FramesDirect Review

About FramesDirect

Based in Austin, Texas, FramesDirect is one of the first online-based eyewear companies to hit the Internet, getting their start in 1996. From their long history online, FramesDirect has been able to build up a successful online eyeglass business, selling a large selection of prescription eyewear from designer brands. The founders of the brand are two optometrists by the names of Dr. Cooper and Dr. Hodgson.

Knowledge and Simple Ordering Process

It really seems like the company tries its hardest to make everything as easy as possible for customers to minimize any frustration. For example, the actual ordering process is super simple: pick the lenses you like, provide your prescription, an expert optometrist reviews your prescription, your glasses are ordered direct from the manufacturer, and then your new glasses are shipped right to your door.

We think one of the most comforting aspects of this process for customers is knowing that his or her prescription is reviewed by an optometrist before being shipped out. In fact, there’s something about using the FramesDirect website in general that seems very comforting. There’s a sense that the people behind FramesDirect really know what they’re talking about when it comes to eyewear.

FramesDirect doesn’t just seem like any website that is selling glasses at a low cost to customers. Instead they really seem to know what they’re talking about and provide real value to their customers by offering reassuring and knowledgeable customer service.

Our FramesDirect Review

In order to give you best possible review, we put 5 separate pairs of glasses (2 sunglasses, 3 prescription glasses) through rigorous tests to measure their durability, build quality, and overall satisfaction as glasses-wearers. We hope it helps you make your online glasses buying easier!

FramesDirect Lens Quality 8/10

Now, some people might feel a little hesitant getting their prescription filled online, especially if you’re relying on your glasses heavily for vision needs. FramesDirect takes some of the fear out of this process with their yearlong manufacturer’s warranty and 30-day lens guarantee. The yearlong manufacturer’s warranty covers defects like cracking and/or peeling coatings.

Not only this, but FramesDirect guarantees that if in the first 30 days of owning your new glasses, you’re not completely satisfied with your lenses, they’ll replace the lenses, free of charge.

Additionally, if your optometrist changes your prescription within 30 days of your order, they will replace your lenses at no charge (if this occurs in 31-90 days after your prescription is filled, they’ll replace the lens at 50% of the retail cost).

It’s comforting to know that each prescription filled undergoes a rigorous 6-step process to ensure that lenses are delivered to customers at the highest quality.

FramesDirect will even call you prior to filling your prescription to verify all the information. When it comes to quality, our review showed they were very concerned with getting everything right.

Of course we understand it’s important to look into what customers are saying about the product, and we found a significant number of customers were very pleased with the quality of their lenses. One customer said she was very pleased with the accuracy of her new lenses and another customer praised the quality of his new lenses.

We did find one review from a customer who claimed her lenses were popping out of the frames and did not fit properly. However, with most companies and brands, there are generally always a couple negative reviews and issues. As a whole, we found that the majority of customers were pleased with their lenses. FramesDirect is definitely a company that we would trust with prescription lenses.

FramesDirect Frame Quality 9/10

FramesDirect stands behind the quality of their frames. They are so concerned with providing the highest quality frames that they have a 12-month manufacturer’s warranty. If your glasses arrive and have any of the following frame quality issues, they company will provide you with a full refund: striped screws, broken nosepad posts, broken or loose hinges, dislodged jewels or logos, oxidation or discoloration.

Not only do they provide customers with the assurance of knowing that they stand behind the quality of their frames, but customers also have reassurance knowing that glasses sold by FramesDirect are not simply private label frames from various manufacturers.

The glasses we reviewed are the same designer labels you can get in any physical retail store.

They have 250 brands, including Prada, Burberry, and DKNY. So, if you trust the quality of your favorite brands, then you shouldn’t be disappointed with FramesDirect. Essentially, when it comes to frame quality, there is no difference in purchasing your frames from a physical retail store/optometrist office or with FramesDirect.

We also think it’s great that the retailer offers different frame sizes, which makes sense since not everyone has the same sized head or shape. They have a size chart if customers feel confident enough to figure out their own size, but they also suggest customers call them directly to speak with an expert.

Lastly, we wanted to take a look at what customers were saying about their new frames. We did find a couple of negative reviews about the company in general; however, we found it much more difficult to find a review that specifically mentioned any issues with the quality of frames.

There was one customer who had an issue with the nose piece on her glasses, but as promised, FramesDirect fixed the issue at no cost to the customer. Some of the words used to describe frames by customers were: perfect, great quality, work perfectly, exactly as described, perfect condition, and many other praises.

FramesDirect Style 9/10

When it comes to style, FramesDirect definitely does not disappoint. With over 250 designer glasses to choose from in various colors and styles, there really is something for everyone. When you consider that these brands are coming from designer labels that follow all the latest fashion trends, you really can’t beat FramesDirect’s style options.

FramesDirect Customer Service 8/10

FramesDirect considers their customer service to be the most important aspect of their business. We appreciate that not only can you email them and expect to be answered within 2 business days, but you can call to speak with someone directly.

Their phone line is available 6 days/week. Not only will you be able to speak with someone if an issue does arise, but all of the customer service agents are trained optometrists, meaning customers can trust that the agents they speak with truly understand eye-related issues.

As mentioned above, the company has both a one-year manufacturer’s warranty and a 30-day money back guarantee (see “Quality” section for more details). Also, on their website they have a link that easily guides customers through the process of returning or exchanging their glasses, which helps minimize the often stressful situation of returning an online purchase.

We looked to customer reviews on FramesDirect’s customer service, and found that the majority of reviews were positive. Like this one:

But, unfortunately, there were also reviews like this:

We figure there are always going to be some negative reviews and some instances where customer service isn’t at its best. However, having an 8.8/10 rating from Trust Pilot (a popular review website), based off 11, 424 reviews is definitely an amazing rating.

FramesDirect Cost 9/10

When it comes to shopping online for designer eyewear at a reasonable cost, you can’t get lower prices than on FramesDirect. In general, their glasses are sold at about 30% off of what you would find at a regular retail store.

Also, they have a price match guarantee, meaning if you find frames on another website that are being sold for less, you can let them know and they’ll match the price. There are a couple exceptions and a handful of brands that don’t qualify for price matching, but for the most part, we think price match is a huge bonus and reassurance that you won’t pay more than necessary.

It should be noted, however, that while they do offer the lowest price on designer eyewear, it is still  designer eyewear, which comes at a relatively high price. For example, if you’re looking at Burberry frames, you can expect to pay upwards of $200. This isn’t exactly cheap, but in the world of designer frames, you will save some money shopping with FramesDirect.

FramesDirect Review Final Thoughts

We definitely think that looking into FramesDirect is something that eyeglass wearers should do. If you can get your favorite, designer eyewear for a cheaper price, why not?

The retailer has an excellent return policy, and based off the several others experiences, it seems that they have decent good customer service too.

If you don’t want to pay full retail price on designer eyewear, FramesDirect is a solid choice.