How Do You Measure Your Pupillary Distance?
Appraising your PD:
This measurement is the distance between the centre of your pupils that is measured in millimetres.
Opticians do not tend to give out this measurement as it encourages patients to buy their spectacles from them whereas you can buy cheap spectacles online or designer glasses at a fraction of the price online. It is usually written as one measurement such as 60 (60mm) but can also be shown as R 29 L 31. When written in this way it is the individual distance from your right and left pupils to the center of your nose.
When Varifocals, High Prescriptions or Prisms are ordered the measure is commonly split individually. For most Single Vision prescriptions it is written as one value.
If you do not know this measurement and don’t want to measure it yourself then most online opticians will make your PD the national average (63) for men and (60) for women.
You can ask a friend or family member to calculate your PD for you:
This will be by far the simplest means by obtaining your PD. Your friend will have to place a ruler above your eyes, just across your forehead.
Next ask your friend to close their right eye and you then look directly into their left eye. Ask your friend to slide the ruler so that the zero value is in the centre of your right pupil and to keep the ruler very steady across your forehead. Subsequently, you will need your associate to shut their own left eye and you will need to look straight into their right eye.
Your acquaintance will subsequently read off the measurement to the centre of your left pupil. And that is it! It really is that easy! Please see the diagram below to help you further.
Using your latest spectacles to evaluate you PD with help from a friend:
Check how well your eyeglasses sit on your face by putting them on and having a look. Ask your friend to stand opposite you and mark on your lenses the position of your pupils with a non permanent marker.
There should be two lines visible in your line of sight, whilst you are viewing through your glasses. Merely, remove your sunglasses and measure the distance between the two markings. And that is it! If the ruler shows 6 cm then your pupillary distance will be termed as 60. If the measurement is 6.3cm then your pupillary distance will be 63.
If you have a varifocal measurement, then just measure across from your right eye to the centre of your nose and then again from the centre of your nose to your left eye and record the individual readings for both your left and right eyes. When buying non-prescription designer sunglasses this measurement is not applicable.