Ocular care technician vs optometric technician

The differences between ocular care technicians and optometric technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an ocular care technician and an optometric technician. Additionally, an ocular care technician has an average salary of $34,992, which is higher than the $30,928 average annual salary of an optometric technician.

The top three skills for an ocular care technician include medical history, and . The most important skills for an optometric technician are patients, customer service, and patient care.

Ocular care technician vs optometric technician overview

	Ocular Care Technician	Optometric Technician
Yearly salary	$34,992	$30,928
Hourly rate	$16.82	$14.87
Growth rate	-	16%
Number of jobs	77,716	33,412
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 38%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	2	2

Ocular care technician vs optometric technician salary

Ocular care technicians and optometric technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Ocular Care Technician	Optometric Technician
Average salary	$34,992	$30,928
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $45,000	Between $24,000 And $39,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between ocular care technician and optometric technician education

There are a few differences between an ocular care technician and an optometric technician in terms of educational background:

	Ocular Care Technician	Optometric Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 38%
Most common major	Biology	Biology
Most common college	-	-

Ocular care technician vs optometric technician demographics

Here are the differences between ocular care technicians' and optometric technicians' demographics:

	Ocular Care Technician	Optometric Technician
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 51.2% Female, 48.8%	Male, 14.7% Female, 85.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 14.5% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.3% Asian, 5.8% White, 62.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 14.5% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.3% Asian, 5.8% White, 62.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between ocular care technician and optometric technician duties and responsibilities

Ocular care technician example responsibilities.

Reduce patient wait time and obtain medical histories, vision acuity and intraocular measurements (tonopen).
Perform clinic work-ups/manifest refraction utilizing EMR, program and maintain laser equipment, clinical photography, and assist physicians during surgeries.
Greet patients and ensure accurate demographic and insurance information into their electronic chart following HiPPA compliance in a paperless practice.

Optometric technician example responsibilities.

Maintain coating quality using adhesion testing and spectrophotometers, and manage coating hues and reflectance adjustments.
Preform pre-test on patients, using auto refractor, NCT and OCT and fundus photos.
Identify, reference and apply insurance coverage and present financial policies and arrangements accurately to patients.
Perform and interpret OCT and HVF.
Measure eye pressure with Tonopen and tonometer.
Maintain accurate and organize patient records, including EHR.

Ocular care technician vs optometric technician skills

Common ocular care technician skills

Medical History, 100%

Common optometric technician skills

Patients, 24%
Customer Service, 10%
Patient Care, 10%
Field Testing, 8%
Excellent Organizational, 7%
Pre-test, 5%

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Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Ocular Care Technician
Ocular Care Technician vs Optometric Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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