Best reasonable price eye glass store

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atlanta_dad
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Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by atlanta_dad »

I usually order my eye glasses from Costco or Walmart. But this time I needed to order for my wife and we did not find a variety of frames in either of those stores. What other stores can we try whose charges are reasonable and there is more variety?

Thanks
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dunkmachine
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by dunkmachine »

Do you want a physical location to try them on? Do you have a Warby Parker in your area? Otherwise you can order through their website and do the home try-on for free. I'm not a fan of Warby Parker, very cheaply made and the lenses always seem to smear and get smudgy quickly, but they do have a bit of trendy variety.

If you just want a simple, classic pair of glasses, made in America at a reasonable price, look at Shuron. They also have a home try-on but it's not free but they have great customer service.

You really need to know your measurements to purchase online and possible help from an optician to get the fit right.
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jeffyscott
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by jeffyscott »

Maybe Target or Meijer (if they exist in your area).

Are you eligible for AARP? At one time, we signed up just to get 35% off at a regional chain, Shopko.
https://www.aarpmyvisioncare.com/discount-program/
acegolfer
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by acegolfer »

I currently use glasses from both end of the spectrum: high-end retail (>$400, progressive) and online (<$20, single) and happy with both. If single lens, consider online. If progressive lens, avoid online.
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riverant
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by riverant »

Zenni optical for sure. It’s online only but I bought high quality frames and top quality high index lenses for $50 a pair. LensCrafters would charge $550 for the same pair.
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Rob5TCP
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by Rob5TCP »

dunkmachine wrote: Sat Jun 19, 2021 7:25 am Do you want a physical location to try them on? Do you have a Warby Parker in your area? Otherwise you can order through their website and do the home try-on for free. I'm not a fan of Warby Parker, very cheaply made and the lenses always seem to smear and get smudgy quickly, but they do have a bit of trendy variety.

If you just want a simple, classic pair of glasses, made in America at a reasonable price, look at Shuron. They also have a home try-on but it's not free but they have great customer service.

You really need to know your measurements to purchase online and possible help from an optician to get the fit right.
+1 Warby Parker

I went looking at Warby Parker for titanium frames and will purchase one within the next couple of weeks. They are more expensive then their regular line (almost $200), but less than a third of the costs from my local optician.
Outer Marker
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by Outer Marker »

+1,000 on Warby Parker. They are one of the few competitive alternatives to the Swiss monopoly that controls more than 90% of the market and rakes consumers over the coals. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDdq2rIqAlM In addition to offering a great product at a fair price, they have a "buy a pair, give a pair" program that donates to those in need around the globe.

Their $95 base product is fine quality and every bit as good as the pairs I used to spend $600 on at the mall. Rip off. Monopoly.

In addition to being able to order and try on physical frames at home, the "virtual" try on feature you can do on your phone is amazing. My SO "tried on" and ordered her last pair that way - and she is very picky about fashion.
oldlongbeard
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by oldlongbeard »

I used Zenni.... have a fairly strong prescription, and progressive bifocals. The lens grind was horrible. Unusable. My kids and wife have had better experience with them. I think it's a crap shoot.
My family experience.
mpsz
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by mpsz »

I bought a few cheap pairs from Zenni at the beginning of the pandemic, since my main pair broke and my prescription was a few days from expiring. I really like them and have been wearing one of those pairs as my daily set of glasses since then.
stan1
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by stan1 »

Anyone have experience with progressives from Warby Parker? I realize they will end up around $350-400. I have a storefront less than a mile away (walking distance) and I did have a pair of glasses from them before I had to switch to progressives that I liked. Also got a lot of compliments about the style of the frames which was a pleasant surprise.
khunron
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by khunron »

Avoid Zenni if buying progressive lenses.
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davibi02
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by davibi02 »

I have bought 10+ pairs from Zenni since 2014 or so. One had a lens issue but was easily replaced through support at no cost. They're cheap enough that I have a variety of frames to mix up my style.
jlawrence01
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by jlawrence01 »

I bought my bifocals through Visionworks for $350 with an AARP discount. I am not going to use Zenni or any of the online sources as I need my glasses to fit my face and the prescription and measurements to be done accurately. Also, I want service after the sale when I need it.
marc in merrimack
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by marc in merrimack »

khunron wrote: Sat Jun 19, 2021 4:58 pm Avoid Zenni if buying progressive lenses.
No, Zenni can be entirely satisfactory for progressive lenses. I’ve purchased numerous pairs over the years without issues. Just need to have your monocular pupil distance measurements which can be obtained along with your prescription during your eye exam.
cbeck
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by cbeck »

khunron wrote: Sat Jun 19, 2021 4:58 pm Avoid Zenni if buying progressive lenses.
On the contrary I got the best pairs of progressive lenses I have ever had from Zenni. They have three kinds of progressive lenses which vary the sizes of the parts of the lens devoted to near, mid-range, and far. The mid-range is perfect for computer use or sitting distance from other people while the longer range is better for walking around.

I never pay more than about $130 a pair at Zenni and I would never go any where else.
sailaway
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by sailaway »

I just came to say that my brain keeps inverting the order of words in the title, so someone seems to be looking for a glass eye store.

I get Zeiss lenses. I have no idea how much they cost (insurance covers the lenses), but the optician only carries designer frames, so definitely not reasonable prices.
acegolfer
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by acegolfer »

marc in merrimack wrote: Sat Jun 19, 2021 6:23 pm
khunron wrote: Sat Jun 19, 2021 4:58 pm Avoid Zenni if buying progressive lenses.
No, Zenni can be entirely satisfactory for progressive lenses. I’ve purchased numerous pairs over the years without issues. Just need to have your monocular pupil distance measurements which can be obtained along with your prescription during your eye exam.
Of course, it can be satisfactory. But not always.

Against my optician's advice, I have bought 2 pairs of progressive from Zenni (2 years apart, different frame, different RX). Both were crap. OTOH, every progressive I bought from retail was perfect. I now consider buying progressive online is a gamble. Sometimes it works but not always. Happy it worked out for you. But that doesn't mean it works for everyone.

OTOH, single lens from online has always been satisfactory.
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jeffyscott
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by jeffyscott »

acegolfer wrote: Sun Jun 20, 2021 7:23 am
marc in merrimack wrote: Sat Jun 19, 2021 6:23 pm
khunron wrote: Sat Jun 19, 2021 4:58 pm Avoid Zenni if buying progressive lenses.
No, Zenni can be entirely satisfactory for progressive lenses. I’ve purchased numerous pairs over the years without issues. Just need to have your monocular pupil distance measurements which can be obtained along with your prescription during your eye exam.
Of course, it can be satisfactory. But not always.

Against my optician's advice, I have bought 2 pairs of progressive from Zenni (2 years apart, different frame, different RX). Both were crap. OTOH, every progressive I bought from retail was perfect. I now consider buying progressive online is a gamble. Sometimes it works but not always. Happy it worked out for you. But that doesn't mean it works for everyone.

OTOH, single lens from online has always been satisfactory.
If all you "need" is the monocular pupil distance measurements, then they must be using some arbitrary fitting height for progressives. If so, results would vary depending on whether or not that height happens to work for you. (Fitting Height measures from the center of the pupil to the bottom of the lens for each eye.)
marc in merrimack
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by marc in merrimack »

acegolfer wrote: Sun Jun 20, 2021 7:23 am
marc in merrimack wrote: Sat Jun 19, 2021 6:23 pm
khunron wrote: Sat Jun 19, 2021 4:58 pm Avoid Zenni if buying progressive lenses.
No, Zenni can be entirely satisfactory for progressive lenses. I’ve purchased numerous pairs over the years without issues. Just need to have your monocular pupil distance measurements which can be obtained along with your prescription during your eye exam.
Of course, it can be satisfactory. But not always.

Against my optician's advice, I have bought 2 pairs of progressive from Zenni (2 years apart, different frame, different RX). Both were crap. OTOH, every progressive I bought from retail was perfect. I now consider buying progressive online is a gamble. Sometimes it works but not always. Happy it worked out for you. But that doesn't mean it works for everyone.

OTOH, single lens from online has always been satisfactory.
I didn’t use the word “always.” However, I’d venture to say that if you provide an accurate prescription including monocular pupil distance, the chances are good that the results will be satisfactory.
marc in merrimack
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by marc in merrimack »

jeffyscott wrote: Sun Jun 20, 2021 10:04 am
acegolfer wrote: Sun Jun 20, 2021 7:23 am
marc in merrimack wrote: Sat Jun 19, 2021 6:23 pm
khunron wrote: Sat Jun 19, 2021 4:58 pm Avoid Zenni if buying progressive lenses.
No, Zenni can be entirely satisfactory for progressive lenses. I’ve purchased numerous pairs over the years without issues. Just need to have your monocular pupil distance measurements which can be obtained along with your prescription during your eye exam.
Of course, it can be satisfactory. But not always.

Against my optician's advice, I have bought 2 pairs of progressive from Zenni (2 years apart, different frame, different RX). Both were crap. OTOH, every progressive I bought from retail was perfect. I now consider buying progressive online is a gamble. Sometimes it works but not always. Happy it worked out for you. But that doesn't mean it works for everyone.

OTOH, single lens from online has always been satisfactory.
If all you "need" is the monocular pupil distance measurements, then they must be using some arbitrary fitting height for progressives. If so, results would vary depending on whether or not that height happens to work for you. (Fitting Height measures from the center of the pupil to the bottom of the lens for each eye.)
I’ll repeat what I wrote in another thread:

Despite what you may have heard, segment height (“fitting height”) is not a critical measurement when fitting glasses. “Seg height” is a ‘nice to have’ for progressive lenses, but requires an in-store fitting with a chosen frame in order to optimize. Hence, this is why Zenni (or any online retailer) doesn’t ask for it. At most, you might be prompted during an online order to specify where you like your glasses to sit on your nose - higher up or lower down. Moreover, you can often adjust the nose pads in the frame yourself to make the frame sit higher or lower.

Online eyewear retailers are able to estimate a satisfactory seg height for progressive lens manufacturing and fill thousands of orders a day without issue. Otherwise, it wouldn’t make sense for them to offer the product.
BuddyJet
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by BuddyJet »

stan1 wrote: Sat Jun 19, 2021 9:18 am Anyone have experience with progressives from Warby Parker? I realize they will end up around $350-400. I have a storefront less than a mile away (walking distance) and I did have a pair of glasses from them before I had to switch to progressives that I liked. Also got a lot of compliments about the style of the frames which was a pleasant surprise.
My wife had a good and bad experience with Warby progressives. The optician we had was a true professional. She took very careful measurements and did a great job.

However, their progressives did not work well with her eyes. She said that each lens manufacturer uses a different progressive grind spec so their "formula" can be patented. The Warby process just didn't work with her eyes so we asked for a refund under their satisfaction guarantee. They process the refund quickly and without complaint. She ended up going to Sams for progressives with good success. A bit cheaper as well.

BTW, Sams uses Zeiss lenses in their progressives.
People say nothing is impossible. I do nothing all day.
marc in merrimack
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by marc in merrimack »

BuddyJet wrote: Sun Jun 20, 2021 10:49 am
stan1 wrote: Sat Jun 19, 2021 9:18 am Anyone have experience with progressives from Warby Parker? I realize they will end up around $350-400. I have a storefront less than a mile away (walking distance) and I did have a pair of glasses from them before I had to switch to progressives that I liked. Also got a lot of compliments about the style of the frames which was a pleasant surprise.
My wife had a good and bad experience with Warby progressives. The optician we had was a true professional. She took very careful measurements and did a great job.

However, their progressives did not work well with her eyes. She said that each lens manufacturer uses a different progressive grind spec so their "formula" can be patented. The Warby process just didn't work with her eyes so we asked for a refund under their satisfaction guarantee. They process the refund quickly and without complaint. She ended up going to Sams for progressives with good success. A bit cheaper as well.

BTW, Sams uses Zeiss lenses in their progressives.
Major eyeglass lens manufacturers each offer numerous progressive lens “formulations.” Zeiss, for example, has a half dozen.
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jeffyscott
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by jeffyscott »

marc in merrimack wrote: Sun Jun 20, 2021 10:35 am
jeffyscott wrote: Sun Jun 20, 2021 10:04 am
acegolfer wrote: Sun Jun 20, 2021 7:23 am
marc in merrimack wrote: Sat Jun 19, 2021 6:23 pm
khunron wrote: Sat Jun 19, 2021 4:58 pm Avoid Zenni if buying progressive lenses.
No, Zenni can be entirely satisfactory for progressive lenses. I’ve purchased numerous pairs over the years without issues. Just need to have your monocular pupil distance measurements which can be obtained along with your prescription during your eye exam.
Of course, it can be satisfactory. But not always.

Against my optician's advice, I have bought 2 pairs of progressive from Zenni (2 years apart, different frame, different RX). Both were crap. OTOH, every progressive I bought from retail was perfect. I now consider buying progressive online is a gamble. Sometimes it works but not always. Happy it worked out for you. But that doesn't mean it works for everyone.

OTOH, single lens from online has always been satisfactory.
If all you "need" is the monocular pupil distance measurements, then they must be using some arbitrary fitting height for progressives. If so, results would vary depending on whether or not that height happens to work for you. (Fitting Height measures from the center of the pupil to the bottom of the lens for each eye.)
I’ll repeat what I wrote in another thread:

Despite what you may have heard, segment height (“fitting height”) is not a critical measurement when fitting glasses. “Seg height” is a ‘nice to have’ for progressive lenses, but requires an in-store fitting with a chosen frame in order to optimize. Hence, this is why Zenni (or any online retailer) doesn’t ask for it. At most, you might be prompted during an online order to specify where you like your glasses to sit on your nose - higher up or lower down. Moreover, you can often adjust the nose pads in the frame yourself to make the frame sit higher or lower.

Online eyewear retailers are able to estimate a satisfactory seg height for progressive lens manufacturing and fill thousands of orders a day without issue. Otherwise, it wouldn’t make sense for them to offer the product.
Some people are less particular about this than others. I have had a couple mm change make a big difference to me.

Since I only like plastic frames, without nose pads, there's no adjusting of those possible. It's also much more difficult to find a good fitting, comfortable frame when there's no adjustable nose pads.

Are these places like Zenni really much cheaper than Costco with equal quality progressive lenses? And do they have the same return and/or remake policies as Costco?
marc in merrimack
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by marc in merrimack »

jeffyscott wrote: Sun Jun 20, 2021 11:02 am
marc in merrimack wrote: Sun Jun 20, 2021 10:35 am
jeffyscott wrote: Sun Jun 20, 2021 10:04 am
acegolfer wrote: Sun Jun 20, 2021 7:23 am
marc in merrimack wrote: Sat Jun 19, 2021 6:23 pm

No, Zenni can be entirely satisfactory for progressive lenses. I’ve purchased numerous pairs over the years without issues. Just need to have your monocular pupil distance measurements which can be obtained along with your prescription during your eye exam.
Of course, it can be satisfactory. But not always.

Against my optician's advice, I have bought 2 pairs of progressive from Zenni (2 years apart, different frame, different RX). Both were crap. OTOH, every progressive I bought from retail was perfect. I now consider buying progressive online is a gamble. Sometimes it works but not always. Happy it worked out for you. But that doesn't mean it works for everyone.

OTOH, single lens from online has always been satisfactory.
If all you "need" is the monocular pupil distance measurements, then they must be using some arbitrary fitting height for progressives. If so, results would vary depending on whether or not that height happens to work for you. (Fitting Height measures from the center of the pupil to the bottom of the lens for each eye.)
I’ll repeat what I wrote in another thread:

Despite what you may have heard, segment height (“fitting height”) is not a critical measurement when fitting glasses. “Seg height” is a ‘nice to have’ for progressive lenses, but requires an in-store fitting with a chosen frame in order to optimize. Hence, this is why Zenni (or any online retailer) doesn’t ask for it. At most, you might be prompted during an online order to specify where you like your glasses to sit on your nose - higher up or lower down. Moreover, you can often adjust the nose pads in the frame yourself to make the frame sit higher or lower.

Online eyewear retailers are able to estimate a satisfactory seg height for progressive lens manufacturing and fill thousands of orders a day without issue. Otherwise, it wouldn’t make sense for them to offer the product.
Some people are less particular about this than others. I have had a couple mm change make a big difference to me.

Since I only like plastic frames, without nose pads, there's no adjusting of those possible. It's also much more difficult to find a good fitting, comfortable frame when there's no adjustable nose pads.

Are these places like Zenni really much cheaper than Costco with equal quality progressive lenses? And do they have the same return and/or remake policies as Costco?
I don’t know Costco’s prices, but, yes, I expect you’d find Zenni to be cheaper - and likely much cheaper - for comparable lenses.

Zenni offers a 30-day, 100% store credit or 50% refund if you’re not satisfied. Their glasses are so inexpensive that this can hardly be a big deal.

And, as for frames, best thing to do is upload a photo and review the numerous frames on your face online to get a ballpark size. Then choose several frame candidates and order them without lenses. After evaluation, return the frames for credit and order your selected frame now with lenses.

And if you find that the ‘seg height’ isn’t quite right, I expect that Zenni would remake the glasses for you without issue.
fulliautomatix
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by fulliautomatix »

Eyebuydirect.com

Bought EIGHT pairs of regular eyeglasses as well as prescription sunglasses for my family in the past two months. All are great and cost me less than $300 TOTAL for all eight.

Warby Parker is my second choice.

Will never buy any branded glasses from the Luxottica monopoly. What a ripoff all these years!
sschoe2
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by sschoe2 »

I buy from Zenni as well and am satisfied though I have no need for progressives so can't comment there.
wstrdg
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Re: Best reasonable price eye glass store

Post by wstrdg »

+1 Zenni -- I've ordered at least half a dozen pairs from them over the past few years. I get many compliments on my glasses, too

Attractive frames, good quality. They also offer blue-light blocker lenses! And your order includes a much nicer case than our Costco, which always seemed to be out of any cases that fit my frames
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