Although astigmatism may be asymptomatic, higher degrees of astigmatism may cause symptoms such as blurred vision, double vision, squinting, eye strain, fatigue, or headaches. Some research has pointed to the link between astigmatism and higher prevalence of migraine headaches.

Astigmatism may be corrected with eyeglasses, contact lenses, or refractive surgery. Glasses are the simplest and safest, although contact lenses can provide a wider field of vision. Refractive surgery can eliminate the need to wear corrective lenses altogether by permanently changing the shape of the eye but, like all elective surgery, comes with both greater risk and expense than the non-invasive options. Various considerations involving eye health, refractive status, and lifestyle determine whether one option may be better than another. In those with keratoconus, certain contact lenses often enable patients to achieve better visual acuity than eyeglasses. Once only available in a rigid, gas-permeable form, toric lenses are now also available as soft lenses.

In older people, astigmatism can also be corrected during cataract surgery. This can either be done by inserting a toric intraocular lens or by performing special incisions (limbal relaxing incisions). Toric intraocular lenses probably provide a better outcome with respect to astigmatism in theses cases than limbal relaxing incisions.