Update: See my review of Zenni Optical, my next attempt at cheap glasses ordering, here
The title might be kind of a spoiler here.
Let me say first that I am not an especially difficult to please consumer. I never send food back at restaurants. I’m terrible at haggling over prices at garage sales. And, in my 14 months of blogging here, I’ve never written a negative review of anything. So what I’m getting at is that I had to be pretty much monumentally dissatisfied to actually write this.
Dave, Ari, and I all needed new glasses. Mine were about a million years old and had a stripped screw on one side that couldn’t be tightened at all. Dave’s were in rough shape, too, and he wanted to get some more Tenth Doctor-ish glasses for Halloween. Ari was getting his very first glasses; we’d taken him to the eye doctor after he started getting a lot of headaches. Just a matter of time with the genes we passed on, poor kids.
Dave’s last glasses came from 39DollarGlasses.com, and everything went smoothly. In fact, because I Β never clean out my inbox, I was able to take a look at my e-mails from them from back in 2009 and see that we paid for overnight shipping (we were, I believe, about to leave for vacation, and I was worried they’d arrive too late) and that the glasses were shipped out the very next day after we ordered them. The glasses themselves have been completely fine, although now, four years later, some of the protective coating seems be coming off.
So I didn’t hesitate to order from them again. And I fully expected to be here a bit later, happily typing a positive review whilst wearing my new glasses. Well.
The ordering process went smoothly. They have a thing where you can upload a picture of yourself and try the glasses on your fake self. They have a million or so different styles of glasses to choose from. The most Tenth Doctor-y ones for Dave were actually $59, I believe, but there is a good selection of frames that are really and truly $39. And they were running a $15 off every pair of glasses promotion, so, all told, we paid something like $108 including an upgrade to two day shipping for three pairs of glasses. So far so good.
The FAQ on the website says:
Orders with single vision lenses are typically processed and completed in 3-5 business days. If you choose lenses that require more complex processing, such as progressive lenses, bifocals, tinting, or other specialty lenses, we will process and complete those orders on average in 5-7 business days. Once the order is completed it will be shipped by the method you have chosen.
Pretty clear, right? All of our lenses were very standard, boring, nothing complex or special, so, what with my two day shipping, we should have them in a week or so, one would expect.
No.
First, I waited nearly two weeks. I kept checking the status of the order, and it kept telling me that two pairs of glasses were all ready to ship and that the third pair was almost finished. And it just stayed like that day after day after day.
I finally sent an e-mail, asking what was up. The online submission form said I’d hear back within one business day. I didn’t.
I started an online chat with them. They told me my glasses would go out the next day. They didn’t.
I sent another e-mail. I wasn’t rude, but I laid out my issues. I had made my decision to order based on how long they said the glasses would take to ship. My kid has headaches every day because he doesn’t have glasses. Clearly time was a priority for me, or I wouldn’t have paid for two day shipping.
Now, let me emphasize again that I am pretty easy to please. I understand that sometimes mistakes get made, delays happen, etc. Even at this point, any kind of sincere apology and token gesture would have satisfied me. Maybe a refund of the extra money I paid for two day shipping (shipping would have been free if I’d gotten standard shipping, and, of course, I STILL would have expected my glasses to arrive way sooner than they did). Maybe an upgrade to overnight shipping….which would have been nice, since the glasses wound up shipping on Thursday, meaning it took until Monday for them to arrive with the 2 day air.
Here’s what they sent back:
Thank you for choosing 39dollarglasses.com. We apologize, but we do not show that you emailed over the weekend. We do have notes that you contacted us on October 29 via Live Chat for status. The order has been completed and will be shipping from our facility this evening.
And that was it. I was a little stunned actually by how little they seemed to give a crap. First there was the non-apology apology: “we’re really sorry that you think you e-mailed us the other day, bless your heart.” Then the implication that the fact that they didn’t respond to the first e-mail was my biggest concern here. And then the complete failure to offer any excuse or apology for the delay or to make up for it any way.
So, in short (ha! I don’t do “in short”)….39 Dollar Glasses FAILS customer service 101. The glasses arrived three full weeks after I ordered them. Dave did not have his glasses in time for Halloween. Halloween was pretty much RUINED. Not really–that part about Halloween. But he was a little bummed.
And the glasses? Eh…they’re fine. Any issues with them are built in hazards of online glasses ordering; Ari’s are too big for him, and I think we’re going to need to just go get him a pair at a real place and use these for a back up. They came in hard cases but just stuffed in a thin cardstock envelope–no padding or anything–I can easily imagine them getting damaged in transit and I hate to think what a nightmare it would be to try to return them and get replacements.
Here are the glasses:
Left to right: Dave’s, mine, Ari’s. I ordered pretty much exactly the same frames I’ve been wearing since college, and no one has even noticed I got new glasses.
Needless to say, I won’t be ordering from 39 Dollar Glasses again.
But I also can’t really go back to just buying glasses at the eye doctor; the price difference is just too big. I think I paid something like $300 for my old glasses. I am going to need to go that route for Ari, first time glasses wearer and possessor of an in between child and adult sized head. But for me and Dave (and maybe future Ari), I’ll be in the market for a new place to order cheap glasses next time around.
Here are a few contenders…put forth without endorsement, as I have no experience with any of them. If you do, or know of some other places, please chime in in the comments!
Zenni Optical: this seems to be the big, well-known one. Prices start super, super cheap. And they say right up front that the glasses will take 2-3 weeks to arrive with standard shipping. That’s all I’m asking for: the truth!
Warby Parker: looks like their deal is “we’re more expensive, but hipper!” Glasses start at $95.
Incidentally, many of these sites list the shipping time as being as long as 2 or 3 weeks. Had I gotten the same information from 39 Dollar Glasses, I probably would have gone ahead and ordered mine and Dave’s glasses from them, but gotten Ari’s from somewhere that promised a faster turnaround time. But it would have been nice to have had honest information with which to make my decision. If I were a cynical person, I might suspect that 39 Dollar Glasses deliberately underestimates their shipping time to get people to choose them over their competitors based on false information.
Oh no! Sorry for all this. My hubby has glasses too and we do the expensive ones.
But at least you have your blog to vent on . Don’t you just love to let it all out publicly? I sure do π
lol–I almost felt guilty when I published it….as if 39 Dollar Glasses is some little mom and pop store, and one bad review will drive them into bankruptcy. But I got over it π
These lenses are crap. Mine have started to delaminate – separate! I have kept them clean with soap & water or the spray from the Dr’s office, but it is as if it has a thin plastic cover and the glue gave out. It now has many spots and bubbles! I’ve worn eyeglasses for over 20 years and purchased from many different stores/vendors. I have NEVER seen anything like this problem – Terrible manufacturing.
39DollarGlasses response: It’s been over 30 days – That warranty is useless!!
odd which lens did you purchase from 39dollarglasses? Mine are more than 4 yars old and still look good as new. They are offering a very good lens brand . It sounds like you purchased additional protective coatings considering the problem you stated. If you want it to last general rule of thumb is if it is not built into with the lens by the lens company then do not purchase it. Any kind of coating on top of the actual lens will start to peel in about a year no matter which brand. I used Zeiess, Seiko, and Nikon. I chose different coatings on the Zeiess and one of my Nikon lens glasses and within a year I saw spots and peeling on the lens. In my 2nd Niko I opted out of the additional coatings and Seiko and both those had no indications of these issues even 4 years later.
I’ve used Zenni Optical in the past and had really good experiences with them. After loosing two pairs of expensive prescription ray bans, its been really nice to find an inexpensive alternative. I haven’t lost my cheap $30 pair yet. Go figure.
Ha–isn’t that always the way?! Good to hear about Zenni Optical….they seem to be cheaper than 39dollarglasses, too!
We order all my husband’s glasses from Zenni. And I use my FSA to pay for them. We’ve had really good luck with them.
Thanks–good to know!
I’ve been as happy with the Zenni glasses as I ever was with 39dollar ones. Actually, Zenni did something extra the other place didn’t do – they made sure my odd prescription had been typed in correctly before they manufactured the glasses for me.
Zenni seems to have a lot of fans!
Ugh boo for crappy customer service. I hear Warby Parker has great glasses. I think they will even send you samples to try. I believe Nick did that once. We both have the exact same pair of Moscots that we got from New York when we went there, so we can’t wear our glasses at the same time. Too nerdy. Mine are gray and his are tortoise shell, but still too close for us to wear them at the same time!
LOL! We were looking at the same frames I have for Dave’s Doctor Who glasses, but we just couldn’t do it!
This is good to know as I will be getting glasses for the first time ever….you are too funny about your consumerism! I too have a hard time talking down the price! Thanks for the great information!
What a major bummer! There’s only one bad review I’ve ever written on my blog, and I felt so bad for writing it. BUT sometimes people just need to know. I’m sorry you had such a bad experience. π Thanks for sharing though!
This totally stinks. I have serious issues with poor customer service. And it sounds like you had a doozie.
We’ve ordered from Zenni’s a few times for various family members and recommended them to friends and everyone’s always been thrilled. As I type, I’m wearing my 3+-years-old glasses that cost me a grand total of 6.95. (Well, OK, there was the $5 shipping.) I actually ordered THREE pairs of the glasses from the cheaper end of the scale–the total was still so much less than I’d pay anywhere else that it was worth paying extra to know that one would work.
Never had any issues with an order so can’t tell you much about their CS.
Thanks for the review! I think I’m convinced to go with Zenni next time–everyone I’ve heard from has been happy with them
Thanks for sharing! I hate when companies don’t disclose timelines properly and even more so when they could care less about the problem!
I’ve had mine from zenni’s for a little over 3 years & got a regular pair & tinted sunglasses for a total of $40 or $45 from them. It’s about time for me to order new ones, but only because I can’t see, not because the glasses are in bad shape- just my eyes! I always upgrade to the scratch-resistant/anti-glare coating.
I think maybe I shied away from Zenni because they’re SO cheap….but I’ve heard nothing but good things π
It’s important to leave negative feedback so that companies who goof are held accountable to make customer experience first priority.
It’s also important to not blow things out of proportion. Companies like Zenni and 39dollarglasses make mistakes and screw logistics up. Their highly competitive price points ensure there is always a large volume of orders. With such high order volumes, errors will become noticeable even when companies enjoy an overall low error margin.
Additionally, the factors that make online retailers so affordable are the very same factors that increase customer dissatisfaction. Prices are cheap because there is very little overhead (e.g. brick and mortar stores, customer service staff, etc…).
So it makes sense that the combination of high order volume and decreased customer service investment makes issues, rare as they are, much more frustrating for customers. It’s just the price we pay for the price we pay π
Taking all these factors into account, it makes sense that there are as many negative reviews as positive reviews for pretty much every discount eyeglass site. The mixed bag of feedback almost scared me away from ordering online altogether.
In the end, I ordered one pair of eyeglasses, and two pairs of sunglasses online. The sunglasses were from Zenni (standard shipping) and the eyeglasses from 39dollarglasses (two day shipping). The eyeglasses took 4 days to process and ship, and the sunglasses took a week and a half to process and ship. I called customer service for both companies on account of shipping questions, and they were both efficient and polite in answering my questions.
The sunglasses from Zenni, and eyeglasses from 39dollarglasses both arrived in pristine condition with accurate prescriptions. I am very satisfied and happy that I gave both companies a try.
On a final note, I have perceived that there are both advantages and disadvantages to ordering supercheap (Zenni) vs. cheap (39dollarglasses).
The advantages for 39dollarglasses are as follows:
-Very nice hard shell case with quality insulation, compared to much cheaper Zenni plastic
case.
-High quality microfiber cloth, compared to Zenni’s very thin cloth.
-Included adjustment tool (actually too large for some of my frames screws, but a nice gesture
=) )
-100% money back guarantee on returns, compared to Zennies 50% refund. (Haven’t had to
return, but I’ve read mixed reviews from both companies on the matter).
-Really high quality frame, compared to Zenni ($6.95 aviator) frame. Both frames are built
quite well, but the but the hinges and screws feel more sturdy on my 39dollarglasses frame
(Sorrento). (To be fair, I am not sure this is really an advantage. I ordered the cheapest
Zenni has to offer ($6.95 vs $39.00). I have read that Zenni’s more expensive frames (like
$29-$40) are made very well.
-Fast shipping options. Glasses can make it to you faster because they ship from the states.
-I felt totally setup with 39dollarglasses. Having a good quality case, nice cloth, and tool left
me with that fuzzy βIβve got everything I need to keep these nice β feeling. Although I spent
cheap, the product does not at all feel like a compromise.
The advantages for Zenni are as follows:
-Fantastically cheap price ($6.95)
-Anti reflective coat is only $4.95 (compared to $24.95 at 39dollarglasses). I got this coating
on both from both Zenni and 39dollarglasses. The coating is nice from both companies.
-Inexpensive flat shipping price for the entire order.
-more selection than 39dollarglasses, and it looks like they get more seasonal models.
-For the price of one pair of glasses from 39dollarglasses, you can get four or more from
Zenni. This has got to be the nicest advantage to Zenni. If you break or lose emβ, youβll
experience buyers remorse equivalent to impulse purchasing two Big Macs and a Shake.
So there you have it, my 25 cents on the matter. Take the plunge and order from whichever company looks like their offering the product you want most. Your new glasses will most likely be just what you wanted ο
Thanks so much for taking the time to do the Zenni v. 39DollarGlasses comparison; great information to have! And I take your point about low prices/big companies meaning more mistakes. But I’ll also say that I believe I have a very high tolerance for mistakes, but a pretty low tolerance for dishonesty and indifference, which is what I got from 39DollarGlasses. Right around the same time this was going on, I had a comically terrible experience with Barnes and Noble and shipping issues. It took much more time and effort on my part to get that situation resolved, but it never occurred to me to write a negative review about B&N because I felt like the mistakes were honest ones and they genuinely seemed to care about my inconvenience and do their best to fix things. So, essentially, all 39DollarGlasses would have needed to do to keep my business was to act at any point in this process as if they cared at least a little bit about doing so. Personal pet peeve? Maybe, but I doubt I’m the only one, so I felt like it was worth it to put the experience out there. All of that said, I have no complaints about the actual glasses now, four months into wearing them :).
I ordered from 39dollar last night. After I ordered I decided to read reviews on them. == I know, that is backwards, but so am I == I read a lot of reviews that were bad about them, but a product always get more bad reviews than good ones. I like your blog a lot. The review from Danny above was really good. I don’t care about the shipping time, a month is fine. I just could not see paying over $300 at a store for what I can get for $84 at 39dollar. I will come back and tell you how I like them. I have high-hopes. (That would be a good song).
Hope they work out well for you! Yeah, like I mentioned, the glasses themselves are just fine (I’m wearing mine right now!)….the only concern I’d have if I didn’t care about shipping time would be having to deal with their terrible customer service if there were a problem with the glasses that needed to be fixed. I’m sure at least 9 times out of 10 that doesn’t happen though π
This is a follow-up on my glasses. == This is day three after my order. I have been going to the website every day checking on the progress as they make them. Today it says they have completed the lenses, but there was a flaw and they did not pass final testing. I don’t know if I should be glad they found the flaw or I should be sad that this could be an excuse for the long shipping times I have heard about. I will keep you updated.
Hope they make it to you soon! I remember our order got held up on one of the steps for a really long time…like it looked like it was about to ship, but then it just got stuck there.
I am back with another chapter in my 39 dollar glasses quest. == As I said earlier, I ordered them on Aug 12 and Friday Aug 15, received a noticed on the website that they did not pass inspection. They had to make them over. I had expected a long delay, but today I got an email that one week after my order was placed they are on the way to me. Not too bad. I will let you know how the prescription is when they arrive.
I am back with my final installment on my 39 Dollar Glasses Order. — Gretchen, you should change the title of your review and not make it so harsh. I received my glasses 9 days after ordering them. I picked roughly the same frames. They are good quality and are every bit as good as the ones I previously purchased at the optometrist The lenses are a good fit. I am having to adjust to them as they are a bit different from the older ones. I can see TV fine which is a BIG PLUS. They are good, no complaints. I have Progressive Lenses so it was $99 instead of $39. I had a $15 discount coupon when I purchased them. You can get coupons just by Googling for them. I got frames, progressive lenses, a case and even a screw driver to tighten them if they become loose. The whole package including shipping and tax was $88.95. It is hard to beat. The same thing at my optometrist would have been $366.96. You tell me what is the better deal?
Glad you had a good experience, Jim! I’m sure most people who order from them do (and I did, too, the first time I ordered), but I think a company shows its true colors when something goes wrong, not when everything goes smoothly, and bad customer service is a big issue for me, so I stand by my review. I’ve always said I’m perfectly happy with the final product I got, though–my problems were all with their indifferent customer service. I agree that the prices at most brick&mortar optometrists are crazy in comparison; I won’t pay those again, but I will give one of the other low priced online places I mentioned a try instead next time I need glasses. Just my two cents; thanks for sharing your experiences π
I have had a headache with 39 dollar glasses from the start. The first pair they sent me the right bow on the frames had a huge gap in it which took over 3 weeks to inspect and get back to me. After getting them back and wearing them for a month all the protection coating is chipping off the lenses and they informed me it is not under warranty and basically I’m SOL. I have only had them 3 months which includes over 3 weeks of this time sent to them for frame inspecting them so I guess I’m out $244.54. I will never buy from them again. Apparently reading their warranty of 10 days should have been read better on my part!
Oh no! Ours turned out fine once they finally got here, but I would have hated to have to try to deal with the customer service if there had been a problem!
Since I replied last here I purchased a second pair. My first pair were progressive lenses and were hard to use when in my recliner for viewing TV. I got a second pair of single vision for the TV. Again I was pleased with them. I don’t think I would suggest getting bifocal or progressive because a doctor needs to line the lenses up with your eye. Single vision are just fine. I didn’t have a problem with the time shipping on my second pair. Sorry to hear that others have had a problem.
I recommend Firmoo!
I hadn’t heard of that one before; thanks for the suggestion!
I found Costco to be a really good place to get glasses. Mine are trifocals & I get some options so they were several hundred dollars apiece at my old provider. At Costco they were just over $100 and they let me use my old still-perfectly-good frames.
Thanks, Annette–good to know!
Maybe they wrote their reply in brief, but their reply really meant:
“We apologize (for the inconvenience we have caused you), but we do not have a record of your email over the weekend so we cannot immediately reply to it. We know that you contacted us by LiveChat, so we hope our agent was able to resolve your concern in that LiveChat session.
We will shipping the order as soon as possible.”
If you read it while you were already seeing red due to the delay, I can understand why you considered the response to be lacking.
Businesses have to deal with problems from labourers, training new labourers, suppliers, government officials, iffy customers (not you) etc., which cause unexpected delays to their delivery process. Accidents always happen, and nobody can be expected to always be on time, except if you are DHL.
39Glasses specialize in making glasses but not logistics. No matter what the delay or circumstances, they may have spent the extra time to make sure your glasses were built according to specification. They probably did not anticipate to be judged on the basis of logistics or terse customer care replies. Otherwise, they would have sent you an essay.
At least the reply was polite. I have gotten worse from other companies.
Thanks for the comment. I think you may be right that 39 Dollar Glasses just doesn’t focus at all on customer service or communication, but I think that’s a pretty dangerous attitude for a business to take, particularly when they’re priced higher than the competition. Fortunately for me (someone who does care about customer service), there are plenty of alternatives out there. I ordered glasses from Zenni recently, on the basis of a number of recommendations in the comments here, and had a great, trouble free (and cheaper) experience with them.
Thanks for the info. I will try out Zenni as well, when they get some sober frames to fit me face.
Oh how I wish that I had read all of this before I tried 39dollar glasses. I’ve used Zenni and Glasses USA in the past. They’ve both been awesome; however, Zenni is my favorite by far. I needed a new pair for a new prescription due to some eye surgery. My prior prescription was now way off. Like others, I saw that 39dollar claims much faster service than Zenni. So I ordered from and added next day air shipping.
One week passed… I called their customer service and was told that the lenses didn’t pass inspection, but they’ll be shipping them out “tomorrow. Week two… Tuesday. Still not shipped. I called again and was told that they broke the frames by accident and my order was expedited, so they’d be going out “tomorrow.” Thursday… Online chat… The frames didn’t pass inspection. Guess what? They’re expediting my order and they’ll be out tomorrow. They’re going to put $10 toward my next order. Week three… The glasses arrive on Tuesday.
I pull out the glasses and look them over…There are gaps between the lenses and the frame. The lenses appear to be super-glued in place. I contact their customer service. They will issue me an RMA, without a shipping refund, per their policy. I must return them in 10 days. It’s explained in their online warranty policy. I can’t get replacements within 10 days and I’m not going to pay $500 at LensCrafters for same day glasses. So, I’m stuck with them. Even though they’re a defective product, I’m out 11 bucks in shipping charges.
Ahh, back to Zenni for some prescription sunglasses.
Ugh–what a pain! We got lucky in that at least our glasses turned out okay; I can’t imagine trying to deal with their customer service to get something fixed.
I just had a very similar and very negative experience with 39dollarglasses.com. Long delays in processing my order, poor quality workmanship, and very poor and rude customer service. I wish I had read your blog post first! I relied on the A+ rating they received from the BBB and promote on their website as an “accredited business”. After my horrible experience I complained to the BBB. All they did was forward my complaint to the business, which wrote an unapologetic and condescending response. Then the BBB marked my complaint as “resolved”! Incredible. And yet they refuse to publish neither the text of my complaint nor the company’s response on their website. Then I did some more internet searching and discovered that the BBB itself is a sham and takes money from companies to give them good ratings! See the 20/20 expose from a few years ago available on Youtube. All and all a very disheartening experience!
Sorry to hear you had a bad experience with the glasses….and I’m also sad to hear about the BBB! I’ve had good luck with them in the past (not with this company) as a last resort kind of thing, but sounds like I got lucky in that it DID get the companies to respond in my case. Thanks for the comment!
I’m also having shipping issues with 39dollarglasses. com. I ordered mine on may 27, and it says they are in the tinting process, been there for several days now. I aIso paid extra for the shipping. I ordered a pair from zenni the same day, got them last week, no problems with them at all. I also got a pair from my eye doctor, insurance covered those, received those also. I have sent 39dollarglasses a email 2 days ago, still no response! I hope when they finally arrive there are no problems.
Ugh! Hope they make it to you soon!
Update on my comment from June 4, 2015. Their customer service manager contacted me! It isn’t glue, as I thought, it’s a small strap that holds the lenses into the frame. I verified this with an optician. She really made things right. I’m pleasantly surprised! I recommend contacting their customer service via online chat vs. a phone call. So I’m now puzzled and somewhat embarrassed about my rant on here. Thanks for the blog and the opportunity to vent here! I hope others can get their issues resolved.
Glad to hear it! I did both online chat and e-mail when I was having problems….in my case, the online chat person just told me my glasses would ship the next day (they didn’t) and didn’t really seem to be able to/want to offer any kind of explanation about anything. Of course, I’d like to pretend that it’s my review here that’s made them up their game and fix the problems π
Guess I spoke too soon. I take back my earlier comment. This was my experience:
Firstly, they delay my order because my glasses did not pass the final inspection. Then they send a defective pair of glasses. It seemed to be an old used frame, and the left lens was not cut properly. There was a gap between the left lens and the frame. It seemed like they had made a mistake and had hoped it would slip below the radar.
I sent it back for a refund, but they are not refunding my money. Instead they claim they have sent the glasses back to me but I still have not received it after more than a month from my order.
They are not responding to any of my inquiries.
Ugh–sorry to hear it!
I love your blog, and I’m glad I found it because at least I know I have company as I kiss $75 goodbye forever because they refuse to refund full amount . .. As of August 2015, 39 Dollar Glasses still stinks. I have amnesia as to why I sent money to a company that is documented to have problems …. I just want you to know that it made me feel a LITTLE better to read this site. (btw, here’s a cheat sheet for anyone checking out this company: ” is 39dollarglasses good? “39dollarglasses ripoff, sham, poorly made, false claims). At least I found a cool blog…
ugh–so sorry you got ripped off! But glad you found the blog and hope you stick around–most of the time I’m not even ranting about crappy online glasses companies π
I bought glasses from GlassesUSA.com and one lens was too thick, so it didn’t fit in the frame properly. 25% was popping out of the frame and wouldn’t fit no matter how hard I tried to push it into the lens slot. The other lens had a TON of dime-sized blurry spots embedded inside of the lens itself, so whenever my pupil would move there would be fuzzy spots all over the place. When I tried to return them for 100% refund they REFUSED saying “we have NO defective lens return policy”. WTF?!?!?
This is the worst scamming company I have EVER had to deal with. Nothing can be solved on the phone- they make you email their “Returns Dept.” which NEVER replies if you want a cash refund. Also, everything comes from China and is cheap ***. And when the delays from shipping from China occur, they tell you the first pair of lenses didn’t pass their “Quality Control” and they are going to start over again, so 10 MORE DAYS DELAY. What I discovered later is that is simply a line of BS to cover up the fact that their lenses are made in China and they can’t possibly honor the timeframes posted on their website- it is simply another scam/lie to get you to buy from them.
And while they will, eventually, issue an in-store credit, they will try to wear you down when you want a cash refund, and if you GET one, they only give 80% of the LAST cash amount you paid! Bottom line I paid over $150.00 for DEFECTIVE lenses and they said they were barely going to refund 33% of that- a lousy $50.00!!! They are outright THIEVES!!
I ended up having to dispute this charge through MasterCard, and MasterCard agreed that GlassesUSA.com is a rip-off scam company, so they deducted my FULL purchase price from GlassesUSA.com and refunded it to my credit card permanently!! Awesome.
I will NEVER EVER go anywhere near GlassesUSA.com again, and unless you want a months long headache dealing with this POS company who will send you POS lenses and will NEVER give you a cash refund no matter how crappy their quality is DON’T EVER DO BUSINESS WITH THEM EVER!!!!
Ugh–that sounds awful!
I actually had a pretty good experience with 39dollarglasses.com – I’ve bought several pairs of glasses from them over the years. They did once send me single vision – distance instead of the single-vision – computer/nearby that I wanted, but I might have clicked on the wrong box.
The good experience was this year. I have a toddler who keeps grabbing my glasses and twisting them into pretzels. He quickly destroyed 3 pairs. I emailed 39dollarglasses and asked if they could sell me some new frames without lenses. The replied that my frames were under warranty, and sent me three new ones. Free!
Good to hear!
also check goggles4u. I’ve ordered from zenni & from goggles4u. comparable prices and pretty good experiences at both companies. I appreciate the info you’ve provided…I am just about to order and figured 39 would arrive many days earlier. It ain’t necessarily so!
Thanks for the tip! This reminds me that I actually need to order new glasses soon!
I live in Queensland Australia. For many years now I ordered glasses for my family. Not great volumes, mostly ONE sometimes TWO at the time. No problems whatsoever, delivery time due to distance always around 10-15 working day`s. Thank you 39 Dollar Glasses, you are a CHAMP!
WHAT DOES IT MEAN WHEN THEY SAY YOUR GLASSES DIDN’T PASS INSPECTION????
I assume it means they messed them up the first time, and they have to start over.
Nothing has changed there. They sent glasses in wrong frame and seem to care less about fixing the mistake after I had paid for OVERNIGHT shipping. Won’t be doing business again with them as they seem to not be concerned in any way.
ugh–sorry to hear it!
39 Dollar Glasses has terrible customer service and products! Next time I’ll be doing my due diligence and reading the reviews π
I sent in frames I purchased abroad to be re-lensed. 3 weeks after sending them in, I received an email saying they destroyed my frames. The company refused to pay for these hard to find frames and instead send me replacement ones. The replacements arrived and wouldn’t sit evenly on my face because they were clearly very cheap and unevenly molded.
Needless to say I sent them back. Now the company has the audacity to not reimburse me for the original frames they destroyed. Their products are cheap and inferior and their customer service is horrible. I recommend everyone run far away from 39 dollar glasses.
ugh! sorry to hear you had such a bad experience!
To Gretchen,
Im sorry you had a bad experience. I had a great one. I have very little money and after getting my prescription/eye exam at Walmart i splurged and bought expensive “tri focals” and “progressive” lenses which i HATED and paid a huge amount for and ended up eating the cost of glasses i could not stand to wear.
So…. i sent in an order to $39 eyeglasses and was very very happy with the speed of delivery and the frames. I changed my order to NOT be tri focal but kept it simple…one pair for close up use and another for driving. Sure one of the frames was not a perfect initial fit…after all some frames run large and small (nose bridge etc) so if you can try on frames THEN order that is ideal. But i simply adjusted the nose bridge myself and that pair fit me well. If you feel you need a pro to adjust your frames…call your optomatrist for help or a contact.
Also you can mail $39 frames your existing frames or frames you bought/fitted elsewhere and they will happily install your new lenses,
Right now i need a new prescription which i plan to get done at Walmart and i will again use $39 frames and lenses for my new glasses! I am older now so i think i will try bi-focal lenses and again stay far far away from any sort of “tri-focals”.
glad you had a good experience! We’ve since switched to Zenni, which is a little cheaper even than 39 dollar glasses and we’ve been very happy with the products and service.
What a bunch of whiners we’ve all become! I swear. If one wants exemplary customer service along with a high quality product, then go to your local optometrist and pay $$$. If you dont want to pay $$$, then one must level set their expectations.
Another great option is to try out one of the many other online glasses places to find out if competitive pricing coupled with decent customer service does in fact exist. We’ve ordered from Zenni three times since our 39 Dollar Glasses order and been very pleased with the product and service each time.
$39 Glasses used to be good now they are not. I would not recommend buying anything from them.
Ordered standard lens glasses three weeks ago. I’m still waiting. I’ll never order from this company again.