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April 21, 2016
16 comments
Your Nerdy Best Friend reviews a site that offers very low-cost prescription glasses. Can glasses that cheap actually be wonderful?
Yep. Wow.
UPDATE: Here’s a great article about factors in buying glasses online.
Tags
ergonomics, utility
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Thanks, I’m checking this out, Beth. I’ve also ordered from glasses. com because they have an awesome iPad app & great prices/selection, too. One thing I learned is that you often can’t find parts for the online frames if they need to be repaired. Also, have you compared prices at Costco? Consumer Reports consistently gives them high marks and we recently found out why. My husband bought one of the most expensive frames with all the goodies on the lenses and even got the ones that darken in the sunshine. All for under $200!! The frames for women are really nice, too.
I reviewed glasses.com a while ago for its cool app. Thanks for the reminder. I’m not a Costco member, but I’ve heard great things as well.
FYI – Zenni is unable to fill dual prism prescriptions.
I ordered a pair and they were a little off – just not quite right so I returned them for credit. Went back to eye doctor, got corrected (therapeutic) prescription that had dual prism correction (vertical and horizontal). Went back to order new pair only to find out they are unable to fill dual prism prescription. So I now have 4 frames that I hopefully will be able to use here locally for spare pair, sunglasses, computer glasses, readers.
Co-worker has used them for years for single vision prescriptions with great results.
Be sure to read return policy and ask any questions before placing order.
Great points. I updated the post with an article about things to think about. I’m very happy with my $103 glasses that have regular progressive lenses. I’m sure other complications make it tougher to get the right prescription on this kind of site.
Beth, what a great eyeglass review app! I’m just about to make an appt. with my optimist, so you couldn’t have timed it better. Thanks again for sharing. I’m hooked on your tips :))
🙂 back atcha!
Thank you!!! I will try them!
Thanks, Beth. I buy my glasses from a site called EyeBuyDirect.com that also has affordable prescription glasses and sunglasses which come with a little repair kit in case you need to fix your glasses.
Thanks for the bonus resource. It’s so helpful to find low-cost options for essentials like these.
Hi Beth,
I am now with my second pair of Zenni’s glasses.
All good, and I am older than you so I wear progressive lenses. Perfect.
I wear progressive lenses, but I *say* it’s because of my excessive screentime. 🙂
Hi Beth.
Thank you! I go to see my eye doc next week and have been dreading the total cost I figured I’d be incurring. I never get away with less than $600 for a pair of glasses. I checked out Zenni and I have found seven (7!) pairs I love. And they all do progressive bifocals.
I can’t wait to be able to add some color to my “eyewear accessories”. I like to have choices and it looks like now I will.
Make sure you send us a pic of your new look! 🙂
Hi Beth! Thanks for that review. I am a progressives/transitions wearer. I refuse to get all those coatings because they always get scratched and chipped (I am very tough on glasses, I guess). So my price comparisons won’t be exactly parallel to yours. I want to share that I recently ordered a pair of high Rx strength glasses for my daughter (she really is not old enough, er, I mean doesn’t spend excessive computer time, for progressives). So her new pair cost $88 from coastal.com. We also buy pretty cool glasses from JC Penney Optical for around $300 a pair when they offer their sales such as “pay your age.” (Believe it or not, it works for great discounts!) Why I like JC Penney: adjustment needed while traveling? find a store in a different city! That works for Costco too. Executive membership is only $165 a year and covers my entire family of 4 adults, plus I get cash back of ~$70 per year. That and a pair of glasses (they offer the packages with all the bells and whistles) would still be a fraction of the cost of the expensive glasses! Just a thought.
OMG, Beth! I just went to zenni.com and looked at their frame prices. Good grief! Where was this review when I was looking for glasses a couple of months ago?!!!!! Thank you again! Will give them a try. I need something with gold frames to match some recently purchased jewelry. The silver on my only working pair just clashes! 😉
For those of you ordering glasses (from anywhere) and using a computer/tablet/phones/gaming, you may want to consider getting Bluetech Lenses or some other brand of computer glasses. My Therapeutic Optometrist recommended them since I spend lots of time being exposed to HEV blue light. In addition, they may help you sleep better as scientists are finding that the HEV Blue Light is interrupting our circadian rhythms when we use electronic devices at night/in bed before we go to sleep.
My eyesight has degraded quite a bit in the last 10 years when I first started to wear glasses. In addition to normal aging changes, increased electronic device usage, etc., I’ve also found out that medications can affect your vision. So if you recently started a new medication and your vision has all of sudden changed, you may want to talk to your prescribing doctor before going to your optometrist.
See links below for more info.
https://www.reviewofoptometry.com/ce/the-lowdown-on-blue-light-good-vs-bad-and-its-connection-to-amd-109744
http://www.allaboutvision.com/cvs/blue-light.htm
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/04/07/can-orange-glasses-help-you-sleep-better/?_r=0
http://blutechlenses.com/cms/wp-content/media/doctor-information/Frequently-Asked-Questions.pdf