Frames are super cheap if you can find a style you like.

took @ 2 weeks at holiday time.
$79 for invisible bifocals frame and lens.

The same frames with a designer name attached would've cost me $200 easy.

Been buying glasses from them for 5 years now. Not a bad pair yet.

My husband has ordered glasses from them Zenni twice and has been happy.

One thing to double check is the size of the frame. One pair he ordered was too small even though they looked larger on the site relative to others.

for $20. My regular glasses A few months ago I got a pair for $60 with anti-glare and anti-scratch and they are the nicest frames I've had.

Why didn't I do this years ago?

Just a word of warning:
I have bifocals for regular use (and a separate pair for when I'm at the computer for close-range work).
The prescription sunglasses could only be made with the long distance lens for some reason. I find it extremely difficult to use them in the car especially if I have to read a map to get where I'm going. The inability to see the map without changing glasses is infuriating. The inability to read the newspaper (or a book or DU) while wearing the prescription sunglasses is a deal-breaker for me. YMMV

I have a pair of prescription, progressive lens sunglasses that I bought from Zenni about four years ago.

Best sunglasses I have ever had.
And I realized I need them because my eyes changed and, like you, I couldn't read the speedometer with my single vision glasses.

For me and my kids (not little ones ... teenager and adult university student)

The irony of using Zenni (for me, anyway) is that I get optical insurance (VSP) through work. If you buy out of VSP's network, they will reimburse up to some limit but after a deductible. Zenni glasses are so cheap, that almost the entire cost is in the deductible, so the reimbursement was something like $8 for my pair. but VSP would happily shell out hundreds of dollars if I wanted to buy in-network. So buying from Zenni means that I really don't get any benefit from my VSP coverage.

It's a small price to pay (got it?) for cheap glasses. To be fair, the overall frame quality is lower than you would find at an opticians, but given the price, you can buy 3-8x the glasses for the same price. So buy an extra pair from the really cheap frame section in case your regular pair breaks to avoid having to pay the LensCrafters panic penalty.

I think my favorite part about Zenni is that the prices are so cheap, I decided to go with a style completely different than I've worn for many years. If I was buying $200-400 glasses, I wouldn't take the risk of hating them. But for $30? Sure, they can always become my backup glasses. And lo and behold, I have a new look!

They also have good (intelligent) customer service. My Rx is for bifocals, but I wanted to try having two pairs (distance only for driving, reading only for computer work), but I wasn't sure how to enter in my Rx for this. As part of their answer, they pointed out that if I was going to get reading-only glasses from my bifocal Rx, I needed to reduce my PD (the distance between your pupils) by 3mm to compensate for the fact that I will be looking at things much closer. I would never have known this, but they volunteered the info right up front when I chatted with them.

I've had great luck with < www.glasses.com> You can have them send you 5 pairs at a time to try on at home - no charge. The prices are amazingly low. Every time I have a major lens change, I have to buy for my computer glasses, my regular glasses and sun glasses. Well over a thousand whenever this happens.

They have a version of Ray Ban's Clubmasters!!!!! $35 and the only difference is the wire on top.



Next set of glasses I'll have my optometrist send my prescription to these guys, awesome link, Thank you!

called them in the USAF.

On Edit: Actually we called them BC Glasses.

We called them BCD's. Birth Control Devices.

No danger of pregnancy with those on!

The vast majority of frames are made by the same company, based in Italy. You name the brand - Ray ban to Chanel to Prada, this one company makes them. Its a huge monopoly. The company is Luxottica...they punish retailers who want to carry non Luxottica frames, by refusing to supply them with the brand name ones...and they can name their price.

-Laelth

I recall--and may have saved--what their advice was about how to avoid that company. I will check my files.

Ratz--checked files and they're zipped due to low back up hard drive space. Can't access until I hook up my new external HD.

I think I recall one of the more important things they said, though, and that is that a couple chains don't do business with them. I think they were J.C. Penney's vision centers, Costco, and also Wal-Mart.

So if you go to any of those chains, you should notice a significant reduction in the price of frames.

Also, another small bit of advice, I have checked out Rite-Aid's frames and they are quite reasonably priced. In addition, they will let you have four frames for try-on for free for one week! I tried them and definitely intend to order a pair. I think the frame I checked was something like $39! From the sample pack mailed to me at home, it appeared to be a nice quality of frame.


Cher

p.s. when I get my external hard drive hooked up, I will come back and post any additional information that might be helpful. That might be awhile, though--very busy right now.

" I think they were J.C. Penney's vision centers, Costco, and also Wal-Mart."


Often times the optical center at Wal Mart is just leasing space, and has absolutely no affiliation with Wal Mart whatsoever...i.e. they could be a Luxottica outlet.

The optical center in Sams Club is different, and is operated by Wal Mart, probably outside of Luxottica control.

How does one sign up for a racket like this?

Thanks for the info.

anyone saw them for sale in the US....Luxottica also owns many of the retail outlets under many different names

I buy new frames when I need them for my old lenses.
Most of my frames are less than 5 years old but most of my Vuarnet lenses go back 30 years.

They are the FoxNews of CBS.

The airlines and gas stations as prime examples

I guess all the ads I see regarding cheap frames/lenses/exams are all BS?

No way I am spending that kund of money on something I will lose.

But I am pushing 60 & wonder if I will need expensive ones soon. Sigh. The indignities of aging. I still have 20/15 vision distance vision but close up is a big old blur. Ack.

If it weren't for those damn small labels on everything I'd be fine without them.

Fortunately I can still see well from 3 feet to infinity.

I need the 175x. That's not too bad. I figure I've got about 15 years left before I run out of sufficient magnification at the store, LOL.

They weren't great. But they work. I usually run up the bill in the lens material. Non-glare, scratch resistant, etc.

For 560$ (350 out of pocket after insurance) at Fred Meyer Optical, I got a great pair of heavy duty motorcycle prescription sunglasses, polarized, safety lens, plus a regular cheap pair of flexible frame glasses, with the scratch resistance/anti-glare and photochromatic lenses.

The vast bulk of the cost was in the lenses. The frames were downright cheap.

cheap and good. Not endless variety, but enough.

I am totally myopic too, and those high-index progressive lenses can run $450 or more for me WITHOUT the frames.

I don't wear jewelry or other expensive things, but since I wear glasses every day, I like nice frames (though I'll keep them a long time). What I've done for my last two pairs of glasses I've gotten is buy the expensive frames I like and then take them to Costco. My high-index, progressive lenses cost something like $120 there (it may have gone up a small bit last time, can't remember), plus a $20 fee or so for bringing outside frames in. The quality is very good, and I've had no problems. It's a way to save hundreds of dollars and still have nice glasses with top-of-the-line lenses.

My glasses are the first thing I put on in the morning & the last thing I take off at night.

I will check Costco out. I have four 'old' pair of glasses - the frames are fine, but the lenses are out of date. Well, some would say the frames are out of date, too, but I love my purple cat eyes! They will make fab sunglasses!

I was so thrilled when they came out with the high index lenses. No more Coke bottle lenses.

She has thin lightweight, scratch resistant, antireflective lenses in nice frames for about $80 total.
Try Zenni or 39DollarGlasses.com
We found it easy, convenient and inexpensive.

I only require a small amount of correction for astigmatism, so I buy driving glasses, sunglasses and readers with that correction for $6-20 a pair. I usually buy about a half dozen at a time (you know how sunglasses and readers go missing).

Plain wire with aviator style lenses.

my ears for 60 days has cost me several hundred dollars.

Hubby tried to talk me into getting the cheap ones our insurance will pay for, but I said
I'm not going to go through all the effort of ordering and picking them up just to trash
them in two months.

I've got to look for something cheaper though. Glasses are ridiculously expensive around here.

My wife always bought the $200+ frames and every year they were lost or broken within 6 months.

Much cheaper!!

I paid 50 bucks at Costco.

Very affordable and the staff in the optical department was wonderful.

I got my Rx at Target and some really cool frames (2 pairs). Apparently, they get the latest frames like the Lenscrafters of the world, where the earlier models go to Costco and Sam's (and other big box stores). When you get an Rx, be sure and ask for the PD (pupil distance) number. They don't like to give it out since they know that you're intending to order online. But they really don't give you a hassle about it - at least Target didn't.

Another 2 good ones I've used are Coastal.com and Goggles4U. There's lots of discount codes out there on top of the normal sales. Check out www.slickdeals.net for good codes. Also, I think Coastal gives you your first pair free.

and the comments are really good regarding quality.

So sick of this kind of shit. This world is being controlled by a bunch of worthless, disease-causing parasites.

You're right.

Even when they run sales, it still ends up being so expensive. It's ridiculous.

but man, they do make you pay!

frames and lenses, for under $200. I'm sorry to say, stay out of local shops. I paid over $500 for a pair at my beloved local guy and six months later bought the same pair for $230 at Costco.

because I wanted metal frames that came with magnet attachable sunglasses. That was seven years ago and they still look brand new and have held at least 2 changes in prescriptions. I keep losing and/or breaking the attachable sunglasses but can always get more at Costco. I highly recommend Costco for glasses.

Just like anything to do with the medical field. If a third party is paying the bill or most of it the provider jacks up the price knowing that no one will complain.

would you care what the price is? And if you do care, what can you do about it?

Thanks!

I have 3 pair of glasses from Eyebuydirect, but their frame selection is limited.

Have been browsing WP for a year or so, because their frames are very good-looking.

I totally understand scrimping on readers, but I wear my glasses every moment I'm awake, so I'd like them to be well-made and stylish. I'll cut corners somewhere else, but not on eyeglasses. Buying online lets you have it all - good looking frames, good lenses, and all for a reasonable price - <$150

The only downside to WP is that they don't do bifocal/progressive lenses online, their prices have gone up from $95 to $145 (still a steal compared to brick-and-mortar) and they won't do my "computer" Rx - which is my distance Rx, diminished by a certain ratio. So I guess my next pair of glasses will be from Zenni....

industry involved. Every designer needs to be in everything.

I've used eyebuydirect.com and had a good experience. I think the last pair of glasses I got was between $50-60 and it was for everything - frames, lenses, coating. Prior to that, my retail glasses were always close to $300 so it was a big savings for me. I'm getting ready to order some more. I don't have insurance so I don't know if you can use that or not, but I don't see why you couldn't.

Thanks!

Options for the lenses include:

non-glare
tinted
thin lenses (not the coke bottle type)
scratch resistant
bi-focals - to avoid having two pair of glasses - one for reading and one for distance
lenses that change from light to dark depending upon light conditions
UV protection coating

There are probably a couple of more options that I forgot about.

Anyway - by the time you say yes to some of these - that $99.00 pair of glasses winds up costing you $450.00.

Many of the eye-doctors only stock the designer lenses - I'm thinking it's because of the mark-up that they get - so low cost frames just aren't available from them.

I love non-glare, high index & scratch resistant. I'm gonna look into the UV coating.

My previous pair was $10 but I moved to bifocals and the doctor said it would be better to get a more sturdy pair since the lenses cost so much more. I've only broken one pair in my life (40 years of glasses) but went with the $40 pair anyway.

I did pay $200 for my son's a few months ago (actually he paid some and my part was his birthday present). He goes to a different place than me but his place also had $10 frames. Unfortunately he didn't like how those ones looked. That's why frames are so expensive - because people will pay for better looks. So they make the $10 pairs look plain then charge as much as they can for better looking pairs.

Most glasses frames are made by one company and they put different names on them. It's a fookin' racket, you see.

See: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/sticker-shock-why-are-glasses-so-expensive-07-10-2012/

the glasses I wear everyday were around 15 bucks after the extra coating, clipon shade and whatever else I ordered. Amazingly, I often get complemented on them.

It gets expensive if you want high index photochromatic in titanium frames, but still not nearly what your local guy wants.

(It's true, btw, that arguments against cheap Chinese stuff fade away when real money is at stake and Wal-Mart isn't involved)

for around 110AED which is just a bit over $25... that included the exam.

That for ORIGINAL Diors. If I wanted to go CHEAP CHEAP CHEAP, I could have cut things in half.

I strongly, strongly resent the fact I have to pay thought the teeth for a freaking prescription back here in the states for the same prescription I have had for 25yrs.

Do I need to say... health care in America sucks AND WASTES MONEY from top to bottom.

Didn't you run for local office there once?

I missed your move! How did that happen?

i.e. I own a small business (am now my own boss) but broke!

Are you glad you left?

I'm gonna cancel my order from yesterday. My coverage is once a year, but you have to wait 12 months between purchases, so if I cancel, I can buy something next week.

Thanks!

Why do you eyeglass customers take this abuse?

but usually two for the price of one with single lenses : bifocal lenses extra.

I noticed some Silhouettes, like Patrick Dempsey's, in the window of an opticians in Spain and looked them when I got back to the UK.



The ones with flexible titanium arms are $575 here with single lenses. I managed to find two for price of one copies for $240. the pair.

that somehow enables an active lifestyle.

Glasses help you to see like a wheelchair helps you to walk. And about as stylish too.

Plenty of online places like Zenni Optical to buy glasses, much cheaper than B&M stores. And they look just as good.

http://www.zennioptical.com/

Eyeliner helps, too.

I have a very frugal friend who says "It's only worth pay good money for your hair and one good handbag, because they are the two things that are with you every day"

I would amend that to add "and glasses" for those of us who need them to function, not just to read or to drive.

Now that you can buy nice glasses for $20 (including shipping at eyebuydirect!), why NOT wear them as a fashion accessory? Why not make sure that they fit your image, and you don't just look like a Poindexter with hospital tape wrapped around the frames? If I'm going for a job interview or meeting new clients, they don't know if I spent $20 or $500, and a fashionable pair of glasses communicates that you're sharp, up-to-date, and probably know how to use technology. For job interviews, I go nuts and wear my high-end $65 glasses!!!

Warby Parker gives away a pair off glasses for every pair they sell - also nice if you can afford WP ($145 - which now that I shop on line seems high to me)

they were very expensive. I looked around for almost a year before buying them.

Been ordering our glasses from them for about 4 years. However, my latest order placed on December 3rd, has been lost by Fed Ex. Shipped from China to Anchorage, where Fed Ex lost it after it went through Customs. It's somewhere between Anchorage and LA, where it will be shipped to me. Oh well, my driving glasses only cost $34 and will last for 2 years until I have another eye exam.

They will happily pay hundreds of dollars each year for exam, frames, & lenses. But they won't pay for a permanent solution so they don't have to spend the money on glasses every year. I think that is a good indication that it is a racket. That and the insurance provider, manufacturer, brand, and the doctor's practice are all own by the same company.

Others have problems later too. My brother had this procedure some years ago. Now he is developing cataracts as he ages and the doctor informed him that, because of the effects of the laser surgery, he may not be able to have the cataracts removed.

I had a procedure called an RK done in the 80's. It was kind of the precursor to Lasik. After wearing coke bottles from Jr high through adulthood, I am extraordinarily grateful for the roughly 15 years I got of perfect 20/20 vision without an appliance stuck on my face.

Now, the scaring combined with the aging, I'm not a good candidate for Lasik or even contacts. Even with the best available progressive trifocals, I will never again be able to see things in perfect focus.

ETA: It wouldn't surprise me to find out that the glasses monopoly has also worked to suppress the development of any advanced surgical techniques that might eliminate the need for glasses.

Truth on your last paragraph.

I remember the old RK surgery back in the 80's, & people complained about increased light sensitivity. I already have that & don't need to make it worse. Not sure if Lasik has the same issue.

I'll stick with my four eyes.

I paid $2500 for Lasik seven years ago - I had astigmatism and my vision would have categorized me as legally blind if it hadn't been correctable; I was paying $400+ for glasses then, and not with designer frames. I figure I'm pretty much even at this point, considering how the price of glasses has soared, now I buy a cheap pair of readers when I need to read small print.

And I can tell the difference between my shampoo and conditioner bottles in the shower without holding them an inch from my eyes, woohoo

was washing my hair with conditioner and couldn't figure out at first why the shampoo wasn't rinsing out
well; thought my hair was terribly greasy for some reason.

Even when I bought a new eyeglasses frame, I was so shocked when Oakley's high quality brand is much cheaper than many of unknown and skinner frames. I wore Oakley frame for past year and half, my longest-lasting one in past 10 years. Many $300-400 skinny frames couldn't last more than a year.

I did once thought about the pricing of frames; "It's all bullshit."

I have issues so the cheap disposables won't work for me.

and you can look at their frames online. They aren't in all states but here's the link to their stores:

http://www.americasbest.com/store-list

My husband used them the last time and is happy with his glasses.

but I like shopping there as well.

My family lived in the Northern Italian town where the frames were made. Several years ago the Chinese bought the factories. For the first year they observed the Italian workers and how they made the frames. Then they literally emptied the factories of all of the equipment. Now the factories are closed and hundreds of workers are unemployed.

There is, I hope, an optician who takes care of people with lower incomes in your city. There was one in Oklahoma City several years ago, on Linwood if I remember correctly. Nice people.

It was all cash, but the prices were much lower, and good work. I had those for several years, until I finally broke down and went to Costco which was one of the better deals where we live now.

And with insurance, my out-of-pocket expenses for my prescription and lenses were $550 and $200, respectively. At least I have a care credit account and could spread the payments out over six months. I didn't know about the online option until it was too late.

Sorry this post wasn't a few months earlier!

and a case and cleaning kit.

I don't have bifocals..…just for my myopia…I mostly wear for driving.


Tikki

From a dollar store. I kind of collect them now in different powers from the weakest +1.00 up to +3.5 which are essentially magnifying glasses you can wear.

actually ended up ruining my vision by using the wrong lens strength.

There are eyeglass warehouses. Discontinued lines. 50 bucks for a single vision lens. Additional cost for scratch resistance and glare resistance. (I usually spring for one or the other)

Just gotta shop around. Of course my lack of steady employment make that more of an imperative.

Best. Deal. Ever.

Minzer's Optical in Brooklyn NY - your glasses ready in 15 minutes (no joke).

The prices sound great, but when I take an RX into my retail optical store, they measure the distance between my eyes, for length of side pieces, etc., and then when the glasses arrive, adjust the sidepieces so the glasses don't slide forward. I then occasionally need to go in to get the glasses adjusted again because they ride too far down on my nose. Since I often fall asleep reading, lying on my side, I accept the responsibility for bending the frames out of shape!

Also, will Costco adjust the frames when needed?

Hope someone has an answer.

Sizing is the relatively easy part - you can measure your current glasses. The other necessary sizing information comes from the prescription itself.

Adjustment requires some more work. I've had luck using a heat gun to soften and then bend the over-the-ear portion. But if you use a heat gun, you need to be careful you don't get it so hot the plastic melts. A hair dryer would be safer on that front, but I don't know if it gets hot enough.

The rest of the 'adjustments' are often just bending the metal....tricky part being to not bend it too much.

knowing that your policy is paying for them. my frames also cost upwards of $150, and they aren't any different or better than the frames on my pair of Arnett sunglasses, that I paid $140 for with a polarized lens.

great quality and great prices...

I share your pain. Got new specs this month for a total of $496.00.
Frames are horribly overpriced and my myopia requires thin lenses. It was nearly $100 more than similar glasses were 18 months ago.

You see it all started when I was born on Friday 13th. I need titanium frames because steel or plated metal breaks my face out, so those are really expensive. These frames I have now have their third set of lenses in them. The titanium is light and tough, so I guess I got my money's worth out of them. I dread to see what my new ones will cost. My eye exam will probably top $150.000. I usually save a little money, because I get a discount when I get the frames to fit a narrow minded person.

$500 and up! yikes!

voila half off at least

several thumbs up on this thread. i'll check them out next time i need glasses.

Frame and lens, I love Warby Parker! And the donate a pair when you buy!

If you've got an easy Rx, Zenni may work for you, but it doesn't for me. I just spent $150 for a mail order frame and an additional $550 for lenses. Insurance picked up another $200 for the lenses, so a little under a grand when you include the doctors visit.

High index (1.7), heavy plus, astigmatism, prism and it all adds up.

capitalism run amok

There are cheap frames everywhere. Try online.

Yeehaw--profits to be made!

Good one.