Eye surgery · Southampton
Cataract surgery in Southampton: what it costs, and the NHS wait
Prices checked 9 Nov 2026
Cheapest nearby
from£2,000
Optical Express - Southampton (The Avenue) Hospital, Southampton · 0.2 miles away
Typical price
£2,622
The middle of 12 published cataract surgery prices within 25 miles.
NHS wait so far
12 weeks
Half the people on the ophthalmology list at University Hospital Southampton had waited longer than this (August 2026).
Time waited so far by everyone on the list. It can’t tell you your own wait.
Prices near Southampton
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Optical Express - Southampton (The Avenue) Hospital
Southampton · 0.2 miles away
from£2,000Cataract surgery (per eye)
What’s included: A “from” price per eye. Optical Express says the first consultation is free. Check with the clinic what’s included for your lens choice.
Price breakdown, as published
Published price breakdown, Optical Express - Southampton (The Avenue) Hospital Stage In the price? As published Initial consultation Included Free -
Sarum Road Hospital
Winchester · 9.8 miles away
£2,035Cataract removal & lens implant - one eye
What’s included: Circle’s guide price. Circle says it covers your first consultation, the operation and care after you go home (first consultation £200). Not included: tests before treatment. Circle confirms the final price after your consultation.
Price breakdown, as published
Published price breakdown, Sarum Road Hospital Stage In the price? As published Initial consultation Included £200 Diagnostic Investigations Not included Not included Main treatment Included £1,835 · Not included Post discharge care Included Included · Included -
Practice Plus Group Hospital, Southampton
Southampton · 0.7 miles away
£2,099Cataract surgery – standard monofocal lens
What’s included: A fixed treatment price. The first consultation costs £145 on top; Practice Plus says that includes a nurse assessment, any blood tests and swabs needed, and an X-ray if required.
Price breakdown, as published
Published price breakdown, Practice Plus Group Hospital, Southampton Stage In the price? As published Initial consultation Not included £145 (charged separately) -
Practice Plus Group Hospital, Portsmouth
Portsmouth · 16 miles away
£2,099Cataract surgery – standard monofocal lens
What’s included: A fixed treatment price. The first consultation costs £145 on top; Practice Plus says that includes a nurse assessment, any blood tests and swabs needed, and an X-ray if required.
Price breakdown, as published
Published price breakdown, Practice Plus Group Hospital, Portsmouth Stage In the price? As published Initial consultation Not included £145 (charged separately) -
Practice Plus Group Hospital, Southampton
Southampton · 0.7 miles away
£2,249Cataract surgery – enhanced monofocal lens
What’s included: A fixed treatment price. The first consultation costs £145 on top; Practice Plus says that includes a nurse assessment, any blood tests and swabs needed, and an X-ray if required.
Price breakdown, as published
Published price breakdown, Practice Plus Group Hospital, Southampton Stage In the price? As published Initial consultation Not included £145 (charged separately) -
Practice Plus Group Hospital, Portsmouth
Portsmouth · 16 miles away
£2,249Cataract surgery – enhanced monofocal lens
What’s included: A fixed treatment price. The first consultation costs £145 on top; Practice Plus says that includes a nurse assessment, any blood tests and swabs needed, and an X-ray if required.
Price breakdown, as published
Published price breakdown, Practice Plus Group Hospital, Portsmouth Stage In the price? As published Initial consultation Not included £145 (charged separately) -
Optegra Solent Eye Hospital
Whiteley · 6.9 miles away
£2,995Standard Cataract Treatment (per eye)
What’s included: A fixed price per eye. Optegra says the package includes a free consultation and eye tests, the surgery, and aftercare with follow-up appointments and any medicines needed; laser treatment for clouding (YAG) within one or two years if needed, depending on the package.
Price breakdown, as published
Published price breakdown, Optegra Solent Eye Hospital Stage In the price? As published Surgery and follow-up aftercare Included -
New Hall Hospital
Salisbury · 18 miles away
from£3,335Cataract Surgery
What’s included: Ramsay calls this a guide price (a “from” price). Its page doesn’t list what’s included, so check with the hospital.
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Nuffield Health Wessex Hospital
Eastleigh · 5.2 miles away
£3,360Cataract Surgery - One Eye - Standard Lens
What’s included: Nuffield’s guide price for the treatment. Nuffield says tests before treatment are charged separately, and you get a fixed, all-inclusive price after your first consultation.
Price breakdown, as published
Published price breakdown, Nuffield Health Wessex Hospital Stage In the price? As published Diagnostic Investigations Not included Charged separately Main treatment Included £3,360 -
Optegra Solent Eye Hospital
Whiteley · 6.9 miles away
£3,695Enhanced Cataract Treatment (per eye)
What’s included: A fixed price per eye. Optegra says the package includes a free consultation and eye tests, the surgery, and aftercare with follow-up appointments and any medicines needed; laser treatment for clouding (YAG) within one or two years if needed, depending on the package.
Price breakdown, as published
Published price breakdown, Optegra Solent Eye Hospital Stage In the price? As published Surgery and follow-up aftercare Included -
Nuffield Health Wessex Hospital
Eastleigh · 5.2 miles away
£3,750Cataract surgery with eyesight correction (multi-focal adjustment) – One Eye
What’s included: Nuffield’s guide price for the treatment. Nuffield says tests before treatment are charged separately, and you get a fixed, all-inclusive price after your first consultation.
Price breakdown, as published
Published price breakdown, Nuffield Health Wessex Hospital Stage In the price? As published Diagnostic Investigations Not included Charged separately Main treatment Included £3,750 -
Spire Portsmouth Hospital
Havant · 19 miles away
from£3,928Cataract surgery with eyesight correction
What’s included: Spire’s fixed self-pay package. Spire says it covers tests before your operation, the surgeon’s and anaesthetist’s fees, nursing, medicines and food during your stay, and any standard implant, plus aftercare: follow-up appointments, stitches, dressings and up to 14 days of medicines. The first consultation is £250 on top.
Price breakdown, as published
Published price breakdown, Spire Portsmouth Hospital Stage In the price? As published Initial consultation Included £250 Treatment Included from £3,678 Aftercare Included Included
Prices the hospitals publish on their own websites, not quotes. Nobody pays to be listed. Distances are straight-line miles from the centre of Southampton.
Hospital by hospital
Optical Express - Southampton (The Avenue) Hospital, Southampton, 0.2 miles away (Optical Express; CQC Good, report March 2026). Cataract surgery from £2,000, the lowest locally.
Practice Plus Group Hospital, Southampton, Southampton, 0.7 miles away (Practice Plus Group; CQC Good, report June 2017). Cataract surgery £2,099 (Cataract surgery – standard monofocal lens) or £2,249 (Cataract surgery – enhanced monofocal lens), £99 above the local lowest.
Nuffield Health Wessex Hospital, Eastleigh, 5.2 miles away (Nuffield Health; CQC Good, report January 2023). Cataract surgery £3,360 (Cataract Surgery - One Eye - Standard Lens) or £3,750 (Cataract surgery with eyesight correction (multi-focal adjustment) – One Eye) (tests before treatment not included), £1,360 above the local lowest.
Optegra Solent Eye Hospital, Whiteley, 6.9 miles away (Optegra; CQC Good, report February 2022). Cataract surgery £2,995 (Standard Cataract Treatment (per eye)) or £3,695 (Enhanced Cataract Treatment (per eye)), £995 above the local lowest.
Sarum Road Hospital, Winchester, 9.8 miles away (Circle Health Group; CQC Good, report April 2022). Cataract surgery £2,035 (first consultation £200 included; tests before treatment not included; aftercare included), £35 above the local lowest.
Practice Plus Group Hospital, Portsmouth, Portsmouth, 16 miles away (Practice Plus Group; CQC Good, report February 2025). Cataract surgery £2,099 (Cataract surgery – standard monofocal lens) or £2,249 (Cataract surgery – enhanced monofocal lens), £99 above the local lowest.
New Hall Hospital, Salisbury, 18 miles away (Ramsay Health Care UK; CQC Good, report February 2025). Cataract surgery from £3,335 (single guide figure, no breakdown), £1,335 above the local lowest.
Spire Portsmouth Hospital, Havant, 19 miles away (Spire Healthcare; CQC Good, report August 2026). Cataract surgery from £3,928 (first consultation £250 included; aftercare included), £1,928 above the local lowest.
How the prices compare
Cataract surgery: 12 local prices span £1,928, from £2,000 to £3,928; the UK median across 187 published prices is £2,995.
Within 5 miles of central Southampton: Optical Express - Southampton (The Avenue) Hospital (0.2 miles) and Practice Plus Group Hospital, Southampton (0.7 miles).
5 to 10 miles of central Southampton: Nuffield Health Wessex Hospital (5.2 miles), Optegra Solent Eye Hospital (6.9 miles) and Sarum Road Hospital (9.8 miles).
10 to 25 miles of central Southampton: Practice Plus Group Hospital, Portsmouth (16 miles), New Hall Hospital (18 miles) and Spire Portsmouth Hospital (19 miles).
Typical for cataract surgery: usually a day case.
Tip: count the journeys for the consultation, the procedure and follow-up when weighing a cheaper hospital further away.
Private or NHS?
- Cost. cataract surgery £2,000 to £3,928 at 8 hospitals. Free on the NHS.
- Wait. University Hospital Southampton: half had waited over 12 weeks; 9 in 10 within 37 weeks. England: 10 weeks.
Private hospitals usually ask for a referral letter or a consultation first. Not sure which is right for you? Your GP can refer you on the NHS and talk through your options.
The NHS wait near Southampton
| NHS trust | Median wait | Under 18 weeks | Over a year | 9 in 10 within | On the list |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust | 11.8 wks | 67.0% | 98 | 37 wks | 6,979 |
| Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust | 15.6 wks | 55.9% | 158 | 45 wks | 6,978 |
| England | 10.4 wks | 72.2% | 5,022 | 33 wks | 625,063 |
University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust, 2.2 miles from Southampton: 6,979 people on the ophthalmology list, 67.0% within 18 weeks, 98 over a year, nine in ten within 37 weeks.
Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust, 15 miles from Southampton: 6,978 people on the ophthalmology list, 55.9% within 18 weeks, 158 over a year, nine in ten within 45 weeks.
These figures cover everyone on the trust’s ophthalmology list, not only people waiting for cataract surgery, and describe time waited so far, not how long a new referral will take.
Source: NHS England, Consultant-led Referral to Treatment Waiting Times, August 2026 data, published 8 October 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Month-by-month figures: University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust on Waiting Times UK, Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust on Waiting Times UK.
Other clinics nearby
The CQC register lists 6 independent eye clinics and hospitals registered with the CQC to do surgery within 16 miles: 5 good, 1 not yet rated. 2 of them publish a price we could check here; ask the others directly.
The 6 nearest
| Location | Distance | Rating (CQC) | Price shown above? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Optical Express - Southampton (The Avenue) Hospital | 0.2 miles | Good | Yes |
| Optimax Laser Eye Clinics - Southampton | 0.9 miles | Good | No |
| SpaMedica Southampton | 2.4 miles | Good | No |
| Optegra Solent Eye Hospital | 6.9 miles | Good | Yes |
| Newmedica Community Ophthalmology Service | 7.1 miles | Not yet rated | No |
| SpaMedica Portsmouth | 14 miles | Good | No |
Questions to ask before booking
- Ask Nuffield Health Wessex Hospital and Sarum Road Hospital what tests before treatment would cost: their published breakdown lists them as not included.
- Ask New Hall Hospital for an itemised quote, as its price is published as a single figure.
- Ask whether the price is per eye and which lens it includes.
Nearby
Cataract surgery in nearby places
- Bournemouth 25 miles
- Basingstoke 27 miles
- Chichester 27 miles
- Swindon 48 miles
- Slough 54 miles
- Crawley 54 miles
- Brighton and Hove 56 miles
- Oxford 58 miles
Other treatments near Southampton
This page also covers 18 nearby places with the same hospitals and NHS trust: Winchester, Eastleigh, Locks Heath, Chandler's Ford, Totton, Hedge End, Romsey, Hythe and Dibden Purlieu, West End, Whiteley, Bursledon, Holbury, North Baddesley, Bishop's Waltham, Netley, Botley, Blackfield and Langley, Marchwood.
Where these figures come from
Prices: from each hospital’s own price page and breakdown on the date shown next to each price. We store the price, what the page says it includes, the link and the date.
Each hospital group describes its prices differently (guide prices, fixed packages or “from” prices), so read what’s included before comparing totals.
Clinic details and ratings: CQC register (HSCA Active Locations, downloaded 9 November 2026), Open Government Licence v3.0. A rating describes the whole location, not one treatment.
Source: NHS England, Consultant-led Referral to Treatment Waiting Times, August 2026 data, published 8 October 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Month-by-month figures: University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust on Waiting Times UK, Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust on Waiting Times UK.
Typical price is the middle (median) of the published prices within 25 miles, shown only when there are at least four.
Independent. We’re not part of the NHS or any hospital, we’re not clinicians, and nothing here is medical advice. Hospitals can’t pay to appear or to change their position.