How much does a vet consultation cost?
By Richard Barker, editor. Last checked 16 October 2026.
The consultation fee is the charge for the vet's time to examine your pet and discuss what happens next. It is usually the first thing on any bill, and from late 2026 every practice must publish it in the same way.
The four kinds of consultation on a price list
- First consultation: a first appointment with a vet for a new problem or a general check-up. Practices must also say how long a standard appointment is, in minutes.
- Repeat consultation: a follow-up with a vet after a first consultation, or a review before a prescription is renewed.
- Nurse consultation: an appointment with a registered veterinary nurse, or a student nurse under supervision, again with the standard length.
- Out-of-hours consultation: seeing a vet outside the practice's normal hours. If another company provides the out-of-hours service, the practice must name it and link to it.
What a consultation fee does not include
Medicines, injections, tests and treatment are charged separately. A price list shows the consultation alone, so two practices' consultation fees can be compared fairly, but the final bill depends on what your pet needs.
Appointment length matters. A cheaper consultation may be shorter, which is why the standard length now has to be shown next to the price.
When prices will appear here
We will add each practice's published prices to this guide as their price lists go online, starting with the large groups from 23 December 2026 and every other practice from 23 March 2027. Until then we show only figures the CMA has published, with their source.
Sources
- Schedule 1: Price list schedule, Competition and Markets Authority, 22 September 2026.
- Annex 1: Indicative price list with definitions, Competition and Markets Authority, 22 September 2026.
- Veterinary services for household pets: summary of final report, Competition and Markets Authority, 24 March 2026.
CMA documents are Crown copyright and used under the Open Government Licence v3.0.