Use this calculator to compare renting and buying a hospital bed with your own quotes, or to estimate what you’d pay for a Medicare-covered bed in your state. It runs entirely in your browser; we don’t collect what you enter.
Rent vs buy calculator
Enter the quotes you’ve been given. The calculator runs entirely in your browser; nothing you type is sent or saved.
The calculator needs JavaScript. To do it by hand: multiply the monthly rent by the months you expect to need the bed and add delivery and pickup fees. Add the purchase price, delivery, and any mattress you must buy, minus what you could resell it for. The cheaper total wins. The method section below explains the Medicare math.
How the calculator works
Private-pay mode adds up both options month by month:
- Renting: the monthly rent times the number of months, plus delivery, setup, and pickup fees, plus any part of the deposit you won’t get back.
- Buying: the purchase price plus delivery and setup, plus a mattress if one isn’t included, minus the amount you expect to recover by reselling or donating the bed. Enter 0 for resale if you’re unsure; many families can’t resell a used bed easily.
The break-even month is the first month in which the total paid for renting meets or exceeds the total cost of buying. If you expect to need the bed for longer than that, buying is likely to cost less.
Medicare mode uses the official rule for capped rental items:
- It looks up the Medicare-approved monthly rental for the bed code, state, and area you choose (non-rural, rural, or a former competitive bidding area) from CMS’s October 2026 fee schedule.
- Months 1 to 3 are paid at that amount, and months 4 to 13 at 75% of it. That follows the federal rule of 10% of the purchase price for months 1 to 3 and 7.5% for months 4 to 13 (42 CFR 414.229).
- Payments stop after 13 months of continuous use, when ownership passes to you.
- Your share is the remaining Part B deductible (default $283, the 2026 amount), then 20% of each approved amount. Change these if you’ve already met your deductible or have a Medigap plan that pays the coinsurance.
Which Medicare code should I pick?
| Code | Bed | Who it’s for under Medicare’s policy |
|---|---|---|
| E0250 | Fixed height, rails, mattress | Meets the basic hospital bed criteria |
| E0255 | Variable height (manual crank), rails, mattress | Also needs a different bed height to transfer |
| E0260 | Semi-electric (electric head and foot, manual height), rails, mattress | Also needs frequent or immediate position changes |
| E0301 | Heavy duty extra wide, without mattress | Weighs more than 350 lb, up to 600 lb |
| E0303 | Heavy duty extra wide, with mattress | Weighs more than 350 lb, up to 600 lb |
Your practitioner and supplier decide the code. If you aren’t sure, start with E0260, the most commonly discussed home bed, and see Medicare hospital bed requirements for the criteria. Full-electric beds aren’t covered (they’re treated as upgrades), so use private-pay mode for those.
What the calculator can’t tell you
- Local private prices. Rental and purchase prices are set by each supplier and vary a lot by area and model. Get two or three written quotes and enter them.
- What’s included. Ask whether the quote includes the mattress, rails, delivery, setup, pickup, and repairs.
- Tax effects. If you itemize, the IRS lets you deduct medical expenses above 7.5% of your adjusted gross income (IRS Publication 502). Whether a bed qualifies depends on your situation; ask a tax professional.
- Whether you qualify for Medicare coverage. That depends on your medical records. See does Medicare cover hospital beds?
Next steps
- Compare local rental terms in our hospital bed rental guide.
- See what each type of bed tends to cost in our hospital bed cost guide.
- If money is tight, see free and low-cost hospital beds.
How we built this tool
The Medicare amounts come straight from CMS’s DME26-D fee schedule file (checked October 7, 2026) for the 50 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and each former competitive bidding area. The math follows 42 CFR 414.229. We don’t store or send anything you enter. If you spot an error, see our corrections policy.