note: while believed to be accurate at the time it was written, information provided is not updated regularly & may be out of date

39 Dollar Glasses
"The Name You Trust for Eyeglasses"
http://www.39dollarglasses.com

Coupon Codes: (click the link for the savings - discount applied at Step 5 during checkout - not stackable):
- Save 10% on any purchase from 39DollarGlasses.com
- Save 15% off any order from 39DollarGlasses.com exclusively from EyeglassRetailerReviews.com
- Free shipping from 39DollarGlasses.com

Strengths:

• Website quality - 39dollarglasses continues to have one of the best browsing and purchasing designs available, catered strongly towards new customers with little to no experience buying online.
• Polycarbonate base offerings - polycarbonate, a virtually shatter-proof material excellent for everyone (but even more strongly recommended for children) is the lens used in their basic pairs of glasses.
• Flex Spending Accounts - they advertise heavily that those with FSA accounts are able to use them for purchases here.
• BBB-accredited

Introduction:

39 Dollar Glasses is situated in the US (New York). Pricing in USD. They sell single-vision, bi-focal, and progressive glasses. Methods of contact include online live support (8 hours a day Mon-Fri), a web inquiry form, a 1-800 and direct phone number, fax, and a mailing address listed on their site. They accept Visa, MasterCard, AmEx, and Discover. They mention that they are "Flex Spending Account approved" with details being that "All items may be purchased with your company FSA credit card. In most cases your purchase will automatically be approved without having to submit a receipt to your employer." They are BBB-accredited with 12 complaints, all of which were resolved, giving them a "Satisfactory" rating with the BBB.

Impressions:

39 Dollar Glasses continues to have one of the most user-friendly sites available. Finding a frame is quick and easy. Their biggest strengths are that they've been around a long time (since 2000), and have an exceptional website - it's easy to use and almost flawless in every respect. The downside to 39 dollar glasses is the price - they're at the higher end of the "discount lenses" scale, and don't include a lot of freebies. On one hand, your $39 gets you Polycarbonate lenses which is a superior material and a good step up from the typical glass or CR39 plastic lenses offered elsewhere. On the other hand, adding an anti-reflective coating for example bumps up the price of your glasses by $25, where most other retailers offer the coating for free (or at least a lower cost), although to be fair many of those other retailers are putting the AR coating on CR39. If you're looking for Polycarbonate lenses, it's actually a pretty good deal. If you don't mind CR39 or glass though and are looking to spend as little as possible, you may want to look elsewhere.

The majority of their metal and plastic frames are $39.00 which includes single-vision lenses. They do offer a selection of other frames (rimless, bendable titanium, etc) but they cost more. Most of their frames are offered in 2 colors which vary depending on the frame selected.

Single-vision lenses come free with the frame. They also offer tinted, polarized, Transitions (brand), and 1.67 High-Index lenses, usually in both CR39 and Polycarbonate versions. Bi-focals and progressives are also offered in tinted and Transitions (brand) variants, with Bi-focals also being offered in a polarized version as well. One thing you may notice is that many of the lenses are name-branded with names such as Essilor®, Kodak®, Sola®, Seiko®, Transitions® and Varilux®, the latter coming with a certificate of authenticity.

Website and Ordering:

The 39dollarglasses website remains excellent - particularly for first time buyers. Much of the site is very step-by-step that's simple and non-complicated, but with loads of information available when desired. Finding a frame is actually very quick, in part due to the organization on the site. As soon as you choose a frame, the next page gives some basic measurements, and includes a "Smartfit" section on the same page which lets you browse between 12 different faces (6 male, 6 female) to see how glasses look on different face shapes. They also have a PDF file you can download and print, cut out, and then put against your face and check out in a mirror if you want to get an idea of how they'll look on you. It's worth noting that they do not have a system to upload your own picture the way some other sites do. You'll have to make do with the multiple faces and/or the PDF printout which I suspect will be enough for most.

Going through each option step-by-step, just about anything someone might not know is usually clickable for a small popup with detailed information. How to take a PD measurement, details about each lens (what Polycarbonate is, what Transitions lenses are) etc. Again, something that caters heavily towards first time buyers and is likely to be a great source of info for most of them. You can go through the order process and simply order as a guest, or you can log in. If you choose your currency (the "currency" link at the top), all prices will show the cost in your local currency as well - for example $39.00 US (CAD $38.57). Unfortunately, the currency exchanger is not up to date at this time (the exchange rate in my case was way off). All in all, their ordering process is one of the best I've come across.

Pricing and Value:

Single-vision glasses come to $39.00 complete with UV protection and scratch-resistance. Bi-focals come to $79.00 ($89.00 for progressives) and also include UV protection and scratch-resistance. Tint is offered in 7 colors (brown, grey, G-15, blue, rose, orange, yellow), but adds to the price. Transitions is offered in Brown or Grey.

Despite the basic offerings being priced higher than most other retailers, the fact that your $39.00 gets you polycarbonate lenses makes it a pretty reasonable deal. Stepping up to anything other than a non-basic lens starts to get pricey quite quickly though. This probably isn't the place for someone simply looking for a backup pair of glasses, since you can get a basic pair of glass or CR39 lenses/frames complete with an AR coating for less elsewhere. If you're new to online shipping, are looking for polycarbonate and/or name-brand lenses, or are planning on using a FSA account, 39 dollar glasses is definitely worth checking out.

Pricing shown is for the basic metal/plastic frames. Other frames are available (bendable titanium, rimless, etc) but are not shown in this chart.

Total price for basic single-vision frames/lenses after shipping is $43.95 within the US, $51.95 internationally.
Total price for basic bi-focal frames/lenses after shipping is $83.95 within the US, $91.95 internationally.
Total price for basic progressive frames/lenses after shipping is $93.95 within the US, $101.95 internationally.
Ordering 2+ pairs, or spending over $100 reduces the shipping cost within the US by $5 (making basic shipping free).

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