What does private cataract surgery cost in the UK?

Written by Emma Leadbetter. Reviewed by Stuart Hendy.

Published 2026-09-15. Last reviewed 2026-09-15. Next review due 2027-03-15.

What a private price usually includes

Private hospitals price most planned work as a package. For cataract surgery, that package normally covers:

• the surgeon’s and anaesthetist’s fees for the procedure itself
• the hospital’s theatre, ward and nursing charges
• the consumables and implants used during the procedure
• one post-operative follow-up appointment with the same consultant
• the standard monofocal lens, unless the quote says otherwise
• the pre-operative eye measurements

Hospitals publish their own package prices, and the Private Healthcare Information Network publishes hospital and consultant fee and performance information under the Competition and Markets Authority’s order. ^{[1] [2]} Always take the price from the hospital you are going to, in writing.

What usually sits outside the quoted price

• the first consultation and any scans or tests needed to reach a diagnosis
• treatment for anything found that was not part of the quoted procedure
• a longer stay than the package assumes, if recovery does not go to plan
• medicines to take home beyond the short supply most packages include
• the second eye, which is normally a separate package
• premium or multifocal lenses, which carry an upgrade charge
• new glasses afterwards

What it costs

We do not publish a price we cannot source. Where a published figure exists and a member of our team has entered it with the publication it came from, it appears here: [STATISTIC REQUIRED]. Until then, the two places to look are the hospital’s own published price list and PHIN, which publishes fee information for private hospitals and consultants. ^[1]

How insurance treats it

• Many policies cover cataract surgery as a day case, but some treat a lens upgrade as a cosmetic or refractive extra and pay only the standard lens cost.
• Insurers usually authorise one eye at a time.
• Cataracts noted at an optician appointment before cover started can count as pre-existing.
• Optical benefit on a cash plan is not the same thing as surgical cover.

Insurers set out what they will and will not pay in the policy document, and the Financial Conduct Authority requires the terms and the information you are given to be clear and not misleading. ^[6] If your policy carries an excess, you pay it once per policy year or once per condition depending on the wording — check which before you book. Our guide to how an excess works explains the difference.

The NHS route

Cataract surgery is high-volume planned ophthalmology and is one of the procedures where NHS providers and independent sector providers both operate under NHS choice.

You can look up the published waiting position for your own hospital and specialty. ^[4] Our waiting times tool sends you straight to the official service for your nation for ophthalmology, and the waiting, paying or insuring tool puts the three routes side by side using your own quoted figures. You also have a legal right to choose where you are treated for most planned NHS care. ^{[5] [3]}

Questions to ask before you agree a price

1. Is this a fixed package price, and what makes it stop being fixed?
2. Does the price include the consultant’s fee, the anaesthetist’s fee and the hospital charge?
3. How many follow-up appointments are included, and for how long?
4. What happens, and what does it cost, if I need to stay longer than planned?
5. If I am using insurance, has the hospital and the consultant confirmed they are covered at these fees?
6. Is this price per eye or for both?
7. Which lens is included, and what does an upgrade add?

It is also worth checking the hospital’s inspection rating with the Care Quality Commission or the equivalent regulator in your nation. ^[7]