Can you wear hearing aids and glasses at the same time?

Yes, most people who wear both do it every day without issue, but the two devices compete for the same small space behind and over the ear. A glasses temple arm and a hearing aid's earhook or receiver wire sit in nearly the same spot, which can cause pressure, soreness, or a rubbing or scratching sound if the temple arm brushes the hearing aid's microphone. Slimmer hearing aid styles and thinner glasses temples both reduce the crowding.

What's the best hearing aid style for glasses wearers?

Receiver-in-canal (RIC) hearing aids are generally the most glasses-friendly style because only a thin wire runs behind the ear instead of a bulkier earhook or tube, so there's less competing for space with a glasses temple. In-the-ear (ITE), in-the-canal (ITC), and completely-in-canal (CIC) styles avoid the conflict entirely because nothing sits behind the ear at all, though they trade away some of RIC's power and battery life.

In what order should you put on hearing aids and glasses?

Most audiologists recommend putting glasses on first, then placing the hearing aids over the temple arms so the hearing aid's microphone sits on the outside, away from the frame. Reverse the order when taking them off: hearing aids first, then glasses. This keeps the temple arm from repeatedly bumping or dislodging the hearing aid as you put it on.

Do glasses that also work as hearing aids exist?

Yes, one current example is Nuance Audio Glasses from EssilorLuxottica (the parent company of Ray-Ban and Oakley, which acquired hearing-tech startup Nuance Hearing), an FDA-cleared OTC hearing device built into the eyeglass temples with directional microphones and small in-arm speakers, sold with prescription lenses for around $1,200. It's a real, current product, not the old-style 'hearing aid glasses' novelty devices sold decades ago, though it's a single option rather than a broad category.

Can an audiologist adjust glasses to fit better with hearing aids?

An audiologist can often lengthen or re-angle a hearing aid's earhook or receiver wire to give a glasses temple more room, and an optician can fit thinner or more flexible temple arms. If you wear glasses all day and still find BTE or RIC aids uncomfortable after those adjustments, ask about ITE or ITC styles, which remove the behind-the-ear crowding altogether.

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Quick Answer: Hearing aids and glasses fight for the same real estate behind and over your ear, and a bulky behind-the-ear (BTE) earhook or glasses temple crowding a receiver-in-canal (RIC) wire is the usual cause of soreness, slipping, or a rubbing noise. The fix is almost always a style choice: RIC hearing aids with their thin receiver wire crowd glasses arms the least of any behind-the-ear design, and ITE/ITC/CIC styles sidestep the problem completely because nothing sits behind the ear. Putting glasses on before hearing aids, and taking hearing aids off before glasses, also cuts down on daily snagging. One current product, Nuance Audio Glasses from EssilorLuxottica, even builds an FDA-cleared OTC hearing device directly into the temple arms.

If you wear both glasses and hearing aids, you already know the annoyance: two devices, one small strip of skin behind your ear, and a temple arm that keeps nudging your hearing aid loose by the end of the day. This isn’t a rare edge case. According to industry tracker Prescription Hearing, only about 3% of U.S. adults currently wear hearing aids, compared with roughly two-thirds who wear glasses — meaning a large share of people who eventually need a hearing aid are already long-time glasses wearers navigating this exact fit conflict for the first time.

Hearing aids and glasses, by the numbers

Only about 3% of U.S. adults wear hearing aids, versus roughly two-thirds who wear glasses, per Prescription Hearing — most new hearing aid buyers are adapting a device to a face that’s worn glasses for years, not the other way around.
The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) estimates 28.8 million U.S. adults could benefit from hearing aids, a population that heavily overlaps with the two-thirds of adults who already wear vision correction.
Nuance Audio Glasses, the current FDA-cleared eyeglasses-with-built-in-hearing-aid product from EssilorLuxottica, retail for around $1,200 including the hearing hardware, with prescription lenses sold separately — a real, shoppable answer to “can glasses just be the hearing aid,” though still a single product rather than a full category.

Hearing aid style vs. glasses compatibility

Style	What sits behind the ear	Glasses compatibility	Trade-off
Classic BTE	Full case + earhook	Most crowding — the bulkiest option to pair with a temple arm	Most power and longest battery life, best for severe loss
Slim-tube BTE	Smaller case + thin tube	Better than classic BTE, still some crowding	Less power than classic BTE, more than RIC
RIC (receiver-in-canal)	Small case + thin wire	Best behind-the-ear option — least material competing with a temple arm	Slightly less powerful than BTE at the top end
ITE / ITC / CIC	Nothing — sits in the ear bowl or canal	No conflict at all, since nothing sits behind the ear	Smaller battery, less power, not ideal for severe loss
Nuance Audio Glasses	Built into the eyeglass temple itself	No separate device to crowd — glasses and hearing aid are one unit	OTC mild-to-moderate range only, ~$1,200, single product line

The takeaway: if all-day glasses comfort matters more to you than maximum power, move down this table toward RIC or ITE. See our full hearing aid styles guide for how each style compares beyond just glasses fit.

Why the two devices actually conflict

A glasses temple arm and a hearing aid’s earhook, tube, or receiver wire all want to occupy the same narrow strip of skin directly behind your ear and the small shelf of cartilage above it. When both are present, the glasses arm can press the hearing aid harder against your head than it would sit alone, which causes soreness or headaches after a full day of wear. In some cases the temple arm can physically brush against the hearing aid’s microphone port, adding a faint scratching or rubbing noise every time you turn your head. None of this means the two can’t be worn together — it just means the bulkier the hearing aid style, the more likely you’ll notice the crowding.

Fitting order and simple adjustments

Most audiologists recommend a specific order: put glasses on first, then place the hearing aid over the temple arm so the hearing aid’s microphone sits on the outside, away from the frame, rather than trapped underneath it. Reverse that order when you take them off — hearing aids off first, then glasses — so you’re not repeatedly snagging the hearing aid on the frame as you remove it. Beyond ordering, two adjustments help most people: ask your audiologist about lengthening or re-angling the earhook or receiver wire for more clearance, and ask your optician about thinner, more flexible temple arms, since a slimmer frame crowds a hearing aid less than a thick plastic one.

Jabra Enhance Select 300

RIC design, thin receiver wire · ~$1,695/pair

Receiver-in-canal build with one of the thinnest wire profiles in its class, the style least likely to crowd a glasses temple.
Remote audiologist support if you need the earhook or wire angle adjusted after wearing it with glasses for a few days.
100-day trial, so you can confirm the all-day glasses fit works for you before committing.

Check price on Amazon →

Once you’ve picked a glasses-friendly style, Amazon Prime’s free 30-day trial gets spare domes, a cleaning brush, or a backup charging case to your door in two days while you dial in the fit.

If you’d rather skip the conflict entirely

For heavy glasses wearers who find even a slim RIC uncomfortable after adjustments, in-the-ear styles remove the behind-the-ear crowding completely because nothing sits above or behind the ear at all. See our in-the-ear hearing aids guide for current picks, and our behind-the-ear hearing aids guide if you need BTE-level power and want to see which specific models are built with the thinnest, most glasses-friendly profile.

A quick health note

Choosing a glasses-friendly hearing aid style is a comfort decision, not a hearing-correction one — it doesn’t change how well a device treats your hearing loss. OTC hearing aids are intended for adults 18 and over with perceived mild-to-moderate hearing loss in both ears. If you have severe or profound loss, sudden hearing changes, hearing loss in only one ear, ear pain or drainage, or tinnitus that is pulsing or one-sided, see an audiologist or physician before choosing a device.

For more on choosing between hearing aid styles, see our hearing aid styles guide, best RIC hearing aids, and best behind-the-ear hearing aids roundups.

The bottom line

Glasses and hearing aids can absolutely be worn together comfortably, but the bulkier the hearing aid style, the more they’ll crowd a glasses temple arm behind your ear. RIC hearing aids with their thin receiver wire are the most glasses-friendly behind-the-ear option, and ITE/ITC/CIC styles skip the conflict entirely if RIC still isn’t comfortable for you. Putting glasses on first and adjusting the earhook length with your audiologist solve most of the rest. See our best RIC hearing aids picks, or browse glasses-friendly hearing aids on Amazon.