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What’s the difference between an eye exam and a contact lens exam?
You may be familiar with routine eye exams, where your eye doctor checks your vision and eye health. You may not be as familiar with contact lens exams, even if you wear contacts. The two types of exams are both essential to keeping your eyes healthy and helping you see well, but they do so in different ways.
So, what exactly is the difference between a comprehensive eye exam and a contact lens exam? And do you need to have both every year?
An eye exam evaluates your eyes’ overall health and vision correction needs. On the other hand, during a contact lens exam, your eye doctor determines what contacts will help you see well and ensures they fit properly. The contact lens exam takes place in addition to your eye exam for those who wear contact lenses.
What is a comprehensive eye exam?
A comprehensive eye exam is performed by an eye doctor and consists of multiple parts to check your visual acuity (or how well you see) and evaluate your eye health. This exam also looks at how well your eyes work together and if you have signs of eye conditions and diseases.
During your eye exam, if your eye doctor determines you need vision correction, they can determine your glasses prescription and work with you to help you see your best.
Learn more about eye exams, what they entail, and why they are important in our eye exam guide.
What is a contact lens exam?
A contact lens exam is required if you want to wear contacts. During this exam, an eye doctor will examine your eyes to decide if contact lenses will work for your vision correction needs. If they do, your eye doctor will use the contact lens exam to determine your contact lens prescription (which can differ from your glasses prescription) and take measurements to figure out the right sizing and the best brand of contacts for you.
A general eye exam will not determine the prescription and fit for contact lenses, which is why a contact lens exam (or contact lens fitting, which is part of the contact lens exam) is required if you’d like to try contacts for the first time or are an ongoing contact lens wearer.
Learn more about contact lenses and the options available to you in our contact lens guide.
What to expect during a contact lens exam
During a contact lens exam, your eye doctor will perform a variety of tests to:
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Help them decide if contacts are a good option for you
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Determine your prescription needs (specifically for contact lenses)
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Measure the curvature of your eyes
If you currently wear contact lenses, your eye doctor will also look at your eyes while you have them in. This allows them to see where the lens sits on your eyes and check that it still fits correctly.
All this information will help your eye doctor determine what contact lens prescription you need, the correct fit for your contacts, and what contact lens type and brand will work best for you.
After your contact lens exam
If you’ve never worn contact lenses before or are trying a new brand of contact lenses or prescription, your eye doctor will want you to try a pair of contacts before finalizing your prescription to make sure they work for you.
Here’s what to expect after your contact lens exam:
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Your eye doctor will order some trial contacts for you.
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Once the trial lenses arrive, you’ll need to go to their office to pick up the trials. Your eye doctor may have you put them in while in the office so they can look at how they sit on your eye. If you’re new to wearing contact lenses, your eye doctor’s team will also show you how to put contacts in and take them out at this time.
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You’ll wear the trials for a week or two to see how they feel and if you can see okay with them.
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Once the trial period is over, you’ll need to talk with your doctor. They may have you come back into their office or speak with them over the phone.
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If things feel and look good, your eye doctor will approve your contact lens prescription. However, if things aren’t feeling quite right, they can adjust your contacts prescription and order you a new pair of trial lenses to test out.
If you have worn contacts before and everything has been feeling good and you don’t have a prescription change, your eye doctor may just renew your contacts prescription, no trial period required.
Ultimately, once your contact lens prescription is finalized (which includes your vision correction needs, lens type, contacts brand, and measurements for the fit of your lenses), you can order contacts through your eye doctor’s office or buy contacts online.
Vision insurance and contact lens exam coverage
You may be wondering, “will my vision insurance cover both an eye exam and a contact lens exam?” The answer: probably!
Many vision plans through DeltaVision® offer coverage for contact lenses. This coverage may include a set copay for a contact lens exam and an allowance to put toward the purchase of contact lenses. Alternatively, your coverage may include an allowance to put toward a contact lens exam and the purchase of contact lenses.
Your contact lens coverage may be instead of glasses or in addition to glasses, so be sure to view your coverage details.
This article previously appeared on VSP, Delta Dental of Tennessee’s DeltaVision® partner.
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