Are ‘Home Brand’ hearing aids worth it?

Time to Read: 3 minutes

If you want to save a little bit of money at the supermarket, buying ‘home brand’ is not a bad option. 

They’re pretty much the same thing as the name brands. Like for like - cornflakes are cornflakes; tinned tomatoes are tinned tomatoes…

And we’re also pretty sure that many of these home brand items are made on the same production line as the big brands.

But when it comes to hearing aids, a big company’s ‘home brand’ hearing aids may not an exact like for like as your home brand cornflakes.

On our website, we list all the major brands of hearing aids available in Australia. If you go to a hearing clinic and aren’t offered one of the brands listed, the one you are shown is likely to be a ‘home brand’.

Like those home brand cornflakes, those hearing aids could very well be made in the same factory as the name brands.

But why don’t they have the same names, and why are they are being sold so cheap?

It’s what’s on the inside that counts.

‘Home brand’ hearing aids are likely to be superseded models or current models but with many of the popular features switched off. These cheaper hearing aids may not come with the same level of after sales support. 

After a couple of years parts and service may be difficult to come by.

In the end, you may end up paying the same as one of the big name brands because they may need to be replaced more frequently.

What you can do to make sure you’re getting the best hearing aid for your hearing loss

• Check to see if the brand you’re offered is one of the big manufacturers
• If not, ask who manufactures the hearing aids
• Ask what the equivalent brand name and model is
• Ask for a specification sheet for your ‘home brand’ hearing aids
• Research or ask another hearing aid provider to get the specification sheet from the ‘equivalent’ big brand model
• Compare prices and compare features before making a decision.