A Phase I study in 12 patients with renal disorders compared the simultaneous clearances of 99mTc-labeled mercaptoacetyltriglycine (MAG3) and 131I-labeled orthoiodohippurate (OIH). The ratio of MAG3 to OIH clearance was 0.61 +/- 0.08 as a result of its smaller volume of distribution, ratio 0.65 +/- 0.09, for the clearance half-lives were similar, ratio 1.09 +/- 0.12. A Phase II study performed serially in 20 patients with equal doses of [99mTc]MAG3 and [123I]OIH gave images of equal quality. The relative renal functions were highly correlated (r = 0.97, p less than 0.001) and transit time analyses gave good correlations: parenchymal transit time index r = 0.81, p less than 0.05. We conclude that [99mTc]MAG3 has some advantages over [99mTc]DTPA and is a suitable replacement for [123I]hippuran in routine renal imaging, relative function, and transit time studies, but not for the accurate estimation of the renal plasma flow.