What We Need on Your Child's Prescription | EyeBuddy Kids
To make your child's lenses we need five things: sphere (SPH), cylinder (CYL) and axis for each eye, any ADD value, and the pupillary distance (PD). Four of those are printed on the prescription your eye doctor gave you. The fifth, PD, very often is not — and that is normal. Here is what to do about it.
The checklist
| What we need | Where it is | If it is missing |
|---|---|---|
| OD (right eye) and OS (left eye) | The two rows of the prescription | OD is always the right eye, OS the left. Some forms write "R" and "L". |
| SPH — sphere | First number column | Required. A + value is farsighted, a − value is nearsighted. |
| CYL — cylinder | Second column | Often blank. Blank means no astigmatism — leave it at 0.00. |
| Axis | Third column, 1–180 | Only needed if there is a CYL value. If CYL is filled in, axis must be too. |
| ADD | Usually its own column | Most children's prescriptions have none. Leave blank if blank. |
| PD — pupillary distance | Often not on the form at all | See below. Do not guess. |
| Prescriber name and date | Bottom of the form | We need a prescription that has not expired. |
Why your prescription probably has no PD on it
This surprises almost every parent, so it is worth saying plainly: US federal law does not require your eye doctor to put PD on the prescription. The FTC's Eyeglass Rule requires them to hand you the prescription immediately after the exam, but PD is not part of what must be included — the FTC only "encourages" prescribers to provide it. A few states require it; most do not.
So a prescription without a PD is not incomplete or wrong. It just means the measurement lives in your eye doctor's file rather than on your copy.
Two ways to get it:
- Call the office. They measured it during the exam. Most will read it out over the phone in under a minute.
- Measure it at home. Our step-by-step guide takes about a minute with a millimetre ruler. Or send us a photo — ruler across the bridge of the nose, child looking straight at the camera, both pupils and the ruler in frame — and we will work it out for you.
Typical PD by age
Use this as a sanity check, not a substitute for measuring. If the number you have entered is well outside the range for your child's age, it is probably an adult's PD or a typo.
| Age | Typical PD |
|---|---|
| 1–4 | 42–47 mm |
| 5–8 | 45–50 mm |
| 9–12 | 48–54 mm |
| 13+ | 52–58 mm |
The four mistakes we see most
1. Leaving every power at 0.00 and uploading the prescription instead. If you upload a photo, please still type the numbers into the boxes. A form that reads 0.00 in every field tells our lab to make lenses with no correction in them, and we would rather ask than guess.
2. Entering an adult PD for a child. 62–65 mm is a typical adult measurement. For a five-year-old it is roughly 47 mm. If in doubt, check the table above.
3. A prescription written in "+" cylinder. Some clinics write cylinder as a positive number, others as negative. Both are valid and they describe the same lens. Enter it exactly as written and we will convert it — you do not need to do the maths.
4. An expired prescription. Children's eyes change quickly. Check the expiry date printed on the form; most US prescriptions for children run one year from the exam.
Ordering without a prescription
You do not need one. Choose Non-Prescription at checkout and we fit clear lenses with no correction — for dress-up, for blue light filtering, or for eye protection. We still need nothing else from you. If the glasses are for protecting an eye, tell us in the order notes so we can make sure the lens material matches what your eye doctor asked for.
Common questions
What does OD and OS mean on a glasses prescription?
OD is the right eye and OS is the left eye. Some prescriptions use "R" and "L" instead.
Why is there no PD on my child's prescription?
US federal law does not require it. The FTC's Eyeglass Rule requires your eye doctor to give you the prescription, but pupillary distance is not part of what must be included — the FTC only encourages prescribers to add it. Some states require it; most do not. Call the office and ask, or measure it at home.
What is a normal PD for a child?
Roughly 42–47 mm for ages 1–4, 45–50 mm for 5–8, 48–54 mm for 9–12, and 52–58 mm for 13 and over. Adult PDs are usually 58–68 mm, so an adult-sized number on a young child's order is usually an error.
My prescription has a plus cylinder. Can you still make it?
Yes. Enter it exactly as written. Plus-cylinder and minus-cylinder notation describe the same lens, and we convert it for you.
What if the CYL and axis boxes are blank?
That means no astigmatism, which is common. Leave them blank or at 0.00. If CYL has a value, axis must have one too.
How long is a children's glasses prescription valid?
Check the expiry date printed on the form. Most US prescriptions for children run one year from the date of the exam, because children's eyes change quickly.
Can I order glasses without a prescription?
Yes. Choose Non-Prescription at checkout and we fit clear lenses with no correction. If the glasses are for eye protection, say so in the order notes so we can match the lens material to what your eye doctor specified.
Still not sure?
Email hi@eyebuddykids.com with a photo of the prescription and we will read it for you before you order. We would rather spend two minutes now than remake the lenses later.
See also: how to measure your child's PD · size chart by age · shipping and delivery · warranty guide