
Warby Parker retails both online (they’ll mail you up to five frames to try at home for free) and in brick-and-mortar locations in 18 states, the District of Columbia, and Ontario, Canada. Each of these stores sells only its own brand of glasses. But in other areas, survey ratings varied depending on the company. Our readers reported good follow-up service from most chains, too. Since it has many locations to help you if there’s a problem with your glasses, buying eyeglasses at an eyeglass chain can be convenient. But frames and lenses tended to cost more than elsewhere: Our readers shelled out a median of around $400, two to three times what you might pay online or at a discount store. They gave these sellers high marks for lens and frame fitting, employee knowledge, and follow-up service. Nearly 40 percent of survey respondents bought their glasses from one of these sources. What we learned is that where you get your glasses should depend on whether your priority is convenience, service, selection, or a rock-bottom price.ĭoctors’ offices and independent eyeglass shops. We interviewed eyeglass experts and eye doctors to get their best advice, too. That’s why we surveyed more than 91,000 readers and also shopped for glasses ourselves, online and in walk-in stores, to discover the pros and cons of different vendors. The choices-and the trade-offs-can be overwhelming.


Online retailers offer ways to save, as do big-box stores, but you may get less hand-holding and a smaller selection of frames. That’s especially true if you’re buying eyeglasses the old-fashioned way, at a doctor’s office or an eyewear chain-or if you have a complicated prescription. They correct your vision and, faster than you can say Jackie O or Harry Potter, help you tell the world how you’d like to be viewed, too.Įven a simple pair, however, can easily set you back hundreds of dollars. For the approximately 64 percent of Americans who wear them, prescription eyeglasses are part medical device and part fashion accessory.
