Buying Glasses Online

Morning all

Where can people recommend for buying glasses online please and have you found any major issues compared to buying in-store please?

Also what are the options for wearing glasses when riding; prescription sunnies or sport glasses? Facing up to having to wear glasses full time and trying to work out what my options are.

Riding is mainly trail and gravel commutes and currently use non prescription riding glasses.

I’ve found Glasses Direct are good – except varifocals, for those I think you need a physical shop.

Used the Glasses Company,cheap and easy to deal with, were only readers though

Think I would be looking at varifocals and have seen a couple of places that have them advertised. I wonder if it’s shop specific as to whether they do them or not?

I have found that varifocals often require a couple of goes before they get the lens right, especially the transition from far to near vs your normal head position.

This is ok for a physical shop to do but a total PITA on line.  If you find your varifocals have always been perfect first time then online might work for you.

Am new to wearing glasses so the whole thing is a bit of a punt into the unknown! There seems to be a dizzying array of options available whichever shop or site you go to; it’s a bit trying to puzzle out MTB standards ?

Riding wise I have used RX inserts which are not that great this time of year and look a bit crap anyway, contacts which I don’t mind but are a bit of a compromise as when I have them in I can’t read anything close up like my phone.

I have had proper prescription glasses but it’s not cheap and not great when you scratch the lenses.

I now have glasses from V2o Sports eyewear, prescription but the lenses can be changed as they fit over the prescription lens part. I can get money off for anyone if they are interested, I won’t post here just message me.

I’d say half of my glasses I’ve taken back to the opticians for a little bit of fettling. On a couple of occasions in different shops the lenses were wrong.

So I’ve always been nervous of online shops, but I do have slightly odd prescriptions so I like to talk everything though face to face

I’m a long-time wearer of prescription Oakleys (transition lenses). They’ve always been spot-on optically and last me a few years.

I recently took a punt on the “cheap” V2O Sports Vigors after seeing an ad on Facebook. Optically, they’re OK but the materials are obviously poorer than the Oakleys. I do like the style of them for cycling though, much better coverage than my Oakleys.

I was in the same position as you a few years ago. I got varifocals for everyday work through my opticians and they’ve been great. Online I bought a spare pair of glasses (fixed focus) from spex4less and they’ve also also been good. For riding I experimented on what I suspect is not an uncommon path for those new to glasses and wary of contacts: inserts first, cheaper and fixed focus and when they weren’t ideal for me, prescription varifocals (from RxSport). The latter were expensive, but I got luck – they have been great and I don’t regret the cost.

RX inserts are a pain – not just condensation, but you also now have four surfaces that can scratch up. Over six years ago I plonked some cash down for two pairs of Oakley Crosslinks and got Cillary Blue / Opticians Direct to glaze them with high index lenses. The clear ones, which I tend to wear the most for sports, are just starting to lose their coating now. I’m -6.5, and will not be going back to inserts.

For normal distance lenses for cycling I bought online in some Oakley Holbrook frames. For my actual glasses I have varifocals and would never buy online. Yes they can be expensive in optician shops but one of those things where spending money is a good idea as I need them to see all day long every day!

Another happy verifocal buyer from spex4less here.   No trouble at all.

contacts which I don’t mind but are a bit of a compromise as when I have them in I can’t read anything close up like my phone.

Now using varifocal lenses pretty good do far and same cost as my plain ones.

Not sure if OP needs varifocals from his post, so may manage w single prescription lens.
If it’s first time buying maybe go to the optician and ask for advice. Vision express do similarly priced offers.

If you are buying online they will need to know you pupil to pupil distance so they can get the lens focal point in the right place when they glaze the frame. Your optician should provide this on your prescription.

For cycling I use a cheap pair from gallesonline for the winter as muddy crap and don’t want to ruin my expensive everyday glasses. go as high refractive index on the lens as you can for thinner lighter lenses. Non-scratch and anti-fog coatings too if possible
They’re cheapo normal glasses so they do let the wind in on fast descents.
In the summer I use a pair of prescription Oakley which are expensive, but just fabulous

I cant quite follow why opticians are so much more expensive than online .

in my experience they are usually around double the cost

I have had no problems with online opticians

Varifocals with Kodak lenses from Glasses Direct here. I’m on my second pair after damaging the lenses in my first pair after 2 years. I got the old pair reglazed with single vision lenses for riding in. Total cost was significantly lower than the high street.

I’ve had loads of glasses ordered online. Used glasses direct years ago and they were fine, used extreme eyewear, had one problem but can’t remember what it was, but they sorted it. RX sports quite a few times and they’ve been great. Also have reglazes with reglaze glasses direct or ciliary blue as they used to be called also been great. My seeing prescription isn’t that bad but I’ve got really bad astigmatism in both eyes, I also need reading glasses nowadays or varifocals. Unfortunately I don’t get on with contacts any more.

I’m on my second pair of varifocals bought online now and both have been great. First pair from RX sports, second from reglaze glasses direct.

They all have a tool for measuring your pupilary distance. RX sports get you to print out a ‘ruler’ and take a photo with it in front of your eyes then they measure from that.

For riding I have a pair on sports style sunnies with clear lenses in. And for sunglasses I have a pair of non varifocals lenses in Oakley frames.

I’ve never had a pair of glasses from the internet that were made incorrectly.

Ive bought many pairs of glasses online over many years (probably the last 10+ years as a minimum) all have been ok. The biggest issue has been me choosing horrible frames that didnt suit.

The last 2 pairs were varifocals

ive just ordered my first pair of varifocals from specsavers last week as i got 241 and the lenses are the most expensive bit. I also used to buy my oakley frames online due to their warranty (used to break them and they would assist) but this isnt as good as it used to be so grabbed some aviators this time.

Forget going online for your first pair.  It’s not only your prescription, you need to be looking through the right part of the lens and if the frames are the wrong width etc at the worst you won’t be looking through the correct part of the lens, at best you’ll realise the style/size doesn’t fit your face. And you can’t send your face back with the frames so they can adjust them to fit correctly.

Once you are successfully wearing glasses you are happy with, you could take dabble with going online next time as you’ll have a better idea of what your vision should be like.

If you are working for an employer you should be able to get vouchers for eyetests, and in some cases a discount off the glasses or even a free pair if for example you are long sited and need them for computer use.

For riding, you might be able to go single vision depending on how bad your sight is.  Again if you do any work that needs eye protection, you are entitled to free safety specs through work and you might be happy with using these on your bike depending on style. If not, I got my PD from my optician (justifying it as they don’t sell sports glasses) and got mine from Rad8.

I’ve bought successfully from RX Sport a few times – mostly Oakley frames, plus a pair of Rayban prescription sunnies. The only guesstimate bit is PD, but apparently I’d managed to get that spot on when I had my current frames reglazed by a local “proper” optician earlier this year. Currently single vision lenses, but may well have to look at varifocals for my next pair.

For riding (everything but road/commuting) I use disposable contact lenses. WAY better than trying to use glasses as they don’t bounce around. I am starting to run into the failing nearsight issue there as well, though so I’m probably going to have to review my approach in a year or so. It’ll take a lot to make me stop using contacts altogether though.

Glasses direct if you’ve got a reasonably upto date prescription.  You just need to provide them with the data from your prescription.

No issues with them and have bought about four pairs from them.

For riding I use bifocal safety glasses https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0031JJMQK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Luckily my eyesight isn’t too bad for distance so I can get away with these for reading my phone etc. I’ve got astigmatism and one long and one short sided eye.

I’m assuming that as the OP is a new glasses user their prescription is fairly mild so this may work for them.

I cant quite follow why opticians are so much more expensive than online .

in my experience they are usually around double the cost

I have had no problems with online opticians

They’re always there and open 6 days a week, for you to walk into at any whim. They offer eye tests and other medical diagnostics. They give you great after service (again at your whim). They are a source of advice (at your whim). They stock a large range you can physically try on and take home to compare. All the costs associated with this + many more.

There seems to be a dizzying array of options

Wrong prescription perhaps? 🙂

I’ve been wearing ‘gegs’ for 30+ years. Early days visited opticians, when I understood that my prescription was hardly changing then I started buying online. Last few pairs including Oakleys have been from Pretavoir

I got a pair of bifocals from Selectspecs that were fine.

Previously used Specsavers. Mostly OK though last time I got two pairs from them one pair was clearly not right as small print was blurred. It was suggested I was maybe having buyers remorse with the frames!  Eventually sent away and found to be faulty and returned as they should have been.  Mrs IRC took a pair she had got there for a repair and was told thry no longer stocked that size of screw. She went across the road and a competitor fixed then for free. Guess where she went next time she needed new specs?

I have a relatively weak distance prescription.  I have bought all my glasses be they regular, sun or cycling online for about 15-20 years.  All glasses are Oakleys FWIW.

extreme-eyewear.co.uk – good service with Oakley lenses, took a couple of weeks, very happy with about 4 orders from them.

ardoreyewear.co.uk – oakley “normal glasses” with non-oakley lenses felt like it took longer than advertised, looks like I had to chase them once for a delivery estimate, very happy with product.

fashion-eyewear.co.uk – don’t recall any issues, think they were quite quick.

RXsport.co.uk – not actually bought anything but used their try-on service to try some Smith frames that I decided didn’t fit right.  Very slick operation.