCARE NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTEXETER	5 weeks	51%
126	ISLE OF WIGHT NHS TRUSTNEWPORT	6 weeks	48%
127	LONDON NORTH WEST UNIVERSITY HEALTHCARE NHS TRUSTHARROW	6 weeks	46%
128	LANCASHIRE TEACHING HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTPRESTON	7 weeks	44%
129	SURREY AND SUSSEX HEALTHCARE NHS TRUSTREDHILL	7 weeks	42%
130	MID AND SOUTH ESSEX NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTWESTCLIFF-ON-SEA	8 weeks	37%
131	PRACTICE PLUS GROUP HOSPITAL - SHEPTON MALLETSHEPTON MALLET	8 weeks	28%
132	HULL UNIVERSITY TEACHING HOSPITALS NHS TRUSTHULL	9 weeks	34%
133	GLOUCESTERSHIRE HOSPITALS NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTCHELTENHAM	9 weeks	28%
134	NORTHAMPTON GENERAL HOSPITAL NHS TRUSTNORTHAMPTON	13 weeks	19%

Can I choose where I have my Echo?

For a planned, non-urgent diagnostic test you often can. In England you have a legal right, when your GP refers you, to ask to be seen at a different hospital — including one with a shorter wait. Most people are never told this and go to their nearest by default.

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 March 2026. Each figure is the trust'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 Echocardiogram?: There is no single national wait — it depends on which hospital you are sent to. Echo waits vary between NHS trusts, sometimes several-fold, so the useful thing is to compare your own area. The table above ranks every English NHS trust that reports Echo, shortest median wait first, from NHS England's DM01 diagnostic figures.
Can I choose which hospital does my Echocardiogram?: For a planned, non-urgent test, often yes. In England you have a legal right, when your GP refers you, to ask to be seen at a hospital with a shorter wait — the NHS Right to Choose. 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 Echocardiogram?: 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 cardiology waiting times.