BACKGROUND: Ambulatory surgery centres are becoming an attractive alternative to hospital-based outpatient departments
however, limited data exist on their cost efficacy in a publicly funded health care model. In this study, we aimed to compare costs for ambulatory sports medicine procedures performed at an ambulatory surgery centre and a hospital outpatient department. METHODS: We retrospectively identified patients who underwent rotator cuff repair, anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR), or hip arthroscopy between January 2020 and August 2022. We collected demographic characteristics, procedural costs, and procedural data. We used 2-sample RESULTS: After controlling for age and concomitant procedures, we included a total of 132 patients for analysis. Patients who underwent hip arthroscopy or rotator cuff repair in an ambulatory surgery centre had significantly shorter duration of total operating room time, and procedural duration was equivocal ( CONCLUSION: Ambulatory sports medicine procedures performed at an ambulatory surgery centre were associated with significantly reduced operating room time and total cost compared with matched cases performed via a hospital outpatient department. Ambulatory surgery centres provide an opportunity to improve cost efficacy and reduce wait-lists for surgical care.