Does anyone buy eyeglasses online?
Where do you buy your glasses?

Now I know my prescription is not the simplest but at Clarkson Eyecare my glasses come to $483 AFTER my Spectera eyeglass benefit.

At Sam's a slightly lesser frame and all the discounts and the Spectera eyeglass benefit.... I can get a decent pair of glasses for $283. Not bad, but not the exact frame I wanted.

Does anyone have a better option?

I use Warby Parker. Great customer service.

https://www.warbyparker.com

yup. just switched to Zenni a few months ago when the coating on my lenscrafters peeled off and I got a "That's not covered, and we don't do yours 'while you wait' That'll be $240 plzkthx." er.. no.

~$50 and the same 2 week wait and I got 2! pair from zenni, one with half power prescription for arms length computer monitors.. screw bifocals and they're lighter and the lens coating seems better to me. it certainly didn't flake off.

I've used 39dollarglasses.com in the past, with mixed results. Quality is hit and miss, and they take a while to ship.

This thread is timely, because I am looking at ordering some more soon. I briefly considered GlassesUSA, but I am open to suggestions.

Yet another Zenni user, here.

Although, my last pair came from Costco. I was very pleased with them.

H&K-Guy

Anyone try frames direct?
They have the frame I tried on and kind of like.
I tried Zenni, they didn't have it.

https://www.framesdirect.com/ssl/login/login.aspx

Zenni. The last RX glasses I got from the optician cost several hundred bucks. A similar flexible mystery metal frame with progressive high index oleophobic hydrophobic anti glare coated lenses from Zenni were $78. I've been using Zenni for probably 10 years and been pleased with everything I've gotten.

Frames Direct are excellent. I get my Rx safety glasses for work through them and have been pleased.

Zenni many times

Anyone have success with Zenni progressives?

quote:

Originally posted by chellim1:
At Sam's a slightly lesser frame ... a decent pair of glasses for $283. Not bad, but not the exact frame I wanted.

Does anyone have a better option?

I use Costco, probably similar to Sam's.

If Costco does not have the frame I want, I can go shopping online for the frame and then get the lenses from Costco. There is an eighteen dollar uncharge at Costco optical if you use your own frame.

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As far as Zenni, I tried them. Once. I returned the glasses and received half of the cost as a refund. I paid full shipping both ways.

The Zenni lenses had a very yellow tint, not at all clear like Costco lenses. I had specified "no tint" but Zenni said something about all their lenses having some sort of anti-glare tint. Nope. I want my lenses clear (except for sunglasses, of course). No more Zenni for me. Well, maybe sunglasses, but Costco covers that need pretty well for me.

Side note: I heard about a study, I think it was done by Consumer Reports. They purchased glasses from many of the major national sources: LensCrafters, Sears Optical, Vision Works, Costco, etc. All of the glasses had some sort of error in filling the prescription. All of them. Well, there was one exception: Costco got it 100% correct.

Some of ya'll get some expensive glasses. Or maybe my son just has cheap taste? I don't have glasses so I haven't ever paid attention to the costs of different brands. Just let my son pick whatever he wants from the local eye doc we go to.

Just took my son a couple of weeks ago for his yearly visit. My cost after insurance for the doc visit, the special pics they take that aren't covered by insurance, new frames and lenses was about $150. And I've been fine with that. Especially since it is typically a 5 day turnaround on getting the new ones in. But if he ever gets up to some of the prices you guys mentioned, I would definitely be looking online

I go to Sears. They seem to always have a special going on.

The last pair I got were sunglasses. Rayban Wayfarers with trifocal lenses for $160.

I have been going to them for years.

Bob

quote:

Originally posted by mikeyspizza:
Anyone have success with Zenni progressives?

Yes I've had 2 pair from them. Key is to have a perfect or near perfect PD (pupillary distance). Most offices will give you a single number which is the net value for both eyes. Precise is monocular PD and can be slightly different for each eye. Zenni can help with this if you doc office doesn't provide it (which they are supposed to).

Main issue is that Zenni will place the multifocal vertical height in the center of the lens which can be a problem if the frame fits your face/nose a bit differently. Mostly it works for me, maybe just a slight adjustment of the nose pads.

I can get the whole package to include, frame-anti reflective coating-transitions-multifocal for less than half of what I'd expect to pay.

Never tried to price Costco. May look into them this year.

quote:

Some of ya'll get some expensive glasses. Or maybe my son just has cheap taste? I don't have glasses so I haven't ever paid attention to the costs of different brands.

My cost after insurance for the doc visit, the special pics they take that aren't covered by insurance, new frames and lenses was about $150.

It's not so much the "brand" of the frame as it is the cost of the lenses. My wife's glasses are like your son's and not expensive. When I had a simple single-vision correction it was much cheaper. With keratoconis and large differences between the left and right eye and the need for progressive lenses, the cost goes way up.

I did try on a designer frame at the local eye doc's office (frame = $229 insurance covers $129) which I liked slightly better than the no-name frame at Sams ($139). The difference between Clarkson Eyecare (local eye doc's office) and Sams is about $200, half of which is the frame, so the other half is the lenses. Before the insurance benefit they would charge about $850 for that pair of glasses, but after my insurance benefit my out of pocket would be $483 + tax.... so over $500. I think Clarkson Eyecare is too expensive.

Why buy new frames every time?

I bought frames many years ago, and still use them. My lenses run about $360, bifocals, transition, anti glare. I don't skimp on glasses.

The optometrist I use here is very good, very helpful, with frame adjustment, refurbishing, etc.

quote:

Why buy new frames every time?

They are about 4 years old and pretty worn out.

If you have simple requirements like just single vision, the onlines work OK. However anything more complex and they have troubles. My wife had to send hers back 3 times and they still didn't get things right.
Are the glasses you get at independent shops overpriced? Yeah, probably a bit, there's a lot of rent/insurance/utilities/expenses to pay for running a local shop. But I'm still not sold on the online business either. And that's from someone who in the last day spent over a grand on a single pair for both my wife and I.

quote:

Originally posted by JALLEN:
Why buy new frames every time?

I have a pair of Zeiss frames that are 30+ years old, just keep getting new lenses for them as needed. Zeiss is no longer in the frame business, unfortunately. I did have two identical pair, but the wolfhound picked up one and took them to the yard where he proceeded to chew them up.
 

I've used glassesusa.com twice. The first order was perfect. The second order the frames were bad (ridiculously large fit), they tried sending me a second pair (no cost) and they had the same problem. They sent me a third pair in a different style (no cost) that worked well.

Easy to order, decent quality for the price, and fantastic customer service.