The number of cases of head and neck (H&N) cancer diagnosed in the UK has been increasing in recent years. These cancers often require complex surgical treatments and extensive rehabilitation. OBJECTIVES: To use data from the Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) database to estimate the costs incurred by English NHS hospitals due to treatment of H&N cancers, with a particular focus on oral cavity, oropharyngeal and laryngeal cancers. METHODS: Inpatient admissions for H&N cancer between the years 2006/07 to 2010/11 were retrospectively analysed. Data was obtained from HES, a database covering English hospital activity, with inpatient episodes aggregated into spells of care associated with a specific Healthcare Resource Group (HRG). The HRGs were linked to costs from the UK National Tariff in order to calculate the average annual and per patient payments for inpatient treatment of H&N cancer, as per the NHS Payment by Results framework. Where necessary, costs were supplemented by expert opinion and other published cost estimates. RESULTS: Payments to NHS hospitals in England for inpatient stays due to H&N cancer are estimated to cost on average £57.1 million per year. The main driver of costs are the disproportionately high number of male cases, the costs of which are £12,517,235, £13,327,351 and £16,185,743 for oral cavity, oropharyngeal and laryngeal cancer, respectively. This translates to respective inpatient costs per male of £5,354, £6,926, and £6,693. Despite similar costs per female inpatient, the average annual payments for inpatient care were approximately £7,579,905, £4,337,947 and £3,166,535, for oral cavity, oropharyngeal and laryngeal cancers. CONCLUSIONS: Based on inpatient treatment alone, H&N cancers place a significant economic burden on English NHS hospitals. This, however, is far less than the total burden of treatment as a large proportion is delivered in the outpatient setting. Further research is currently underway to quantify this total burden.