Glasses and Contacts on the CHEAP!

[KelliLee702]

Do you have any recommendations where to purchase glasses (frames & single vision lenses) on the CHEAP? . . . broken glasses beyond repair!

Also, looking at getting contacts for my 15 DS

ALL suggestions are WELCOME!

THANK YOU ALL so very much for the suggestions.
You ROCK! Looks like we will be hitting the WEB tonight!

 

[budbeerlady]

I have used $39glasses.com several times and like my pairs of glasses. Usually there is a code floating around to help ease the cost with shipping.

 

[QuickRewardsBecky]

I've heard some great reviews on a website called 39DollarGlasses.com. I see on their website they have a coupon code out that's good through tomorrow for $15 off that, making them just $24! You'll have to have your prescription if you don't have it already, but they don't need to see it -- you just enter information from the prescription as you place your order.

They tack on shipping unless your order's $99 or more but still, I can't imagine you could get glasses for much cheaper!

 

[mommyjam]

lens.com is the cheapest I have found for contacts. My 12 year old dd just got them, in fact she is still on the trial pairs. We have to go for her final check and order her contacts tomorrow. Our doctor price matches so all I have to do is show them the link and they will match the lens.com price. Hers are going to be around $160 for an entire year. She has the kind you wear for 2 weeks and than throw away.

 

[QuickRewardsBecky]

For contacts, I've heard that CoastalContacts.com is one of the cheapest places. Just glancing at the Acuvue 2's, if you buy 8 boxes at once, they're $14.49 a box (vs. $15.49 a box at Lens.com). RetailMeNot has a coupon code for Coastal, too: $20 off and free shipping for new customers on $100+ orders with code RETAILMESEPT. So if you go ahead and buy a year's supply at once, you'd save a bunch!

 

[PlutoGirl1117]

I've used Zenni Optical. I actually found them thru here.

 

[BubMunkeyBles]

Contacts depend on the brand. I used Contact Lens King and got my monthly disposables for under $15/box. So about $60 for the year. I wear Frequency 55, they're the only contacts that don't make my eyes hurt.

 

[mbf]

Do you happen to have a HSA/flexible spending account through your job?
I use mine for contacts and glasses and love it for that.

Even so, I do the following: Walmart Vision Centers tend to be the best place for the initial exam/glasses. My oldest DD got cute frames and lenses for under $100 there this year.

For the contacts you can get the exam and a free trial pair for your insurance co-pay (some medical insurances cover eye exams for kids under 18). Then (providing they prescribe the Acuvue disposables) I order a year's worth of contacts (8 boxes) through Drugstore.com (there are really good codes out there if you look hard) using Ebates as a portal for the cashback (Shopathome or another site may be a better deal). You get Drugstore.com dollars for this, plus the Ebates rebate, plus you will qualify for a $60 new wearer rebate from Acuvue which after all is said and done makes your total spent on a year of contacts around $100 and that is pretty darn cheap!!

 

[Darcy03231]

In our area ForEyes offers 2 pair of glasses for $99 (as do Sears and Walmart). We went with ForEyes because DD needed a new prescription and they were the least expensive ($69 vs $89).

 

[3boymthr]

Well for cheap glasses you can't beat free

Coastal Contacts is giving away a free pair of glasses tomorrow use code FREEGLASSES916

You have to choose from coupon eligible glasses and you do have to pay for shipping but as long as you only choose minimal or no upgrades (scratch coat/UV) and stick with the basic lenses you can get a pair of glasses for under $30. I got some nice ones for DH and DS the last time they had this offer.

 

[PiperPizzaz]

zinni optical and I always get compliments on my glasses.

 

[Pigeon]

I've gotten several pairs of glasses and prescription sunglasses from Zenni for myself and my dd, and they've all been fine.

 

[IDoDis]

Well for cheap glasses you can't beat free

Coastal Contacts is giving away a free pair of glasses tomorrow use code FREEGLASSES916

You have to choose from coupon eligible glasses and you do have to pay for shipping but as long as you only choose minimal or no upgrades (scratch coat/UV) and stick with the basic lenses you can get a pair of glasses for under $30. I got some nice ones for DH and DS the last time they had this offer.

I took advantage of the same promotion a few weeks ago when I got a free pair of glasses for myself (Nike). Then my mom ordered a free pair for DD. It was only $9.99 to bundle the scratch resistant coating, the UV coating, and the anti-reflective coating which is really a bargain. So all I had to pay was $9.99 for all three plus $11.59 for shipping. Both pairs arrived exactly a week after they were ordered.

Zenni Optical products come from China so you don't get the name-brand frames like you will with coasalcontacts -- you get knock-offs AND you have to wait for them to be shipped from China. Some people complain that it takes several weeks to get their merchandise.

The free glasses from coastalcontacts are the $39 frames with no special lenses. The order form tries to automatically add in a thinner lens at an extra cost, but it's not needed if you have a low-level prescription. You just had to uncheck that box when ordering.

 

[Pigeon]

Zenni Optical products come from China so you don't get the name-brand frames like you will with coasalcontacts -- you get knock-offs AND you have to wait for them to be shipped from China. Some people complain that it takes several weeks to get their merchandise.

I've actually done both. With the inflated shipping added in, the "free" pair from Coastal turned out to be just about the same price as a normal pair from Zenni.

The frames for all of them are going to be manufactured in China. The Coastal pair I got had a designer name stamped inside, but in terms of quality, is identical to a pair I had from Zenni. I don't give a hoot about slapping a designer name on a commodity product.

The turn around time for the Coastal pair was slightly longer than the pair I just ordered from Zenni.

I'm not saying there was anything wrong with the "free" pair from Coastal, but they were pretty much identical to what I got from Zenni all the way around.

 

[puffkin]

Zenni optical

I never understood the whole "designer" frame thing. They are all the SAME, you are just paying for a name stamped on the inside of the arm.

My DH usually orders 2-3 pair at a time and the total bill is usually about $40. Usually takes about 10 days to 2 weeks. I am a CPA and the very large firm I used to work for, a bunch of the CPA's also ordered from there. We definitely kept them in business. My mom works for a lawyer and gets compliments on her glasses CONSTANTLY. All Zenni glasses. People do not believe her when she tells them what she pays (and she has progressive bifocals which are so expensive). We honestly should get a commission from Zenni lol. They are great! Makes me sick to think how much we used to waste on glasses

 

[elgerber]

I just got one year of my daughters contacts (AirOptix and AirOptix for astigmatism) and bought them at Costco. I saved $100 for the year over the eye doctors price (which was the same as Americas Best and a tad higher than 1-800-Contacts). I was very happy!

 

[JDUCKY]

For contacts, I've heard that CoastalContacts.com is one of the cheapest places. Just glancing at the Acuvue 2's, if you buy 8 boxes at once, they're $14.49 a box (vs. $15.49 a box at Lens.com). RetailMeNot has a coupon code for Coastal, too: $20 off and free shipping for new customers on $100+ orders with code RETAILMESEPT. So if you go ahead and buy a year's supply at once, you'd save a bunch!

Thanks for the info!

 

[Happy mouse]

For glasses, I recommend zennioptical.com. Their glasses are very cheap, but the quality can be guaranteed. I have purchased many pairs of glasses from them and never had problems. Most of the single vision glasses I chose were under $20, but they didn’t look cheap. Instead, I got many complements on them.

 

[mommyjam]

For contacts, I've heard that CoastalContacts.com is one of the cheapest places. Just glancing at the Acuvue 2's, if you buy 8 boxes at once, they're $14.49 a box (vs. $15.49 a box at Lens.com). RetailMeNot has a coupon code for Coastal, too: $20 off and free shipping for new customers on $100+ orders with code RETAILMESEPT. So if you go ahead and buy a year's supply at once, you'd save a bunch!

It depends on the brand, my daughter wears Accuvue Oaysis and Lens.com is 19.99 per box if you buy a years worth vs coastal contacts 22.99 per box.

 

[girli565]

Thank you for this thread! My husband needs new glasses and the optical he goes to just wants a ton of $$$ for a pair of glasses. And my husband wants those hipster ones which are even more, lol. Now he'll get them and I'll definitely pay under $100, maybe even under $50!! Woohoo!