How much does a cataract surgery cost?

Private cataract surgery in the UK costs roughly £2,000 to £3,500 per eye with a standard lens, the same kind of lens the NHS uses. Most people need both eyes done in the end, so budget for about double that. On the NHS the surgery is free, but you wait: the typical wait for cataract surgery runs to about 13 weeks (July 2026), and much longer at some hospitals than others.

What you are actually paying for

A private cataract price is usually a fixed package for one eye: the surgeon, the anaesthetic, the theatre, the lens, and your follow-up. On top of the £2,000 to £3,500 per eye, expect a first consultation of about £200 to £500 before anything is booked, where the surgeon confirms the cataract and measures your eye for the lens.

Ask any clinic the same question before you commit: what is and is not in the price, per eye. The number that matters is the all-in figure for the operation, not a headline that leaves the surgeon or the lens out.

Premium lenses cost more, and the NHS does not offer them

The NHS fits a standard single-focus (monofocal) lens, which corrects distance vision well but usually still leaves you needing reading glasses. Privately you can pay more for a premium lens, multifocal or extended-depth, that reduces your need for glasses across more distances. These are not available on the NHS at all, and they add to the per-eye price. Whether a premium lens is worth it is a conversation for your surgeon, not a pricing question, and a standard lens privately is the same lens you would get free on the NHS.

The NHS route is free, so the real question is the wait

Because the operation itself is free on the NHS, paying privately buys you speed, not a better standard lens. That makes cataracts different from many operations: there is little to be gained from a targeted private step, because the hold-up is the surgery queue itself, not getting diagnosed. Your choices are really three. Stay on the NHS and wait. Switch to a faster NHS hospital for free, under your right to choose, which can save months at no cost. Or pay for the whole operation privately and be treated in weeks.

Which is right depends entirely on how long your own hospital's queue is, and how much shorter a nearby one might be.

See every NHS hospital's real cataract surgery wait, and how to switch to a faster one for free, on the cataract surgery waiting times pages. If you would rather have your options and the faster hospitals near you worked out from your postcode, open your free dashboard below.

Want the wait instead of the price? See cataract surgery NHS waiting times →

Can I go private for cataract surgery, then have it done on the NHS? →