If you’ve ever tried to purchase glasses online, you’ve probably come across Zenni. And while it’s easy to see that Zenni has an extensive & stylish selection, buying glasses sight unseen can feel like a gamble when it comes to quality.
For this reason, and after placing an order of more than 20 glasses from Zenni, I’ve put together the following review. In it, I’ll be discussing not only the quality of Zenni glasses but also the order process and value proposition via the following sections:
Use the links above to jump to a specific section or continue scrolling to read it all!
Watch The Zenni Video Review
Before Ordering Glasses From Zenni…
Prior to ordering from Zenni or any online glasses retailer, there are a few things to keep in mind.
First and foremost, if you plan on ordering prescription glasses from Zenni, you’ll need a valid prescription from an ophthalmologist. Once you’re set on your eyeglasses prescription, it’s time to browse.
This isn’t even all of the glasses I ordered!
When browsing online for glasses, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of options. As of this review, Zenni currently has 887 pairs of glasses for men, and this is just a single retailer. To avoid feeling paralyzed by the large selection, consider the following points for narrowing down your next pair of glasses:
Occasion
Determining where you’re going to be using the glasses is an easy way of narrowing down your search. For instance, if you’re looking for glasses to use at work or in your daily life, you’re likely not going to opt for the more eccentric frame shapes or colors.
Style
If shopping for glasses (online or in-store) has been a painful endeavor for you in the past, it’s likely that you’ve never considered which frame styles & sizes are the best for your head & face shape. Indeed, there are some general rules as to which frames look best on each face shape, and we’ve covered it in our guide to How Glasses Should Fit.
Once you know which types of frame styles are best for you, you’ll be able to concentrate on the frame shapes that are most suited to you and largely discard the rest.
Budget
Filtering by budget is the easiest way of ruling out glasses that you know you won’t purchase.
However, Zenni doesn’t currently have a price filter on its website, which is why I mention this after the other filtering factors. Once you’ve narrowed down the potential candidates via occasion & style, you can use the Sort function to focus on your ideal price range.
Zenni Glasses Prices & Selection
As alluded to previously, Zenni has nearly 1000 different frames in its online inventory. Aside from varied, Zenni’s glasses are also very reasonably priced, especially when compared to brick-and-mortar retailers or even other online glasses sellers.
As you can see by the pictures I’ve included here, I placed a relatively large order from Zenni which amounted to about 20 pairs of glasses. What I like the most about Zenni is that their prices & varied selection allow me to have some fun with glasses, and this is something I suggest you try for yourself.
I’m not saying you should go out and buy as many pairs as I did; in fact, once the package was delivered and I had 20 new pairs of glasses in front of me, I did think that I might have gone a bit overboard. However, I highly recommend straying outside of your glasses comfort zone, and Zenni’s affordable prices allowed me to try out funkier frames and glass tints that I hadn’t really considered in the past.
Zenni Order Process
Ordering from Zenni is about as easy as ordering from any other e-commerce store, though there are some additional steps given the nature of the product.
Once you’ve settled on the pair of glasses you want to buy, you’ll have to decide on the lens, with Zenni offering Prescription, Non-Prescription, and Readers. I’ve only ever needed simple single-vision prescription glasses, which has helped me keep the cost of my glasses down.
Additionally, I didn’t select any of the additional Lens finishes that Zenni offers, such as anti-fog or blue-blockers, as these will also result in more expensive glasses. These may be something you want to consider, but I’ve never needed them given that I tend to keep my glasses in rotation.
Lastly, Zenni allows you to pick between sunglasses or regular glasses, with the former category having one of the largest selections of tint that I’ve come across to date. They also have mirror-finish sunglasses in a number of different colors, and I purchased basically one in each color, so you can use my image above to see which one you like the best.
After you’ve finalized your selections, Zenni will give you the option of saving your prescription to your account, something I’ve found to be particularly convenient as my prescription hasn’t changed in many years.
How Long Does Zenni Shipping Take?
Once you’ve placed your order, all that’s left is to wait for your new pair of glasses to arrive.
In past times when I ordered from Zenni, the glasses usually took about two weeks to be delivered. It’s not particularly fast, but it makes sense given that the prescription glasses may have to be manufactured to a customer’s exact specifications.
With this in mind, I was glad to see that this last order was delivered in 10 days. I thought it might take a bit longer than usual given the size of my order, but this was not the case.
What’s In The Box?
All of my Zenni glasses were delivered in individual protective cases. Inside each of the plastic cases were the glasses themselves, a cleaning cloth, and a device for measuring pupillary distance.
While the pupillary distance ruler seemed a bit unnecessary to me, the case was a nice detail as it’s genuinely useful when traveling with the glasses. And thanks to Zenni’s Rewards Program, I also received a couple of Zenni’s vegetable leather cases which are a bit nicer than the standard plastic case.
Are Zenni Glasses Good Quality?
With prescription glasses at other retailers selling for $100+, the price of Zenni glasses can lead one to assume that they’re of inferior quality; I certainly doubted their durability before I ever placed an order.
Different Frame Materials & Construction
However, I continue to be surprised by how well Zenni glasses hold up. I’ve used both the plastic and the metal-frame Zenni glasses, as well as tried many different types of lenses, and have absolutely no quality issues to share.
I will reiterate that I have a large collection of glasses, so no single pair is worn too regularly, but I’ve never had a lens pop out or any other critical failure that renders my pair of Zennis unusable.
Looking back, I can see that on average I’ve spent about $26 per pair of Zenni glasses that I’ve purchased, and considering how much I’ve worn them, I’d say that Zenni offers great quality for the price. Most importantly for me, and as I mentioned earlier, this price point lets me purchase prescription glasses that are a bit more playful than those I’d purchase if the price was significantly higher.
Zenni Rewards Program
Like many other online glasses retailers, Zenni offers a referral and rewards program.
When it comes to referrals, if someone buys a pair with your link, both parties will receive $5 in credit toward a future Zenni purchase. On the rewards front, Zenni essentially has a 3-tier system based on how much you spend above $66 in a 12-month period.
Free Glasses Cases From Zenni Rewards Program
While all three tiers receive free US standard shipping and some sort of birthday promotion, the second ($99+) & third ($199+) tiers receive a $10 coupon per 12-month period. The third tier also offers additional perks including exclusive promos, access to early launches, and free veg-leather glasses cases like you see in the picture above.
For a full breakdown of Zenni’s Loyalty Program, click here.
Final Thoughts On Zenni Optical
It may be fairly evident at this point that I’m a big fan of Zenni Optical and will readily recommend anyone looking for glasses to give them a chance.
León, Nicaragua
Not all of the sunglasses or prescription glasses in my collection are from Zenni, so I certainly have experience with other brands. Yet, I haven’t found another manufacturer that exceeds the quality and price proposition from Zenni, whether that be online or in-store. The only slight caveat here is that I’m fortunate that I only need single-vision prescription lenses, so it’s possible that others with more advanced vision conditions may not find as much value in Zenni as I do.
Further Reading
If you enjoyed my review of Zenni Glasses, make sure to check out some of our other glasses content below:
"As a result of their seemingly endless selection, sturdy construction, and competitive prices, Zenni glasses offer the best value that I've been able to find in men's glasses."
Glasses Content
I love Zenni! My last 4 pairs were from there.
I agree with Paul here 100% – they’re a great value and let one get a couple different frames to try out different styles.
Rafael