Best Cheap Prescription Glasses Online: Tested and Reviewed
We tested the best affordable prescription glasses online for cost, selection, ease of ordering, and overall quality. See which retailers may fit your budget and vision needs.
- Zenni Optical offers the best affordable prescription glasses online, with thousands of frames to choose from.
- The best affordable glasses on our list start at $6, but add-ons can greatly increase the price.
- Vision insurance may help lower the cost of glasses. FSA or HSA funds may also help cover eligible expenses.
- Skipping optional upgrades like UV protection glazes or scratch protection can help make online glasses more affordable. But some lens coatings may be recommended for certain lenses.
NCOA helps people find the tools and resources they need to age well. That's why we thoroughly vet every product before it earns our recommendation. To review online optical sites, we researched and tested for over 100 hours before making our first recommendation. Here's what we did to find the best online optical retailers:
- Consulted with optometrists and primary care physicians
- Ordered eyeglasses and contact lenses, evaluating the ordering process and the final product received
- Interviewed long-time users of these sellers
- Conducted a survey of older adults who have ordered from online optical retailers
- Read thousands of verified customer reviews
We're constantly testing new online optical retailers to give you the most accurate and up-to-date recommendations. Read more about our online optical methodology.
Wearing prescription glasses is an important part of caring for your eyes and preventing certain age-related eye conditions. The best cheap prescription glasses online can make it easier to keep your lenses up to date. All the online optical providers on this list offer free shipping and frames for less than $100. It’s important to note that “cheap” refers to lower costs, not lower quality.
When we surveyed 200 older adults who purchased glasses online, 48% said they used online optical retailers for the lower cost.1 With budget in mind, our team put some of those retailers to the test. We used top sites to order new glasses and explored the costs of add-ons and upgrades for each optical provider. Zenni Optical earned the title of Best Overall for affordable online glasses.
Our list compares retailers based on cost, selection, customer service, and whether the final product matched what’s listed online. We also tested these retailers' virtual try-on (VTO) process, which can be an important part of shopping for glasses online.
Zenni Optical
Affordable and durable frames
GlassesUSA
Very user-friendly website
Warby Parker
Great fit with lots of upgrades
Our picks for the best affordable online glasses:
- Zenni Optical: Best Overall
- GlassesUSA: Best Variety of Affordable Glasses
- Warby Parker: Best for Virtual Eye Exams
- Eyebuydirect: Best Budget Sport Glasses
- FramesDirect: Best for Using Insurance
How we tested cheap online prescription glasses
When testing the best affordable online prescription glasses, our testers went undercover as mystery shoppers. Our testing team explored the online optical process from beginning to end: frame selection, virtual try-on (VTO), insurance input, prescription input, and shipping.
For the best affordable glasses online specifically, our testers looked at:
- Cost of frames
- Variety of frames
- Add-ons and upgrades
- How well the upgrade choices were explained
- Website ease of use
- Customer service
- Shipping time
- Prescription match and general fit
Comparing the best affordable prescription glasses as of 2026
| Comparison Features | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Our rating (out of 10) | 9.9 |
9.9 |
9.7 |
9.9 |
9.8 |
| Best for | Overall |
Variety |
Virtual eye exams |
Sport |
Takes insurance |
| Home try-on program | No |
No |
No |
No |
No |
| Bifocals available | Yes |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
| Scratch protection | No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Our top cheap prescription glasses online reviews
Zenni Eyewear: Best Overall
Since 2003, Zenni Optical has worked to be the brand many people associate with the best cheap online glasses. Its frames start at $7. Zenni does not sell other brands on its site, just its own prescription glasses. But the lack of other brands doesn’t mean a lack of selection. Our testers gave Zenni a 5/5 for style availability.
- One of the most affordable options we tested
- Large selection for the price
- Offers bifocals
- Blue light-blocking glasses available
- Home try-on: No
- Virtual try-on: Yes
- Warranty length: 30 days
- Trial period: 30 days
Pros
- FSA/HSA eligible
- Free shipping
- Frames starting at $7
Cons
- No designer brands
- Shortest warranty on this list
- No scratch protection
GlassesUSA: Best Variety of Affordable Glasses
GlassesUSA and FramesDirect have the most frames of any provider on this list, but GlassesUSA earned the Best Variety title for its affordability. Frames at GlassesUSA cost between $19–$701, depending on the brand and add-ons you select. The glasses we ordered during testing from GlassesUSA came to $127. Our testers ranked GlassesUSA 5/5 for style availability.
- Glasses USA review
- Helpful customer service
- Longest trial period on this list
- One of the three most-affordable brands tested
- Home try-on: No
- Virtual try-on: Yes
- Warranty length: 1 year
- Trial period: 60 days
Pros
- Frequent promotions help lower costs
- Enormous selection
- Multiple designer brands
- Attentive tracking updates
Cons
- Prescription-mandated coatings raise price
- We experienced production delays
- Uses undisclosed shipping partners
- VTO can’t remove your existing glasses
Warby Parker: Best for Virtual Eye Exams
Warby Parker was the most popular online optical provider among our survey respondents.1 It’s also the only provider on this list to offer virtual eye exams. This makes it the best place to buy affordable glasses online if you don’t have a current prescription. “I took an eye test on Warby Parker's site to renew my existing prescription, which was really easy to do,” one of our testers reported. “It had step-by-step instructions and guided me through the entire process.”
- All frames under $200
- Only provider in this list with virtual eye exam
- Lots of add-ons
- Can get frames resized at any WP location
- Home try-on: No
- Virtual try-on: Yes
- Warranty length: 6 months
- Trial period: 30 days
Pros
- Straightforward website
- Accepts vision insurance
- Stylish options
- Free, fast shipping
Cons
- Does not run many promotions
- No bifocals
- Smaller selection of frames
- Basic frames cost more than others on this list
Eyebuydirect: Best Budget Sport Glasses
Eyebuydirect is the best option on our list for affordable sport glasses. It offers a variety of frames from designer sports brands like Oakley and Ray-Ban, as well as lightweight and wraparound prescription sunglasses. Our testers found that Eyebuydirect can help you find affordable running and cycling glasses in the size you need.
- Offers designer sport brands
- Frames in a variety of sizes
- Inexpensive starter frames
- One of the longer warranties on this list
- Home try-on: No
- Virtual try-on: Yes
- Warranty length: 1 year
- Trial period: 30 days
Pros
- Decent size selection
- Long warranty
- Affordable frame styles
- Offers small/wide options
Cons
- VTO not available for all frames
- Less frame variety than others on this list
- Checkout process can be confusing
- Short trial period
FramesDirect: Best for Using Insurance
FramesDirect carries hundreds of brands and accepts a large number of vision insurance plans. It accepts both in-network and out-of-network carriers, including popular options like EyeMed, Aetna, Humana, Cigna, and others. FramesDirect also accepts FSA/HSA funds. It also has one of the longest warranties on this list.
- In-network for many vision insurance providers
- Fast, free shipping
- Frequent promotions and sales
- Blue light and sunglasses available
- Home try-on: No
- Virtual try-on: Yes
- Warranty length: 1 year
- Trial period: 30 days
Pros
- Simple, sleek website
- FSA/HSA eligible
- Frequent tracking updates
- Impressive selection of frames
Cons
- More expensive than competitors
- No home try-on
- Doesn’t run many promotions
- Not all frames have VTO
How we chose the best affordable glasses
To find the best affordable glasses, we considered both cost and quality. How much money did it take to get quality frames and protect the lenses inside them? Did our testers and mystery shoppers feel that the final product was worth what they spent?
We also evaluated each online optical provider’s virtual try-on (VTO) experience. We considered this an important factor because VTO is the only way to try on glasses you buy online. Try-ons are one area where in-person glasses shopping has a competitive edge.
AI-powered virtual try-on technology can be especially beneficial for individuals who have difficulty seeing without their glasses. Rather than removing their eyewear and trying to judge how frames look through blurry vision, they can leave their glasses on and use AI to virtually try on different styles, making it much easier to compare shapes, colors, and overall appearance.”
—Lisa M. Greene, OD, of Asheville Vision & Wellness in Arden, North Carolina
Ideally, virtual try-on can digitally remove your existing glasses so you don’t end up wearing two pairs in the final photo or video feed. Our testers noted when VTO was glitchy or unavailable for certain styles.
Zenni Optical earned the Best Affordable Glasses Overall in part because of its strong VTO feature. “I had the option to keep my current glasses on or have it swap them out for the pair I was trying,” reported one tester. “I tried both. I was surprised to prefer the version where I kept my glasses on, as I could do a more direct comparison between the ones I currently wear and like, and the ones I was trying on virtually.” Zenni earned a 5/5 for virtual try-on.
Types of glasses
There are multiple types of glasses, but the best lower-priced glasses are likely single-prescription or readers.
- Bifocals: Lenses with two prescriptions per eye that address presbyopia, or the natural loss of the ability to focus on closer objects. They do this by including a half-moon lens for near-distance vision. These cost a little more than single-prescription glasses.
- Performance: Sport performance glasses, usually sunglasses, that are made to be lightweight, aerodynamic, and sometimes even water repellent. These are best for running and cycling, but usually come with an added cost.
- Prescription glasses: Lenses with a single prescription per eye that correct for either nearsightedness or farsightedness. These are often the best affordable glasses.
- Progressive lenses: Trifocals or bifocals without the lens lines. Often fairly expensive and difficult to get right when buying online.
- Readers: Generic non-prescription glasses you can wear over contacts or other glasses to see near-distance small print. These are also among the lowest-priced glasses online.
- Trifocals: Bifocals with a band on top of the half-moon for helping you see intermediate distances. Not many online retailers carry trifocals.
What to look for when buying affordable glasses online
When buying glasses online, look for retailers that accept vision insurance or frequently run promotions. This will help you keep the cost of online glasses affordable. And while many websites offer a variety of upgrades and coatings, these can increase the price of your glasses. You might want to skip some or most of them to keep the price low. Scratch-resistant coatings, though, may be worth it.
“Scratch‑resistant coatings are legitimate, widely used, and essential for polycarbonate and high‑index lenses,” said Karen Allison, MD, of Rochester, New York, who spoke with us on behalf of Prevent Blindness.
When you’re looking for the best affordable prescription glasses online, you can also look for:
- If the seller offers financing
- A Trustpilot rating for the seller
- Warranties and return windows
How much do the best affordable glasses cost?
The best affordable online glasses on this list start as low as $6. With films and coatings like fingerprint protection, scratch protection, UVA/UVB protection, and blue light-blocking, the cost goes up. Designer brands also cost significantly more.
When we mystery shopped the brands listed below and purchased glasses with add-ons and prescriptions (sometimes with expedited shipping), our testing team paid between $125 and $164 for the glasses. See the table below for a frames-only comparison of the top online optical sellers.
Best affordable glasses costs compared
| Comparison Features | Zenni Optical  |
GlassesUSA  |
Warby Parker  |
Eyebuydirect  |
Frames Direct  |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cost for frames | $7–$60 |
$58–$647 |
$95–$195 |
$9–$528 |
$70–$1,740 |
| Return period | 30 days |
60 days |
30 days |
14 days |
30 days |
| Warranty period | 1 year for lens coatings and films; extended warranty option available |
1 year |
6-month lens replacement warranty |
1 year |
1 year for lens and frame defects |
| Insurance accepted? | No |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Frequently asked questions
Does Medicare cover glasses?
Medicare vision coverage is limited. Medicare covers glaucoma tests or macular degeneration diagnostics for certain at-risk groups, and Medicare Part C might offer vision coverage depending on your plan. But Medicare Parts A and B do not cover routine eye exams.
What do you need to buy glasses online?
To buy prescription glasses online, you need a valid prescription. If you have an astigmatism or want bifocals, you’ll need a few extra measurements. You also need a shipping address and a credit card to buy glasses online.
Is it cheaper to buy glasses online or in person?
Depending on the lens upgrades and frame brand you want, buying glasses online might be cheaper than buying them in person at the eye doctor.
Questions? Email us at reviewsteam@ncoa.org.
