The optical center of your eyeglass lenses is the part that gives you the truest vision, and it should be directly in front of your pupils. To determine how to place the lenses in your frames so the optical center is customized for your eyes, the eyeglasses lab needs to know the distance between your pupils, or PD.
It can be tricky to measure your own PD, somewhat akin to trying to cut your own hair. Dispensers need lots of practice to be able to measure PDs correctly, and even experienced opticians have difficulty taking their own in a mirror.
Most online optical providers present you with several ways to go about this important task. Some suggest the simplest method, which is to have your prescribing eye doctor or an optician take the measurement for you. Alternatively, they offer step-by-step explanations of how to take your own PD in the mirror, or how to have a friend take it for you.There is only one reason you would your want your own PD measurement: your want to buy glasses online, without the expense of an optician's expertise. Ok, fine. I'm a professional optician and I have reasons to hate that people do this. But I just love opticianry. What irritates me more than the erosion of respect for and practice of professional opticianry are the endlessly reused wrong methods of obtaining an accurate PD perpetuated all over the anything-for-a-dollar online glasses websites. So I'm going to tell you why their instructions are wrong, and then I'm going to tell you simply how to do it right.
There are two systems proliferated online to obtain your own PD: manually measure yourself, or via software manipulate an uploaded photo of yourself to produce the data.
To measure yourself the common instructions are (courtesy of random online glasses site justeyewear.com)
Have ready: a straight ruler*, a pencil, and a mirror
If you have a willing assistant, you can simplify the process even further by having your friend measure your PD using a ruler. (Your job will be to stand still.)
- Facing the mirror, place the ruler on the bridge of your nose, bringing the start of the ruler directly below the center of one eye’s pupil.
- Looking straight into the mirror, hold the ruler (keeping it steady and parallel to the floor!) and mark the location on the ruler of the other eye’s pupil.
- Measure the distance in millimeters between the two marks. This is your PD.
- Repeat this process a couple of times to ensure you have an accurate measurement.
Whether measuring with someone or alone, be sure to hold the ruler steady and parallel to the floor!