If You're Suffering From Dry Eyes, Amazon Reviewers Say You Need These Best-Selling Drops (2024)

There are some moments when the tears just won’t stop (say, that time you binge-watched all six seasons of This Is Us). Then there are the times it feels like your eyes are as dry and dusty as a sun-parched dirt road in the middle of an old Western town. Rather than being a tortured metaphor, it’s more likely that you have dry eye syndrome.

Millions of Americans suffer from dry eyes every year. This occurs when your eyes don’t make enough tears, or they don’t make high-quality tears, which should include layers of water, oil, and mucus. “This causes your eyes to feel gritty, red and irritated,” says Ami Shah Vira, MD, an ophthalmologist with Texas Neuro Eye & Plastic Surgery. It can happen to anyone, but if you are female, over age 50 or wear contact lenses (or all three!), you are at greater risk. People with certain autoimmune conditions, such as Sjogren's syndrome and rheumatoid arthritis, may also suffer from dry eyes.

Another factor leading to that scratchy-eye feeling: our high-tech. 21st-century lives. “When we’re looking at digital devices all day, we blink a lot less and that can destabilize our tear film, impacting natural homeostasis,” says Melissa Barnett, OD, director of optometry at the University of California Davis. Untreated, dry eyes can also lead to infections as well a lot of discomfort, adds ophthalmologist Daniel C. Brocks, MD, medical director at BostonSight. “Tears help us see clearly but they also prevent infection and wash away irritants. With dry eye, contaminants and bacteria can grab on more easily,” he explains.

Luckily, there are many different eye drops that can help you feel better and see clearer. "Although artificial tears don’t address the underlying cause of dry eye, they can control symptoms,” says Dr. Barnett.

Below, you'll find the best eye drops for dry eyes, recommended by the experts above, depending on the cause. At the end of this page, we also answer common questions about different types of eye drops and how to use eye drops.

Sometimes you just need an inexpensive bottle of drugstore drops to throw in your purse for those moments when your eyes are feeling gritty and dry from the wind, the A/C or too much TV. This is a gently-priced, solid option for those moments. With over 18,000 5-star reviews on Amazon, thousands of people say they got instant relief when using these drops. Plus, some note that the bottle is softer and easier to squeeze.

This inexpensive drugstore brand has rave reviews for keeping contact-covered eyes moisturized and comfortable at a good price. You can use them as often as needed; squeeze a drop into your lenses before inserting them in your eye for extra comfort. Because it contains preservatives and is a multi-use bottle, be sure to discard after 90 days.

If you use eye drops frequently, you'll want to stick with preservative-free formulas, which have fewer chemicals that can irritate the eye. Without preservatives, however, it's safest for the drops to come in sanitary one-time use vials, like these from Systane, which have thousands of 5-star reviews on Amazon. Reviewers say they feel more gel-like and moisturizing than other brands and are great for sensitive eyes.

Made with glycerin, which hydrates eyes and also adds an extra protective coat, these soothing drops are safe to use with contact lenses, and can also be used proactively if you know you’ll be out in the sun or wind. The preservative-free drops also contain hyaluronan, a type of moisturizer found in tears.

Dr. Barnett recommends these drops for dry eyes due to long days staring at your laptop or too many hours on TikTok. Long-lasting and appropriate for mild to severe dry eye, these drops are preservative-free but come in a multi-use bottle with a special design that prevents microbial contamination.

You generally want to save thick, gooey gels for nighttime, when your eyes are resting and don't need to see clearly. This long-lasting gel, which contains hyaluronic acid and comes in individual doses, is thicker and provides more lubrication and moisture than liquid drops, says Dr. Barnett.

Melbomian gland dysfunction (MGD) is when there’s a problem with the tiny glands that make up the oily part of your tears. When these glands get clogged, your eyes produce watery tears, which evaporate faster than those with good, thick oils in them. Dr. Barnett recommends these moisture-rich drops, which contain omega-3 fats from flaxseed oil, for dry eye associated with MGD.

Created for severely dry eyes, this gooey ointment contains mineral oil and petrolatum, and soothes the eyes overnight as you sleep. Reviewers say it's pricey but worth the money.

These drops contain mineral oils to restore the lipid layer that deteriorates with MGD. Reviewers say it is very soothing, especially for nighttime use, without the gooiness of ointments or gels.

“Gels stick around longer, so they are good for severe dry eye or for use at bedtime,” says Dr. Shah Vira. On the flip side, they tend to blur your vision more than liquids, she adds. But these gel tears are designed for moderate to severe dry eye, and can be used during the day or at night.

Preservative-free and compatible with contact lenses, these drops come in a multi-use bottle that claims to stay sterile for three months. Reviewers say that it's worth the extra cost to save the earth from all the extra plastic that comes with individual doses of preservative-free drops.

To choose the best eye drops, we spoke to several eye doctors about what to look for in an eye drop and which products they recommend to their patients. We also scoured the internet to read all the reviews, positive and negative, by consumers with dry eyes.

Whichever type of drop you choose, it’s best to be consistent. “If your eyes feel dry, then you’re just playing catch-up—it’s like when your skin is very dry and begins to crack,” says Dr. Shah Vira. “Most commonly, lubricating drops are applied between 4 to 6 times a day,” Dr. Brocks explains, adding that for people with severe dry eye due to a condition such as Sjogren's, drops may need to be applied much more frequently, even as often as every 10 minutes. All three experts add that if the drops make your eyes sting, refrigerating the bottle can make them more tolerable (check the package for specific instructions). To make sure the drops go in your eyes and not all over your face, Dr. Barnett says, “I recommend lying down, closing the eyes, then instilling the artificial tears and blinking a few times.”

Contacts are one of the main causes of dry eye. “But there are only specific lubricating drops that should be used with contact lenses,” cautions Dr. Brocks. Drops that are thick and oily can smudge your lenses and impair vision. “Be sure to check the box and package insert to ensure you are using the proper lubricating drops if you are applying them while contact lenses are in the eyes,” Dr. Brocks advises.

As Deputy Editor of the Health Newsroom at Hearst, Marisa Cohen writes about every topic affecting physical and mental health, from the brain to the feet, and everything in between, including eyes, having previously covered eye surgery, eye infections, how allergies affect eyes, and more. She has more than two decades of experience reporting and writing about health for numerous magazines and web sites. For this article, she interviewed top eye doctors for advice on what to look for in drops for dry eye syndrome.