Optician vs dispensing optician

The differences between opticians and dispensing opticians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a dispensing optician has an average salary of $45,679, which is higher than the $38,412 average annual salary of an optician.

The top three skills for an optician include patients, customer service and basic math. The most important skills for a dispensing optician are patients, patient care, and customer service.

Optician vs dispensing optician overview

	Optician	Dispensing Optician
Yearly salary	$38,412	$45,679
Hourly rate	$18.47	$21.96
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	4,717	4,434
Job satisfaction	4	5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 31%	Associate Degree, 32%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	-	-

Optician vs dispensing optician salary

Opticians and dispensing opticians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Optician	Dispensing Optician
Average salary	$38,412	$45,679
Salary range	Between $29,000 And $50,000	Between $33,000 And $62,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	-
Highest paying state	New York	-
Best paying company	Horizon Laser Vision	-
Best paying industry	Manufacturing	-

Differences between optician and dispensing optician education

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

	Optician	Dispensing Optician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 31%	Associate Degree, 32%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Minnesota - Twin Cities	University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Optician vs dispensing optician demographics

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

	Optician	Dispensing Optician
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 22.2% Female, 77.8%	Male, 33.4% Female, 66.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.7% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 19.2% Asian, 9.2% White, 61.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	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%
LGBT Percentage	13%	13%

Differences between optician and dispensing optician duties and responsibilities

Optician example responsibilities.

Manage appointments and appointment reminders, checking in/out patients, check insurance eligibility.
Maintain coating quality using adhesion testing and spectrophotometers, and manage coating hues and reflectance adjustments.
Show manual dexterity, hand eye coordination and precision to work with different types of lenses and tools.
Assist patients with frame selections and lenses that are best suit for their lifestyle, Rx and price needs.
Produce forms for the authorization of insurance benefits and eligibility for incoming patients.
Prepare work orders and instructions for fabricating patients prescriptions and verify Rx are finished to specifications.

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.

Optician vs dispensing optician skills

Common optician skills

Patients, 31%
Customer Service, 23%
Basic Math, 5%
Patient Care, 5%
Math, 3%
Work Ethic, 3%

Common dispensing optician skills

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

Optician vs. similar jobs

Optician related careers

Optician related jobs

What similar roles do

Optical Technician responsibilities

Zippia Careers
Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Optician
Optician vs Dispensing Optician

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse healthcare practitioner and technical jobs