Bear in mind that some of the links on this website are affiliate links. If you go through them to make a purchase we will earn a commission at no extra cost to you but helps support our website. Keep in mind that we link these companies and their products because of their quality and not because of the commission we receive from your purchases.

EyeBuyDirect is another one of the leading companies when it comes to providing you with quality eyewear at affordable prices. EyeBuyDirect was founded in 2005 and is a company based out of Austin, Texas but operates and sells its products worldwide.

I have been following EyeBuyDirect since before they redesigned and relaunched their website and this company has grown quite a bit especially after Essilor took a majority stake in EyeBuyDirect. They do not carry any designer brands but have a nice selection of in-house designed and manufactured frames and styles ranging from minimalistic thin metal frames to stylish and trendy thicker wayfarers.

Table of Contents

EyeBuyDirect Review

One of the main reasons why I like EyeBuyDirect is how affordable their eyewear is with glasses coming in as low as $6 for the frames and that is the price with standard basic plastic lenses with a scratch-resistant coating included. The company has a belief that quality eyewear should be accessible as well as affordable by anyone that needs them since they are an integral part of our daily lives.

What you should have ready

Just with other retailers in order to first place an order for your prescription glasses through EyeBuyDirect, you will need to have a prescription from your eye doctor. If you have had an eye exam with your doctor within the last two years but do not have a copy of your prescription you should be able to request a copy from the office in which you got your exam done.

If you haven’t had a routine eye exam done within the last two years then you will have to have a new exam done and get a new prescription. Keep in mind that when you are getting an eye exam done not only is your doctor checking to see if your prescription has changed, but there are some very serious hidden health concerns that may be detected during a routine exam.

Along with having your prescription you should also know what your PD measurement is. This is the measurement that is measured from the center of one pupil to the center of the other pupil. Some eye doctors will have this measurement written down on your prescription. If not you can contact your doctor’s office, most of the time they have this measurement written down on your chart. If you can’t get it there you can always measure it yourself, or have a friend help you. Either way, you will need to have this measurement to make your glasses anywhere you purchase online.

Picking out your frame

After you have your prescription and PD measurement ready now it’s time to pick out a frame. Since there is no home try-on program with EyeBuyDirect it would be good to have a general idea of how the frame measurements work just so you have a general idea of how the frames might fit.

EyeBuyDirect has a virtual try-on system in which you could upload a photo without glasses on and see how the frames might look on you. Virtual systems can get you an idea of how that frame shape might work on your face, and see if the shape actually complements your face or you should move on.

If you are like me and like to filter out frames of certain colors or sizes, EyeBuyDirect has a healthy amount of filters that you can apply to narrow down your frame search. You can search by gender, size, shape, rim, material, color, and feature, so you can save time and not have to look through hundreds of frames to find what you want.

Picking out your lenses

After you have your frames selected you would move on to selecting your lenses. When you get to the lens selection screen you will be first asked to identify what kind of lenses you are going to need. You will have to pick from the following.

Distance – This is a single vision lens and there is only one power throughout the entire lenses. If you get single vision lenses for distance then you will be using these glasses to see things that are far away, such as when you are driving or watching television.

Reading – This is also a single vision lens, but instead of having one power to see things that are further away these are for seeing things up close. Generally, with single vision lenses for reading, you will not be able to see things that are far away with them on and you will have to look over them to see things further away. Your doctor may optimize your reading glasses for an intermediate/computer distance which is generally for a distance that is about arm’s length away as opposed to the general reading distance.

Multifocal – Multifocal lenses are lenses that have multiple ranges of power in the lenses and would be able to be used to see far as well as up close. At EyeBuyDirect you have the option between going with a lined-bifocal in which you can see the distinct reading area, or you can get progressive bifocals which do not have a line and is blended.

Non-Prescription – For those of you who do not need any vision correction and just want to wear glasses for the style, EyeBuyDirect does offer non-prescription lenses as well.

After you select the type of lenses you will be asked to put in your prescription. You would just enter your prescription values exactly as its shown on your prescription. If you have Astigmatism you will have to enter values in the Cylinder and Axis columns, and if you are getting a multifocal lens you will have to enter a value for the ADD column.

Right below the area you enter in your prescription is where you would enter in your PD measurement that I mentioned to have ready earlier. From there you will move on to your lens types.

Picking your lens type

After you have your prescription all entered in you will have to decide what kind of lenses you are going to get. What kind of lenses you go with will be determined by your lifestyle, and what you do day to day. These are your options.

Clear – This is obviously your standard clear lens that is completely transparent, generally perfect for everyday use. There are still coatings that you should have like the anti-reflective coating and UV protection. Neither one of those coatings will change the color of your lenses but provides additional protection.

Digital Screen Protection – For those of you that spend extended periods of time in front of digital devices whether it be a smartphone or a computer, this coating will protect you from the damaging artificial blue light that emits from digital devices.

Light Adjusting – These lenses are more commonly known as Transitions or light adaptive lenses. These lenses darken when you are exposed to UV light outside and remain clear when you are indoors. These lenses are great for anyone who spends a lot of time outdoors but would rather not have to carry multiple pairs of glasses around.

Sun – If you are looking for prescription sunglasses EyeBuyDirect has a few different options for you. You can find standard tinted lenses, polarized lenses as well as mirror coatings to pick from for your sunglasses.

Lens materials

For the lens materials depending on what type of lens you go with, there can be a wide range of materials for you to pick from. The better the material you get the thinner, more lightweight, and durable your lenses are going to be. Take a look below.

1.5 Index Lens – This is your standard plastic lens material. Plastic lenses provide great optical clarity and are much lighter than glass, however, the material isn’t very impact resistant and is vulnerable to chipping and cracking.

1.57 Index Lens – This lens is generally a blend of materials and provides a slightly thinner and stronger material than its standard plastic counterpart.

1.59 Index Lens – These are polycarbonate lenses and is your most impact-resistant lenses. Polycarbonate lenses are generally used for children’s eyewear as well as sports and safety applications. This is the lens material that I generally recommend because most online retailers already offer it free with their eyewear and if they don’t the upgrade isn’t very expensive anyway.

1.6-1.74 Index Lens – These are your high index lenses and can be beneficial for anyone that has a stronger prescription. High-index lenses provide lenses that are thinner and lighter than polycarbonate and standard plastic lenses. The higher the index of the lens you get the thinner and lighter the lens is.

Often times people would ask me if they would still be able to see if they picked the standard 1.5 index plastic lenses and of course you can still see. While there are slight clarity differences between different lens materials, you will still be able to see clearly out of any lens material.

Lens upgrades

After you have a lens material selected there are a few upgrades that you can get if you so choose. EyeBuyDirect provides an anti-scratch coating as well as an anti-reflective coating with all of their lenses so you don’t have to worry about those but there are still a few coatings that could be useful.

UV Protective Coating – Unless you are purchasing polycarbonate lenses that automatically have UV protection, you should be getting this coating. The UV protective coating is essentially a sunblock for your eyes and protects your eyes from the harmful UV rays coming from the sun.

Water Repellent Coating – I have always felt like this is an upgrade to the anti-reflective coating more than just a stand-alone water repellent, but this coating helps keep liquids from sticking to your lenses as well as finger smudges from sticking on your lenses.
Party Glasses – I think this is a bit tacky, but at EyeBuyDirect you can get a Swarovski crystal added to your lenses to your glasses some extra bling. I am not a huge fan of this idea, but that is just me if you like the idea it’s available.

After you have all your lens upgrades selected you are all set to add your glasses to your cart.

Prescription sunglass lenses

Back when you were picking out your lens types if you decided that you were going to get prescription sunglasses then you will have a different set of options when you move on to the next screen. Having a pair of prescription sunglasses not only protects your eyes from harmful UV rays but also the sensitive skin around your eyes as well. Here are your prescription sunglass options at EyeBuyDirect.

Basic – These are your standard lenses with UV protection and a tint on them. This essentially allows you to turn any pair of glasses into a pair of prescription sunglasses, but instead of having to stick with whatever darkness is available, you can pick your shade with basic lenses.

Gradient – A gradient tinted lens is similar to how the basic tinted lenses are but instead of the entire lenses being dark, gradient lenses are dark on the top and light towards the bottom part of the lenses.

Polarized – Polarized lenses give you the same protection from UV rays like the basic lenses but the benefit they have over basic lenses is that polarized lenses help reduce glare and haze helping you to be able to see better and have a more comfortable viewing experience.

Mirrored – The mirrored coating for sunglasses not only helps provide a stylish look but also helps reflect harmful UV rays away from your eyes. This coating makes the lenses on your glasses have the appearance of small little mirrors.

If you don’t already have prescription sunglasses, I highly recommend having a pair made. Even if you currently wear Transition lenses there really isn’t anything that could compare to an actual pair of prescription sunglasses, especially when you are driving.

Shipping Cost & Time

EyeBuyDirect provides free standard shipping on any order that is over $99. If you don’t reach the $99 threshold, standard shipping will cost you $5.95. If you need your glasses quicker you can have them expedited starting at $19. Remember that if you get your glasses expedited there is still a processing time for your glasses to be made. Getting expedited shipping will only speed up the process once it gets shipped out.

For international customers, the shipping starts at $9.95 and goes on up depending on where you live.

All orders can be expected anywhere between 7-14 business days to arrive. Expedited shipping will arrive 2-4 days quicker than standard shipping.

Return Policy & Warranty

EyeBuyDirect has a straight forward policy for their return as well as warranty. They offer a 14-day Fit & Style guarantee which allows you to get an equal exchange or return with no questions asked.

Their warranty covers your glasses from any defects in the materials or workmanship for up to 365-days. This warranty does not cover any damage that might be caused by accidents, negligence, or improper care.

EyeBuyDirect Coupons

They are currently running a 20% off sitewide including lenses with promo code: EBD20

Final Thoughts

Is EyeBuyDirect worth taking a look at? Definitely! They have very reasonable price eyewear and quite a decent selection of their in-house frames. The one downside about EyeBuyDirect is their kid’s selection of eyewear isn’t that great so if you are looking for kids eyeglasses online you might have to look elsewhere.

Thank you for stopping by Eye Health HQ and If you enjoyed the article don’t forget you can support us by sharing this article through your favorite social media channels with the buttons located right below, thank you for your support!

EyeBuyDirect Review 2023