Best Hipster Glasses To Buy Online: Prescription & Fashion Frames For Men & Women

What Are the Best Hipster Glasses To Buy Online?

If you’re looking for hipster glasses, we’ve lined up the 5 best frames out of over 20 that we’ve tried below. We have carefully detailed their construction, style and quality as well as how comfortable they are to wear.

As there are many online glasses outlets these days, we have only listed glasses we’ve tried from retailers that we trust. Each of the glasses feature the distinctive retro vibe that you would expect from a hipster style.

Although we place on accent on the best hipster glasses frames for men, note that styles are often unisex and these apply to women as well. Furthermore, even if you have luxurious and fashionable taste, rest assured that we have catered to all budgets.

1. EyeBuyDirect “Daydream” Round Glasses

• Price: $29 [Buy Now]
• Country Of Origin: USA
• Brand: Eye Buy Direct
• Material: Metal
• Measurements: 50-22-145
• Frame Fit: Medium
• Prescription Options: Single Vision, Bifocal & Progressive
• Lenses Available: Clear
• Free Try At Home? No

We absolutely love these delicate round frames from Eye Buy Direct. Named the “Daydream”, their refined structure is nostalgic and reminiscent of eyewear before plastic materials became the norm.

For a whimsical intellectual look, these are a great choice and due to their wire-thin frames, would suit most face shapes. These would be perfect with a button-up shirt and varsity jacket for that 1940s college student appearance.

If you’re looking for something a little more vintage than wayfarers, these rounds are a subtle and romantic choice. You can even choose to go a bit oversize to release your inner Harry Potter without taking it too far.

Furthermore, at only $29 on Eye Buy Direct, they’re quite inexpensive, which makes them ideal for everyday wear.

2. Glasses USA “Talent” Tortoise Square Glasses

• Price: $105 [Buy Now]
• Country Of Origin: USA
• Brand: Glasses USA
• Material: Acetate
• Measurements: 58-19-150
• Frame Fit: Large
• Prescription Options: Single Vision, Bifocal & Progressive
• Lenses Available: Clear
• Free Try At Home? No

If you’re looking for a decidedly oversized look, Glasses USA’s Talent frames are a fantastic choice. Made from premium acetate with a thick build, they’re hard wearing and robust.

These frames sport a dark tortoiseshell that is almost leopard print in design. Whether you genuinely love them or want to wear them ironically, they’re very eye-catching and will certainly turn heads.

However, if you don’t want to oversize and you have a larger head with round features, these are a great choice too. Their rectangle edges will harden the softness of your face and make it appear squarer in shape.

Finally, they are a little pricier at $105 on Glasses USA. However, given their premium quality and materials, they’ll last you for years!

3. Warby Parker “Percey” Keyhold Bridge Glasses

• Price: $95 [Buy Now]
• Country Of Origin: USA
• Brand: Warby Parker
• Material: Acetate
• Measurements: 48-20-140
• Frame Fit: Medium
• Prescription Options: Single Vision, Bifocal & Progressive
• Lenses Available: Clear & Light Responsive
• Free Try At Home? Yes

For something a little different and wonderfully vintage, the Percey by Warby Parker caught our eye (so to speak). They’re available in several different colours such as crystal, chestnut and striped sassafras. However, we quite liked the two-one effect of the mission clay fade.

What makes these particular frames interesting is the keyhole bridge that comfortably sits on the nose. This vintage style was common on glasses made from horn but fell out of fashion due to nose tips and plastic wayfarers.

They’re also a good, modest size so if you’re looking for something that properly fits, they’re an excellent choice. They’ll subtly complement your features and stand out due to their design rather than their thickness.

You can find these on Warby Parker for only $95. Although this may sound pricey, it’s quite cheap compared to many of Warby Parker’s other options and still comes with the same quality.

4. EyeBuyDirect.com Wayfarer Glasses

• Price: From $15 [Buy Now]
• Country Of Origin: USA
• Brand: Ray Ban
• Material: Acetate
• Measurements: 50-17-140
• Frame Fit: Medium
• Prescription Options: Single Vision, Bifocal & Progressive
• Lenses Available: Clear & Sunglasses
• Free Try At Home? No

If you’re in the market for a new pair of hipster-style glasses and haven’t yet checked out EyeBuyDirect, you’re missing out.

Not only is their site clean and soothing, making for an enjoyable shopping experience, but they also offer high-quality frames at affordable prices. One of our favorite things about Eye Buy Direct is that you can find unique designs without breaking the bank. In fact, we’ve ordered from EBD numerous times in the past and continue to wear their glasses regularly.

With production times for single-vision lenses as quick as 3 days and shipping in just 7, you won’t have to wait long to get your new glasses. Head to Eye Buy Direct’s website to see for yourself why they’re a top choice for online glasses shopping.

5. Zenni Optical Browline Glasses

• Price: $29.95 [Buy Now]
• Country Of Origin: USA
• Brand: Zenni
• Material: Acetate
• Measurements: 47-21-144
• Frame Fit: Medium
• Prescription Options: Single Vision, Bifocal & Progressive
• Lenses Available: Clear & Sunglasses
• Free Try At Home? No

We featured these fascinating little frames from Zenni among our best browlines but they’re also fantastic as so-called hipster glasses.

On most browline frames, Zenni have adopted a “mono” design. This means that the acetate temples and brows appear as a single piece across the whole frame. Furthermore, they’re also semi-rimless as the faux-wood acetate browline holds the lenses in place.

We really loved this faux-wood effect and it’s hard to tell acetate at all, which really adds to the rustic retro aesthetic. These would contrast nicely against pale, cool skin but also create a wonderful consistency with dark, warm tones too.

Like Warby Parker’s hipster style glasses, these feature a keyhole bridge that sits comfortably on the nose. If you’re aspiring for a style that’s a little different and you want to stand out on a budget, they’re a great choice.

Finally, at just under $30 on Zenni, these offer great value. If you’re looking for a stylish yet affordable retro frame, we couldn’t recommend them more.

What Is A Hipster?

Derived from the word “hip”, hipsters were people who lived life to the full during the 1940s jazz age. Today, it refers to anyone who strives to go against the grain and value independent thinking.

With anti-consumerism at the forefront of their philosophy, hipsters often turned to small brands, emerging music and vintage clothes for everyday life. Therefore, they gained an appreciation for obscure bands, independent food and drink brands as well as thrift store fashion.

As the cultural phenomenon grew, hipsters became associated with the latest trends and fashions that distanced themselves from the popular mainstream. Although originally a movement of forward fashion and counterculture, the term is widely used for styles that are contemporary with a retro influence.

What Are Hipster Glasses?

As defined above, hipsters embrace retro fashion styles and vintage aesthetics. When it comes to glasses, the principles remain exactly the same.

However, it’s difficult to find vintage glasses and fit them with prescription lenses. Therefore, many of those that lavish forward fashion and the hipster revival scene turn to new glasses that cater to their tastes.

Nevertheless, many of the styles are very much the same today. In fact, as hipster glasses have been drawn into mainstream fashion, they’re a very popular choice.

Whether you liked them before they were cool or not, it seem that hipster glasses are here to stay!

Big Plastic Hipster Frames

Specifically for men, hipster glasses a mostly associated with the rise of injection-moulded plastic frames that became popular during the early 1950s.

In those days, frames were often quite large by necessity and their sizes weren’t reduced until many years later when technology allowed it.

However, the aesthetic has remained anchored in this period. Therefore, big frames are often seen as retro and are consequently a hipster choice.

For instance, glasses similar to Buddy Holly’s oversized squares are quintessentially hipster today as are the wayfarers famously worn by Michael Caine.

Metal Round Spectacles

Although a popular choice for women, large spectacles have also become a choice for hipster men too. Made from metal rather than plastic, they’re a throwback to a more vintage and are more anchored in the 1930s and 1940s.

Today, they’re worn almost as a parody in that the frames are very big, which is a hallmark of the hipster style that essentially caricatures the past. At first, they were perhaps worn ironically. However, today they’ve integrated fashion as a cool hipster glasses style.

Specific Frame Styles

If you’re looking for a very specific frame style, bear in mind that these do indeed have names and their own unique history. Below is a list of glasses frames that are the most associated with hipster fashion:

• Wayfarer Frames
• Square Frames
• Cat Eye Frames
• Browline Frames
• Flat Top Frames
• Round Frames
• Oversized Glasses
• Frames With Keyhole Bridges

If you didn’t find the best hipster glasses for you in the top 5, you can refer to any of the guides in the links above. Each guide features our recommendations specifically for those frames!

What Next?

Now that you have read about where to buy stylish hipster eyewear online, check out some of our related guides for finding the right pair for you:

• Best Glasses Frame Styles For Men
• How To Choose Glasses According To Your Face Shape
• Different Glasses Lens Types
• How Eyeglasses Should Properly Fit

However, if you’re still unsure of what you want, head back to the top to peruse our specific recommendations for style or price.