WebEyeCare: Everything You Need to Know Before You Buy

WebEyeCare is an online retailer that allows you to buy contacts, eyeglasses, and sunglasses of various types and styles. The company also offers online vision testing, letting you quickly and efficiently find out your prescription to ease the online ordering process.

Basics of WebEyeCare

WebEyeCare is an online eyewear retailer that sells contacts, eyeglasses, and sunglasses. They have a wide selection of products, including both relatively affordable options as well as options from more expensive premium brands.

Based on the density of their reviews, it seems they are a somewhat smaller operation compared to bigger online retailers like Zenni and EyeBuyDirect. However, they still appear to be a large company, with a robust selection, the ability to ship to most countries, and a variety of payment options available.

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Pros & Cons of WebEyeCare

Discussed more later, WebEyeCare allows a customer to get their vision assessed through their site, making it easy to determine which type of eyeglass or contact prescription you may need. The company also makes it easy to find which of their products are on sale. 

They also have a section of their site dedicated to coupons you can claim for free. For example, at times, you can obtain a coupon for $15 off an order of $150 or more if you sign up for their mailing list and give some basic contact information.

Cons of this company’s services include the fact they’re a smaller operation and the flow of their site seemed subjectively a bit simpler and less easy to follow compared to other options, such as EyeBuyDirect. Based on reviews, there have been some issues with the company’s return policies. 

There also are reports of other issues, such as customers not getting the products they ordered and processing fees, intentionally or not, hiding the true cost of a purchase until right before you submit an order. This can make cost comparisons more difficult.

Selection

As of the time of writing, WebEyeCare lists 177 “men” and 167 “women” type frames on their store, with 75 of frames noted as “unisex.” In total, they appear to have 355 glasses frames for sale and 68 sunglass frames for sale. 

Lenses come in most of the standard types, with reader/distance lenses and progressive lenses available, as well as non-prescription lenses. The company has lenses split into “packages,” with a basic package not coming with any enhancements beyond being prescription lenses. Better packages offer thinner material and, at the two highest levels, an anti-glare coating. You can also get enhancements, including tinting and the ability to have lenses transition in different light conditions.

The company offers contact lenses from most major brands and in a variety of types, including daily, weekly, and monthly lenses. Lenses are available in several different types of correction levels as well as in colors. 

Costs & Returns

Contact lens costs range from about $45 to $90 for a 3-month supply, with daily, weekly, and monthly options often being comparable in price for the same length of time when using brands that offered lenses of multiple types (like Acuvue) as a comparison point. 

Frames are available at both premium prices and budget prices, with an option to select frames priced at under $50 and further sort for low-priced options. 

Prescription lenses bought with only the basic package cost $39. Their recommended “Gold” package costs $109. These lenses are made of polycarbonate rather than thicker plastic CR-39, and they come with an anti-glare coating. Enhancements can raise the price of lenses further, with transition or polarized sunglass tinting costing about $65. 

Shipping costs aren’t available in an easy-to-see format on the site until reviewing your order summary. Costs seemed fairly typical, with ground shipping that takes five to seven days listed as free, ground shipping that takes three to seven days costs about $10, and faster air shipping options are available at a higher cost. 

For cheaper frames, it appears standard ground shipping isn’t free. A pair of frames that costs under $60 incurs a shipping charge of $7.95. 

As has been highlighted throughout this article, WebEyeCare’s return policy is one of their weakest areas. While you can return items within 30 days of delivery for a full refund, they must be new and unopened (and even then, they state most items can be returned in these conditions). They will only pay the shipping costs on such returns if the return is due to an error on the part of the company. 

This seems to be the only type of established, guaranteed return policy the company has. This is not to say the company may not also offer the ability to return a product in other cases, such as if it is defective but you also opened the product, but it doesn’t say as much on their site. 

What You Need to Know Before Ordering

Before ordering, you will need a prescription to input, assuming you want corrective lenses. It appears the site doesn’t allow a person to purchase prescription lenses that cannot be verified with a doctor, with some reviews we read expressing some frustration at the fact the company needed to verify a prescription even if the customer was certain the numbers inputted were correct. 

Subscription Services

WebEyeCare offers the ability to subscribe for repeated contact lens deliveries, allowing for a 15% off discount on your first order, a 10% discount on additional orders, a free shipping upgrade, and a dedicated customer service representative to help with your eyewear needs. Subscriptions can be on a 1-month, 3-month, or 6-month interval, and it’s easy to change the frequency of a subscription.

Subscriptions aren’t available for eyeglass purchases. 

What Types of Discounts Are Offered?

WebEyeCare makes it easy to see which of their products are on sale and has a page dedicated to coupons you can use on purchases. The company claims you have the potential to save up to 70 percent off what you’d pay in a doctor’s office, although this is admittedly a fairly broad claim. 

Insurance Information

Insurance claims made through WebEyeCare will all qualify as using an out-of-network provider. This can complicate coverage, but it is still often possible to get some or all of your costs reimbursed by submitting a claim to your vision insurance provider. 

The company claims it can take two to three weeks for the reimbursement to be sent to you after a claim is approved.

Does WebEyeCare Offer Online Vision Assessments?

WebEyeCare offers both contacts vision testing and glasses vision testing, with tests costing $34.99. Following your test, the company states an eye care provider licensed in your state will send your new prescription to you within 1 – 2 business days. This testing is available to adults between the ages of 18 to 45 who have otherwise healthy eyes beyond needing prescription eyewear. It is available in most, although not all, states.

Reviews

Reviews for WebEyeCare are mostly positive, although there are enough reviews noting issues with their return policies that it doesn’t seem to be a few isolated cases of customers being dissatisfied with this part of the process. Some issues regarding returns we noted from online reviews on Sitejabber include the following:

• There is no obvious way to track the status of a return.
• There are reports that a product can only be returned if unopened, with a customer paying for shipping and not having an easy-to-use return label.
• There is a significant restocking fee for contacts that are returned.

Alternatives to WebEyeCare

Two options worth researching before using WebEyeCare include EyeBuyDirect and Zenni. Both these options are well reviewed, including in this article from The New York Times comparing them. The author found EyeBuyDirect especially appealing, noting its superior selection and consistent quality. It did, however, find Zenni could have a superior price point, at least in some cases.

Is WebEyeCare Worth It?

Some information may be obscured on their site to make it harder to compare pricing with other retailers, and the company’s return policy is somewhat limited. This isn’t to say the company won’t provide what was ordered or is otherwise an illegitimate retailer. Instead, it needs to be compared to other online options, which we recommend you do before committing to a purchase with WebEyeCare.

While they offer an online vision test, this is not a replacement for an in-person comprehensive vision exam. As a result, it’s best to simply visit an eye doctor in person to ensure you are protecting your overall eye health and getting an accurate prescription.

References

1. WebEyeCare. WebEyeCare.

2. Exams. WebEyeCare.

3. WebEyeCare Coupons. WebEyeCare.

4. Subscriptions. WebEyeCare.

5. Shipping & Returns. WebEyeCare.

6. Help Insurance. WebEyeCare.

7. WebEyeCare. Sitejabber.

8. The Best Places to Buy Glasses Online. (December 2022). The New York Times.