Short answer
Go to the emergency room, or call 911, for anything that could threaten life or a limb: chest pain, trouble breathing, stroke signs, heavy bleeding, confusion or fainting. Go to urgent care for problems that need care today but are not life-threatening, such as a sore throat, a sprain, a minor cut or a urinary tract infection.
Go to the ER or call 911 for these
The American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) lists these warning signs of a medical emergency:
- Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
- Chest or upper abdominal pain or pressure lasting two minutes or more
- Fainting, sudden dizziness or weakness
- Changes in vision or difficulty speaking
- Confusion, unusual behavior or difficulty waking
- Uncontrolled bleeding
- Coughing or vomiting blood
- Sudden or severe pain
- Severe or persistent vomiting or diarrhea
- Suicidal or homicidal feelings
- Unusual abdominal pain
ACEP advises that you are the best judge of whether it is an emergency, and when in doubt, call 911. Urgent care centers do not treat life- or limb-threatening problems; they stabilize the patient and arrange emergency transport.
Urgent care fits these
HealthCare.gov defines urgent care as care for an illness or injury serious enough that a reasonable person would seek care right away, but not so severe it requires emergency room care. Conditions the Urgent Care Association lists as frequently treated include:
- Minor injuries: sprains, strains, minor fractures, cuts and abrasions
- Colds, flu, COVID, sinus infections and strep throat
- Urinary tract infections
- Ear, skin and eye (pink eye) infections
- Allergic reactions that are mild, and seasonal allergies
- Mild pneumonia, bronchitis and dehydration
Examples: which one to choose
- Twisted ankle, can bear some weight: urgent care. Bone showing or foot pointing the wrong way: ER.
- Small cut that stops bleeding with pressure: urgent care. Bleeding that will not stop: call 911.
- Sore throat and fever: urgent care. Trouble swallowing saliva or breathing: ER.
- Burning with urination: urgent care. Severe belly pain: ER.
- Mild rash or itchy hives: urgent care. Swelling of the lips or tongue, or trouble breathing: call 911.
These examples are general information. If you are unsure, treat it as an emergency.
How the costs compare
An ER visit usually costs far more. A study of commercially insured patients published in Health Affairs in 2021 found an average cost of $171 for an urgent care visit and $1,646 for an emergency department visit, as summarized by the University of Pennsylvania's Leonard Davis Institute.
FAIR Health notes that your copay or coinsurance for urgent care is often lower than for the ER. Cost should never stop you from going to the ER for an emergency. Under the federal EMTALA law, hospitals with emergency departments that take part in Medicare must screen and stabilize patients with an emergency condition regardless of ability to pay, according to CMS. See what urgent care costs for more.
How the waits compare
Emergency rooms treat the sickest patients first, so a minor problem can wait hours. At urgent care, a 2018 Urgent Care Association benchmarking report found that over 70 percent of patients waited less than 20 minutes to see a provider, and only 2 percent of patients had to be sent on to an emergency room.
If you are not sure
- If any warning sign above applies, call 911. Do not drive yourself.
- For children, symptoms can differ from adults; see pediatric urgent care and call your pediatrician's after-hours line if you have one.
- Many insurers run a free nurse line; the number is usually on the back of your card.
- At night, most urgent care centers are closed; check hours with the urgent care finder, and go to the ER for anything serious.
Frequently asked questions
Is urgent care cheaper than the ER?
Yes, usually by a wide margin. A 2021 Health Affairs study found an average of $171 per urgent care visit versus $1,646 per emergency department visit for commercially insured patients.
Should I go to urgent care for chest pain?
No. Call 911. Chest or upper abdominal pain or pressure lasting two minutes or more is an emergency warning sign, according to the American College of Emergency Physicians.
Can urgent care send me to the ER?
Yes. If a problem is more serious than it first seemed, urgent care staff will stabilize you and arrange transfer. A 2018 Urgent Care Association report found this happens for about 2 percent of patients.
Is urgent care good for a broken bone?
For a suspected minor fracture, often yes, since most centers have X-ray. For a bone through the skin or a badly deformed limb, go to the ER.
Find urgent care near me
Search by city or state to see urgent care centers and walk-in clinics, with hours where they are on file. Services differ from clinic to clinic, so call to confirm before you go.
Related guides
Sources
- American College of Emergency Physicians: Is It an Emergency? Medical Emergencies: What You Need to Know
- HealthCare.gov: Urgent care (glossary)
- Urgent Care Association (2023): 2023 Urgent Care Industry White Paper
- Penn LDI (2021): Urgent care centers: lower cost than emergency departments, but they increase spending (summary of Wang, Mehrotra and Friedman, Health Affairs)
- FAIR Health Consumer: Emergency Care and Urgent Care
- Journal of Urgent Care Medicine (2018): New UCA Benchmarking Report Paints a Picture of a Booming Urgent Care Industry
- CMS: Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act (EMTALA)
General information, not medical advice. Costs are typical figures from the sources above and vary by clinic, plan and location. In an emergency, call 911.