price cataract surgery
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What does a cataract surgery cost in Mexico

Prices for cataract surgery in Mexico may vary from location to location and from clinic to clinic.
When you have surgery done close to the American border or in a tourist area, you pay a lot more than when you have it done elsewhere in the country.

It may be rewarding to do some research. Some clinics near the US border offer hotel and surgery in one deal, others only offer the surgery and you have to book a hotel yourself.

And some clinics are more expensive than others. Most prices given on the internet are prices to draw you in, once you have your consultation with the optometrist the price will be set depending on your eyesight. Be prepared that most optometrists set the goal to give you a life without glasses if possible. So the price of the lens he will advise you about is accordingly. For example, in my case my clinic had an offer that drew my attention: Cataract surgery for as low as 10.000 pesos, all included.*
It was the * that made the huge price difference.

Overall, having a cataract procedure done in Mexico is a lot more affordable than f.e. in the USA or in Europe.

Do you have to stay in a hotel?

That entirely depends on your situation. If you come from far a hotel stay is very convenient, since you are not allowed to drive after surgery, and you have a first check-up in a day or so after the procedure.

Personal experience

I had both my eyes checked and operated in Playa del Carmen, not because of the price, but out of necessity. Pricewise I should have done this procedure in the Philippines before I moved to Mexico, but my sight was getting worse all of a sudden, and while in the Philippines I thought my cataract wasn’t all that serious yet, here in Mexico it started to hinder me in my daily life.

The prices I state in this article are only to give you an indication of the price in general here in Mexico for cataract surgery. Like I wrote before, prices are highly individual depending on your eyesight and the condition of the eyes.

The total price of my cataract surgery

  • First consultation and test – 800 pesos
  • Blood tests and Electrocardiogram – 630 pesos
  • Consultation Internist (medicina interna) – 1,000 pesos
  • Copies of the test results and doctors report – 30 pesos
  • Surgery and lens per eye – 25,000 pesos

Total price dec-2019 – MX$ 52,460 | (= 2,490,70 Euro/2,768.63 US$)

You have to get a general exam from a “Medicina Interna”. He/she will do a checkup and fill out a questionnaire with you regarding your health history. Most clinics will forward you to a doctor connected to the clinic. But in my experience, those are not the most affordable doctors. So when you want to cut back a little on the expenses, you can look up a doctor yourself, just look for a specialist that has the certification of a “Medicina Interna”. Not all specialists provide the required pre-operational checkup.

Please do keep in mind that your price will be different due to lens type, prescription, lens brand, choice of clinic, clinic staff, operating room, and consultation costs.

Read more about my cataract experience in Mexico:

Patient experience after cataract surgery in Mexico

Read my previous post on the post-operations preps, operation time, and prices in Clinica de Vision in Playa del Carmen ...

Having a cataract procedure done in Playa del Carmen

I could no longer ignore it, the optometrist in the Philippines already mentioned a cataract, but things worsened quicker than ...