Getting Glasses in Seoul: Free Eye Test, a New Pair in 30 Minutes

Yes, get your glasses in Seoul. Walk into an optical shop, pick a frame, let a licensed optician test your eyes for free, and a standard single-vision pair is usually ready in 15 to 30 minutes. No doctor, no appointment. A typical pair runs about 100,000 won.

Why I'd buy glasses here

I've worn glasses most of my life, and I have a weakness for the good ones. High-end frames, good lenses. It adds up. But in Korea you get a lot for the money, and three things make the difference: the choice is enormous, the quality is real, and the opticians know what they're doing.

Korean eyewear has come a long way. Daegu, my hometown, is the center of it: about 70% of Korea's eyewear makers are there, and it ships about 60% of the country's frame exports. Yes, I'm biased about Daegu. Gentle Monster and Blue Elephant are the names you may know, but the shelves are full of good Korean frames you've never heard of.

You'll see plenty of Japanese frames too. Korea imports a lot of them, and high-end shops carry the big Japanese names. One tip: Korean shoppers on trips to Japan now pick up those same brands there, because they cost a lot less. One Kaneko frame listed at about 615,000 won online in Korea sells for about 44,000 yen in Japan. If your heart is set on a Japanese label and Tokyo is on your route, buy it in Tokyo. In Seoul, look at the Korean frames.

How it works, start to finish

Every neighborhood has an optical shop (안경원, angyeongwon). If you like a particular brand, go to a shop that carries it. Otherwise, any busy shop will do. Here's how an afternoon goes for me.

1. Walk in. No appointment. Nobody needs a doctor's note from you, either. Under Korean law, a licensed optician can test your eyes and make your glasses for anyone 7 or older, and the law makes no exception for tourists. Kids 6 and under need a prescription from an eye doctor first.
2. Pick a frame. Take your time and try on whatever you want. The staff will happily tell you what suits your face, and in my experience they're usually right.
3. Get your eyes tested. It's free. They start with a machine that reads your eyes (an auto-refractor), then do the old-fashioned "better here, or here?" test with lenses. The equipment is serious and the test is thorough. It's a vision test for your lens power, not a medical eye-health exam. For that, see an eye doctor (안과, angwa).
4. Choose your lenses. The optician recommends a lens for your eyes and your budget, from basic to premium. Essilor, Hoya and Zeiss hold about 70% of the Korean lens market, so you'll recognize the names. Thinner, lighter lenses with better coatings cost more.
5. Walk. This is the step people skip. They'll put the test lenses in a trial frame. Don't just sit and read the chart. Stand up and walk around the shop. My rule: it's better to see a little less sharply than to feel dizzy. If the floor swims, say so, and they'll ease the power.
6. Have a cup of tea. While you wait, they cut the lenses in the shop and fit them to your frame. If your lenses are in stock, and most standard single-vision ones are, that's usually 15 to 30 minutes. A strong prescription or heavy astigmatism may mean ordering lenses and coming back the next day.
7. Get fitted. They adjust the arms and nose pads to your face. Mine have always come with a case and a cleaning cloth. Ask them to write down your new prescription and pupil distance, too. It's handy for your next pair.

What it costs

Prices vary a lot by shop and brand. These are rough figures from Korean news reports, not a price list.

At a shop registered for tourist tax refunds, a purchase of 15,000 won or more qualifies. If one receipt is under 1,000,000 won and the shop offers immediate refunds, the tax (minus a small fee) can come off at the counter, as long as your tax-free shopping in Korea stays at 5,000,000 won or less. Otherwise you claim it at the airport. Not every optical shop is registered, so ask first and have your passport ready.

Where to go in Seoul

I'm not sending you to my own neighborhood shop. It's great, but it's not where you'll be. These are the places visitors use, from budget to design. Hours and tax refund status change, so check before you go. No shop here pays us or knows we're writing about it.

Namdaemun Market, for choice and speed. The market's eyewear alley has about 150 optical shops and wholesalers, and standard lenses are usually ready in about 30 minutes. Choeun Glasses there has Zeiss test equipment, multifocals and tax refunds, and Namsi Glasses on Namdaemun-ro is a tax refund shop. Most of the market closes on Sundays, though a few optical shops, Choeun among them, list Sunday hours.

Myeongdong, for English at the counter. Big shops here see a lot of visitors. At Davich Optical's Myeongdong branch, staff generally speak English and most customers are foreign. Bunni Studios Optical by Myeongdong Station lists English, Japanese and Chinese speakers, tax refunds and late hours.

Sinsa and Garosu-gil, for design. Optic Project, a select shop near Sinsa Station, offers the eye test in English and says glasses are ready within 20 minutes, with tax refunds. Projekt Produkt, a Korean brand, has a store in Sinsa for frames; ask about prescription lenses.

Seongsu, for something different. At YUN, a Berlin eyewear brand, you can watch your glasses made on site in about 20 minutes. That listing is from 2023, so check it's still running.

For Japanese high-end frames. Aruneti, Geumgang Optical's premium select shop at Shinsegae's main store, carries Eque.M, a Japanese brand sold officially in Korea only through Geumgang. It's a short walk from Namdaemun Market. Remember the price tip above.

Gentle Monster is mostly a place to shop for frames and sunglasses. If you buy prescription glasses there, ask how long the lenses take before you pay.

Progressives and contact lenses

Progressives are where you should slow down. The lenses usually have to be ordered from the maker, so it can take a few days. Ask for the pickup date before you pay. Do the walking test properly. If you've never worn them, getting used to them takes time, and a good optician will tell you that up front.

Contact lenses are sold over the counter at optical shops to anyone 7 or older. No prescription is needed. In Korea you can't buy them online, so get them in the shop.

If you'd like a guide for the waiting time

Order your glasses at Namdaemun in the morning, and spend the wait eating your way through Korea's biggest traditional market.

Seoul: Namdaemun Market Food Tour

• Good for: anyone getting glasses at Namdaemun, and anyone who wants the market explained.
• What you eat: noodles, dumplings, a twisted bread stick, a fish cake skewer, yuja tea and traditional tea, with stories about the food from the guide. About 2 to 2½ hours, meeting at Exit 5 of Hoehyeon Station.
• Know before you book: the market is closed on Sundays, so check your date. Your glasses may be ready long before the tour ends.

Back home

Keep your itemized receipt. The IRS counts eyeglasses and eye exams as medical expenses, but whether your FSA or HSA covers a pair bought abroad is up to your plan, so check with them.

Your afternoon

Wear your old glasses in. Pick a frame you'd never find at home. Get tested, walk in the test lenses, and have the tea. Half an hour later, you walk out seeing Seoul a little sharper. Then go eat something. Pork belly, ideally.

Useful links

• Namdaemun Market (opens in a new tab) (Korea Tourism Organization)
• Shopping at Namdaemun Market, including eyewear (opens in a new tab) (Korea Tourism Organization)
• Optic Project (opens in a new tab) (Visit Seoul)
• Medical and dental expenses, Publication 502 (opens in a new tab) (IRS)