I can only speak for Austria, but the difference, if SMILE had been an option, would have been at the lower end € 3400,- compared to the PRK I got and roughly €

I can only speak for Austria, but the difference, if SMILE had been an option, would have been at the lower end € 3400,- compared to the PRK I got and roughly € 3200,- compared with LASIK, for what that’s worth, more than double the cost. Yes, that falls under multiple months rent, but to me that is more reason why one would consider the cost as well. Maybe “severely more expensive” wasn’t the best wait to phrase it, but the difference is still quite steep and this can be a decision maker for many people. Especially as currently it appears that medium term/6-month outcome between PRK and SMILE are very comparable, or even slightly better in PRK [0]. [0] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9009506/ https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9009506/