Contact Lenses: Types, Costs, Insurance and Alternatives

Many people today wear contact lenses, including 45 million people in the U.S. alone.¹ They are popular because they are an alternative to wearing glasses, which can be especially attractive to those who play sports.

To wear contacts, you'll need to get a prescription and fitting from your optometrist or ophthalmologist, and update or renew your prescription yearly to be able to purchase your contacts from them (or a vision care retailer).

Below we take a closer look at the cost of contact lenses by type, financing options and what insurance coverage may look like if you're deciding to buy contact lenses.

What Are Contact Lenses?

Contact lenses are thin disks made of clear plastic that you wear directly over the cornea of your eye to temporarily improve your vision.

Contact lenses can correct a variety of vision problems, including:

• Astigmatism. An irregularly shaped cornea or lens, astigmatism causes blurriness at all distances.
• Hyperopia. Also known as farsightedness, those with hyperopia can't see objects clearly up close.
• Myopia. Also known as nearsightedness, those with myopia can't see faraway objects clearly.
• Presbyopia. This aging of the lens, also known as age-related farsightedness, can occur in combination with existing nearsightedness, farsightedness or astigmatism.

How Do Contact Lenses Work?

Contact lenses help improve your vision in the same way eyeglasses do, but on a much smaller scale. Once applied directly to the surface of your eye, these tiny lenses redirect the light that hits your eye into your retina to properly focus your vision, helping you see more clearly. Their power is measured in diopters, which are positive for farsightedness and negative for nearsightedness.

Types of Contact Lenses

Contact lenses come in a variety of options that vary by material, length of wear, replacement schedule and specialization.

Materials

Contacts generally come in two types of materials:

• Soft contact lenses. Made from soft and flexible plastic that lets oxygen into the cornea when worn, these types of lenses are most popular and worn by approximately 90% of users.
• Hard, rigid, gas permeable lenses. While these types of hard plastic lenses give you clearer vision and last much longer than soft ones, they are more difficult to clean and tend to be more uncomfortable than soft lenses.

Length of wear

Whether hard or soft, there are different types of contact lenses based on how long it is recommended you wear them:

• Daily wear contacts. These are designed to wear while you are awake, not while you are sleeping. Before you go to sleep, your contacts should be cleaned and stored appropriately.
• Extended wear contacts. These can be worn for up to 30 days and nights, with some breaks as recommended by your vision care provider.

Replacement schedule

While some contact lenses are made to last, others are meant to be disposed of after each use, including:

• Daily disposables. These are designed to be disposed of after each use.
• Planned replacement. These are designed for disposal after seven to 30 days of wear. Others may last up to one year. They require cleaning after each wear.

Specialty

Depending upon your prescription, your doctor may recommend different types of contacts for you to use, including:

• Bifocal. Treats nearsightedness and farsightedness at once
• Multifocal. Treats near, intermediate and far distances in one lens
• Toric. Treats astigmatism
• Hybrid. Consists of hard contact lenses with a "skirt" of soft contact lens material to make them more comfortable
• Orthokeratology (Ortho-k). Hard contact lenses meant to be worn overnight to temporarily change the shape of your cornea and improve your vision temporarily the next day
• Scleral. A larger type of hard contact lenses that extend to the white of the eye, usually worn to protect damaged corneas or treat severe dry eye
• Decorative. Lenses designed to change the look or color of your eyes; can be prescription or nonprescription

How Much Do Contact Lenses Cost?

The national average cost* for a 30-day supply of daily disposable contact lenses is $60.² A yearly batch of two-week disposable contacts will cost $291.²

Prices for contact lenses vary based on your prescription, the type of contacts selected and where you purchase them.

Cost of soft contact lenses

Whether they're disposed of daily, weekly or monthly, the average cost* of an annual supply of soft contact lenses can vary greatly:²

• Daily disposable contact lenses: $46 to $116 per 30-day supply
• Two-week disposable contact lenses: $224 to $560 per year

Cost of hard contact lenses

The cost of gas-permeable and other custom contacts varies. The average cost* of rigid gas-permeable, hard contact lenses can range from $140 to $337 for a set of two lenses based on your prescription.²

Cost of specialty contact lenses

In some cases, your vision care provider may recommend specialty lenses or a non-surgical procedure that uses specially designed lenses to treat different eye conditions. The average costs* you can expect will depend on your prescription, type of lenses used and provider's experience, among other factors:²

• Astigmatism contact lenses: $42 to $91 per month
• Multifocal contact lenses: $216 to $548 per year
• Orthokeratology (Ortho-k): $1,120 to $4,158 (average cost range based on type of treatment)

Does Insurance Cover Contact Lenses?

Most vision insurance plans provide at least some coverage for contact lenses. The amount of coverage depends on your plan and provider. Unlike major medical insurance, vision insurance plans usually provide discounts or wellness benefits that may be used to reduce the cost of preventive eye care and prescription products like eyeglasses and contacts.

For example, your vision plan may cover the cost of a routine eye exam (after your copay), but you may be required to pay all or part of the cost of an eye exam for contact lenses because it includes additional tests beyond the routine assessment.

How to Pay for Contact Lenses

When paying for contact lenses, there are several options to consider:

• Cash or savings. If you have the funds available, you can use them to pay.
• Health savings or flexible spending account. For those who have them, you may also be able to use a tax-free Health Savings Account (HSA) or Flexible Spending Account (FSA) to cover the cost of contact lenses.
• General-purpose credit cards or the CareCredit credit card. Almost all vision care providers and retailers accept general-purpose credit cards, and many accept the CareCredit credit card, which might be a convenient way to pay for contacts.

Alternatives to Contact Lenses

There are several alternatives to wearing contacts for you to consider. These include wearing eyeglasses and corrective eye surgery. Each comes with some pros and cons.

Eyeglasses

Eyeglasses work in much the same way that contact lenses do but on a larger scale. They may be impractical for some activities like sports unless specially created for them. On average, expect to pay between $93 to $230 for basic eyeglasses with standard frames and single-vision lenses.²

Refractive eye surgery

Surgical procedures like LASIK, PRK (photorefractive keratectomy) and SMILE (small incision lenticule extraction) can correct your vision, eliminating the need for contacts or glasses. These are minimally invasive procedures that permanently change your cornea using a laser.

For conventional LASIK surgery, expect to pay between $1,230 and $2,625. Standard PRK surgery will range from $1,600 to $3,880 per eye, while standard SMILE surgery will cost between $2,025 and $4,675 per eye.²

Prescription eye drops

Prescription eye drops to treat presbyopia can temporarily improve your up-close, reading vision. They are effective for up to 10 hours per day. Expect to pay around $91 per 2.5-milliliter bottle of eye drops, which is about a one-month supply.³

Implantable contact lenses

Implantable contact lenses are surgically implanted inside the eye and can only be removed by a doctor. For implantable collamer lens (ICL) surgery — particularly Visian® ICL, a commonly used type that corrects myopia, hyperopia and astigmatism — costs vary from $3,800 to $9,405 per eye.²

Contact lenses vs. alternatives

Unlike contact lenses, eyeglasses do not deprive the eye of oxygen, meaning you can wear them day and night.

Surgical procedures like eye surgery may have potential complications such as damage to the cornea or infections that contact lenses don't. Additionally, procedures like implantable contact lens surgery and refractive eye surgery are generally not covered by vision care insurance.

Prescription eye drops only treat presbyopia and can cause side effects like redness and headaches. Contact lenses can treat several conditions that these drops can't.

Financing Eyewear With the CareCredit Credit Card

Whether you're purchasing stylish new frames, getting contacts or due for an eye exam, the CareCredit credit card can help you pay for care where your insurance leaves off.** Use our Acceptance Locator to find a vision specialist near you that accepts CareCredit so you can see all that life has to offer. Continue your wellness journey by downloading the CareCredit Mobile App to manage your account, find a provider on the go and easily access the Well U blog for more great articles, podcasts and videos.

In addition to vision care, you can also use your CareCredit credit card for dentistry, cosmetic, pet care, hearing, health systems, dermatology, pharmacy purchases, spa treatments and so much more within the CareCredit network. How will you invest in your health and wellness next?

Expert Reviewer

Dr. Alexandra Chebil, M.D., F.R.C.S.C.

Dr. Alexandra Chebil is a board-certified ophthalmologist with the Lasik Center Medical Group in Newport Beach, California, who has more than 25 years of experience with refractive surgery and noninvasive facial aesthetic procedures. She was one of the first ophthalmologists to perform LASIK, and has successfully performed more than 70,000 procedures.

Author Bio

Susan Paretts is a freelance writer with 20 years of experience covering health and wellness, pet care and more. Her work has been published by the American Kennel Club, Bayer Animal Health, Elanco, LIVESTRONG.com, The San Francisco Chronicle, Chewy and more.