Share on Pinterest
Getty Images/Images By Tang Ming Tung

Laser vision correction surgery has been popular since it was first approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) more than 2 decades ago.

For most of that time, about 1 million eyes were corrected using laser surgery techniques each year. Popularity has declined recently, with about 800,000 eyes corrected each year on average for the last several years.

LASIK, or laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis, can be expensive. But LASIK is just one type of corrective surgery. Many of these procedures are simply referred to as “LASIK” regardless of the method.

Still, no matter how it’s done, vision correction surgery can cost thousands of dollars. And that’s for each eye.

Find out how much you can expect to pay for LASIK and what to look for in a surgeon.

The cost of LASIK and other correction vision surgeries vary widely.

According to a 2021 report on the state of LASIK procedures, prices are lower than they were decades ago due to advances in technology, but prices still range from about $1,000 to $4,000 per eye.

The average price in the United States was $2,632 per eye in 2020.

The report put the cost of vision correction surgery as about equal to the cost of glasses or contacts and eye exams for 8 to 10 years.

What affects cost?

The price of vision correction surgery depends on a lot of factors. These include:

  • your location
  • experience of the surgeon
  • what technique will be used
  • what costs are included
  • your individual eye health or vision problems

Since laser vision correction is an elective, or optional, surgery, very few private insurance companies cover the cost of the procedure.

While you can usually use healthcare programs like a federal savings account (FSA) or a health savings account (HSA), most vision correction surgeries are paid by the person having the procedure.

In some cases, larger insurance companies or private insurance plans may offer coverage for LASIK procedures.

What’s included in the cost of your LASIK surgery depends on who’s doing the procedure.

Some locations offer all-inclusive packages. During your initial consultation, ask about what may be included or added as an extra cost.

A surgeon who offers a low price may add costs later instead of offering a more all-inclusive price upfront.

Some services that may or may not be included in the cost are:

  • pre- and postoperative exams
  • facility fees
  • surgeon’s fees
  • medications used during or after the procedure

Make sure the surgery you plan to have is the right solution for your particular vision problem.

Below are some tips for selecting a surgeon andquestionsyou may want to ask before scheduling your procedure.

Visit or contact several local providers. Ask about their experience, procedures, success rates, and patient satisfaction scores.

How do they decide who is a good candidate for a procedure? (It’s very important the surgeon makes sure you’re a good candidate to reduce the chances of complications.)

Ask friends and family members who were happy with their surgery for referrals.

Don’t always go for the cheapest option. The provider could be lacking experience, or there may be costs that aren’t upfront.

What technique will be used? What kinds of results can you expect? Be sure to have realistic expectations. Not every procedure will deliver perfect vision.

Make sure you ask about savings programs, discounts, and payment plans, too. Since very few insurance companies cover LASIK, many providers offer some type of discount on their services.

LASIK is a common name for laser vision correction surgery, but it’s really only one type of surgery. There areseveral waysto surgically correct vision problems using lasers or surgical blades:

  • Conventional LASIKuses a microkeratome blade to create an opening in yourcorneathat’s folded back while a laser reshapes your cornea to correct your vision problem. The flap is replaced at the end of the procedure. This is one of the oldest and least expensive varieties of laser vision correction surgery.
  • Custom LASIKis a more modern approach to conventional LASIK. It adds in corneal mapping tools (think of it as a specific fingerprint for your eye) that allow increased accuracy and precision during the procedure.
  • All laser or blade-free LASIKis similar to conventional LASIK, but afemtosecond laseris used in place of the microkeratome blade. This technique has been associated with better results and fewer complications.
  • Photoreactive keratectomy (PRK)is a procedure that’s sometimes called advanced surface ablation. With this technique, the same mapping tools and lasers are used as in LASIK, but with PRK, thecornea is removed instead of reshaped. There’s no flap involved. The cornea grows back over time, afterPRKhas corrected the underlying problems.
  • LASIK or epi-LASIKis like PRK, only the cornea is replaced after vision correction treatment.
  • Small incision lenticules extraction (SMILE)is a procedure that uses a femtosecond laser to create a grouping of tissue in the cornea that’s removed, therefore improving the eye’s focusing power.
  • Refractive lens exchangeis a treatment where a part of your natural eyelensis removed and replaced with a vision-correcting lens called an intraocular lens. This treatment doesn’t use lasers.

How often is LASIK used?

LASIK types of vision correction surgery make up 80 to 85 percent of all vision correction surgeries, while PRK accounts for 10 to 15 percent, according to a 2021 report on the state of LASIK procedures.

Other procedure types like SMILE or refractive lens exchange make up less than 5 percent.

像大多数外科手术一样,总有chance that your LASIK or other type of vision correction surgery will need to be repeated, or that you’ll havecomplicationsafter the procedure.

The American Refractive Surgery Council (ARSC) estimates that about30 percentof people who have LASIK experience temporary side effects that are considered a normal part of the healing process.

These side effects usually go away in about 3 months. In some cases, side effects can last as long as a year. And for a smaller number of people, these side effects may be long term. Side effects include:

  • dry eyes
  • glare
  • halos
  • problems with nighttime vision

According to the ARSC,less than 1 percentof people who have LASIK experience more serious complications, like infections.

The need forrepeated surgeryis rare, but it’s also important to remember thatnot everyoneis a good candidate for LASIK.

The vision problem that is being corrected plays a big role in how effective your corrective surgery will be.

For example, many people who have surgery to correct presbyopia may still need reading glasses. But most LASIK procedures result in 20/20 or better vision after surgery.

More than 95 percent of people who have had vision correction surgery reported in a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) study that they were happy with their results.

When is LASIK used?

  • Nearsightedness.Most people — 80 percent — who undergo vision correction surgery have myopia, ornearsightedness.
  • Farsightedness.Hyperopic vision problems, or farsightedness, account for about 15 percent of procedures.
  • Age-related changes.Presbyopicvision problems —farsightednesscaused by lack of elasticity in the eye that’s more common as you age — make up a quarter of corrective surgeries.

LASIK and other types of vision correction can be expensive, and they’re not guaranteed to work for everyone.

Make sure you’re a good candidate for LASIK surgery, and be sure to explore a variety of surgeons and facilities before scheduling your procedure.

Vision correction surgery sometimes needs to be repeated, and there may be side effects that can last for months.