Lifestyle

Summer eyewear that’s unbelievably affordable

May 10, 2023

I’m about to let you in a little secret. You don’t need to buy your prescription eyewear or sunglasses from your doctor or high-end retailer. You can buy glasses as low as $7, and receive them fast, online. Yes, you read that right.

And if you know me, you know style is important! As the warm weather approaches, I’ve been on the hunt for new eyewear. In my opinion, I love glasses I think they make me look stylishly cool (sunglasses and vision – correcting frames alike)!

Finding a pair that’s not only stylish but also provides the perfect vision solution is key. Zenni is my go-to destination for an amazing selection of the best prescription eyeglasses and sunglasses.

Keep reading to understand why I’m so excited about Zenni!

First let’s chat about necessity….

Don’t forget to schedule your annual eye exam

Anyone who has ever needed eyeglasses knows the headache.

They’re always more expensive than you expected, and then there’s the task of choosing something that will sit on your face all your waking hours. And it’s hardly a one-time purchase: Glasses break, prescriptions become outdated, and personal style preferences change.

Some customers have tried to solve these issues by purchasing their glasses online. Zenni Optical was one of the first online eyeglass companies on the market.

Here’s a breakdown of what Zenni offers those looking to take the headache out of their next glasses purchase.

Zenni: your secret source

Zenni Optical is an online-only retailer of prescription glasses and sunglasses. It was founded in San Francisco in 2003. The company keeps prices lower by selling glasses directly to consumers, without an intermediary and avoiding overhead costs.

It has a more affordable lineup of eyeglasses, starting at $6.95 (yes you read that right!)
Zenni boasts a large selection of frames, with different sizes, styles, and colors.
Customers say the online platform is easy to use, offering features like a digital ruler to measure the distance between your eyes and try-on tools that help you determine which frames look best on your face.
They also offer sunglasses!

Zenni’s selection of glasses is top-notch. They offer prescription glasses and sunglasses in both trendy and classic styles for men, women, and children. It also offers blue light lenses. There’s a line of glasses specifically built with blue-light blocking treatment for gamers, a collection specially curated with designers like Cynthia Rowley, and even prescription protective goggles for those in scientific fields and beyond.

What is the ordering process like?

Zenni’s sunglasses selection surprised me—they have a bunch of different styles, as well as polarized and novelty sunglasses at great prices.

Zenni really helps those that struggle to whittle down their choices when it comes to eyewear. In order to help you pick out your best pair of glasses, Zenni offers a Frame Finder, which can help you whittle down the massive selection by categories, including frame style, frame material, and more. Zenni also offers a Virtual Try-On program that works, but ultimately wasn’t as comprehensive or workable as others we’ve tried.

One of my favorite aspects of Zenni’s website is its image search. Simply upload a frame you like from anywhere and it will find a similar frame. Genius!

I also love that you can search frame styles fashion trends.

Ordering from Zenni is extremely easy. Similar to the process with other glasses retailers, you choose a set of frames, then you have the option to choose which lenses you prefer and the types of add-ons (such as blue-light blocking and UV coating) you want. If your prescription is a little more heavy-duty, you’ll likely pay more for the listed price for your glasses. Overall, prices were fairly low as comparable to other online retailers.

These glasses came fast. As in, so fast I momentarily thought the pair that arrived was meant for one of my roommates who’d coincidentally ordered before me. Each pair of glasses comes with a case and a cleaning cloth.

What I love about Zenni

Zenni Frame Finder allows you to be extremely specific in your search and curates based on your choices. What I liked about the Frame Finder, in particular, was that it aggregated trendy styles as well as classic styles, so there was something for everyone no matter how specific the search terms were.

Additionally, Zenni has awesome product lines available for kids and teens. The website places an emphasis on teen eyewear, specifically, which I haven’t seen many other online retailers doing. The styles available in the Teen section managed to be trendy without trying too hard. Zenni also has highly durable eyewear for kids and toddlers that’s designed to move as they move and play too, which is great.

Should you buy glasses from Zenni?

Zenni really does have a great selection, and the glasses ship fast. That is a win win. They’re great if you find yourself in a bind and in need of eyewear within a specific window of time.

Zenni Optical offers a catalog of more than 1,600 frames for people of all ages. It also offers a host of options for lenses, including:

sunglasses (most of their frames are available as sunglasses)
no-lense frames
single vision
bifocals
progressives

All Zenni eyeglasses come with anti-scratch coating and UV protection for no extra cost. The company offers blue light protection, called Blokz, starting at $16.95. As mentioned, Zenni also offers protective glasses and sports glasses.

If you have a strong prescription (greater than + or – 4.25), you may want to consider high index lenses. Zenni Optical offers three types of high index lenses too.

Though Zenni doesn’t accept insurance, some insurance companies may offer reimbursement. If you have insurance, check your coverage details.

My top picks include this chic, cat-eye pair and these mod, aviator sunnies. (I will be wearing these poolside all summer long.)

How Zenni works

There are various reasons why Zenni Optical can keep the cost of its eyeglasses low. Zenni glasses are made at a dedicated factory and shipped directly to the consumer. Also, because Zenni sells its glasses online, they don’t pay for brick-and-mortar retail space. This means they can avoid costly markups, and they pass that savings onto their customer.

Once you place your order, it goes straight to the factory where all the frames and lenses are made, according to the company. There, the lenses are cut and assembled into your frames using the pupillary distance and prescription information you have provided.

Their quality control department analyzes each pair of glasses for defects before it’s shipped to you, according to the company.

Zenni has an excellent customer review score on Trustpilot. The rating of 4.6 out of 5 stars means that most customers reviewing Zenni were pleased with the ordering process and the results.

What you’ll need before ordering

For prescription glasses, you’ll need your prescription and your pupillary distance (PD) measurement. Your prescription details from your most recent eye exam may have these measurements and you can request this from the prescriber’s office. You can also measure your PD yourself.

Vision care can be surprisingly expensive.

The Zenni Story

Concerned that the ability to see costs people hundreds of dollars, two visionaries founded Zenni in 2003 as one of the first online-only shops for affordable prescription glasses. They were able to provide affordable and accessible eyewear to everyone by cutting the middleman out and going directly to consumers. What started as a small, homegrown business in Northern California has morphed into an e-commerce success story with over 50 million frames sold to customers all over the world. In this journey, Zenni continues to innovate but their commitment remains the same: helping people “See better and live better.”

Zenni stands behind the quality of their eyewear because they make each pair. From frame design and manufacturing to lens edging, we employ the industry’s most advanced optical machinery and software. Thestate-of-the-art prescription lab produces lenses for every prescription with high-quality coatings, as well as lens tinting for sunglasses and blue light glasses.