Prices for kids' glasses--Did I get a decent deal?

[mrsbornkuntry]

I found out yesterday that my 5yo DS needs glasses. Since I wanted to get them right away and they have good prices for my contacts I ordered them from our PX optical shop. They ended up costing $65.xx. They were running a special for kids glasses, buy two pair for $99 and I declined because with these his vision should be improving and they said he'd probably need a new prescription in about 6 months. Now I'm second guessing myself, thinking I should've paid the $99.

So for future reference, does anyone know if I got a decent deal on these? Or somewhere else that I might get a better price? Oh, and they don't have a warranty, which I hate because I know how hard a 5yo will be on them.

 

[lovesmurfs]

My son's glasses usually cost $230. I know because he just returned from camp, with his former glasses at the bottom of the lake thanks to a canoe "accident". This is Lenscrafters, with BC/BS insurance. He doesn't use the kiddie glasses, though (he's 12).

 

[strasfamily]

I would say that is a good price.

I just paid $209 for my 8 yr old daughter's glasses after negotiating a 50 percent discount with the doctor! I told him I was going to go to Lenscrafters and he told me they use old lenses there and gave me half off. Not sure if I believed him or not.

 

[casey49781]

2 kids in glasses here, and i usually spend 130.00 per year both have td2 coating and are guarenteed they also have transparent lenses in them,,,my insurance buys them a pair no extras and i buy them a pair they are dd 9 and ds 5 so 2 pair are a must for kids....

 

[swillis]

My 10 year old son must wear glasses for protection, not for vision improvement. (He lost a significant amount of vision in his right eye due to severe complications from ear infections) So he must wear them ALL the time, except when sleeping or swimming. He is extremely active with sports, so I buy 2 pairs every 6 months. I get the "Twistables" they can bend in half practically and not break, and they have shatter proof lenses. I spend about $150.00 per pair. It is very expensive, but I think it's worth it for him to like how they look, because he's at the age where he's tempted to not wear them. UGH, but it has to be done. At least he has good teeth, so I won't be paying an orthodontist bill on top of that!!

 

[las3888]

The best deal we have ever found on glasses is at America's Best. I'm not sure what parts of the country they are located. They currently have a promotion for 2 pairs of glasses for $69.95. This includes the exam. They also have that same price for some kinds of kid's glasses. My DH and I have gone there for our glasses for many years and they are nice glasses. You can DEFINITELY get 2 pairs for that price. There will be lens options to upgrade on plus nicer frames, but we have always been able to find nice, decent, updated frames and glasses within the lowest price range. Plus I LOVE having that extra pair.

Their website is twopair.com. I hope this helps. Good luck!

 

[Andrea]

you did get a good deal the local eye company that i work for cheapest set of glasses start at 99.99 for the frame and lens

 

[disneysteve]

I think $65 is a perfectly fair price. No offense, but I think spending upwards of $200 is . Especially for a kid who may break or lose them or need them replaced in a year. DW and I both spend under $100 for our own glasses. Actually, I go to ForEyes and they also do a 2 pair for $99 deal so I get one regular pair and one prescription sunglasses pair for the $99. DW had to buy her last pair elsewhere because For Eyes didn't have decent frames for her (she needs kids frames for size but they didn't have anything that was appropriate for a 40+ woman). Her glasses (bifocals, polycarb lenses) were under $100 (and we used a Yellow Pages coupon for another $20 off). I'll never understand why people pay Lens Crafters prices.

 

[mlwear]

When DS first had glasses, we had to have a few repairs. Now, I take him to Lenscrafters (where we buy glasses) and have his glasses adjusted every couple or three weeks. They make adjustments for free and we are usually at our local mall anyway. This has significantly reduced costly repairs. It may seem that nothing is wrong and then we find out that a screw was loose or something. No repairs needed since we started the frequent adjustments (knock on wood).
OT, but it may save someone a few dollars.

 

[timandlesley]

Boy, you got a GREAT deal!!! Even the one pair for 95 is a steal. My son has been wearing glasses since he was two. I just had to replace his lenses due to scratches and with our vision insurance just to replace the lenses it was 103.00, if I would have gotten new frames with it the total would have been 157.00.
LEsley

 

[TBGOES2DISNEY]

I only wish our dd's glasses cost that much! I don't even want to tell you what the lenses alone cost! And we had to special order them b/c most places don't sell glasses for babies or toddlers. Good deal for you!

 

[taximomfor4]

I have 3 kids in glasses...all of them started wearing them by age 3. We only buy one pair per kid, and I think you paid a great price. We always spend a bit out of pocket extra, and either get a nice pair with GOOD warranty or a second pair. I keep old frames so that if anyone breaks theirs, we hopefully have some to use and just get new lenses.

Our out of pocket is for adding the transitions lenses...2 of the kids have more complex eye problems.

 

[mrsbornkuntry]

Thank-you all for your responses. We got the cheapest frames they had, about $15 I think. They don't do eye exams there, we had gotten that somewhere else (nothing out of pocket, it was covered by insurance). I'm glad that I seem to have gotten a good price, but I will look into a couple of places that some posters have mentioned.

I was tempted to spend more for one cute pair of frames, but the ones we got were practically the same thing, they just didn't have Spongebob on the part by the ears (where you can't even see him ). My DS was funny about it, we would ask his opinion and the only pair he liked were ones that didn't have the static sticker on the lens (for the brand)

 

[pyrxtc]

Sears has a kids deal up until age 16. They can pick from any kids glasses (they actually have some nice ones) and it's always the same price no matter what kind of lenses you need. I think it was around $99 for them. Does not include eye exam but if your kids prescription changes wihin so mnay months, they replce them free. They did for us anyways. My 12 yr old has been getting new glasses every 6 months or so and it has really paid off. The one's she got were a nice wire rimmed and made by Seventeen magazine design.

 

[welovedis]

Just one bit of advice regarding very inexpensive glasses deals. If you've already got them, that them to your eye doctor's office & have them check the lens prescription. Locally both America's Best & Pearle have had suits filed against them for not providing accurate lenses for glasses (both children's & adults). While the glasses might seem ok, they could be slightly off from the doctor's prescription.

Not saying that their aren't good deals to be had, just be careful since they are the only eyes you get, lol!

 

[Andrea]

Just one bit of advice regarding very inexpensive glasses deals. If you've already got them, that them to your eye doctor's office & have them check the lens prescription. Locally both America's Best & Pearle have had suits filed against them for not providing accurate lenses for glasses (both children's & adults). While the glasses might seem ok, they could be slightly off from the doctor's prescription.

Not saying that their aren't good deals to be had, just be careful since they are the only eyes you get, lol!

that could happend at any eye place though.

 

[HALEYSMOMMOM]

I think $65 is a perfectly fair price. No offense, but I think spending upwards of $200 is . Especially for a kid who may break or lose them or need them replaced in a year. QUOTE]

Unfortunately, some of us don't have a choice. My dd's lenses cost about that much alone. And as for the frames, I think its very important for her to feel good about how she looks with her glasses on, so only the best for her.

 

[RAC]

My DD has been in glasses since she was 3 and we have always used the same Dr. until this past year. We have paid around $250 for glasses with insurance. My husband has since taken a new job and the vision insurance is little to none. So, this time we got the eye exam from a local eye dr. and took the perscription to Sears and I was surpised at their selection of glasses. My DD is now 9 and she had a lot of styles to choose from and it cost us $139 for everything. We had a $10 off coupon also. I thought that was a pretty good deal.

 

[welovedis]

that could happend at any eye place though.

Yes, you're right, guess I could have worded that differently.

Anytime we have a pair of glasses made, we have the dr recheck the rx. The only place that we've had to have them re-made is Lenscrafters, they were off by almost 1/2 of a diopter (sp). However, the local America's Best & Value Vision had hundreds of cases where they were off that & more.

 

[LisaNJ25]

You did great. I average about $100-130 for kids glasses. I have been going to Walmart and I make sure I get the $15 warranty. Its good for 1 year. My daughter got hers a year and a half ago at age 5. I had to have them replaced 3 times during the first year so that $15.00 was worth it.

Personally, I would of paid the $99 and gotten the second pair. I always made sure I got 2 pairs for my son. All my kids seem to be rough on glasses.

I just got a postcard in the mail from walmart for 50% off a complete pair.

She is due so I will take her before school starts and get her a new pair.