The  typical eye surgery cost can vary widely from one center to another. However, it is always a good idea to know what the general cost is so that you don’t get an unpleasant surprise when you receive your bill. There are other factors to consider as well, such as do you have the money to pay the surgery up front or to pay in monthly instalments or will you have to pay for additional fees for enhancements.

A typical eye surgery cost would be around $2150 for a single quote on any laser-based correction surgery, which includes LASIK, LASEK, PRK and wavefront LASIK. The cost of LASIK has remained fairly stable in the past few years, if anything, it has only risen very slightly due to new technologies, such as wavefront LASIK.

However, traditional LASIK surgery that uses a blade should range anywhere between $1000 to $2000. If the price is significantly higher (like over $3000), you should check with the surgeon to see if they have exceptional credentials to warrant having the procedure performed by them. If it is significantly lower (like below $1000), you should be more interrogative and ask questions like “How experienced is the surgeon?” and “Is that the full price quoted?”

There are some surgeons who charge a premium for traditional LASIK that doesn’t involve wavefront technology. If the quote is above $2000 per eye, then you should consider wavefront LASIK instead as it will be roughly the same price as a more expensive traditional LASIK surgery. In any case, when only a single price is quoted for LASIK, you should ask the billing representative more questions like “Will I receive a laser flap?” and “Will wavefront technology be used?” In the end, you should listen to what your eye surgeon recommends you to do, regardless of the eye surgery cost, as it will be best suited to your needs.

You may also be wondering why it costs in the thousands to have eye surgery. In fact, there are lot of factors involved when an eye surgeon performs any sort of eye surgery on you. For instance, they have to consider what type of technology to use for eye tracking, measurements of corneal thickness, corneal topography, pupil size and the laser itself. All these things can significantly add up to the total eye surgery cost. Other factors include:

• A $100 to $150 royalty fee to the excimer laser manufacturer
• A $145 to $250 royalty fee to the laser manufacturer for a custom wavefront LASIK procedure
• Gowns, masks, gloves and other equipment to keep instruments sterile
• Patient acquisition costs, including fees paid to other eye care practitioners
• Rent, office equipment, staff salaries
• Insurance
• And, of course, the actual surgeon.

These are just some of things that may eye surgery cost quite daunting for the average person. However, with careful questioning, planning and management, it should be easily possible to afford laser eye surgery to correct your current prescription with minimal complications.