Hear.com Reviews
Owned by Sivantos, Hear.com claims to bring competitive hearing aid prices to US shores, along with free consultations and personalized customer service.
About Hear.com
Hear.com is a hearing aid specialist that offers competitive pricing and a wide selection from leading manufacturers, including Oticon, Phonak, Siemens, and more.
Hear.com also offers free phone consultations with audiologists, local hearing tests and hearing aid fittings, as well as a 100% satisfaction guarantee on every hearing aid they sell. Why? Because Hear.com wants to address your hearing loss and improve your quality of life.
According to the company, the process works over 3 steps:
- A free phone consultation with one of Hear.com’s audiologists.
- Afterward, you’ll attend a fitting at one of Hear.com’s local partner providers. There, you’ll also be able to receive a hearing test based on “strict medical criteria.”
- Once you’ve received your hearing aids, Hear.com will adjust them to meet your needs until you’re 100% satisfied.
Have you ever heard of Hear.com? Probably not. But their prices seem great, so you’re here to find out if Hear.com is the real deal, or just another scam.
First, let’s take a look at exactly what kinds of prices you can expect.
Hear.com’s Hearing Aid Pricing, Quality, & Guarantee
Hear.com offers 3 different levels of hearing aids, depending on your needs and budget:
Basic: $700 - $1,600
Ideal for optimal speech comprehension in a home environment, and for those with mild to moderate hearing loss. Includes digital sound processing, feedback cancellation, and up to 4 hearing programs.
Mid-Range - $1,600 - $2,200
In contrast, mid-range hearing can be used for helping you hear in a variety of daily living situations, and might be better for individuals with moderate hearing loss. This includes wireless TV and phone connections, adjustable speech recognition, speech enhancement, directional hearing, and enhanced acoustic orientation.
Premium - $2,200 - $3,000
Regardless of your level of hearing loss, premium hearing aids will provide you with the best hearing in the highest number of situations. These will also come with the widest range of styles and colors, 360-degree hearing, automatic adjustments, and more.
Depending on the price category you choose, Hear.com offers up to 3 years of warranty coverage, along with up to 5 free service appointments.
You’ll also have 45 days to get your deposit back if you change your mind.
In order to request a refund on your deposit, speak with an audiologist, or find a local partner, you can call Hear.com’s customer service at 786-574-5820
Reading through the differences between hearing aids might have caused your eyes to glaze over. But in real-world terms, what’s the difference between these levels?
Differences Between Hearing Aid Levels
You probably noticed that Hear.com calls modern hearing aids “small, high-performance computers with intuitive controls,” instead of the bulky models of yesteryear. And like any other electronic device, the more you pay for your hearing aid, the more features it will come with and the smaller it’ll be.
Whether you pick a behind-the-ear (BTE) or in-the-ear (ITE) hearing aid (the Mayo Clinic website provides an excellent article on how to decide which is right for you), the goal is to help you hear your best.
However, you have to remember that your ears are complex structures, which pull in a variety of different sounds, including voices, background noises, intermediate sounds, and more.
Then, these sound signals are quickly processed by your brain to provide real-time feedback. Among other things, this whole process provides spatial awareness. Without it, we wouldn’t be able to know where different sounds are coming from or how close they are to us.
To provide this spatial awareness, hearing aids have to do a lot of different things at the same time, including:
- Processing all incoming sound
- Differentiating between voices and background sounds (while reducing feedback/reverberation and wind noise)
- Immediately recognizing different voices to “tune in” better
- Automatically adjusting when moving from one environment to another (e.g. a noisy restaurant to a quiet cab). Some lower end hearing aids include settings, but you must manually change them when going from one environment to another.
- Recognizing sharp, sudden sounds and reducing their level (known as impulse sound reduction)
- Many modern premium hearing aids also feature smartphone connectivity to make discreet adjustments, save settings, and even connect to other electronic devices!
And in general, the more features a hearing aid has, the more expensive it’ll be. Can you get by with a basic hearing aid? Sure, but you’ll also have to deal with its limitations.
Regardless of your budget, the best thing to do before ordering a hearing aid is discuss your hearing loss with your physician. Sure, Hear.com’s consultation might help, but you’ll always want to get your medical provider’s opinion first.
A Note about Your Brain & Hearing
As we mentioned above, your ears collect sound, but it’s your brain that processes them into something you can recognize. So in a very real way, we actually hear with our brains.
As our hearing deteriorates, our brain makes up for this deficiency as well as it can. And the longer you suffer from hearing loss, the more your brain compensates.
But when you get a hearing aid (whether from Hear.com or elsewhere) and are able to hear appropriately again, your brain might have difficulty adjusting. In many instances, readjusting your brain might take therapy sessions through an audiologist (not one through Hear.com, obviously), which can involve patience on your part.
The short story? A hearing aid might help you hear better, but until your brain becomes reaccustomed to hearing well, you might not hear very comfortably.
What about Hear.com’s reputation? Are they a good company to do business with?
How Long Has Hear.com Been in Business?
According to a September 10, 2015 press release, Hear.com was recently founded by a company named Sivantos, who has been in business for more than 100 years and is one of the world’s top manufacturers of hearing aids. In fact, Sivantos claims to “develop and manufacture one out of every four hearing aids being used worldwide.”
Before launching Hear.com, Sivantos strategically purchased audibene.de, who is currently the number one hearing aid retailer in Europe. Now, Sivantos plans to create this same success in the US with Hear.com, by targeting a younger, first-time hearing aid user.
What’s the Bottom Line with Hear.com?
Hear.com is a very new company, so there wasn’t a lot of information available about them at the time of our research. They are backed by the merger of two very successful companies though, who is trying to recreate their European success here in the US.
When it comes down to it, Hear.com almost certainly can help you find a brand name hearing aid that provides all the features you need, within your budget. They also seem to stand behind their services with free, local consultations, and behind their products with a 45-day refund window on deposits.
Only time will tell if Hear.com is as successful as its European sister company, but they seem to be starting out on the right foot.
Have you purchased a hearing aid through Hear.com? Tell us about your experience by writing a review below!
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Hearing aids
The last 2-3 years I noticed I had difficulty hearing some words, especially lower frequencies, like male voices, speaking low. Being 81 and still working, that was a problem. I sent for a mail-order hearing aid. That was so uncomfortable, I could not wear it. I went to a doctor to find out just how bad my hearing was. It was bad. One ear was shot, due to an infection long ago, which left me with one good ear, and it was not very good. This could get serious. The doctor sent me to a Hear.com office. They were very helpful and very thorough, I ended up with a very small hearing aid, almost invisible when in place, important, since I am still vain. And I can hear, not only words spoken, but documentaries on the computer, without blasting. Great!
One day, rushing to go to work, I forgot the hearing aid at home. I was half deaf that day. Agony. I love the Hear.com hearing aid.
Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
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Do not go without being able to hear any longer.
I am 73 years old and I look at something like it is what it is. I didn’t know how bad my hearing really was. I'm not going to tell you that it is as good as perfect hearing you once had. But, I will tell you it is the next best thing. You don’t realize how much you are missing, it gives you a quality of life that you have missed by not being able to hear. I'm so glad that I have my hearing back, I wanted to hug my doctor.
Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
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Excellent service and product lines, a great combination
When I first visited the Hear store I had little knowledge as to the purchase and use of hearing aids. A comprehensive test was administered to determine my hearing aid needs. When the devices arrived I was able to install them and tune them easily, although a few phone calls to the store provided additional information. Some time later the battery charger unit needed replacement, and that was accomplished quickly with no additional cost. Since then I figured a way to avoid a similar problem, and all has been well. The staffers I dealt with were courteous and knowledgeable, and thanks to an excellent product my increased ability to hear has opened up a new world!
Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
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Wonderful experience!
The whole experience is/was wonderful. The hearing test by the Leanne was very thorough! The good think about these hearing aids is that no batteries are required and each evening, before retiring, I slip them into the charger and the next day they work the whole day.
Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
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Very professional, caring and helpful!
My Hear.com professional partner, Mr. Jonathon Iboa bent over backwards to help me in every way that he could. I could not have had a better advocate. He is the best. The service provider was/is excellent also and very professional and personable.
Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
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Hear.com is EXCELLENT
My experience with Hear.com was as good as it gets. The hearing consultant was very courteous and helpful. She helped me arrange a home evaluation and delivery of the hearing aids. The hearing technician was competent and professional. The hearing consultant helped me with interest-free financing. I highly recommend Hear.com.
Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
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Excellent hearing aids experience
HEAR.COM is an exceptional way to approach inquiring and attaining Hearing Aids. I found the Customer Service to be exceptional in all respects! Types of hearing loss, past experiences, and possible options were discussed in detail. The referral to a local associate office to fully fit and align the hearing aids was outstanding! Follow-up and continued service have been wonderful! And (one of the most important things!) the prices are reasonable compared to other hearing offices! I am thrilled with my Hearing Aids and have not heard in this clarity in decades!
I recommend Hear.com all the time to friends and neighbors; thank you so much for restoring my hearing!
Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
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1 out 1 people found this review helpful
Affordable hearing at its best
With a 60% loss of hearing in both ears, I had needed hearing aids for 7 years. What kept me from getting hearing aids was the price. When I received an e-mail from Hear.com I immediately called the phone number and was very excited when I was told I can get hearing aids on a very reasonable payment plan. I went to one of Hear.com's local partner hearing center I was tested, fitted, and my new hearing aids were adjusted to my hearing loss. Not only was I a happy camper, so was all my family and friends that were tired of repeating themselves. Thank you Hear.com!
Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
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Excellent
I've been very pleased though out my journey in obtaining my hearing devices. I was blessed to have found Hear.com and would recommend them to anyone. So nice to be able to hear better than anyone in my family. Didn't realize my cat had such a nice purr, I didn't think he purred. Nice to hear birds chirping and I don't have to turn my TV up to full blast and disturb the whole neighborhood.
Bottom Line: Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
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16 out 16 people found this review helpful
They won's stop calling!
I asked to be contacted by the company, and after talking with a rep (who was very nice), I determined that I wasn't interested. I asked to be taken off of their call list.
The calls kept coming. I asked again to be taken off of their call list; no luck, the calls keep coming.
Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend
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22 out 22 people found this review helpful
Terrible service, bad, bad company
I got a hearing aid through this company. It was STATE of the Art...no batteries, totally rechargeable. Well after a month I was told that the rechargeable issue was working to be resolved. Purchased the aid due to the fact I would not need batteries. Well after two months I was told that it would get fixed. On month three, I returned the product because I would have to purchase batteries until the item was fixed...whenever that would be. They did offer me a refund and I assumed (wrongly) the insurance company would also get a refund. NO, even after a year. I emailed James, the person I first worked with, and he said he was surprised that the refund had not been completed. I have now emailed James nine times with no resolve to the problem, which means I cannot attempt to get help for another year and a half from my insurance company. I understand the reviews below, as this company will just give you lip service and fail to follow up on what they say they will.
I recommend that anyone considering purchasing through the company move to someone else that is trustworthy. So much for offering great service and they first tell you! Please don't get ripped off!
Bottom Line: No, I would not recommend this to a friend
