Lens.com review

An established player in the contact lens sector for over 20 years, Lens.com comes with a proven track record.

Top Ten Reviews Verdict

Despite its basic website, Lens.com is a solid and long-standing retailer of quality contact lenses at great prices.

Pros

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    Well established

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    Simple website

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    Great returns policy

Cons

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    No mod cons

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    Old-fashioned

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Lens.com has been an established player in the contact lens sector for over 20 years. The site is straightforward, but looks old and is a little inflexible, like it’s in need of a refresh, both aesthetically and in functionality. 

Lens.com doesn’t offer subscriptions, but is an out-of-network provider for the major optical insurers, so check your plan to see if you’re covered. Quoted savings often include rebates, which can be significant, but you’re obliged to claim them later yourself. The money-back guarantee and returns policy are the most robust in the business. As long as your contacts are unopened and in-date you’re covered. Old fashioned and a little creaky, Lens.com has good prices and a simple site, though you may be in for a little legwork. That's why it just misses out on our list of the best online contact lenses sites.

Lens.com review: Prices and offers

As well as a 90s site, you’d be forgiven for thinking the prices were a couple of decades out of date too. They’re keen, and only kept from being amongst the keenest as they don’t offer the discount that a subscription would provide. That’s a shame, as rock bottom prices would have more than made up for other shortcomings.

Like so many other contacts sites, the strange practice of buying full price contacts then claiming a rebate rears its head here. It confuses your on-the-go value calculator as you try to compare sites, and advertised savings with an asterisk that says ‘after rebate’ in tiny red letters doesn’t help. This system is built-in to the contact lens model, but there are clearer ways of dealing with it than are used here.

Customer service is front and center, with the best and simplest money back guarantee and no-quibble returns policies out there. Like many contacts sellers, the rebate system is clunky and annoying to navigate, but they deal with insurers as well as HSA and FSA cards for prescription lenses.

Lens.com review: Features and website

Shopping on Lens.com is like walking into the past. The site looks like a relic from the late 90s, and doesn’t do much that the old Web 1.0 sites couldn’t offer. This isn’t nearly the problem it could be with some other sites, as it’s not trying to do anything too complex, just sell you contact lenses at a good price, something it succeeds at brilliantly. 

Lens.com started trading in 1995 and has been going strong ever since. It doesn’t aspire to the technical gadgets or fireworks that the whippersnappers have, it’s doing it its own way. Old fashioned isn’t a compliment for the website, but it most definitely is for the customer service, which is unmatched.

There’s no getting past the fact that Lens.com’s website just isn’t the most modern or most attractive. We half-expected to see animated gifs and flashing banner ads. Their web chat tool detected that we needed help (we were scrolling down the page, quite happily browsing) and opened a pop-up window to aggressively offer help, following me around the store like a bored rent-a-cop. The site simple mission is its savior. It wants to sell you contacts, and then sell you more contacts. The prices help no end with that.

Where Lens.com really shines is its generous and comprehensive customer service. It offers a no-quibble money back guarantee on you purchases. Returns, as long as your boxes are intact and in-date are accepted without question. Live chat is available 24 hours a day and there a toll-free number if you’d prefer to talk in person. Online contact lenses isn’t a field you’d expect to come with such excellent, personal service so this is particularly welcome.

Lens.com

(Image credit: Lens.com)

The simple site makes the lack of facilities all the more visible. There’s no subscription service, which is quickly becoming the norm, and by far the most convenient way of doing business. There is no offer to talk to your doctor’s surgery. You can email your prescription in, or use their toll-free fax number. If you can find a fax machine. Check your grampa’s garage or a thrift store. 

Should I use Lens.com?

If you can look past lens.com’s aesthetic and technical shortcomings, it’s a solid and long-standing retailer of quality contact lenses at really keen prices. The customer service knocks it out of the park, comfortable outdoing its rivals in every department. If your prescription changes often or you’re worried you’ll be stuck with a mistakenly ordered set of contacts, lens.com is you best choice.

Hazel Davis

Hazel is a freelance writer and editor who has written for Business Insider, The Guardian, Creative Bloq, The Times and, of course, Top Ten Reviews. While Hazel covers many different 'beats', including fitness and finance, for us she entered the colorful world of online glasses and contact lenses. As such, Hazel has reviewed some of the biggest eyewear brands in America, all to help readers figure out where best to spend their money (and FSA dollars). Recently, Hazel has rejoined us as a freelance writer covering other aspects of online living and learning.