Hearing Aid Price – Why are hearing aids Expensive

A digital hearing aid price ranges from as low as 12,000 Rs for one to as high as 3,50,000 Rs for one device. You can also get some body level or analog hearing aids ranging from 2000Rs to 10,000 Rs for one. Right question to ask when it comes to hearing aids is “What is the cost of hearing aid that works for you”. Answer to that depends on your Hearing loss – Degree and Nature, lifestyle, Age, Communication needs etc.

The number one question I get from all my clients is “Why are hearing aids so expensive”? In this blog, I will try to explain as to why such a big range when it comes to the cost of hearing aids. Also, there are more than 5 major hearing aid companies around the world. We would have expected hearing aid cost to go down because of the competition in the industry but it has not. I have worked in R & D division for one of the hearing aid manufacturers in Singapore for a brief amount of time. The amount of money spent for manufacturing each hearing aid itself is much less. Then, why is it so expensive when it reaches the consumer?

Research and Development:

Most hearing aid companies are driven or progress based on the amount of money they spend for research and development. Look at all the advances in hearing aid technology over the years. Most of the revenue generated from hearing aid sales goes back to research and development of newer technology. So, if you have ever bought a hearing aid – you have partly contributed to the advancement of hearing aid technology.

Hearing Aid as a medical device:

Hearing aid is classified medical device by FDA. Hence, Hearing aids go through rigorous quality check before they are sent out. Hearing aid companies invest large sum of money to maintain the quality and for regulatory reasons.

Number of users:

Most of the people compare hearing aids to smartphones in terms of pricing. It is a wrong comparison to make. Number of people using smartphone as compared to number of people wearing hearing aids is too large. Hence, the production cost of smartphones is much less as compared to hearing aids.

Marketing:

Like any other product, hearing aid companies spend significant amount of money on awareness and marketing.

Hearing Aid Dispensers/ Audiologist cost:

Hearing aids are widely dispensed by a professional – Audiologist/ Hearing Health Care Professional either independently owned or company owned clinics. There is a significant investment for the clinic in terms of rent/ lease, equipment’s, front desk etc. It is a disbelief that the Audiologist keeps the bigger margin out of hearing aid dispensing.