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.
LensDirect.com is one of the older companies when it comes to online contact lens retailers. Founded in 1992 they are a New York-based online retailer that was originally created as a mail-order contact lenses company, but with the boom of the internet, they quickly evolved into an online retailer.
After that, they were one of the first companies that offered an AutoRefill service so that people would never have to worry about running out of contacts again. Now 20+ years later and plenty of happy customers, Lens Direct stands as one of the oldest and most reputable online retailers out there.
Since they have been in the business for a while Lens Direct has changed quite a bit over the years, they at one time offered prescription eyeglasses as well but stopped offering that about 2 years ago. Let’s dive in and take a look at what Lens Direct has to offer when it comes to contact lenses.
Table of Contents
Before You Can Order
Just like any other reputable online retailer out there that sells contact lenses you will need to have a valid prescription to be able to make your purchase with Lens Direct. If you already have a current prescription then that’s great! You are good to go. If you haven’t done an exam for contact lenses then you will have to take a trip to your eye doctor to have an exam done and be fitted for contact lenses. Your glasses prescription is not the same as a contact lens prescription and will not work to order contact lenses.
Online Vision Test
Now if you do have a contact lens prescription, but the prescription has already expired Lens Direct offers a way for you a renew your contact lens prescription online. All you do is take an online vision test, their doctors review your test, and you receive a valid prescription. If you were to have any issues with the prescription renewal service, they offer a 100% money-back guarantee on the service.
Lens Direct Review
Their website is fairly easy to use, you can search for your contact lenses by the type of contact lens daily, weekly, monthly or topics if you choose or you can search by brand. Lens Direct carries a smaller selection of brands compared to other online retailers such as Coastal but offers most leading brands such as Acuvue, Air Optix, SofLens, PureVision, Biofinity, and much more. They also carry a small selection of Halloween decorative contact lenses as well.
Their pricing is fairly competitive and is generally has one of the lowest if not close to being the lowest price for many leading brands of contacts.
AutoRefill
If you want to be able to save a little bit more on top of already low prices you can sign up for the AutoRefill program. Having yourself signed up to the AutoRefill service gives you an additional 5% off. There’s no need to worry about getting locked into anything because Lens Direct allows you to skip shipments anytime or adjust the schedule to fit your specific frequency. If you ever have any questions you have a dedicated account representative to help you.
Shipping Cost & Time
Lens Direct offers multiple different shipping options but the services that are available will vary based on which service best serves your specific area. Shipping is free if your order is over $49, which honestly if you are purchasing one box of contacts for each eye more than likely you are going to be over $49. You can also get free shipping if you utilize the AutoRefill service.
Lens Direct does offer quicker shipping options if you need your contact lenses fast but remember that even with next day shipping there is still a processing time of 1-2 days in which they use to verify your prescription. As always I recommend to keep track of how many contact lenses you have left and NEVER pay for expedited shipping, it truly is an unnecessary waste of funds unless you have a true emergency and you don’t have any contacts
Return Policy & Customer Service
Aside from having great prices, one of the things that really makes Lens Direct stand out against some top competitors is their return policy. They offer you the ability to be able to return any unopen boxes or glass vials of contact lenses that are in the original condition from which they were purchased from Lens Direct for store credit or a refund up to 365 days after the delivery day.
Yup, you read that right you can return your unopened boxes of contacts for up to a year. Coastal Contacts and Eyeconic for example only allow you 30 days to return your contacts. This is great for anyone who doesn’t use all of their contacts and then their prescription changes. This offers you the ability to exchange out any unused contact lenses for store credit that you can apply towards your new prescription.
Another thing that sets Lens Direct apart from its competitors is their customer service. Whenever you have an account at Lens Direct you have a dedicated account representative that you can reach out to with all of your questions. I personally think this is amazing and it builds more of a relationship between you and the retailer. The account representatives have dedicated hours you can reach them, but if you ever have any questions after hours their customer service hotline is available to help you 24/7. Talk about awesome customer service.
Price Match Guarantee
Lens Direct does offer price matching and will price match reputable retailers. If you happen to stumble upon a price from another retailer that is lower after you have completed an order you can call or email Lens Direct and they will refund you the difference.
As far as a price match guarantee, it is great that they have one but there are other retailers that will not only beat their competitor’s price but also give you a little extra off. Many times Lens Direct is the one that has the best price though so you might not need to even use the price match depending on what brand of contacts you are wearing.
Lens Direct Coupon Codes
Lens Direct currently does not have any known coupon or promo codes, but if you are a new customer you can get $10 off plus free shipping on your first order.
Final Thoughts
Even though Lens Direct has one of the smaller selections when it comes to contact lens brands that doesn’t mean they are any less of a reputable retailer than any other retailer. To be completely honest with contact lens brands, eye doctors tend to fit the best and best quality brands so the chances that you have a brand that you wouldn’t be able to find available here at Lens Direct is fairly low. The impressive return policy and low prices definitely make up for the lack of brands that no one really needs anyway.
Thanks for stopping by Eye Health HQ, and if you enjoyed the article don’t forget the best way you can support us is sharing through your favorite social media channels. There are buttons located above and below the article. If you have any questions feel free to leave a comment below or use the contact form. Thank you for all your support!