An IMGlobalWealth.News Report
The cost of securing high-quality private healthcare internationally has risen sharply, with comparable insurance premiums increasing by an average of approximately 18% over the past year, according to the SIP Health Cost Index 2026.
The United States remains the world’s costliest private healthcare market, with an average annual international private medical insurance cost of $23,987. Hong Kong follows at $19,353, ahead of Singapore at $17,613, China at $15,235 and the United Kingdom at $14,987.
These five markets have retained their positions from the inaugural 2025 index, suggesting that their comparatively high costs are structural rather than temporary.
The most notable movement near the top came from Dubai. Representing the United Arab Emirates in the index, it climbed four places to sixth, with an average annual cost of $12,142. The UAE recorded an estimated year-on-year increase of 25%.
Saudi Arabia registered an even steeper rise of around 33%, matching the increase recorded in the United States. The kingdom now ranks 19th, at $9,817 annually.
The findings reinforce the Gulf’s growing importance within the global private healthcare market. Expanding hospital capacity, greater insurance penetration and rising demand from expatriates and affluent international residents are increasing both access to and consumption of premium medical services.
Elsewhere, the United Kingdom recorded a 28% increase, while Monaco rose by 26% and China by 25%. At the lower end of the inflation scale, Japan’s costs increased by just 3% and Greece’s by 6%. Spain and France remained below 12%.
Several leading wealth-migration destinations feature prominently among the higher-cost markets. Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai, Switzerland, Monaco and the Bahamas all attract internationally mobile high-net-worth residents while supporting sophisticated private healthcare networks.
The relationship is not necessarily causal. However, concentrations of affluent residents can stimulate demand for premium hospitals, advanced diagnostics, internationally trained specialists and cross-border treatment. That demand encourages investment but may also increase utilisation and provider prices.
Malta, included in the index for the first time, ranks 59th among the 60 markets, with an estimated annual cost of $7,591. Only Romania was marginally less expensive.
Top 20 infographic
SIP’s index does not measure the price of individual treatments. Instead, it uses premiums charged by seven international insurers for three standardised demographic profiles as a proxy for the overall cost of accessing comprehensive private healthcare.
Premium movements consequently reflect more than medical inflation. They can incorporate higher treatment utilisation, ageing populations, pharmaceutical costs, technological advances, insurer claims experience and growing demand for preventive and longevity medicine.
For internationally mobile families and their advisers, the results indicate that healthcare provision is becoming an increasingly important component of relocation and multi-residency planning.
