Image courtesy of EyeBuyDirect.com
I recently had eye surgery (a scleral buckle to fix a detached retina <– that video is not of my surgery and is NOT for the faint of heart) and now need glasses since the vision in that eye has changed. It’s been more than a decade since I’ve needed glasses thanks to Lasik and I was dreading doing what I’d always done before – going to a local optometrist and paying a few hundred dollars for a pair of glasses that I’d be terrified of breaking or losing, and out of style in a year. But, wait – I have the Internet now! If I can order toilet paper online, I should be able to get glasses online for less, right?
I searched for the best online stores for prescription glasses and came across several. Looking at EyeBuyDirect, I liked a lot of the frames I saw there. And their pricing was unbelievably low. Like $6 for a pair of glasses including basic single-vision prescription lenses low. I was worried that this was too good to be true, but from what I could tell, it was a legit site with a facility in Austin, Texas, so I took a gamble and ordered two pairs for a grand total of $57.71. I didn’t really need two pairs but I was a little giddy from the idea that I could get two pairs for hundreds less than I was thinking I’d have to pay for just one.
They arrived in the nick of time before I left for a vacation to Hawaii (and I’m incredibly grateful that I was able to see Hawaii’s beauty even better with them). Aside from an issue with my prescription itself (which EyeBuyDirect had nothing to do with), they were fantastic! I ordered the Sydney frames (shown on the model in the picture in this post) as my main pair and the Milo as my back-up. The Sydney is my favorite and I’ll be ordering another pair with my updated prescription. I’ve also since ordered the Robbie frame with my updated prescription, which cost just over $16.
I purchased clear single-vision lenses and they also offer reading multifocal lenses, along with additional lens options like digital screen protection, tinted lenses to turn any pair of frames into sunglasses, and light-adjusting lenses. You can also add on UV protective, anti-scratch, and anti-reflective coatings. The basic lenses I’ve ordered so far from them come with anti-scratch and anti-reflective coatings.
The hardest part of ordering glasses online is knowing which frames will fit and look good on you. EyeBuyDirect and other online eyeglass stores offer a virtual try-on feature. But I cheated a bit and went to a local LensCrafters and tried on several pairs and noted the frame styles and measurements I liked and purchased similar ones at EyeBuyDirect.
I definitely recommend EyeBuyDirect. The links to them in this article are referral links and will get you $10 off your first purchase there (and I’ll get $10 off my next purchase). I earn no other compensation from them and I wrote this on my own initiative. I’ve just been incredibly happy with my glasses from them and since I’d seen in my own search that independent reviews of them are not plentiful online, I wanted to share my experience to help others.
Earlier today, I ordered another pair from EyeBuyDirect (I’m predicting that having such easy access to stylish yet inexpensive glasses is going to be trouble for my wallet), this time with light-adjusting (photochromic) lenses for the summer. I expect those to be fabulous as well and will update this post if they’re not somehow.
If you have any questions about my experiences with EyeBuyDirect, please feel free to comment on this post and I’ll do my best to answer.
Did you buy their in house photochromatic lenses or the name brand Transitions? If the in house brand, how well do they work?
I bought their in-house photochromic lenses. I’ve heard of Transitions lenses but have never owned any myself so I can’t compare the two, unfortunately.
Their in-house lenses are decent. They darken as they should in bright sunlight, but they don’t get as dark as true sunglasses. Also, they need direct sunlight to darken – the UV filtering that the windows in cars do is enough to prevent them from darkening, so they’re useless as sunglasses while driving in bright sunlight. Overall, they work well enough for walking around in the sun, but I still need a true pair of prescription sunglasses for driving.
I hope that helps!
Hi, do you have pictures with the photochromatic pair outside? Also wondering if they clear up/go back to “normal” lens efficiently and fast? Not sure if I should buy this “effect”. I’ve always wanted the transition just ’cause it’s cool to have the double feature and I think they look nice. Is it worth the hype? Looking forward!
Hi! Do you think their basic lenses are durable? I’ve read some reviews saying that they broke very easily and I just want to make sure I’m buying the right lenses
Hi, Angela. I have 2 pairs of regular glasses and 1 pair of sunglasses from EyeBuyDirect, all with the basic lens option and they’ve all been great! I haven’t been too careful with the pair I wear every day and they still haven’t gotten scratched or damaged. My everyday glasses have the cheapest pair of frames of the ones I bought (the $6 Robbie frame) and I’m more worried about the flimsy-feeling frame than the lenses, which is not surprising for just $6. The other frames I have – the $45 Sydney and $32 Samson – are much more sturdy, for what it’s worth.
Hope that helps!