optician
Opticians help to improve and correct an individual's vision. They fit spectacle lenses and frames, contact lenses, and other devices according to the specifications of the individual. Their scope of practice varies according to national regulations and they might operate according to prescriptions provided by a specialised doctor in ophthalmology or an optometrist in the countries where requested.
optician opticians help to improve and correct an individual's vision. They fit spectacle lenses and frames, contact lenses, and other devices according to the specifications of the individual. The role shows moderate AI exposure (0.50 on a 0-1 scale) — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. The most in-demand skills for the role include health care legislation, optical glass characteristics, quality standards of ophthalmic equipment, eye protection regulations, optical instruments.
Pay in the UK
UK: median £28,543 a year for Dispensing opticians (ONS ASHE 2025, full-time)
UK jobs are grouped differently; this is the closest UK occupation group (ONS SOC 2020 3211). ONS rates this estimate reasonably precise. 2025 provisional figures; ONS revises them a year later. Source: ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (Open Government Licence)
Pay in India (occupation group)
Average monthly earnings of salaried employees in the occupation group “Technicians and associate professionals” in India, from the Government of India's Periodic Labour Force Survey (January–December 2025). It covers everyone in this group, not only optician, and it is not US pay converted to rupees.
Source: MoSPI (Government of India), Periodic Labour Force Survey Annual Report 2025, Table 51 — average wage/salary earnings of regular wage/salaried employees, NCO-2015 division 3. Official India data gives one average per occupation group: there are no official India figures for single careers, experience levels or cities. Read the report
Top skills
Knowledge you'll build
- Customer and Personal Service
- Sales and Marketing
- Mathematics
- Production and Processing
- Administrative
- English Language
- Administration and Management
- Education and Training
What you'd actually do
- Measure clients' bridge and eye size, temple length, vertex distance, pupillary distance, and optical centers of eyes, using measuring devices.
- Verify that finished lenses are ground to specifications.
- Evaluate prescriptions in conjunction with clients' vocational and avocational visual requirements.
- Recommend specific lenses, lens coatings, and frames to suit client needs.
- Assist clients in selecting frames according to style and color, and ensure that frames are coordinated with facial and eye measurements and optical prescriptions.
- Maintain records of customer prescriptions, work orders, and payments.
Tools & technology you'd use
Frequently asked questions
What does optician do?
Opticians help to improve and correct an individual's vision. They fit spectacle lenses and frames, contact lenses, and other devices according to the specifications of the individual. Their scope of practice varies according to national regulations and they might operate according to prescriptions provided by a specialised doctor in ophthalmology or an optometrist in the countries where requested.
What skills does optician need?
The most in-demand skills for this role include health care legislation, optical glass characteristics, quality standards of ophthalmic equipment, eye protection regulations, optical instruments, respond to changing situations in health care. These are the skills O*NET identifies as most important for competent performance.
Will AI replace optician?
Our AI-durability model gives optician a score of 0.50 on a 0-1 scale (higher = more exposure). That places it at moderate AI exposure — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. Learning to work with AI tools rather than against them is the path forward.