Dispensing optician vs bench optician

The differences between dispensing opticians and bench opticians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a bench optician has an average salary of $45,915, which is higher than the $45,679 average annual salary of a dispensing optician.

Dispensing optician vs bench optician overview

	Dispensing Optician	Bench Optician
Yearly salary	$45,679	$45,915
Hourly rate	$21.96	$22.07
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	4,434	4,723
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 32%	High School Diploma, 50%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	-	-

Dispensing optician vs bench optician salary

Dispensing opticians and bench opticians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Dispensing Optician	Bench Optician
Average salary	$45,679	$45,915
Salary range	Between $33,000 And $62,000	Between $18,000 And $117,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between dispensing optician and bench optician education

There are a few differences between a dispensing optician and a bench optician in terms of educational background:

	Dispensing Optician	Bench Optician
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 32%	High School Diploma, 50%
Most common major	Business	Medical Technician
Most common college	University of Minnesota - Twin Cities	Duke University

Dispensing optician vs bench optician demographics

Here are the differences between dispensing opticians' and bench opticians' demographics:

	Dispensing Optician	Bench Optician
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 33.4% Female, 66.6%	Male, 42.9% Female, 57.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.6% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 19.1% Asian, 9.2% White, 61.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 8.1% White, 69.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	13%	13%

Differences between dispensing optician and bench optician duties and responsibilities

Dispensing optician example responsibilities.

Communicate information and provide customer service to patients, families and visitors.
Fax Rx to proper lab.
Scan documents and abide by all HIPAA regulations.
Read and understand the different refractive errors as well as the Rx.
Work with VSP and eye med insurances, and all relate duties.
Order verification, working with insurance companies including VSP, NBN, and DSHS.

Bench optician example responsibilities.

Manage appointments and appointment reminders, checking in/out patients, check insurance eligibility.
Work with multiple optometrists to solve patient issues including inaccurate optical measurements, lens adaptations, and overall patient satisfaction.
Determine clients' current lens prescriptions, when necessary, using lensometers or lens analyzers and clients' eyeglasses.

Dispensing optician vs bench optician skills

Common dispensing optician skills

Patients, 44%
Patient Care, 15%
Customer Service, 8%
Insurance Eligibility, 3%
Appointment Scheduling, 3%
Eye Exams, 2%

Common bench optician skills

Dispensing Optician vs. similar jobs

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Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Dispensing Optician
Dispensing Optician vs Bench Optician

Updated January 8, 2025

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