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Cataract surgery is one of the most common reasons people travel to Thailand for treatment. Patients come from Australia, the UK, Europe and across Asia for three practical reasons: there is no waiting list, pricing is fair and transparent, and the procedure is carried out by Thai, American and Canadian board-certified ophthalmologists. All our partners perform phacoemulsification with the same intraocular lens types used in Western countries.
The NHS in England allows up to 18 weeks between referral and the start of treatment, and in Australia a 2022 study put true waiting times for cataract surgery at between 4 and 30 months. In Thailand, we can schedule your cataract procedure within one week.
Cataract surgery costs between 73,000 and 175,000 THB per eye depending on the lens you choose. How long you need in Thailand depends on two things: whether your lens is held in stock or has to be ordered, and whether you are having one eye done or both. A single eye with a standard lens can be done in about a week — examination, surgery, one-week follow-up, fly home. Both eyes in a single session under general anaesthetic adds a night in hospital and a few days. A specialist eye clinic that operates one eye at a time, with a lens made to your measurements, is the longest route at around three weeks.
Please note that the prices provided are estimations and may vary based on various factors. Additionally, these prices do not include flights or accommodation.
All prices are in USD, unless otherwise indicated.
1. No waiting list
Appointments are arranged around your travel dates rather than a queue, and surgery can usually be scheduled within days of you settling on dates.
For comparison, the NHS in England allows up to 18 weeks between referral and the start of treatment. In Australia, a 2022 study in Public Health Research & Practice found that true waiting times for cataract surgery run from 4 to 30 months.
Many of our clients choose to skip the long wait and immediately restore their vision, so they can continue to enjoy life without visions problems.
2. Expertise
Cataract surgery in Bangkok is carried out by board-certified ophthalmologists who specialise in cataract surgery. Many trained or completed fellowships at teaching hospitals in the United States, Canada, Europe and Australia, and hold board certification from those countries alongside their Thai registration.
You can request a specific surgeon when you book or have a specialist assigned. We always confirm the named surgeon and send you their training, subspecialty and medical registration number.
3. Advanced lens options
Thailand's eye centres offer the full range of intraocular lenses: monofocal, toric for astigmatism, bifocal, multifocal, extended-depth-of-focus and trifocal, including toric versions for patients who have astigmatism as well as a cataract.
A premium lens only performs as well as the measurements behind it. Our partners use optical biometry to calculate lens power and image-guided systems to position the lens accurately during surgery. For a toric or multifocal lens, where a small alignment error changes the result you get, that precision is what makes the upgrade worth paying for.
Cataract surgery removes the eye's clouded natural lens and replaces it with a clear artificial intraocular lens. Cataracts form when proteins in the lens break down and clump together, blocking light from reaching the retina properly. That causes blurred vision, difficulty seeing at night, glare and faded colours.
The technique is called phacoemulsification. The surgeon makes a 2 to 3 mm incision in the cornea, uses ultrasound to break the cloudy lens into fragments, removes them by suction, and inserts the new lens through the same incision. It is small enough to seal itself without stitches.
The procedure takes 15 to 45 minutes per eye, though you should allow around four hours at the hospital for preparation and recovery. It is normally done under local anaesthetic, you are awake and feel no pain, though you may sense pressure or movement. Most patients notice clearer vision within 24 hours, and complete healing takes around eight weeks.
The intraocular lens (IOL) you select significantly impacts both cost and post-surgery vision quality. Here's what each lens type provides:
A single-focus lens, normally set for distance, giving clear vision for driving, television and moving around. It is the lens most cataract patients worldwide receive, and it produces excellent distance vision.
Who it suits: anyone mainly concerned with distance vision who is comfortable wearing reading glasses. Also a sensible choice if another eye condition means the benefit of a premium lens would be limited.
Trade-off: you will need reading glasses for close work — books, phones, menus.
Toric lenses correct pre-existing astigmatism while addressing cataracts, eliminating the irregular corneal shape causing blurred or distorted vision. Without toric correction, patients with significant astigmatism still experience blurred vision after cataract surgery even with new lenses.
Best for: Patients with astigmatism (confirmed through pre-operative testing), those wanting to eliminate astigmatism-related vision problems permanently
Note: Astigmatism must be significant enough (typically >1.00 diopter) to justify toric lenses. Mild astigmatism doesn't require toric correction.
Pricing: 100,000-115,000 THB ($2,960-$3,400) at most Bangkok hospitals
Multifocal and bifocal lenses provide vision at multiple distances—near and far (bifocal) or near, intermediate, and far (multifocal)—reducing or eliminating glasses dependence for most daily activities.
Best for: Active patients wanting glasses-free lifestyle, those willing to accept potential glare/halos around lights at night (affects 10-15% of patients), realistic candidates after thorough ophthalmologist evaluation
Brands: Johnson & Johnson Tecnis multifocal, Alcon ReSTOR, various bifocal options
Pricing: 113,000-135,000 THB ($3,340-$3,995) per eye at most private hospitals in Bangkok
Trifocal lenses provide continuous vision at near, intermediate, and far distances with advanced optics reducing glare and halos compared to older multifocal designs. Extended Depth of Focus (EDOF) lenses provide continuous vision from intermediate to far distance with some near capability.
Best for: Patients wanting maximum glasses independence, professionals needing computer work (intermediate) and reading capability, those willing to invest in premium technology
Brands: Alcon PanOptix (trifocal), Johnson & Johnson Tecnis Symfony (EDOF)
Trade-offs: Some patients experience halos around lights at night, particularly during first 3-6 months while brain adapts. Not ideal for patients who drive extensively at night or have high visual demands in low-light conditions.
Pricing: 145,000-175,000 THB ($4,290-$5,178) per eye at most private hospitals in Bangkok
$4,300-$5,200 in Thailand versus $6,500-$8,500 in US makes premium lenses more accessible, though savings are less dramatic than basic lens options.
Bangkok hosts Thailand's most advanced ophthalmology centers, with specialized eye hospitals and major medical centers offering comprehensive cataract surgery services. Here's how the top Bangkok hospitals compare:
Thailand's first hospital dedicated exclusively to ophthalmology, founded in 1964. Around 40 board-certified ophthalmologists trained in Thailand, Canada and the United States, covering every eye subspecialty. A full hospital with a 24-hour inpatient department and three operating theatres reserved for eye surgery.
Cataract Surgery Pricing:
Pricing shown is estimated starting price and USD price is subject to currency exchange rate fluctuations
Estimated starting prices, valid to 31 December 2026. The package covers the operating and recovery room, medical supplies, surgical medications, the surgical team and the anaesthetist. The doctor's fee and the pre-operative consultation are billed separately, so ask for the full figure rather than comparing the package price alone.
Best for: price, the widest published lens range, and anyone whose eyes may need more than the cataract dealt with.
A specialist eye centre in Silom, founded in 1997, with 142 specialist staff and a dedicated Senior Vision and Cataract Center. TRSC names six cataract surgeons, led by the President of the Cataract and Refractive Surgery Club of Thailand.
TRSC's surgical fees include the doctor's fee and five follow-up examinations, and exclude non-standard medications and supplies. Surgery uses the Alcon CENTURION system with the ACTIVE SENTRY handpiece.
Best for: all-in pricing with no separate doctor's fee, five follow-ups per eye, and a personal counsellor available 24 hours a day. TRSC operates one eye at a time, so allow a longer trip.
Bumrungrad operates Southeast Asia's largest private hospital Eye Center, performing 1,200+ cataract surgeries annually (verified 2022 data). The hospital's ophthalmology department includes 25+ eye specialists with subspecialties in cornea, retina, and refractive surgery.
Cataract Surgery Pricing:
Pricing shown is estimated starting price
Best for: insurance claims, requiring JCI accreditation, both eyes in one session, luxury hospital environment, needing a language interpreter.
This comes down to two things: whether your lens is held in stock or has to be ordered, and whether you are having one eye done or both.
Standard monofocal lenses in common powers are often held in stock, so surgery can follow soon after your examination. Toric lenses are made to the specific axis of your astigmatism, and premium lenses are stocked in fewer powers, so those usually need ordering, which adds about a week. We confirm which applies to you once the ophthalmologist has recommended a lens, before you book flights.
Pre-operative examination, surgery, the day-one check and the one-week follow-up, then home. If your lens has to be ordered, allow a second week. Cataracts often develop at different rates, so it is common for only one eye to need treating.
Both eyes are operated on in a single session under general anaesthetic, followed by one night in hospital. Because it involves a general anaesthetic it can only be done at a hospital with an inpatient ward.
You are asleep for the procedure rather than awake under local anaesthetic, and you wake with both eyes treated. The anaesthetic and the overnight stay make it somewhat more expensive than two separate day procedures. In return you avoid the gap between eyes entirely. Allow about two weeks if your lens needs ordering.
Suits you if: your time is limited, you would rather be asleep for the surgery, and the additional cost is worth the shorter trip.
Each eye is operated on separately as a day procedure under local anaesthetic. You are awake but feel nothing, and you return to your hotel the same afternoon. There is no hospital admission at any point.
The eyes are done roughly a week apart so the first settles before the second is treated. A typical sequence runs: pre-operative examination, first eye surgery about a week later, next-day check, then the one-week follow-up and second eye surgery on the same visit, followed by the second eye's next-day and one-week checks.
If your lens is being made to your measurements, the first week is yours. There are no appointments between the examination and your surgery date, and many patients use that week to travel elsewhere in Thailand before returning to Bangkok.
Suits you if: you have the time, you would rather avoid a general anaesthetic and a hospital stay, and you like the idea of building a holiday around the treatment.
Konkai provides free personalized quotes from multiple Bangkok hospitals, allowing you to compare lens options, ophthalmologist credentials, and total costs before making decisions. We coordinate pre-surgical consultations, help you understand lens type recommendations, and schedule appointments efficiently.
Our services include connecting you with hospital international patient departments for smooth communication, recommending accommodation near hospitals for convenient post-operative care, and providing realistic timeline planning for your cataract surgery trip.
Pre-vetted facilities chosen by our team that meet our rigorous standards for quality and safety
Founded in 1964 by Professor Dr. Uthai Rutnin, Rutnin Eye Hospital is Thailand's first hospital specializing exclusively in ophthalmology. Around 40 board-certified ophthalmologists trained in Thailand, Canada and the United States cover every eye subspecialty, supported by three international-standard operating theatres, a day surgery unit and a 24-hour inpatient department. Rutnin publishes its cataract surgery prices openly, by lens type.
TRSC International Eye and Vision Center is Thailand's first private LASIK center, founded in 1997 in Bangkok. Its ophthalmologists have treated more than 102,000 eyes with LASIK and ReLEx, at a published success rate above 99.6% for vision of 20/40 or better. TRSC was the first LASIK centre in Asia to be awarded ISO 9001:2015 certification, and was named Thailand SMILE Ambassador Center 2023 by Carl Zeiss Meditec.
Bumrungrad International Hospital opened in 1980 and is one of the largest private hospitals in Southeast Asia, with 580 beds and 62 clinics and centres on a single Sukhumvit campus. It was the first hospital in Asia accredited by Joint Commission International, in February 2002. Newsweek has ranked it the No. 1 hospital in Thailand for six consecutive years, and 96th of the world's 250 best hospitals in 2026.
Praram 9 Hospital is a 300-bed private hospital in Bangkok that has been providing advanced healthcare since 1992. JCI-accredited since 2010, the hospital is recognized for complex medical procedures including kidney transplants, cardiac surgery, and brain surgery. Having performed over 1,000 kidney transplants, it ranks as Thailand's leading private hospital for this specialty and was named 9th among Thailand's top hospitals by Newsweek in 2025.
Cataract surgery costs between 73,000 and 175,000 THB per eye at our partner hospitals, depending on the lens. Monofocal lenses run 73,000 to 85,400 THB, toric lenses for astigmatism 102,000 to 115,000, bifocal and multifocal lenses 113,000 to 125,000, and trifocal or premium toric lenses 150,000 to 175,000. Praram 9 Hospital is lower again, from around 62,900 THB, though we confirm those figures case by case.
What each price includes differs between hospitals, so pay attention to this when comparing prices. TRSC's fees include the doctor's fee and five follow-up examinations. Rutnin's package covers the operating theatre, anaesthetist and surgical team but bills the doctor's fee and pre-operative consultation separately. The pre-operative examination is charged separately everywhere, at 4,100 to 4,500 THB.
We can request a written quote covering the full cost rather than the package price alone, so you know what you are budgeting against before you travel.
It depends on what matters most to you.
Rutnin Eye Hospital has practised ophthalmology exclusively since 1964, covers every eye subspecialty in one building and publishes the widest lens range at the lowest starting price. Good if price matters, or if there is anything else going on with your eyes.
TRSC International Eye and Vision Center includes the doctor's fee and five follow-up examinations in its price and assigns every patient a personal counsellor available 24 hours a day. Good for a straightforward case but it operates one eye at a time, so allow about three weeks if you want to treat both eyes.
Bumrungrad International Hospital is JCI-accredited, which some insurers require, and can operate on both eyes in a single session, under general anaesthetic with one night admitted. Good if your insurer needs JCI, or if you cannot spare three weeks.
Praram 9 Hospital is a JCI-accredited general hospital at lower prices than the specialist eye centres. Good if cost is the deciding factor.
Tell us your timeframe, your budget and whether you are claiming on insurance, and we will tell you which one fits.
It depends on whether your lens is held in stock or has to be ordered, and whether you are having one eye done or both.
One eye, standard lens: about a week — examination, surgery, then the day-one and one-week follow-ups before you fly.
Both eyes in one session: about ten days. Bumrungrad can operate on both eyes on the same day under general anaesthetic with one night in hospital, which removes the gap between eyes.
Both eyes one at a time: up to three weeks at a specialist eye clinic, where the eyes are done roughly a week apart as day procedures under local anaesthetic.
Toric and premium lenses are usually made to your measurements, which adds about a week to any of these. We confirm the timeline in writing once your ophthalmologist has recommended a lens.
Your ophthalmologist clears you to fly, usually once the one-week follow-up is complete. Eye surgery is listed among the procedures requiring a doctor's clearance before air travel so always wait until after your follow-up appointment before flying home.
Cabin pressure changes do not harm a healing eye. Wear sunglasses while travelling, use lubricating drops if your eyes feel dry, keep to your prescribed drop schedule and avoid rubbing your eyes.
Yes. Cataract surgery recovery does not prevent other medical appointments, and if you are having both eyes staged there are natural gaps between visits that a dental appointment, health screening or specialist consultation fits into neatly.
Bumrungrad and Praram 9 are full multi-specialty hospitals, so a health screen can be arranged alongside your eye treatment in the same building. Tell us what else you would like to fit in and we will plan the schedule around your surgery dates.
Yes, Thailand hospitals use identical intraocular lens brands prescribed by Western ophthalmologists including Alcon, Johnson & Johnson, Zeiss, and other major manufacturers. These are the same FDA-approved, CE-marked lenses implanted in US, UK, and European hospitals. You receive international-standard lens technology at Thai pricing, not inferior or outdated products.
Pam and Konkai Health were absolute rock stars in helping us find a fantastic surgeon for my boyfriend's hip replacement in Thailand. We had previously paid for a service to help us find a doctor and it was just throwing money away. The paid service was slow to respond and only offered us quotes for the most expensive hospitals.
Pam on the other hand was a completely free service and was always quick to reply, patient with all of our questions, and presented a variety of options in our price range. She made the entire process of finding a doctor, setting up video conferences, and scheduling the surgery extremely easy. She continued to help us even after the surgery had taken place with follow up visits and final questions we had before traveling back home. We cannot recommend her highly enough!!! We will definitely be using her again for our next surgical needs.
The service has been great facilitating and making arrangements for my procedure. They are very quick with responses and answering questions.
Many thanks to Konkai. After an online inquiry Konkai guided me to Praram9 orthopedic for a consultation on a hip injury. I had the consultation, clearly a femeral head collapse and needing the hip joint replacement. The beauty was in a half day full consultation, x-ray, ekg, blood work, chest exam ... everything needed to proceed with surgery was done.
This was so professionally and efficiently done, all questions answered, no consultants, no referrals etc., all in house, all guided around the hospital. A friendly caring class act. So I then came back to Konkai to setup for the operation, with the same orthopedic team led by Dr. Peerapong that made the assessment. I returned 2 weeks later, admitted, had the replacement operation stayed 5 days with the hospital team, and quite frankly, it was a privilege to be in their care.
Now after 10 days recovery in Bangkok i am ready to return home. Why Thailand, well in my country New Zealand, you get passed around to specialists, consultants, it all takes time, does not engender trust, and i think the profit motive is primary like the American system. Further, there are less facilities so more waiting for slots. Thailand has a care culture, and the expertise and professionalism with Konkai and Praram9 is superb. They have top quality facilities and capacity to fit your schedule.
If i ever need any major surgery, this will be my first stop. Thanks again
"Whilst searching for information on getting my cataracts done, I found that most websites do not provide sufficient information. I was fortunate enough to find Konkai.Health and connect with Pam.
She and other members of Konkai go far and beyond to do everything possible to give you the best advice.
I highly recommend this company for health related matters whilst you are in Thailand. Real five star assistance."
Outstanding. The most safe, amazing communication these past couple of months with Pam from Konkai health. I asked soooo many questions there must be around 80+ emails from me and every single one has been replied in full. Even now 2 weeks after surgery. Super professional, and the surgeon Dr Thawatchai Boonpadhanapong, at Yanhee Hospital that Pam recommended to me for a breast implant removal, were just incredible. No money deposits asked for…just pure care.
The service and systems at Yanhee were out the gate. I am so glad I travelled all that way and didn’t do it in New Zealand as I don’t think it would’ve been as good haha. I was so looked after by the amazing nurses, anaesthetist, Dr Thawatchai and my interpreter Mr Wing. It’s overwhelming looking for the right fit and if it wasn’t for Konkai Health and Pam I wouldn’t be feeling as happy as I am now 2 weeks after my surgery. I cannot thank you enough for what feels like a life transformation :)
I came to Thailand from America for a liposuction in last week. In a Google search, back in May, I came across Konkai Health and decided to reach out to them.For my surgery Pam, recommended Rattinan Clinic out of Bangkok. Pam was able to connect me with the clinic to set up a consultation. The process was very easy.I recommend Konkai Health and Rattinan Clinic. Both are 10/10
"I live in New Zealand, and my partner and I went on a holiday in Laos (Asia). I became sick and needed an emergency stomach operation. I reached out to this company, and they have been nothing but helpful.
They helped us with translating in Laos; they organised a taxi driver who was waiting for us at arrival and drove us to the hospital, where they organised a scan for me. I only needed to show my passport and an email when I arrived. I was already in the system for the appointment.
Everything went really smoothly. The company is professional and reliable, and the staff is super friendly too. I would highly recommend this company. I am grateful for the great service this company offered when I was in need."
"I can say that the whole medical journey was very pleasant. The information given before the actual start was good. The meeting and intake with the doctor was clear.
Konkai Health was always responding fast and helpful if I came up with questions. And the actual surgery had a good outcome also. Now I just ended my last check-up, and I am very delighted how everything went."
Pam from Konkai just made the right match for my plastic surgery, not only did it make me safe time, but the chosen doctor was just exceeding my expectations! Thank you so muxh 🙏🏼
I highly recommend their expertise and thankful for having been a patient at Yanhee hospital! …
I am recommended by one of my friends in Bangkok that eye surgery at LASIK hospital is excellently and exceptionally done. With his recommendation, I approached Konkai who were quick to respond to my questions and give appointment date.
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