But it may be a little hard to swallow if you live in one of the more moderately priced regions. If you live on the West Coast, this might not come as any shock. That’s not a typo - an entire $244 separated the two extremes!Ī $49 eye exam at a retail chain in NebraskaĪ $293 eye exam at a private practice in Washington If you had to guess the amount of money that separated the lowest and highest priced eye exams, what would you say - $50? $75? Maybe even $100? What were the lowest and highest priced exams? How much are eye exams in your area? Ask an eye doctor near you. If someone has vision insurance with a set copay for eye exams, the price might not matter much anyway. “The combination of increased expenses, lower reimbursements from insurance, and the fact that we are charging much less than other doctors in our area led to this decision.” “We have not increased the prices for our services in several years,” the eye doctor says. When a doctor or group of doctors runs a standalone practice, things like rent for a bigger facility, total cost for more (or newer) equipment and eyewear inventory can add up in a hurry.Ī private practice in the Southeast charged $94 for an eye exam in 20, and this year the cost is $115. Operating costs likely play the biggest part. Three eye exams at the average vision center or optical retailer still cost less than two exams at a standalone practice. At $51 more for the average eye exam, private practices are 60% more expensive than retail locations. Vision centers and optical retailers are within a few dollars of each other, but there’s a big jump up to private practices.
We separated these into three categories: Vision centers (attached to a store like Target or Costco), optical retailers (like LensCrafters or Pearle Vision) and standalone private practices that aren’t affiliated with another company. Optometrists offer eye exams in all kinds of settings. Instead, big-city expenses will sneak up on you with things like housing and transportation. In 2023, eye exams in big and small cities cost about the same:Ĭost of living is generally higher in big cities, but that still doesn’t apply to eye exams. In 2022, big cities had the edge on small cities’ slightly pricier exams. In 2022, an eye exam in the Northwest cost 58% more than in the Midwest. The good news is, the gap in prices has narrowed a bit. In 2023, an eye exam in the Northwest now costs about 50% more than in the Midwest.
Three years ago, eye exams in the Northwest, the most expensive region, were 44% more expensive than they were in the Midwest, the least expensive region. In 2023, the average eye exam cost by region is: Where you live in the United States still plays a big part in the price of your check-up. Here’s what you can expect, based on: Geographic location The location of your eye exam, along with a few other factors, could have a major impact on your post-visit receipt. You’re overdue for an annual eye exam - where do you go?ĭo you drive to a wholesale club optical center or call the eye doctor who’s had a private practice for decades? Maybe you’ll stop by that chain eyeglass shop instead, next time you’re at the mall. How does it all factor in? The factors that influence exam prices In these cities, you could have as many as hundreds of different options for your next eye exam. is an enormous country, filled with one-street towns, mega metropolises and everything in between. As sad as that may be, that tracks with our $110 eye exam price.īut the U.S.
But, as one eye care employee on the West Coast explained, “It’s the going rate for the area now.”Īccording to the Consumer Price Index (CPI), $95 in January 2020 is worth $110.79 in February 2023. That $4 jump is impressive, considering inflation. That’s only $4 more than the national average in January 2022, when we talked to the same eye care practices. If you closed your eyes and pointed to a random spot in the United States, you could expect an eye exam to cost, on average, about $110 in 2023, according to our survey of 100 U.S.
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