Paying for cataract surgery in the UK
Replacing the clouded lens of the eye with an artificial lens.
Each row is one way of paying: the NHS, the NHS paying an independent provider, private medical insurance, and paying the provider yourself. Every figure links to the page it was read from, with the date. NHS waits are for England; charges for Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are shown where they have been read. Where nothing is published, the table says so.
How each route pays for cataract surgery
| Route | What it covers | Wait | Price | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NHS trust106 trusts, 527,611 people waiting | NHS treatment from the ophthalmology waiting listThe wait is for the whole specialty list. NHS England publishes no per-procedure wait | 11.1 weeksmedian so far on the ophthalmology list, England, August 2026; 92nd percentile 33.7 weeks | Not applicableNHS-funded. None of the NHS charges read (dental, prescription, sight test) applies to this |
|
| NHS-funded at an independent-sector provider241 providers, 95,173 people waiting. NHS-funded patients; not like-for-like with trusts | NHS-funded patients on the ophthalmology list, treated by an independent-sector providerIncludes community providers as well as private hospitals. Not a self-pay wait | 7.3 weeksmedian so far on the ophthalmology list, England, August 2026; 92nd percentile 22.8 weeks | Not applicableNHS-funded. None of the NHS charges read (dental, prescription, sight test) applies to this |
|
| Private medical insuranceExplained as a mechanism. No insurer or policy is named or compared | Not trackedSet per policy. This site does not read policies | Not trackedNo waiting time for insured patients has been read | Not publishedWhat an insurer pays, and any excess or shortfall, is set per policy | None for this row |
| Self-pay: Nuffield Health | One eye, standard (monofocal) lens — excludes eyesight-correcting lensesGuide price, excludes consultant fees, prosthesis and drugs | Not trackedNo self-pay waiting time has been read for any provider | £3,545median of 26 hospitals, £2,870–£4,210 |
|
| Self-pay: Spire Healthcare | One eye, worded by Spire as "with eyesight correction" — excludes bilateralGuide price, includes consultant fee and initial consultation | Not trackedNo self-pay waiting time has been read for any provider | £3,275median of 31 hospitals, £2,757–£5,631 |
|
NHS waits are incomplete pathways: how long people still on the list have waited so far, from referral, not the time from referral to treatment. They are per specialty, because NHS England publishes no per-procedure wait. Independent-sector figures are NHS-funded patients, not self-pay.
Self-pay prices are each hospital group’s own figure, side by side with its own basis. They are not merged, because the groups do not price the same things.
More on cataract surgery
Sources
- NHS England RTT waiting times, provider extract, August 2026. Read 26 October 2026.
- Nuffield Health published prices. Read 5 October 2026.
- Spire Healthcare published prices. Read 7 October 2026.
This page presents published data. It does not recommend a route, a provider or an insurer.