Eye Health Central

Are Daily Contact Lenses more expensive than Monthly Lenses?

Are Daily Lenses more Expensive than other lenses?

If you are just looking at cost then most daily lenses are a bit more expensive than monthly lenses, but when deciding whether to choose daily or monthly disposable lenses it's not that simple, you might want to consider how much time you are willing to put in to care for your lenses,  and how is your eye health? So a simple yes or no answer would not give the full facts, read on to find out the cheapest daily contact lenses and the real benefits they bring.

In this post, we look at the major benefits and drawbacks of daily lenses to help you make as informed a decision as possible.


How Much do Daily Lenses Cost Compared to Monthly Lenses?

Daily Lenses Cost Per Month and Per Day
Crystal Aqua Daily 1 months supply = £19.00/30 pairs

 £0.63 per day
Dailies AquaComfort Plus 1 Month Supply = £41.98/30 pairs 

 £1.40 per day
1 Day Acuvue Moist 1 Month supply = £47.98/30 pairs   

£1.60 per day
Monthly Lenses Cost per Month and Per Day
Are Daily Lenses more Expensive than other lenses? 3 months supply £31.50 plus 3btls Renu multi solution and case £30.00 = £61.50


£0.68 per day


So, incredibly, Crystal Aqua Daily works out to be cheaper than monthly lenses (£19.00 / month for Crystal Aqua Dailies vs  £20.50 /month for Biofinity Monthly) and as the name suggests, daily disposable lenses are designed for one-day usage - so are very convenient with no hassle.

However, if you are using daily lenses such as Dailies AquaComfort Plus, or 1 Day Acuvue Moist, then monthly lenses are cheaper - Biofinity monthly contact lenses are about 50% cheaper per month when compared to 1 Day Acuvue Moist.


Why Do Optometrists Love Daily Lenses? 

It’s no secret that most optometrists believe daily disposable contact lenses - commonly referred to as simply dailies - are the optimal contact lens design. Not only are these lenses generally safer, but they also score high marks for comfort with most patients. Below, we’ll quickly run through all the good points surrounding dailies contact lenses.  

Safety

The most obvious reason Optometrists love dailies is because they dramatically reduce a patient’s risk of infection. Since you only wear daily lenses for one day, there’s very little chance for viruses, bacteria, or parasites to attach themselves to your lenses. Plus, if a pathogen were to get on your contact lenses, you would throw the lens away at night anyway, thus cutting your chances of suffering an eye disease. 


Convenience 

Daily contact lenses also have a significant convenience factor in the contact lens community. Remember, you are getting a fresh pair of lenses every morning, so there’s no real need to be as extreme with your disinfection routine. 

This enhanced convenience makes daily contact lenses a perfect option for people who are super-busy and don’t have the time for time-consuming hygiene routines that are necessary for long-term lenses (e.g. soaking lenses in solution, checking for scratches, etc.).  

sleeping with contact lenses

An Easy Way To Deter Overnight Wear

As you probably already know, sleeping with contacts on is a big no-no (unless they are special overnight wear contact lenses). Contact lenses block healing oxygen from arriving at your corneas, which could cause issues such as corneal ulcers and scarring. If that wasn’t enough, contact lenses also create an opportune breeding ground for bacteria that could divide and grow on your eyes overnight. 

Of course, there are no guarantees, but people who wear dailies are more likely to remove their contact lenses before bed. Because you throw away dailies every night, it’s simply more convenient to avoid this frighteningly common bad habit. 

No Worries About Protein Deposits 

Over time, it’s natural for proteins and lipids to form in long-term wear contact lenses, which could result in eye discomfort and blurred vision. With daily disposable lenses, however, you do not have to worry about these deposits forming. There’s not enough time for proteins to cluster on one-day contact lenses. 

A Delight For Dry Eye Sufferers 

Daily contact lenses are considered the premier choice for people who suffer from dry eye syndrome. This partly has to do with reduced protein deposits as noted above. Every morning your eyes get a fresh pair of lenses, which literally gives your corneas a breather. Plus, there are new daily disposable lenses being released each year with enhanced breathability and wettability. 


Great for Hay Fever Sufferers

People who suffer from hay fever create a lot of additional deposits during the hay fever season, and these can stick on the contact lenses and create an 'irritation and redness' feedback loop, because daily contact lenses are thrown away every day they do not allow deposits to build up and cause a problem. Often hay fever sufferers find the only lenses they can wear during hay fever season are daily disposable contact lenses.


Hayfever and contact lenses


Did You Know That Daily Disposable Contact Lenses Are Mostly Recyclable?

It’s undeniable: daily disposable lenses are the healthiest and most convenient option for your eyes, but not necessarily the eco-friendliest contact lens option. 

Don’t underestimate how much damage those tiny contact lenses could cause around the world. Recent research has shown billions of contacts that go down the sink, toilet, or in the trash are causing great damage to our oceans.

Thankfully, there’s a simple solution to this ecological dilemma: dispose of your contact lens packaging in the recycle bin and don't flush your used lenses down the toilet or drain. There are also programs offered at many optometrist offices around the UK that take your contact lenses and blister packs for recycling. A simple change in your daily habits could have a positive impact on many ecosystems.   

We have a fantastic range of daily disposable lenses. Click here to find out more about all of our daily brand options and prices. If you feel daily disposable aren’t right for you, don’t hesitate to browse our list of weekly, monthly, continuous-wear, and toric contacts and discuss a change with your optometrist.


Author: John Dreyer Optometrist Bsc(Hons), MCOPTOM, DipCLP
Created: 2 Nov 2017, Last modified: 17 May 2024