Eye Care

So, I've written my few reviews on Lenscrafters eye exams and posted some of my research on anti-reflective lenses. Now I'm going to try to put some information together on places that sell eyeglasses cheaply. Most of these places will be online, but I'll also review the prices in brick and mortar stores as well.

What got me interesting in wanting to put together these threads is that my insurance only covers new glasses every 2 years. While it seemed like a got a great deal at Lenscrafters last year, when I was considering a new pair this year (to get the anti-reflective coating recommended by the optometrist), I was shocked to see the price of the lenses alone were several hundred dollars.

I will update this thread as I get the information about each company. I am thinking I may start a new thread for each eye store in order to keep the discussions more focused on experiences people have had with the specific eyeglass shops.

Here's my first review of lens costs and comparisons, for Lenscrafters.

In summary:

Plastic $125
Polycarbonate $190
Polycarbonate with scratch resistant coating $220
Polycarbonate with anti-reflective coating $325

These are the prices just for lenses. Expect frames to be around $100 and up. See the above link for more details.

Here's my next review for Costco Optical.

Highlights:
Eye exam: $49
Frames: $40 - $140
Plastic Lenses: $50 (unknown if includes all coatings)
Polycarbonate with all coatings (Anti-reflective, UV, and scratch resistant): $74

Clearly a much better deal than Lenscrafters, but you will have to wait for your glasses.

Here's my review for Walmart Vision Center.

Briefly:

Eye exam: $49
Frames: $18 - $140
Plastic Lenses: $30 (no coating). UV Protection add $10. Anti-reflective coating add $35.
Polycarbonate Lenses with UV, scratch resistant, and anti-reflective coatings: $118.

Here's my review of Zenni Optical.

I've ordered glasses and am now waiting (I expect it'll be a while). They are definitely the cheapest I've found. Here's a brief price breakdown:

Many frames offered starting at $8 (including lenses) up to around $40.
Polycarbonate composite lenses 1.57 index included in price with anti-scratch and UV protection
Antireflective coating - $4.95
Tinting, polychromatic, and multifocal options available.
Shipping: $4.95 no matter how many pairs of glasses are ordered.

Here's my comments on 39dollarglasses.com.

Overall, decent prices relative to regular retailers, but more than most online retailers. You can get lenses and a basic frame for $39. Add anti-reflective coating for $24.95. They do offer many choices of frames and lens upgrades including high-index and tinting.

In brief, people said if the product came properly it was of decent quality. However, it seemed that there was a high rate of mistakes with orders and the customer service is horrible.

Here's my initial review of Eyeglass Lens Direct. It's a different set-up from the other places in that they don't sell frames, just lenses. You mail in your frames and they replace the lenses. The reason I bothered reviewing them is they are the only online store I've seen thus far that sells name brand high quality lenses and lens treatments at discount prices. If you want to get the best anti-reflective coatings at a discount, this is the only option I've found so far. The basic prices aren't going to be close to Zenni, but you can get the highest quality options at a discount. You can also choose middle of the road options at prices that are probably competitive with my other top choice - Costco.

I've added a review for Goggles4u.com which is another deep discount online eyeglass shop.

There are mixed reviews on the company, but they are currently offering special deals for as low as under $10 for eyeglasses with lenses delivered, including:

Basic frames
Middle index 1.56 plastic lenses (will be slightly thinner than the standard 1.50 plastic lenses)
Anti-reflective coating
Anti-scratch coating
UV filter coating
Hard case

Overall, it may be the lowest price for all of that.

I just posted a review for Pearle Vision.

Briefly, eye exam at my local store was $54, not including dilation or optomap.

Frames ranged from $50 up to several hundred.
Lenses are $120 (CR-39 plastic) and $199 (polycarbonate) for single vision. I'm sure they offer higher index at a higher price. Anti-reflective coating adds $80.

Be aware they typically have various promotions going on, such as buy one pair, get one pair free. They also offer lower prices for kids under age 14 ($129 for frames plus polycarbonate lenses).

I read all threads from this forum a few weeks ago since I started placing order at coastal.com. I also clicked your link for Zenni for your commission. I also placed an order with lensway.com (part of coastal.com's another business name). I've been wearing glasses since 1987. I usually bought my glasses at Hours Eyes on 50% off sales, which were cheaper than discount with insurance at Lenscreafters. In the past 5 years, I bought Transitions lenses and the prices were between $350-400 for my single vision -4.0 to -4.75 prescriptions with designer frames. Eye exams at both Hours Eyes and Lenscrafters (next to L's for eye exams) were not honest, the examiners always tricked a little bit of my prescription to force me to get new glasses. I was told that if I did not get new glasses (even for -0.25 prescription changes) my eyes would be hurt. Anyhow, I have to wear glasses all day; I bought glasses almost every year. I have most of old glasses with prescription ranging from -4.0 to -4.75 and all are working well.

I don’t have any health insurance in the past 2 years so I neither had eyes exams nor new glasses. I finally looked for cheaper places for eyes exams and found America's Best for $99 for 3 years of eyes exams. Those exams included “contact lenses” exams! I sometimes wear contact lenses and most contact lenses exams at Hours Eyes and Lanscrafters cost me over $100. I also checked at Walmart Vision Center and I was quoted at $120 including fitting fees. I printed out some free trial coupons from Bush & Lomb’s Provision and Air Optics from Alcon’s websites. It was easy to get appointment online but when I actual arrived there, I had to wait for walk-in patient’s appointment. Yeah, I took appointment a few days ahead but that walk-in person got my appointment time though I arrived 10 minutes earlier than my appointment time. The OD was nice, way better than the receptionists. I told her I would not buy glasses at her store, rather buy online. She agreed and told me to measure my PD when I went outside. The guy at the glasses counter did not measure so I did not get my PD on that day. I had to go there again to get correct PD to place online order and another trip to get my free trial contact lenses.

I googled for cheaper glasses and read reviews for hours while waiting for 50% sales from Hours Eyes. I finally found a place called coastal.com and they had 50% off of Luxury frames (designers) for St. Patrick’s Day sales. I called CS for some help since it was my first online order for glasses. She was very helpful, uploaded my picture (I could not uploaded by myself… with errors from their website). I tried several frames mostly “Made in Italy” but finally chose non-Luxury frame but still designer (Kenneth Cole) for free with coupon. I had to pay only for lenses. I chose $50 1.67 indexes Ultra Thin Air Lenses with $20 coating bundle (AR, UV, and scratch resistant) for $70. Received one week later and the frame (lenses) were too small for my face. I kept it since I could not afford $300+ from Hours Eyes’ 50% sales. I also checked at Walmart for transitions lenses but they would not take my existing designers frame. I did not like the frames they had in store. I was quoted $140 without AR for my single vision -4.50. America's Best also quoted $270 without AR for high indexes lenses but did not provide index number. Coastal.com did not offer Transitions lenses for my prescription; only generic photochromic lenses in grey color only with $119.95 without coatings. I ordered a few more from coastal.com; returned some. Return was easy but took over a month to get refund. By comparing their lenses, I don’t see visible differences between 1.59 Durable Air Lenses and 1.67 Ultra Thin Air. Well, the price difference between them was very obvious. 1.59 Durable Air Lenses are about the same thickness as my Hour Eyes and Lenscrafters glasses. Yes, I bought only thinnest lenses recommended by sales persons from there. Coastal offered free pairs for family members so I ordered some without coatings. Non-AR-coated free 1.50 lenses and $20 1.59 index lenses are not glaring. By comparing my bundle coated pair, non-coated pairs have purplish hue while coated pair has greenish hue. Since I read your “Eyeglass tips from an insider” thread, I skipped AR coating I can’t tell for scratching but I will let them to be careful. So far, we only use micro-fiber cleaning cloth from Dollar Tree (3 pieces of 12”x12” for only one dollar). Very useful one dollar purchase.

I also ordered 2 pairs of glasses from Zenni, received in 10 days. I chose only 1.57 Free Mid-Index Lenses with some tinted and AR coating. Though 0.02 differences between my Coastal and Zenni lenses, the visible thickness is quite obvious. I surely checked your calculator from “What is the difference between a 1.57 and 1.59 lens?” thread.

Coastal.com offered 1.59 Durable Air Lenses for $20, later they increased to $30. I found out lensway.com Wikipedia’s Coastal.com info. They offered most glasses including Luxuries frames from coastal.com for only $50, significantly cheaper. They also offered free 1.59 Durable Air Lenses with only $13 for coating bundle. But talking to CS was a pain in the a$$... she treated me like it was my fault the frame did not arrive … I haven’t received mine yet … about a week delayed from expected delivery date… so I cannot compare qualities … yet. I am expecting the same quality as Coastal since it used the same warehouse and the same lab. Lensway does not offer sunglasses, tinted lenses, or photochromic lenses. Only clear lenses in 3 indexes.

Comparing Coastal’s glasses to Zenni, I think I like Coastal better. Zenni is good but the glasses definitely looked cheap. Well, don’t get me wrong for complaining, I just mentioned I paid only ~ $34 for 2 pairs (one acetate and one metal frame) with both AR coating and both tinted. Since I am planning to wear Zenni glasses at home, I am happy for my purchase. I don’t feel the weight on my nose, it was very light (I chose acetate over plastic frame and also checked weight description). The metal pair is OK, not as comfortable as acetate though it has springs. Both C and Z glasses do not require fitting, all comfortable out of the boxes. Both came with blue hard cases with cloth. Coastal provided small screw driver with small lenses cleaner.

In conclusion, here’s the list of winners in my book:
Cheapest place for glasses: Zenni
Cheapest place for eyes exam (including contact lenses): America’s Best
Moderate place for glasses including designer frames: Coastal
Moderate place for some designer glasses with moderate lenses: Lensway

Thanks Alex for the detailed post. I'm sure other people will find it useful.

While note previously mentioned in this thread, there are a few other threads on this websites about Coastal, but under their name of Coastal Contacts. There is a nice review of coastal in another thread. They also had a positive experience with them. There was also a thread here about a free glasses offer (just pay shipping) which Coastal was offering, and I believe they offer it from time to time.

The information you provided about America's Best and Lensway is very helpful. When I have more time, I'll have to look into those companies some more.

Thank you again for taking the time to share your experiences!

I just added a post on America's Best. They have a good deal if you need an eye exam and very basic glasses. For $69 you get an eye exam plus two pairs of single vision glasses with plastic lenses.

Added 10/23/12: I've added information to the America's Best thread including the polycarbonate lenses add $135 for two pairs of glasses and anti-reflective coating adds $60 for two pairs of glasses. There are definitely cheaper options for polycarbonate and anti-reflective lenses shopping online.

I just added a post on Sam's Club for Eyeglasses as they appear to be a good choice if you don't want to order online, especially their high index lens options.

I am appalled by everyone wanting to buy "cheap" eyeglasses. Hey, you get what you pay for! I am a licensed optician with 40 of experience, and I have witnessed the change from brick&mortar sales, to online. If you want cheap glasses, go to Zenni's. You will get cheap eyeglasses. If you want the worst eyeglasses, go to America's Best. If you want both less expensive (notice I didn't say cheap), try Walmart, Costco, or BJ's. They will offer a better product at a reduced price. If you want AR coatings, don't do the "house bundle" ( especially from VisionWorks, ECCA, Davis Vision, etc.). They are old technology ARs, and don't hold up to every day usage. Spend a few bucks more and get a premium AR with a 2 year warranty. If you are charged more for the warranty, you shouldn't have been. The lens companies that produce Crizal, Zeiss, etc. AR coats offer a 2 year warranty with no cost to the lab, and it should be no cost to you. If you have insurance, please don't say "I only want what the insurance covers." The insurance will cover the cheapest and worst options. If you want polycarbonate lenses you should not be charged extra for UV protection or scratch coat. These lenses have those properties inherent in the material...you cannot get them without that protection. If you want designer frames, the cheapest way is to go online and search. If the size or style is not right when you get them...Oh well. They might take them back. If the price is TOO good,beware of knock-offs made of cheaper materials. It's not a great idea to send your new designer frame purchased online to a Davis, Spectera, or Optum lab. Strange things seem to happen at those places, and they won't replace them.Then... bring them to a private practitioner for the lens order.You will most likely be told that they will not be responsible for any damage to the frame during processing. They will NOT intentionally damage your frame. They want you to come back for subsequent orders. Check your insurance coverage carefully. If you have VSP or EyeMed, Optum,or Davis - be aware that they are essentially discount plans. That is not a bad thing. You can choose what you want. They provide the very basics at no cost, or a reasonable co-pay.Any extras are provided at an additional co-pay that is essentially the lab's cost for product, so you pay something close to wholesale cost.
Now....my big question - When you wear them everyday, on your FACE, why do you want "cheap" eyeglasses? Wouldn't you want the BEST? And the best doesn't mean the most expensive!

moodna wrote:Now....my big question - When you wear them everyday, on your FACE, why do you want "cheap" eyeglasses? Wouldn't you want the BEST? And the best doesn't mean the most expensive!

I am currently working a minimum-wage job, and have insurance that refuses to pay for almost anything from almost anyone. I would like the best I can afford, yes. But odds are really good that I can afford absolutely nothing whatsoever at most brick-and-mortar retailers. Lists like this give me the option to both see and live, when my other option would be to have to choose between sight and being able to pay my bills. Some day, I might have the luxury to do both of those things without having to find the cheapest eyeglasses on the marketplace, and at that point I will consider quality first and price second. But today is not that day.

Hope that cleared things up a bit.

zyanas wrote:

moodna wrote:Now....my big question - When you wear them everyday, on your FACE, why do you want "cheap" eyeglasses? Wouldn't you want the BEST? And the best doesn't mean the most expensive!

I am currently working a minimum-wage job, and have insurance that refuses to pay for almost anything from almost anyone. I would like the best I can afford, yes. But odds are really good that I can afford absolutely nothing whatsoever at most brick-and-mortar retailers. Lists like this give me the option to both see and live, when my other option would be to have to choose between sight and being able to pay my bills. Some day, I might have the luxury to do both of those things without having to find the cheapest eyeglasses on the marketplace, and at that point I will consider quality first and price second. But today is not that day.

Hope that cleared things up a bit.

I hope you also put into consideration, that if you happen to purchase from an online retailer because of the seemingly low cost, you are essentially not paying them to do any of the duties a brick & mortar office/optical store's optician is qualified to do. How would you know, if the frames are made to your PD correctly? Or if the OC height is made correctly? How do you know if your Axis is not rotated to not meet ANSI standard? ETC.

If there are any adjustments that need to be made on a frame, can this online retailer do this for you? Or maybe you have a friendly neighborhood optician that can adjust your frames/nosepads for you for free without charging, which is not always the case.

I would really recommend going into a independent optical retailer, because many of them are actually alot cheaper than those big name brand retailers owned by Luxottica or SVS vision.

Also vision insurance is as low as $12.00-$19.00 a month, and like moodna mentioned, this allows you to purchase frames and lenses at nearly the the "wholesale" cost, which makes it very inexpensive and affordable!

Quote: Now....my big question - When you wear them everyday, on your FACE, why do you want "cheap" eyeglasses? Wouldn't you want the BEST? And the best doesn't mean the most expensive! End Quote

I have purchased several pairs of glasses from Zenni. That includes one pair of progressives, to see how I liked them since trifocals was what I was wearing, and three pairs of driving sun glasses. I had cataract surgery and do not really need progressives or bifocals for driving. I have been well pleased with each pair.
I am retired military and have VA disability so I get glasses free from those sources. I also got a pair from Visionworks in my city when they had a special for 1% off for your age. That made them pretty cheap if you are 80 YO. I am just as pleased with the Zenni glasses as any of those.

I have had the progressives checked by two opticians, and one optometrist and all pronounced them perfect for my eyes. In fact one optician said he got some of his own glasses from Zenni. He did some adjusting of my progressives in his shop.
So I have to reject the claims that Zenni glasses are "cheap" and not up to standards of private businesses. As it turns out I can get any glasses I desire regardless of cost, but I believe in wise buying. I realize that there are those with very complicated prescriptions. I don't know about those folks, but the average wearer of glasses is well served by Zenni.

I prefer trifocals to progressives, although I can wear them without much trouble.

To each his own.
Jerry

moodna wrote:Now....my big question - When you wear them everyday, on your FACE, why do you want "cheap" eyeglasses? Wouldn't you want the BEST? And the best doesn't mean the most expensive!

No i don't care for the best. WHEN i live on a pittance of a fixed income that doesn't ever go up, I myself cannot afford to go to a optomitrist much less pay hundreds of dollars for glasses that i am going to have to change the next year. That would be pure stupidity on my part to waste money like that.

It doesn't cost hundreds of dollars to produce eyeglasses. Personally i don't give a rats fanny about fashion. I'm too old to care. As long as i can see, thats all i am concerned with. PLUS i break at least 2 or 3 pair every year anyway or my pit bull manages to get a hold of a pair and then theres nothing left of them.

Sorry but thats the facts and pure truth.

lucy1 wrote:

I hope you also put into consideration, that if you happen to purchase from an online retailer because of the seemingly low cost, you are essentially not paying them to do any of the duties a brick & mortar office/optical store's optician is qualified to do. How would you know, if the frames are made to your PD correctly? Or if the OC height is made correctly? How do you know if your Axis is not rotated to not meet ANSI standard? ETC.

I'm not really concerned about it.

If there are any adjustments that need to be made on a frame, can this online retailer do this for you? Or maybe you have a friendly neighborhood optician that can adjust your frames/nosepads for you for free without charging, which is not always the case.

How hard do you think it is to adjust them yourself, i can stick the stems in hot water to soften the plastic myself and adjust. Same thing with fixing or adjusting the hinges. Not rocket science.

I would really recommend going into a independent optical retailer, because many of them are actually alot cheaper than those big name brand retailers owned by Luxottica or SVS vision.

Also vision insurance is as low as $12.00-$19.00 a month, and like moodna mentioned, this allows you to purchase frames and lenses at nearly the the "wholesale" cost, which makes it very inexpensive and affordable!

Cheaper? Really? LOL uh hate to tell ya but when your getting charged 150 dollars for the exam, and your on min wage or fixed income you don't have squat left to buy 400-500 dollar glasses.
And if your on fixed income like I am, choosing between whether or not you buy food or medicine, you don't have 12-19 dollars a month to buy insurance thats only going to pay maybe 50% of your otpical bills

It would be interesting to do a study of folks with expensive $400-$500 lenses and cheap lenses, such as Zenni, and learn if the expensive lenses really do give much sharper images. Frankly I doubt that they do except in some special cases. I also doubt such a study would ever be fairly done.
I normally get my eyeglasses from the VA and DA. I am sure the equivalent lenses in most shops would be among their least expensive lenses. However, I see well and have zero complaints. Until age got in the way my vision corrected to 20/15. Now it is 20/20.

I have bought several pairs of glasses from Zenni, and see just as well as my VA or DA glasses. Personally I think much of the criticism of cheap glasses is baloney. I recognize that it cost money to operate a brick and morter business. But what most of us want is not designer frames and the latest technology, but glasses that we can see with.

I had one optician tell me he gets some of his own glasses from Zenni.

Folks who are not making money from us will always claim less expensive are inferior products, but I do not believe that can be proven.
I almost hate to say this, but I can afford any eyeglasses made, but it is not wise stewardship to waste your money.

As an aside I was an avid hunter and wanted the best I could afford in binoculars. In about 1962 Leica brought out a line of binocs that cost over $400.00. My Bushnell cost $60. A couple of friends,one of whom had the Leicas, sat on a mountain and compared binocs. All three of us agreed that my Bushnells were as sharp as the Leicas, but the magazines praised the Leicas to the heavens as being the greatest. ???
Jerry

One thing I wonder about when discussing quality of lenses is the ability of the human eye to take advantage of the higher quality.
I have no doubt that in a lab lenses can be made that will show superiority when tested on the bench. However, will the human eye of most or any of us be able to really know a difference or a significant difference?
Jerry