Pupillary distance

Your pupillary distance is the measurement between the centre of your pupils. It’s important to know if you have a stronger prescription or need varifocals. Read more about it here.

How do I find out my pupillary distance?

Pupillary distance isn’t usually entered onto your prescription but you can ask your optician for your PD after an eye test. Some opticians will be willing to provide this, however, some may refuse or charge a fee. Alternatively, we can take this measurement from your existing glasses as your PD doesn’t change from one prescription to the next.

If you’d prefer, we can help you do it yourself at home – all you need is a smartphone with a camera, and a card from your wallet, like a store card (this is for scale purposes only).

Hold your card flat against your forehead just above your eyebrows, with both edges visible and the back facing the camera. Then take a selfie at arm’s length looking directly into the camera with both eyes open and the camera completely square. Some people might find it easier to ask someone else to take the photo for them. It should look like in the picture below:

test

When you’re done, email it to us along with your order number and our opticians will work out the correct ratio based on the photograph you sent.

For more information on how to take the perfect selfie that allows us to measure your PD, watch the video by our qualified optician and Head of Professional Services David Hutchfield below.