Cheap Contact Lenses With Free Shipping — Top 5 Sites
By Julie Sennett
·6 min read
So you're in need of new contact lenses. That means it's time to get into money saver mode and track down all the websites that offer cheap contact lenses online with free shipping. I'm going to help you do just that!
How Important is Free Shipping?
If you're looking for rock bottom prices on contact lenses, the internet is hands down the place to be looking. But as we all know, the price is only the price.
If shipping and handling fees are not included, prices can be deceiving.
By the same token, don't automatically discount websites that do charge for shipping. Sometimes, the prices on those websites are SO LOW that even with the shipping fee, you would still end up paying less than a different site with higher prices and free shipping.
In this article, I will make sense of all of this for you, and help you locate the website that will set you back the least for your specific brand of contact lenses.
Cheap Contact Lenses Online With Free Shipping
Coastal.com
Coastal.com's website spells out 3 very clear promises:
- Free Shipping — On glasses and contact lens orders
- Free Returns — Contact us for the return label
- We'll always make it right
Although Coastal.com does not charge you for shipping, their prices are a little bit higher compared to other websites. For this reason, I recommend you locate the lowest price for your brand using the Contacts Advice price comparison page.
1800contacts.com
1800contacts.com offers:
- Fast, Free Shipping — On All Web Orders
- Unbeatable Price Guarantee — We'll Beat Any Price
- Contact Lens Specialist — Live Chat Available 24/7
Many assume that 1800contacts.com must be the best place to purchase contact lenses online because they are so well known. In fact, their prices for every single brand can be beaten. Check the Contacts Advice price comparison page to see exactly where the lowest price for each brand can be found.
ContactsDirect.com
ContactsDirect.com has a very simple policy when it comes to shipping: it's free shipping on every order. Period.
However, before you get too excited about this website, it's important to know that ContactsDirect.com prices are quite high.
For example, at the time of my research, a single box of Dailies AquaComfort Plus was:
- ContactsDirect.com: $30.99
- Coastal.com: $18.00
- DiscountContactLenses.com: $19.99
The good thing about ContactsDirect.com is that you can use your vision insurance or your flexible spending account to buy your contact lenses online on this site.
WalmartContacts.com
Much like its competitors, WalmartContacts.com also has free shipping on all contact lens orders.
WalmartContacts.com's prices are good and bad. For a few brands, they offer the lowest price of all sites, but for the majority of brands, their prices are quite high compared to other sites. Before buying contacts from WalmartContacts.com, I would advise consulting the Contacts Advice price comparison page to see if you can find a better price.
Walgreens.com
On Walgreens.com, you get free standard shipping on all contact lens orders.
The downside of Walgreens.com is that their prices are high. Very high. Sometimes as high as double the lowest price found on other websites.
The reason I think their prices are so high is that Walgreens.com often runs coupons for 20% off all their contact lenses. This makes it appear as though you're receiving a great deal, but my weekly price comparisons show that their prices are much higher than 20% above the prices found on other sites.
You can see how prices at Walgreens.com compare to all other websites on the Contacts Advice price comparison page.
Cheap Contact Lenses Online Without Free Shipping
DiscountContactLenses.com
At DiscountContactLenses.com, for most people, there is going to be free shipping. They offer free shipping for orders over $99.
For most people, a 1 year supply of contact lenses is well over $100. For many people, even a 6-month supply brings them above the $100 mark. However, if your order doesn't add up to $100, you will be charged $5.99 for shipping.
Note: even with the $5.99 shipping fee on a small order, you can still end up paying less at DiscountContactLenses.com than at a site with higher prices and free shipping. That is why you need to look at more than just free shipping when you shop for contact lenses online.
Lens.com
Lens.com is the website that consistently has some of the lowest prices for contact lenses overall.
HOWEVER...
Lens.com does not have free shipping. For every order, you will be charged $7.95 for shipping and a handling fee that depends on how large your order is.
The question is, do Lens.com's low prices make up for their shipping and handling fee? The answer depends on what brand you're buying and how many boxes you're getting. Lens.com gives massive volume discounts. If you tend to purchase 1 year's supply of contact lenses at a time, it's very likely that the volume discount will far outweigh the shipping and handling fee.
Your best tool for comparing is the Contacts Advice price comparison page, which shows total cost including shipping for all major retailers.
ContactLensKing.com
ContactLensKing.com does not offer free shipping on any orders. However, they do have the lowest price on certain brands. If your brand is one of those, it's worth seeing what the total would be with shipping and handling, and if it's still lower than other websites with free shipping, then you've got a great deal on your hands.
ACLens.com
ACLens.com offers free standard shipping on orders over $99. For orders less than $99, shipping is $5.99.
ACLens.com has the lowest price for many brands. Combined with free shipping if your order is over $99, this makes ACLens.com one of the best places to purchase contact lenses from. However, be sure to consult the Contacts Advice price comparison page to make sure that ACLens.com has the lowest price for your brand.
LensDirect.com
LensDirect.com practically offers free shipping on all orders, though technically their policy states otherwise. When testing with a mock order below their minimum, shipping was still waived. However, there is a small processing fee of approximately 3% of your total order.
Summary
Between these top websites, you are sure to find the absolute lowest price for your contact lenses on the internet.
Practical Guide For Selecting The Best Website
- Consult the Contacts Advice price comparison page.
- If the lowest price for your brand is at one of the sites with free shipping, that's your best option.
- If the lowest price for your brand is at one of the sites without free shipping, then:
- Add up the total from the site with the lowest price + shipping
- Compare that with the total from the site with the second lowest price for your brand
If you get your contact lenses from a website other than the ones mentioned above, please mention where in the comments below!
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