As 2025 comes to a close, our new research has found that in the past year, many people had been for dental, eye and blood pressure checks, whereas only a tiny proportion of people had their hearing checked.
Of those we surveyed, 43% said they had blood pressure checks this year and 42% had dental and eye checks, compared to only 6% who had their hearing checked.
Despite most people (almost 90%) saying that their hearing is important to them, only 7% said they would prioritise getting their hearing checked.
Over half of those who said they would not be likely to book a hearing check said this is because they didn’t think there was a problem with their hearing. This is despite the fact that more than half of the UK population aged 55 or more having hearing loss, which rises to almost 80% of people over the age of 70.
However, the good news is that looking after your hearing health doesn’t have to be hard and the first step on your hearing journey can start with our free online hearing check.
Increased risk of isolation and depression
Hearing plays a critical role in our overall wellbeing, yet having a hearing check appears to be under-prioritised by the UK’s general public when it comes to looking after your health, which can risk leading to living with undiagnosed hearing problems for many years.
Without the correct support or checks, undiagnosed hearing loss can lead to a variety of challenges like increased risk of depression.
Hearing loss often develops gradually and can be slow to spot, so people may not realise they are losing their hearing without a hearing check. If left unmanaged, people can risk slowly becoming more isolated from their friends and family and experiencing loneliness.
Franki Oliver, Audiology Manager at RNID, said:
“Christmas time is all about connecting with the people we care about, but undiagnosed hearing loss can make this time of year more difficult, leaving people feeling isolated and lonely. Everyone should value and protect their hearing, and this can all start with a simple hearing test.
“We found that nearly a third of people would be motivated to check their hearing if the check was free, and almost one in five said they would get their hearing checked if they noticed themselves missing out on conversations with loved ones.
“We know that over half of the UK population aged 55+ have hearing loss, rising to almost 80% of people over the age of 80, and many of them will be living undiagnosed and not getting the support they need. It’s time to take our hearing health seriously and ensure we are checking our hearing as we do for other health concerns.”
One person who took the RNID hearing check and discovered they had undiagnosed hearing loss was Marie, 52, from Stoke-on-Trent. Following the free check, she experienced her first Christmas with hearing aids last year. Marie told us:
“Christmas was definitely a difficult time for me before I was diagnosed with hearing loss because I was the host at Christmas, so everybody was at my house. There could be a dozen people, and the family would sit and play games.
“When there’s so many voices talking all at once and everyone is being jolly, I couldn’t really involve myself in the same way. I’d sit back and my family would just think oh, Mum’s tired because she’s cooked dinner. But it wasn’t that, I just found those moments confusing as I couldn’t keep up with the conversations. It was easier to say I was tired and tell my family to crack on.
“My first Christmas with hearing aids was so special, I was able to play more games and feel more a part of Christmas than a spectator, which has been amazing. I would recommend RNID’s hearing check to anyone, it’s so important that we become more aware of what we’re not hearing, especially at Christmas.”
Free online hearing check
Our free online hearing check takes just three minutes and has already been taken by over 650,000 people to date. Results are delivered via email as soon as the test is completed, along with further information, advice and support.