SYSTANE Lubricant Gel Drops

This is a combination review of a handful of preservative free eye drops. This is by no means extensive nor thorough. There are many others on the market that I have yet to try, but these were the ones I believed to be most relevant to my needs, which consist of relief after PRK surgery. Drops reviewed: Refresh Relieva for contacts Systane Gel Drops Systane Hydration PF Biotrue Systane Ultra PF Oasis Tears Plus I will cross post this on each of the other drops' pages. I will review the drops based on relief, perceived longevity, consistency, ease of use, and relevant features. At the time of this review, I am at exactly one month post surgery. I will be rating each of these drops 5 stars on their relevant pages because they all do exactly what they're designed to do and don't have any glaring issues that warrants fewer than 5 stars. The in-post reviews are relevant to comparing between these drops. Refresh Relieva (5 stars): These drops are fantastic. I find that I want to reach for these the most often when I'm looking for good eye lubrication. These drops spread over my eye very quickly without feeling like they stick to the edges of my eyes or eyelashes. Out of all the drops other than the gel, these drops feel like they last the longest in between drops. I use this the least often and find great relief for about half an hour before I want to use them again. These drops feel less slimy than the other drops except for Biotrue. Out of all of the other bottles, it's the most traditional dropper and easiest to use, but due to the design, it may be most susceptible to contaminants and early expiration. It's the only bottle that I'm able to fit my nanodropper onto and that will potentially mitigate the potential contamination and as a result, will prevent early expiration as well as extend the number of drops due to the smaller drops the nanodropper creates. Overall, these are my favorites drops. Systane Gel (3 stars): Out of all of the drops, I reach for these least often. I thought I might try them to see if they last longer and provide the longest lasting relief. If that's what you're looking for, these drops are great, except there are drawbacks that cause me to not use them. They're sticky. If I fall asleep with them in, my eyelids get a little glued together and I sometimes have to pick the gel out of my eyelashes and that can be very uncomfortable. They provide a great deal of relief for the longest period of time and that's the saving grace for these drops, but I'd rather not deal with the slime I get all over my face when I inevitably rub my eyes due to the uncomfortable residue that sits on the edges of my eyes and eyelashes. This dropper is very easy to use and on par with the Refresh dropper. I have no complaints about the amount it drops and the ease of use. Systane Hydration (5 stars): These drops are a very close second to Refresh overall. The relief is only noticeably less than Refresh because the Refresh feels so good. These are exactly what I would expect from a high quality drop and would not be disappointed if these were the only drops available to me. They last about 20-30 minutes and are easy to use. The consistency of these drops is pretty thin. They're only ever so slightly thicker than Biotrue, Ultra, and Refresh. The dropper produces a slight bit of waste if you don't stop squeezing at the right moment but is otherwise very easy to use. Overall, my second favorite drops to use. Biotrue (4 stars): The relief that these drops provide are comparable to Refresh except they don't last as long. I end up having to use these fairly frequently because they don't last very long. I've been using these drops just to get through the bottle. These drops just feel slightly inferior to Systane Hydration in almost every aspect. They go on very nicely and don't stick to my eyelashes or the edges of my eyes as much as Systane, but they don't last as long, provide comparable relief, and the bottle is far more difficult to use. The consistency is the thinnest out of all these drops. This bottle has a special technology that requires a great deal of force to squeeze out a drop. Despite that, the bottle creates a significant amount of waste no matter how you squeeze it, and you have to squeeze it pretty hard. This bottle is my least favorite to use even if the drops are pretty decent. Overall, these are my second to last choice only beating the gels. Systane Ultra PF (5 stars): I think that if I had gotten these in a bottle, they'd be my second favorite to use. They're my go-to for when I'm on the go and need portable drops. They provide a great deal of relief and give about 30 minutes of lubrication. I almost always grab a few of these if I'm going to be out of the house for an extended period of time. The consistency is thin and far less slimy than Hydration. I find that they coat my eye very well and don't stick to my eyelashes and the edges of my eyes. My only issue with these is that they create a significant amount of waste compared to the bottles. I also end up dropping them or losing them when they drop out of my pockets, but they serve a purpose. There's always some product that gets stuck in the twist off cap, so that's a problem too. They're great for transport though, and if I had a bottle, I'd probably prefer it over Hydration. Overall, I really like these drops but I feel bad about the waste. Oasis Tears Plus (3 stars): I feel like these drops are the standard for high quality drops. They provide a fair amount of relief, they last a fair amount of time (roughly 20 minutes), and they're the second most thick drops only less thick than the gel. I don't think I'd get these drops again with these other options. I don't dislike them, but they just don't provide the same amount of relief and longevity as some of the other options. It's also smaller than the Ultra so I get fewer drops out of them. They seem to be smaller so they produce less waste, but not by much. They're very easy to use, but all of these disposable drops produce waste of materials and some product gets stuck in the twist cap, so there's always waste there as well. The Ultra is no different. Overall, I'd probably never use these unless they serve a particular purpose that I'm unaware of.

These drops have dramatically helped my recuperation after Lasik. I had surgery February 2016 and immediately had quite a few issues with dry eyes (still do). I was going through multiple packs of preservative free eye drops each month and I started to feel like I should invest in one of these companies with the amount of money I was pouring into the products. My eye doctor recommended I try this drop to help out with the dry issues. I used it now and then, but I found that the gel was so thick that it blurred my vision for up to 5 minutes afterward, which was highly inconvenient throughout the day as I tried to work and go about my daily business. It also wasn't really helping with the overarching dry eyes issue, though the temporary relief was great, and my eyelashes would stick and clump together. Then my husband pointed out to me that I kept complaining about how dry my eyes felt immediately upon waking up - he said he thought the problem might be that during the day I was lubricating my eyes, but at night I wasn't conscious to do so and so it was exacerbating the problem. He suggested I put it on at night only, before bed and in the middle of the night when I woke up to use the facilities (walnut sized bladder over here) so that it would last and keep my eyes moist while I slept. I thought, "What the heck?" and gave it a try. Friends, this is the magic solution. Put them in at night when you go to sleep, a big healthy drop in each eye and re-apply if you wake up in the middle of the night. You don't have to worry about the blurred vision when you shut your eyes to rest and the gel keeps the eyes lubricated the entire night. Plus the eyelash clumping issue isn't such a problem since when I wash my face in the morning, the gel washes off of my lashes. I went from going through packs and packs of eye drops throughout the day to a pack every 3-4 months. It turned out that the long period of dryness overnight was what was causing the main issue of dryness throughout the day. Having these gel drops in at night has really made a world of difference in terms of post surgery comfort. I tried other drops and they just don't work as well. Highly recommend these if you struggle with dryness at all, post-Lasik or otherwise.

Works almost instantly. Hits its mark on the eye without running all over the face. An excellent product.

This so far has replaced the Systane night gel I used to use. This works much better for my eyes than the Systane night ointment and gel drops made with Carboxymethylcellulose sodium 1%. However, it’s but not as good as the night gel Systane used to sell. I only use this for going to bed. Sometimes I have to put eye drops in my eyes when I wake up. I hope they bring the night gel back. That stuff was gold!!

I use these at night before bed and each time I wake up. It is such a relief to put them in. I have dry eye and so they can burn. The drops feel cool when put in and are a relief. I don't use during the day because they are thicker than other drops, so they stick with you and can make it harder to see, so best for me for bedtime. They will leave a little whitish residue in the morning, but it comes off easily when you wash your face or use wipes.

Best eye drops ever! Literally woke up with new eyes! I almost didn’t recognize myself. Normally my eyes are red and lids are swollen from being dry overnight. I've tried lots of drops and I've tried regular gel drops but nah…..these are a game changer. First time in years they were just completely normal after one use! I’m going to stock up on these for sure!!🎉🎉🎉

These eye drops are nice and thick. The problem I have with other solutions is that they are too thin and dont really moisturize my eyes. And even if they did, they end up drying way too quickly. This one here resolves both of these issues I have - its very hydrating and also extremely durable compared to the thinner counterparts.

These drops work very well and they don't sting my eyes like every other drop that I have tried. However, if they do sting your eyes, you should try washing your face first.

It works quickly to restore moisture when applied to dry eyes.

Bought them for my mum but I've tried them too. I wear contact lenses and my eyes can get very dry. Unfortunately I didn't feel any improvement after using it. My mum instead is very happy and even asked for a new bottle. She is 60 and wears only glasses. Has suffered with dry eyes all her life and says this helps her a lot in comparison with other products she's used.

I am very pleased with the product. Lubricant eye gel is thicker, and soothes the eyes with the thick liquid takes one or two drops to work. In the beginning I used the other drops around 5 times a day, but now only 2 times a week. Thanks!

The eyedrops do a wonderful job, the only gripe I have is that they were bought on the basis that they were "Anytime" drops as these don't seem to be available in shops. When they arrived they were in fact Night Time drops which ARE available in shops and also cheaper

This works very well for MGD / Blepharitis. Swift delivery and reasonable price.