6 Reasons Why Buying Cheap Glasses Online May Be the Worst Deal Ever

While shopping online for glasses, you may have come across ads for deeply discounted frames, sunglasses, or prescription lenses from other retail websites.

Considering how expensive prescription lenses and frames have the potential to be, you’re probably super tempted to give one of these discount sites a try.

Just remember: You always get what you pay for.

Though these sites promise to deliver the same high-quality frames at a fraction of the price of reputable eyewear retailers, more customers are learning the difference between saving a bit of cash and getting what you really want.

Let’s talk about the top 6 reasons you shouldn’t trust your glasses to just any online retailer:

1. You Never Know the Quality You’re Really Paying For

Browse our selection of glasses online at Glasses Gallery and you’ll notice an expertly curated selection of high-quality designer brands and frames.

While certain customers think brand names aren’t necessary when it comes to glasses as long as the frames function the same, they’re missing the boat on quality.

See, even though those cheaper glasses look similar to the real deal, they don’t have nearly the same high standards or quality control larger brands pride themselves on.

Just like everything from clothes to shoes to computers, quality should be your number one requirement when making an expensive purchase.

Cheap frames are quick to scratch, scuff, and show damage since their low-quality materials aren’t strong or durable enough to withstand all life throws your way.

Don’t be surprised if your cheap plastic frames warp or get faded and bleached out by the sun’s powerful UV rays either.

Their once smooth finish may also start to crack, splinter, and develop rough spots the more often you wear and clean them.

Cheap metal frames are no better.

These often contain nickel alloys — the same material used in low-quality costume jewelry. Frames made of these can cause skin irritation and may even discolor your skin to that gross green color fake jewelry leaves behind.

People are highly sensitive to these materials, but what’s even worse is that there have been reports of cheap eyeglasses and sunglasses being recalled due to containing toxic substances like lead paint.

Surely materials like that won’t be listed in the product description so how will you know before you buy?

Even lenses and lens coatings vary dramatically between a professional online retailer and a discount site.

Low-quality coatings will often show signs of smearing, fingerprints, scratches, nicks, and other annoying marks more quickly than those coated in a high-quality substance.

Furthermore, these budget coatings typically don’t last as long as your prescription and will rub off over a very short period of time.

2. Multiple Cheap Pairs Don’t Equate to One High-Quality Pair

Cheap glasses are so affordable you may be tempted to buy more than one pair or get lured into a BOGO option where several pairs arrive at your doorstep for the price of one luxury frame.

But what good is having a few pairs you’re not crazy about that will only last a few weeks when you could have a high-quality pair of glasses that not only look like a million bucks, but outlast your prescription too?

3. More Random Choices, More Problems

Ever notice that online discount sites make it really difficult to navigate your options?

It’s like they purposely stock thousands of frames to sell to everyone with an internet connection. This only makes it more confusing for you to compare choices you’re really interested in.

We don’t believe in that mentality here at Glasses Gallery.

We take the time to handpick and curate the best selection of glasses, sunglasses, and sports glasses from brands you know and love.

That means you spend less time weeding through hundreds of pages of junk and more time watching crazy cat videos.

4. Virtual Try-Ons and Try-Ons At Home Don’t Work as Well as They Claim

You may think it’s great that you can upload a photo of yourself or use your webcam to help you virtually try on frames from online glasses stores, but this works fewer times than you may think.

Virtual try-ons have their ups and downs because while you can get a general idea for how the dimensions of those frames will work with your face, you don’t know how accurate those measurements really are.

There are so many variables to consider (not to mention the coding and algorithms used to transpose the actual dimensions to your face correctly) that you won’t ever have a true idea of fit.

The frames may be larger or smaller in reality and the colors may look totally different in the virtual try-on than they do in person or in professional photographs.

Even if you have a reference point for how you think those frames will fit on your face, you still don’t know how heavy they are, or if they’ll fit well after your prescription lenses are inserted.

These tools only distract from the fact that cheap glasses sites don’t really care about how well your glasses fit — only that you buy them.

5. There’s Zero Focus on Fit

Cheap glasses sites don’t pay as much attention to the measurements used to determine your best-fitting glasses as those focused on quality.

But if the fit of your glasses is wrong, your frames will not only be uncomfortable, they may also damage your health and vision by being worn incorrectly.

Glasses Gallery describes the measurements of every frame’s lens height and width, frame width, bridge width, and temple length. We even explain how to use these measurements to find the perfect frames.

We know how important fit is so we’ll strive to get it right for you.

6. When they Go Out of Business, Your Warranty is Useless

Cheap online glasses sites often offer their potential customers a warranty on their glasses and lenses to convince visitors to trust their products and make a purchase.

But if the company isn’t trustworthy or reliable, the chances of them being around long enough to deal with a warranty issue are slim.

Trust the Experts at Glasses Gallery with Your Vision Today

We know at least 5 reasons to start buying your glasses online, but you should only take this advice if you’re planning to buy from a respected leader in the eyewear industry.

No one wants to spend more than they have to on the expensive items they need most, including prescription glasses, sunglasses, and sports glasses.

But even if you save a little money upfront, you won’t have a high-quality frame that will last or even look as good as advertised online.

So in the end, is it worth worrying about your purchase and experiencing buyer’s remorse or is it better to have the peace of mind a trustworthy company dedicated to the luxury eyewear market can deliver?

Check out our selection of frames and lenses for men, women, and children at Glasses Gallery now to see the difference for yourself.

Have a discount glasses horror story you’d like to share? Let us know what went wrong when you made the mistake of choosing cheap glasses or lenses!