If you’re reading this, you probably fall into one of three camps.
Your own hearing’s changed and you’ve been quietly turning the telly up. You’re watching a parent struggle and refuse to deal with it. Or you’ve spent decades pretending you caught what your partner said.
Same problem, different chair. This is for all of you.
Last October, I took my dad to Boots for a hearing test. He’d been putting it off for years.
Mum had been on at him. The grandkids had started talking louder around him without being asked. He knew. He just didn’t want to deal with it.
The appointment was fine. The audiologist was thorough, friendly, professional. Dad did the test, they showed him the results, talked him through the options. Then they handed him the quote.
£3,200. For a pair of hearing devices.
Three grand to hear his own grandchildren. That’s what this country has come to.
Curious about your own hearing? Take the free 5-minute check at home before anyone quotes you thousands. Start your free check →
He went quiet. Did that thing where he folds the piece of paper in half and puts it in his jacket pocket. Said he’d “have a think about it.”
I knew what that meant. He wasn’t going to do anything. Another Christmas where he smiles and nods and misses half of what everyone’s saying.
In the car on the way home, nobody said much. Then Mum said: “Well that’s that then.”
It wasn’t that, though. Because I went home and started looking into it.
Why does a hearing device cost three grand? What’s actually in the thing? Who makes the parts? What I found made me angry enough to start a company.
My dad’s not unusual. According to RNID, over 18 million UK adults are deaf, have hearing loss or tinnitus.1
Over half of adults over 55 have some degree of hearing change.2 And on average, people wait about ten years before they do anything.3
Ten years. Because the price scares them back out of the shop.
And the longer you wait, the harder your brain has to work to readjust. Don’t be one of the ten-year waiters.
Is your hearing changing?
Find out exactly which sounds you’re missing. Takes 5 minutes.
Find out which sounds you’re missing →Find out which sounds you’re missing and whether a hearing device would help.
The question that wouldn’t leave me alone
Why does a pair of hearing devices cost three thousand pounds at Boots?
What’s actually in the thing? Who makes the parts? And where does that money actually go?
Here’s what I found when I actually sat down and picked the numbers apart.
Before you read on. I’m biased, because I built Clear Hearing. This is written by me. I have a commercial interest in you choosing my product. Read it knowing that, and if you’re worried about your hearing, please see your GP or a qualified hearing specialist before making any decision.
What’s actually inside a hearing device
Here’s something most people don’t know. The hardware inside any hearing device is cheaper than you’d think.
The electronics (the microphone, the tiny speaker, the chip that processes sound) are made in volume. The cost of making one is a small fraction of what you pay at the till.
The bulk of what you pay on the high street isn’t the device. It’s the shop, the staff, the advertising, and the commission.
So where does the extra two and a half grand go?
The three options you’ve actually got.
If your hearing’s going, there are really only three routes most people end up considering. I’ve been down all of them. Here’s what each one actually looks like.
Most people notice their hearing changing years before they do anything about it. The price, the wait, the stigma. It all adds up to doing nothing. Ten years of missing conversations.
Prices shown are per pair, based on publicly listed RRPs and advertised starting prices at UK high-street and online retailers at time of writing. Clear Hearing normally retails at £299; £149 is the current launch price.
Those are starting prices. In practice the sales process steers you toward the mid or premium tier. My dad walked into Boots expecting £800 and walked out with a £3,200 quote. That’s the bit nobody warns you about.
Boots can charge well over three grand for a pair of hearing devices. Most of that is paying for the shop, not the device.
It’s not because the hearing device costs more to make. It’s because Boots has 600 shops to rent, a sales floor to staff, and a national TV advertising budget to fund. That’s what you’re paying for.
The table tells the story. NHS is free but you wait, and about a quarter of people stop wearing them inside a year.9 High street is fast but costs a fortune. Amazon is cheap but you’re on your own when it breaks.
Clear Hearing is what I built for people who want none of those trade-offs. £149, 60 days to try it, UK support on the end of an email.
Does any of this sound like you?
I hear the same scenes again and again from customers and their families. These aren’t testimonials. They’re the moments people describe to me, written in my own words.
1. Sunday lunch
You’re at Sunday lunch. Your daughter’s talking, the kids are shouting, someone’s clattering plates in the kitchen. You can see her mouth moving but you can’t make out the words.
So you smile and nod and hope it wasn’t a question.
This is the single most common thing people tell me. It’s not that things aren’t loud enough. It’s that you can’t pick one voice out of the noise.
2. You walked out of Boots
You’ve already done the high-street route. You sat through a thorough appointment, liked the audiologist, and then they handed you a quote for £2,800 and you said you’d “think about it”.
That was six months ago. You’re still thinking about it.
I’ve watched this happen with my own dad. There’s nothing wrong with the Boots product. It’s the price.
And if the price is the thing stopping you from hearing the people you love, something’s gone wrong with the industry. That’s why I built Clear Hearing.
What customers say
“Had the whole family round Saturday. My granddaughter was going on about something at school and for once I caught every word. First time in ages I didn’t have to lean in or ask her to say it again.”
“The volume’s on 14 instead of 22. She’s happy, I can hear the football, everyone wins. For £149 I honestly can’t complain.”
“Used to dread changing those tiny batteries. Now I just pop them in the case at bedtime and they’re ready in the morning. Honestly better than what I was paying a lot more for before.”
What it actually does to your hearing
The high-frequency sounds are the ones that fade first with age.7 That’s the bit that makes ‘s’, ‘f’ and ‘th’ sound different from each other.
When those go, everyone sounds like they’re mumbling. Clear Hearing turns those sounds back up, across the board, for everyone who wears it.
Our five-minute hearing check tests your hearing at three of those key sounds in each ear. It’s a consumer screening, not a clinical audiogram,4 and it’s there to help you decide whether the device is worth trying.
Find out which sounds you’re missing.
Your result shows whether a hearing device would help, and which sounds it would bring back. If it suggests Clear Hearing could help, you can order for £149 and try it at home for 60 days. Not right for you? Post it back to us. Full refund, no questions.
Find out which sounds you’re missing →What you’d actually pay
£149. That’s it.
One payment. No subscription, no auto-charges, no “plus postage”. Free UK tracked delivery included.
60 days to make up your mind
You get 60 days from the moment it arrives to wear it in real life. Sunday lunch. In front of the telly. At the bowls club. In the car with the windows down.
If at any point you decide it’s not for you, email us at info@aeonleads.com and we’ll send you the UK return address. Post it back within 60 days for a full refund.
We refund your £149 in full as soon as it lands back with us. No phone calls, no forms, no “can we ask why”.
That’s a longer trial than most comparable UK brands, which tend to cap theirs at 30 or 45 days.
One-year warranty
If anything goes wrong in the first year (device, case, cable, anything), we replace it free. No charge.
That sits on top of the 60-day money-back guarantee. It doesn’t replace it.
If you’re wondering what the catch is
Honestly? It’s this: Clear Hearing isn’t a regulated medical device. We can’t match what an NHS audiologist does in a face-to-face fitting, and we don’t pretend we can.
For most people with everyday age-related hearing change, where conversations have got harder in noisy rooms and the telly keeps creeping up, it does the job.
If you have severe hearing loss, a diagnosed condition, or anything more complicated, see your GP first. That’s the honest answer.
How my dad’s getting on
He’s been wearing a pair for six months now. Mum stopped getting at him about the telly about two weeks in. He picks the grandkids up from school again and actually hears what they tell him on the way home.
That’s why I did this.
Whether it’s your parent, your partner, or yourself, the hardest bit is admitting something’s changed. Everything after that is just practical.
Questions people ask before they take the check
Is the check actually free?
Yes. The check is completely free. No payment, no trial that turns into a subscription, no gimmicks. We don’t take card details at any point.
Do I need to create an account or give my email?
No account needed. You’ll see your result immediately at the end of the check. If you want us to email you a copy of your result you can, but it’s optional.
Do I need headphones?
Yes. For the tone part of the check you need headphones or earbuds, wired or wireless both work. If you don’t have any, you can still see the product here.
How long does it take?
About 5 minutes. Three quick questions, a short tone test, and your result. No waiting, no appointment, no phone calls.
Is this a medical diagnosis?
No. It’s a consumer screening tool, not a clinical audiogram. It gives you a useful picture of your hearing, but if you have concerns please see your GP or a qualified audiologist for a full assessment.
Will you call me or send me post?
No. We don’t sell your details and we won’t call you. If you opt in to an email copy of your result, you’ll get that one email. Anything else only if you specifically ask for it.
Important update
Since this article went out, we’ve had a big jump in demand. We’re still dispatching orders within 1 working day and the 60-day guarantee still applies, but if you’ve been thinking about trying Clear Hearing, take the free check now so you’re ready.
About us: I’m Dawn. I started Clear Hearing with a small UK team after my dad’s Boots appointment. We’re not audiologists. We sourced a good hearing device, cut out the high-street shop and the commission, and sell direct to keep the price fair.
Disclosure: This is a paid advertisement. We have a commercial interest in you choosing our product. If you have questions, email our UK support team.
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If you have severe hearing loss or a diagnosed condition, please see your GP first.
