Travel vaccine prices in the UK: what is free and what you pay

Four vaccines the NHS pays for

The NHS website lists four travel vaccines as free on the NHS:

• cholera
• hepatitis A
• typhoid
• polio, given as the combined diphtheria, tetanus and polio vaccine

You get these from your GP surgery after filling in a risk assessment form. Five others are not routinely available on the NHS and are paid for privately: hepatitis B, Japanese encephalitis, rabies, tick-borne encephalitis and yellow fever. The NHS website names three places for paid vaccines: a private vaccination clinic, a pharmacy with travel health services, or a GP surgery if it offers them.

Get travel health advice 4 to 6 weeks before you go. Some vaccines need more than one dose, and others take time to give protection.

Private prices for the vaccines you pay for

Three published price lists were read on 22 October 2026. VSM Pharmacy in Camberley (GPhC 1105418) prices per dose and states the number of doses. Its list was dated August 2026. Well Pharmacy (GPhC 9010492 for its online pharmacy) mostly prices the whole course. Nomad Travel Clinic, run by MASTA, prices per dose and says several doses may be needed. Its price page was last updated on 21 April 2026.

VSM's course totals are its per-dose price multiplied by the doses it lists. Nomad does not state dose numbers, so its course cost depends on the schedule your clinician sets. On VSM's dose counts, three intramuscular rabies doses at Nomad would cost £237 and three hepatitis B doses £156, before the appointment fee.

Nomad notes a national rabies vaccine shortage which may affect availability.

Other vaccines on the price lists

The NHS travel page does not place meningitis ACWY or dengue in either its free or its paid list. The three providers still price them, so ask your GP surgery first and compare:

Meningitis ACWY ranged from £55 to £64.99, a gap of £9.99 for the same single dose. For two doses of dengue vaccine the spread runs from £210 at Well Pharmacy to £250 at Nomad, a difference of £40. One chikungunya dose cost £27.01 more at Nomad than at VSM.

Consultation and appointment fees

The vaccine price is not always the whole bill.

• VSM Pharmacy says the consultation is free and you pay only for vaccines given.
• Nomad Travel Clinic charges an initial clinic appointment fee of £20, plus £10 for each additional person, and says all services received during the visit are charged separately. A telephone consultation costs £15 to £50 depending on who you speak to.
• Well Pharmacy's page does not state a consultation fee and says you pay for all doses of a multi-dose course at the first appointment.

What the free vaccines would cost privately

Pharmacies and clinics charge for the four vaccines the NHS gives free. Their prices on 22 October 2026:

Two doses of hepatitis A and one typhoid injection at VSM Pharmacy come to £159.97. The same three injections cost nothing at a GP surgery offering them.

A worked example

Suppose a travel health assessment recommends hepatitis A, typhoid, hepatitis B and rabies. At VSM Pharmacy prices:

Splitting the vaccines between the GP surgery and a pharmacy saves £159.97 in this example. Prices for children and for other pharmacies differ, so ask for a full quote.

Yellow fever

Yellow fever vaccine is only available at certain vaccination centres, according to the NHS website. VSM Pharmacy's £69.99 includes the certificate and it charges £19.99 to replace a lost certificate without revaccination. Well Pharmacy charges £75 for one dose of Stamaril and Nomad Travel Clinic £78.

Steps to pay less

1. Start 4 to 6 weeks before you travel.
2. Ask your GP surgery for the free vaccines and complete its travel risk assessment form.
3. Get quotes for the paid vaccines as full-course totals, including any appointment fee.
4. Check the date on the price list. VSM's was dated August 2026 and Nomad's page was updated in April 2026.
5. Look up the pharmacy's GPhC number on the General Pharmaceutical Council register.
6. Keep your vaccination record and any yellow fever certificate safe.

Mistakes that cost money

Paying a clinic for hepatitis A or typhoid. At VSM these cost £159.97 for a full set, while the NHS gives them free.

Comparing a per-dose price with a course price. Well Pharmacy's £222 rabies figure is for three doses, VSM's £72.99 for one.

Forgetting the appointment fee. Nomad adds £20 for the first person and £10 for each extra person.

Booking too late. A course with three doses needs several visits before departure.

Where the figures come from

The lists of free and paid vaccines, the risk assessment form, the yellow fever centre rule and the 4 to 6 week timing are from the NHS website travel vaccinations page, last reviewed on 30 April 2026. Prices, dose counts, fees and GPhC numbers are from the VSM Pharmacy price list, the Well Pharmacy travel vaccinations page and the Nomad Travel Clinic price page, read on 22 October 2026.